National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Bucknell 70, Purdue 65
When: 7:00 PM ET, Friday, November 9, 2012
Where: Mackey Arena, West Lafayette, Indiana
Officials: # Jim Bruno, # Rodney Markovich, # Todd Van Sosan
Attendance: 13090

Bucknell 70, Purdue 65: Cameron Ayers scored a game-high 18 points and Mike Muscala added 14 points and 10 rebounds as the Bison rallied past the host Boilermakers in the season opener for both teams.

Trailing 33-27 at halftime, Bucknell started the second half on a 9-2 run and the game stayed close the rest of the way before the Bison took the lead for good 58-57 with 4:36 remaining after a pair of free throws by Joe Willman.

Purdue, which trailed by five late, cut the Bison lead to 66-65 on Anthony Johnson's short jumper with 10 seconds left, but Bucknell made four straight free throws to ice the win.

Donnie Hale scored a career-high 15 points to lead the Boilermakers, who saw their 26-game non-conference homecourt winning streak come to an end. Ronnie Johnson and D.J. Byrd added 12 each as Purdue lost for the first time ever against a team from the Patriot League.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Bucknell registered its first-ever win against a current member of the Big Ten Conference. Its previous victory over Penn State came before the Nittany Lions joined the league ... Purdue junior swingman Terone Johnson did not play due to an ankle injury, according to the team website. ... Purdue is now 79-10 in season-openers at home, falling to 27-5 at Mackey Arena.

Top Game Performances
 
Bucknell   Purdue
Cameron Ayers 18 Scoring Donnie Hale 15
Ryan Hill 3 Assists Anthony Johnson 9
Mike Muscala 10 Rebounds Ronnie Johnson 6
Bryson Johnson 6 Free Throws Made D.J. Byrd 2
Cameron Ayers 1 Steals Anthony Johnson 2
Joe Willman 1 Blocks Travis Carroll 1
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Bucknell 70 42.1 2-10 20-25 12 32 1 3 8
Purdue 65 45.9 2-16 7-15 16 31 4 4 9