Colonial Notebook

Colonial Athletic Association Notebook

by Phil Kasiecki

Rams Continue to Win

VCU’s win over William & Mary on Monday night made the Rams the second CAA team ever to start conference play with 11 consecutive wins. They join the 1985-86 Richmond team with that distinction.

The Rams will have a tall order to break the record as they play at Hofstra on Wednesday night. That game figured to be a first place showdown before Delaware stunned the Pride on Monday night in Newark, but a Hofstra win would certainly tighten the race again.

Huskies Make Adjustments, Lack Them In Loss

Northeastern went 2-0 last week to end the week’s play at 5-5 in CAA play, something few probably would have predicted. In both games, the Huskies shot 60 percent or better in the second half and won largely with their effort in the latter frame. They were 6-7 on three-pointers and shot over 68 percent in the second half against James Madison on Wednesday, and followed that up by shooting 60 percent from the field in the second half of Saturday’s win over Delaware.

The Huskies did something similar a few weeks ago when they turned everything around in the second half to outscore Georgia State by 29 points to erase a 14-point halftime deficit. That they have made consistent in-game adjustments is certainly a testament to the coaching job done by Bill Coen and his staff, but also how well the players are taking to it. It certainly wasn’t lost on Coen’s opposite number on Monday night.

“He’s done a good job with this team,” said Drexel head coach Bruiser Flint. “Think of what they lost. They’re able to be competitive in games playing young kids.”

Coen is quick to give credit to the seniors, especially for helping freshmen like Matt Janning and Manny Adako along. Both have developed very nicely as the season has gone along, with Adako scoring 13 points and grabbing five rebounds and Janning scoring a game-high 23 points against James Madison. Janning earned CAA Rookie of the Week honors for last week’s efforts.

On Monday night, the strong second half was nowhere to be found. The Huskies scored the first six points of the half, but Drexel then went on a 25-5 run to take over the game. Nine of their 11 turnovers came in the second half, and the Dragons seemed to wear down the thin Huskies.

Delaware Transition Gets A Boost

This season figured to be a transition year for Delaware with new head coach Monte Ross, and that’s certainly been the case. The Blue Hens have kept fighting despite a 4-18 record, with injuries, a suspension and a roster in flux. Monday’s win over Hofstra only helps.

The Blue Hens have had to deal with suspensions, a lung ailment that has shelved Pau Geli for the remainder of the season, the departure of last season’s starting point guard in Zaire Taylor, and now have three transfers sitting out. They were already thin before all of this, and they’ve had to play a schedule that at one point had eight consecutive road games. It’s meant that players like freshmen guards Brian Johnson and Darrell Johnson (no relation) have been thrown right into the fire.

“He has to play so many minutes, bring up the ball, call out the defense, call out the offense,” said Ross of Brian Johnson. “We put a lot on him as a freshman, but he’s responded admirably.”

Brian averages nearly 38 minutes per game and has a 1.5 assist/turnover ratio running the show. He scored a career-high 25 points in the win over Hofstra. Darrell is fifth on the team in scoring and shows some promise as he matures. The two freshmen join junior Herb Courtney, who leads them in scoring and rebounding, as the only Blue Hens to start all 22 games thus far.

The transition has been one with some struggles, but Ross can see what needs to be done now and where it all must lead.

“What we have to do is establish our persona,” said Ross. “We have to let the kids know, the community know, everybody know what we’re about and how we’re going to do things. Sometimes you lose people in those transitions when you are establishing what you’re about.”

Other Notes From Around the CAA

• The struggles continue at UNC-Wilmington, but on Monday night they picked up a 65-58 win over George Mason at Trask Coliseum. Montez Downey has played well the last two games, scoring a career-high 21 points in Saturday’s loss to Old Dominion and 13 in Monday’s win.
• William & Mary has won its share of games due to a big offensive effort. On Saturday they knocked off Georgia State by shooting 61 percent from the floor and going 12-25 from behind the arc. The concerning thing is that they allowed the Panthers to shoot 51 percent from the floor.
• Gary Neal topped 1,000 points in his time at Towson after he scored 21 points to lead Towson to a 69-60 win over James Madison. That makes him the third player in NCAA history to score 1,000 or more points at two different Division I schools, as he did the same thing at La Salle.
• Frank Elegar gets all the press at Drexel, but don’t forget Chaz Crawford. Known for his shot-blocking, the senior also leads the conference in rebounding by a good margin and has continued to improve throughout his career. His play has certainly helped with Elegar’s emergence.
• James Madison clearly looks better overall, although that isn’t translating to more wins. Pierre Curtis shows good talent at the point, while Terrence Carter has injected more energy into the team. Their youth is the prime reason the improvement may not translate to more wins just yet, but with three transfers sitting out that head coach Dean Keener is high on, there may be some better fortunes before long in Harrisonburg.

