City of Basketball Love

Stephen Pianovich (@SPianovich)
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When first-year Bucknell coach Nathan Davis started watching film of his new team after accepting the job in April, he immediately noticed Nana Foulland’s combination of skills and size.

When he saw the sophomore on the court this fall, he noticed a different player than the one he saw on video.

“He’s improved tremendously from what I saw on film to now,” Davis said. “He can do a lot of different things, and he has the chance to have a special year and a special career.”

Foulland, a Berks Catholic and Team Final alum, is viewed as one of the top big men in the Patriot League heading into his second year -- with his coaches drooling and opponents fearing what he could develop into in the next three seasons.

The 6-foot-9, 225-pound forward was second on the team in scoring (10.2 ppg) and was the Bison’s best rebounder (5.4 rpg) and rim defender (37 blocks) last season. He started in all of the team’s 34 games under former coach Dave Paulsen (who left for George Mason), becoming the first Bucknell freshman to start the opener in half a decade. He landed on the conference’s All-freshman team and is a strong candidate to get on the All-league team this season.

Foulland, of course, watched that same film of himself in the offseason. And one thing stuck out to him that he wants to adjust in the upcoming campaign.

“A lot of times in games, I wouldn’t be too aggressive, I was a little passive and trying to feel out the game for a bit before I started to attack,” Foulland said. “Sometimes at the end of games, I’d see that too, that I wasn’t aggressive enough. I don’t know if it was because it was my freshman year or whatever, but that’s something I want to change.”

Foulland added he doesn’t expect teams to play him too much differently in his sophomore season, noting he faced double teams last season. However, he does want to mix up his own offensive game.

Davis said Foulland has improved his ability to score with both hands in the post. The coach also complimented his passing, saying “he throws a pass or two passes every day where you stop and say ‘That was impressive.’”

“I was just trying to stretch my game more and find more ways to score,” Foulland said of what he what he focused on in the summer. “Rebounding too, and just playing with a high motor all the time.”

Foulland also had offers out of high school to play in the Atlantic 10 or CAA with interest from George Washington and Delaware among others. But he said he was pleased he picked Bucknell and the Patriot League, saying it’s fun and challenging.

The other nine head coaches in the league can’t be thrilled about having to face Foulland for the next three seasons, and he and preseason All-conference pick Chris Hass make Bucknell one of the top threats to win the league.

Foulland is focused on winning a title, and he didn’t even want to discuss his personal goals for the season or the rest of his college career. However it does play out, Davis knows he was lucky to inherit a roster with Foulland on it.

“When you get to know him more, you learn he’s a special kid with a great personality,” Davis said. “He wants to be really, really good and he’s going to put in the work to get there. …His future in a lot of ways is up to him. As long as he keeps putting in the time to learn, he has a chance to be as good a player as there is in the league.”