The Matchup
- Loyola begins Patriot League tournament play with a quarterfinal matchup at top-seeded Bucknell on Sunday afternoon.
- This will be the fourth tournament meeting between the two sides. Bucknell holds a 2-1 edge, most-recently topping the Greyhounds 88-63 in the 2019 quarterfinal round.
- The lone Loyola playoff victory was a 65-53 triumph in the 2016 semifinals, which were held at Army. That win advanced the Greyhounds to their lone Patriot League championship game appearance since joining the conference prior to the 2013-14 season.
Last Weekend
- The Greyhounds suffered a pair of defeats to Lafayette to conclude the regular season on Feb. 27-28. The Leopards earned a 47-35 home victory on Saturday, holding Loyola to its lowest scoring total since Dec. 9, 2014, and overcame a 30-29 halftime deficit to secure a 70-45 win in the rematch at Reitz Arena on Sunday.
- Isabella Therien led Loyola in scoring both contests, contributing 12 points and a career-high 15 rebounds on Saturday, and adding 10 points and eight boards the following afternoon.
- Charia Roberts played a season-high 30 minutes on Saturday, setting new career-bests in points (8), assists (2) and steals (2) while also grabbing six rebounds. She added seven points and six boards on Sunday.
- Natalie Kucowski led Lafayette with 26 points, 22 rebounds, eight blocks and seven steals across the two games. The Leopards hit 10 of 20 attempts from 3-point range on Sunday.
Therien Earns All-Patriot League Accolades
- Isabella Therien was honored as Loyola's ninth All-Patriot League selection in the past eight years on Wednesday, as she landed on the third team after leading the Greyhounds in both scoring (12.3 ppg) and rebounding (7.3 rpg).
- She also leads the Greyhounds and is ranked tied for third in the conference in 3-point FG% (43.8, 14-32). Therien has hit 13 of her last 23 attempts from long distance.
- Therien has reached double figures in seven of Loyola's last eight games, including double-doubles vs. American (16 pts, 10 reb) on Feb. 21 and Lafayette last Saturday.
- The 2018 Patriot League Rookie of the Year, Therien has averaged 14.1 points per game across 54 appearances during her collegiate career.
Other Tournament Action
- The winner of Sunday's Loyola/Bucknell matchup will face either No. 4 Lehigh (7-5 PL, 3-5 division) or No. 5 Holy Cross (7-7, 6-5) in Thursday's semifinal round, with the higher seed earning the right to host.
- Holy Cross and Lehigh tip-off at 2 p.m. Sunday afternoon.
- Other quarterfinal matchups include No. 7 Lafayette (5-7, 1-5) at No. 2 Boston University (10-2, 9-1) and No. 6 Army West Point (6-8, 5-7) at No. 3 American (6-2, 6-1).
- This year's Patriot League Championship game will be held at 4 p.m. on Sunday, March 14 at the site of the highest remaining seed. CBS Sports Network will televise the final.
- Bucknell won the most-recently completed Patriot League tournament in 2019, topping American by a 66-54 final in the championship game.
Series History
- Bucknell leads 21-8 in a series which dates back to 1984.
- The Bison have won 16 of 19 meetings since Loyola's arrival in the Patriot League, including a weekend sweep to begin the 2020-21 season on January 2-3.
- Bucknell led from start-to-finish in a 72-44 home win on Jan. 2. The two teams were tied at 34 apiece late in the third quarter of the rematch at Reitz, but the Bison outscored Loyola by a 19-8 margin in the fourth to close out a 59-44 victory.
- Loyola's win at Sojka Pavilion was a 68-65 triumph on Jan. 17, 2018. That victory snapped Bucknell's 25-game home winning streak against Patriot League opponents.
Scouting Bucknell
- The two-time defending Patriot League regular season champions, the Bison (8-0) have not played since sweeping a weekend series with Lehigh on Jan. 30-31 due to COVID-19 protocols.
- Bucknell leads Division I in assist to turnover ratio (+1.7), is ranked third nationally in FT% (81.5) and is seventh in DI in 3FG% (39.5).
- Sr. F Tessa Brugler and Jr. G Taylor O'Brien were both first team All-Patriot League selections, while Trevor Woodruff was chosen as the 2021 Patriot League Coach of the Year.
- Bucknell has won 24-straight home games against conference opposition, including a 4-0 mark this season.
Quick Notes
- Loyola's team FT percentage of 73.8 continues to rank third in the Patriot League. Top contributors to that percentage include Delaney Connolly (90.0. 9-10), Laryn Edwards (87.5, 7-8), Isabella Therien (81.0, 17-21) and Caramina Tañedo (80.0, 8-10).
- Tañedo made her first collegiate start last Saturday at Lafayette, totaling five points and a pair of steals. She then set season-highs in both points (8) and minutes played (34) the following afternoon at Reitz.
- Bri Rozzi returned to the starting lineup on Sunday and set season-bests in minutes played (31), rebounds (6) and assists (5). Those five assists also matched a career high.
- Bella Steidle and Kayla Seiper both saw game action for the first time since January on Sunday. Steidle scored her first collegiate points, totaling four points in a season-high 13 minutes, while Sieper converted her lone field goal attempt in the fourth quarter.
McAteer Looks to Return to Scoring Form
- Emily McAteer has been limited to 18 points in the past three games after reaching double figures in seven of the previous eight contests.
- She totaled a season-high 19 points during Loyola's first matchup with Lafayette on Jan. 30, hitting 7 of 15 field goal attempts, and she just missed out on a double-double with 12 points and nine boards at American on Feb. 20.
- McAteer has been ranked in the top 10 among PL defenders in blocks throughout the season. She is currently 10th with 11 blocks overall on the year.
- Five of those blocks came in the opening weekend against Bucknell, including a career-high three rejections at Sojka Pavilion on Jan. 2.
- McAteer was a Patriot League All-Rookie Team selection last winter after averaging 7.6 points and 5.5 rebounds in Loyola's 18 conference games.
Dixon Remains No. 3 Scoring Threat
- Taleah Dixon has been among Loyola's scoring leaders throughout the season, and she currently ranks third on the team at 8.4 points per game.
- Dixon has reached double figures on five occasions, totaling a season-high 14 points against Bucknell (Jan. 2) and American (Feb. 20).
- Dixon has also earned Loyola's most trips to the free throw line, where she is shooting 71.1% (27-38) overall.
- Dixon totaled a career-high 26 points (11-11 FT) in Loyola's 2019 quarterfinal matchup at Bucknell. She missed the entire 2019-20 season due to injury.