ACC Notebook

Atlantic Coast Conference Notebook

by Michael Protos

As the ACC’s teams pass the midpoint of conference play this week, some teams have a lot of work ahead to ensure a bid to the NCAA Tournament. Not surprisingly, North Carolina and Duke are locks for the tournament. A shock too many, Virginia Tech is the only other school that can join the perennial ACC powers in that group.

Before last week, Clemson would have been a lock for an NCAA Tournament bid. But after dropping games against Duke and Virginia – in gut-wrenching fashion – the Tigers need to do some more work to make critics ignore a weak non-conference slate. The final four regular-season games include Duke and Miami in Littlejohn Coliseum and road trips to Virginia Tech and Boston College. A poor finish could necessitate a strong showing in the ACC Tournament, even though the Tigers will almost certainly register their first 20-win season of the decade.

If the season ended today, Boston College and Florida State would like their chances of earning a bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Eagles have had a strong start to ACC play, but they must continue to win without the banished Sean Williams, or else the selection committee will not give the team as much credit for its 5-0 start. Florida State, on the other hand, has a healthy cast of players who simply need to prove that they can win on the road. The Seminoles travel to Clemson, Duke, Maryland, Miami and Virginia before the season ends. Florida State needs to win at least two of those games to feel more comfortable about an NCAA Tournament bid.

Those six teams have the strongest profiles at this point in the season. Georgia Tech, Maryland and Virginia can also make a case for a bid based on their performances. But only the Cavaliers have a winning record in conference play. If the conference were to grab a seventh invitation today, Virginia would likely get the nod. Although eight teams are not out of the question, the Terrapins and Yellow Jackets need to get closer to .500 in the conference and win on the road.

At the bottom of the conference, Miami, North Carolina State and Wake Forest are already relegated to spoiler status. These three teams have struggled, as many experts predicted before the season. Each team has played competitively at times and is capable of taking out ill-prepared conference foes, especially on their respective home courts.

ACC Player of the Week: Zabian Dowdell, Virginia Tech

Experienced guard play makes winning on the road a little easier, as the Hokies learned first hand last week. Dowdell scored 30 points in a win at Miami and led the team with 23 points against Georgia Tech later in the week. Dowdell also had 13 assists, seven rebounds and six steals in the two games.

ACC Rookie of the Week: Ty Lawson, North Carolina

In two blowout wins at Wake Forest and Arizona, Lawson proved that he is the fastest man in the arena whenever the Tar Heels take the court. He finished with 33 points, 13 assists, seven steals and four rebounds in the two road victories.

ACC Coach Watch: Skip Prosser, Wake Forest

A second consecutive disastrous season might turn up the heat in Winston-Salem. Prosser’s Demon Deacons are below .500 as they enter a critical homestand in which they play five of their next six games at Wake Forest. To avoid another finish in the ACC’s cellar, the Demon Deacons need to win three or four of those games.

Virginia Tech Hokies (16-5, 6-1)

Last week:
Won at Miami 92-85
Won at Georgia Tech 73-65

As January turns to February, Virginia Tech is in first place in the ACC, leading the Tar Heels by half a game. The Hokies vaulted into the top spot last week by winning two road games at Miami and Georgia Tech. Senior guard Zabian Dowdell had two huge performances, scoring 30 points at the Hurricanes and 23 against the Yellow Jackets. In addition to shooting 14-of-23 from the field for the week, Dowdell ran the offense by dishing out 13 assists and committing only one turnover. Dowdell’s outstanding play has Virginia Tech looking like an ACC contender.

In addition to strong guard play from one of its senior leaders, Virginia Tech is winning games thanks to outstanding free throw shooting. That’s something Hokie fans figured they’d never be able to say. Last week, Virginia Tech earned 67 trips to the free throw line and hit 53 of those attempts, good for nearly 80 percent. For the season, the Hokies shoot less than 66 percent from the free throw line, so this past week’s performance bodes well for the team’s chances in close games throughout the balance of the season.

Next week:
Jan. 31 vs. North Carolina State
Feb. 3 at Boston College

North Carolina Tar Heels (19-2, 5-1)

Last week:
Won at Wake Forest 88-60
Won at Arizona 92-64

Although it’s not surprising to anyone who listened to the preseason hype, the Tar Heels are looking like a bona fide championship contender. North Carolina won road games at Wake Forest and Arizona by 28 points apiece. The dismantling of the Wildcats is especially noteworthy because many experts consider the Pac-10 to be the best conference in the country. According to Ken Pomeroy’s RPI statistics, the ACC has a slight edge against the Pac-10 after this past weekend’s action. And the Tar Heels’ demolition in the desert emphasizes that the ACC is ready to go toe-to-toe with any conference.

