ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) -- Mike Muscala scored 27 points as Bucknell beat Navy 66-51 on Saturday for its ninth straight win.

Bucknell has started 7-0 in Patriot League play for the first time since 2006 and only the third time in school history.

Navy (3-18, 0-7) trailed 19-12 before a Bryan Cohen 3-pointer sparked a 25-4 run, giving the Bison a 34-16 lead with 3:35 left in the first half.

The Midshipmen scored seven unanswered points to cut the lead to 34-23, but Muscala hit back-to-back jumpers to give Bucknell a 38-23 lead at halftime.

The Bison (17-6, 7-0) shot 51 percent (26 of 51) from the field and held Navy to just 36.4 percent (20 of 55).

Worth Smith led Navy with 16 points on 7 of 10 shooting.

The Bison hold the longest conference winning streak in the nation with 17 straight wins against Patriot League foes dating back to last season.

© 2012 STATS LLC