Chat-World » he Commodores play so well, will probably help Bucknell.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Slow starts doomed Bucknell to two double-digit losses earlier in the season.The Bison started slow again Monday night against Vanderbilt, but this recovered for an upset win.Zach Thomas scored 17 points and Stephen Brown and Nana Foulland both added 15 to lead Bucknell in a 75-72 upset of Vanderbilt in the campus portion of the Las Vegas Invitational.Bucknells last win over a Southeastern Conference team was a 59-55 victory over Arkansas in the 2006 NCAA Tournament.We played at Wake Forest and we got blown out there, and then we played at Butler and we got blown out, Thomas said. We got off to a bad start here, but we battled back and showed our toughness tonight and that was a big win for us.Things looked bad for the Bison (3-2) when the Commodores (2-2) hit eight of their first nine shots from the floor, including their first five, to take an early nine-point lead.But a 16-4 run reversed the momentum and Bucknell led 40-38 at halftime.Vanderbilts Matthew Fisher-Davis scored 23 points, including a 3-pointer that tied the game at 65-all with 3:38 left.He had a chance to send the game into overtime, but made only 2 of 3 foul shots with 5.2 seconds left, narrowing Bucknells lead to 73-72.I was just praying hed miss one and he did, and that helped us out, Thomas said.Fisher-Davis finished 4 of 7 from 3-point range.Kimball Mackenzie added two foul shots for Bucknell with 4.1 seconds left. Foulland grabbed 12 rebounds.Hopefully, it will show our guys what theyre capable of, understanding that were not nearly where we need to be to get to where we want to go, but its all there in front of us, Bison coach Nathan Davis said.Luke Kornet scored 19 points and Riley LaChance had 10 points and six assists for Vanderbilt.The lead changed hands seven times early in the second half before an 8-0 spurt by Bucknell gave the Bison a 63-56 lead with 10:48 left and Vanderbilt coach Bryce Drew called a time out.Credit Bucknell, Drew said. They made shots tonight, they played with a lot of passion coming off a game they didnt play as well. They definitely showed a lot of urgency, a lot of energy tonight.With the win, the Bison improved to 4-9 against SEC teams.They had some spurts where we had a lot of trouble scoring the ball, Kornet said. They were disciplined offensively and defensively. They just did a good job of working to get good shots and then they hit them when they got them.BIG PICTUREBucknell: The Bison suffered two double-digit losses earlier in the season, but showed their resiliency against Vanderbilt.Vanderbilt: The Commodores almost sent the game into overtime, but Fisher-Davis couldnt get a crucial foul shot to drop late despite playing an impressive game overall.BENCH SUPPORTA lot of Bucknell bench players contributed to the win. Avi Toomer, the freshman, came in and gave us an edge when we werent getting stops and we needed it, Davis said. I thought Nate Sestina did the same thing. D.J. MacLeay and Mackenzie also played strong defensively.CONFIDENCE BUILDERGetting a win at Vanderbilt, where the Commodores play so well, will probably help Bucknell. Last year we played a lot of teams really close and didnt get over the hump, Davis said. Hopefully, today they got over the hump and they understand how hard it is and how much effort youve got to give.UP NEXTBucknell plays Norfolk State at the Las Vegas Invitational on Thursday before meeting Sacred Heart or Northern Colorado the next day.Vanderbilt faces Butler at the Las Vegas Invitational on Thursday before playing No. 8 Arizona or Santa Clara on Friday. Brad Daugherty Jersey . They had already blown a double-digit lead, fans were hitting the exits, and a long seven-game road trip waited at the end. Larry Nance Jr. Cavaliers Jersey . Duchene scored two goals and had an assist, helping the Colorado Avalanche beat the Carolina Hurricanes 4-2 on Friday night to match the best 10-game start in team history. http://www.cavaliersbasketballpro.info/kevin-love-cavaliers-jersey/ . Toronto has dropped games to Indiana and Miami since a five-game winning streak and closed out a three-game road trip at 1-2. LeBron James Cavaliers Jersey . Vokoun departed practice on Saturday morning after discovering swelling in his thigh. He was taken to a local hospital where the clot was revealed. The club announced the surgery following a 5-3 exhibition loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets. Kyrie Irving Cavaliers Jersey . -- Golden State Warriors coach Mark Jackson asked his players a simple question during Fridays morning shootaround: How many of them had ever been on a team 14 games over . Claressa Shields, the two-time U.S. Olympic middleweight gold medalist and the No. 1 amateur womens boxer in the world, is going pro.Shields, a 21-year-old from Flint, Michigan, will make her professional debut on Nov. 19 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on the undercard of the HBO PPV fight between unified light heavyweight titleholder Sergey Kovalev and Andre Ward, organizers announced on Tuesday.Shields will face an opponent to be determined in a four-round super middleweight bout. She won her gold medals at 165 pounds, but her pro debut is contracted at the professional super middleweight limit of 168 pounds.Shields bout will not be part of the HBO PPV telecast but will be televised live as part of the freeview beginning at 7 p.m. ET.Shields made American Olympic history in August when she became the first boxer, male or female, to defend a gold medal. She won gold as a 17-year-old at the 2012 Olympics in London and repeated this year in Rio de Janeiro, rolling through her draw virtually unchallenged.She is the most decorated female amateur in history. Besides two Olympic gold medals, she is a four-time U.S. national champion, two-time world amateur champion, 2015 Pan American Games gold medalist, two-time AIBA female boxer of the year and the recipient of the Val Barker award for most outstanding female fighter at the Rio Games.After working hard for so many years and having the honor to represent my country at two Olympic Games, I am thrilled to take the next big step in my career, fighting professionally and leading the rise of womens boxing worldwide, Shields said. There is no better place to begin the journey then to join the biggest fight of the year, Kovalev vs. Ward, and to fight alonggside my idol and fellow U.dddddddddddd. Olympic gold medalist Andre Ward. I cant wait to entertain the fans on Nov. 19.Ward is the last American man to win an Olympic gold medal in boxing, doing so at the 2004 Athens Games.According to Mark Taffet, the former HBO Sports senior vice president who is now co-managing Shields with Jamie Fritz, Shields is not tied to either of the Nov. 19 card co-promoters, Main Events or Roc Nation Sports.Claressa wanted to debut on the biggest fight of the year and on the card with her idol, Andre Ward, so we spoke with the promoters and entered into a one-fight agreement with Roc Nation Sports for her have professional debut on the Kovalev-Ward card, Taffet said.Taffet and Fritz added in a joint statement, Claressa Shields is a uniquely talented and special young woman. At just 21 years old, she is a once-in-a-lifetime type athlete whose talent inside the ring and charisma outside of it gives her the potential to be a trailblazer for womens boxing and for all of boxing for years to come.Michael Yormark, Roc Nation president and chief of branding and strategy, said making a deal to have Shields debut on the card was a no-brainer.Claressa Shields is about to take the boxing world by storm and we are honored to host her professional debut as part of an already loaded fight card, Yormark said. Claressas unique blend of talent, style and charisma make the two-time Olympian a rising force to be reckoned with in the boxing world and beyond.Shields went 6-0 in Olympic competition, finished her amateur career 77-1, and has not lost since 2012. ' ' '