North Carolina defeated Arizona despite playing without freshman phenom Brandan Wright and sophomore guard Marcus Ginyard, who missed the game because of illness. Starting in Wright’s place, freshman forward Deon Thompson scored 14 points and grabbed six rebounds. He was one of six Tar Heels to reach double figures in scoring. Freshman point guard Ty Lawson was sensational, scoring 18 points and dishing out eight assists while committing only one turnover. North Carolina will look to push its ACC record to 7-1 at the midpoint of conference play when the Tar Heels play Miami and North Carolina State this week. More significantly, the first North Carolina-Duke battle looms on the schedule Feb. 7.

Next week:
Jan. 31 vs. Miami
Feb. 3 at North Carolina State

Boston College Eagles (14-6, 6-2)

Last week:
Won vs. Florida State 85-82
Lost at Duke 75-61

Give Boston College credit, the Eagles could have collapsed following the dismissal of junior forwards Sean Williams and Akida McLain. With two key members of the frontcourt gone, coach Al Skinner is using only seven or eight players in his rotation. He’s without his best defense stopper, too, as Williams averaged five blocks per game to go with 12.1 points and 6.9 rebounds a game.

But Boston College rallied after a 74-54 blowout at Clemson to beat Florida State 85-82 as senior guard Sean Marshall drained a three-pointer at the buzzer to avoid an overtime period. Marshall finished with 22 points in the game, joining senior forward Jared Dudley and sophomore guard Tyrese Rice in the 20-point club. Rice led all scorers with 26 points, and Dudley scored 23. Although the Eagles could not maintain the momentum at Duke in a 75-61 loss in Cameron Indoor Stadium, Boston College looks like a solid ACC contender despite a shorter bench.

Next week:
Jan. 31 vs. Hartford
Feb. 3 vs. Virginia Tech

Duke Blue Devils (18-3, 5-2)

Last week:
Won vs. Clemson 68-66
Won vs. Boston College 75-61

Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good. After squandering a second-half lead to Clemson, Duke needed sophomore forward David McClure’s buzzer-beating layup to earn a 68-66 victory. But McClure might not have had time to complete the overtime-avoiding play if the clock at Cameron Indoor Stadium had started when it was supposed to during the previous possession. Winning 66-63, sophomore forward Josh McRoberts turned over the inbounds pass to Clemson, and Vernon Hamilton drained a game-tying three-pointer. But the clock did not start until the shot was in the basket. After reviewing the play, the officials added about two more seconds to the game clock than should have appeared, giving Duke about five seconds to run the play for McClure. Although Clemson fans may cry foul, Duke deserves credit for executing in the final seconds when an opportunity to win arose.

Despite the turnover in the closing seconds against Clemson, McRoberts played exceptionally well last week, with 17 points and 12 rebounds against the Tigers and 16 points and 12 rebounds against Boston College. McRoberts blocked five shots against the Eagles, fueling a defensive masterpiece in which the Blue Devils held Boston College to 34.5 percent shooting from the field. Those two games marked the second time this season that McRoberts has registered double-doubles in consecutive games. He did it earlier this season against Gonzaga and San Jose State.

Duke might need a third consecutive double-double in Charlottesville this week when the Blue Devils battle Virginia for sole possession of third place in the conference. After starting conference play 0-2, Duke has won five consecutive games.

Next week:
Feb. 1 at Virginia
Feb. 4 vs. Florida State

Virginia Cavaliers (13-6, 5-2)

Last week:
Won at North Carolina State 71-58
Won at Clemson 64-63

If the Cavaliers reach the NCAA Tournament, they will likely point to Jan. 28 as a turning point. Virginia trailed at Clemson by 16 points with less than 10 minutes remaining in the game. The Cavaliers needed a big road win to prove they are NCAA Tournament-worthy after they lost all but two games away from home. The ensuing rally gave Virginia that win. Senior forward Jason Cain tipped in junior forward Adrian Joseph’s miss with 15 seconds remaining to give the Cavaliers the decisive 64-63 lead. The basket was Cain’s only made field goal in the game, and he delivered for the Cavaliers when they needed someone to provide a clutch play.

The upset at Clemson followed on the heels of Virginia’s first ACC road win of the season at North Carolina State. Guards J.R. Reynolds and Sean Singletary were a two-man show, scoring 56 points on 18-of-33 shooting. They hit 10 three-pointers in the game, as the Wolfpack could not find an answer to their perimeter shooting. Virginia returns to Charlottesville next week for two games against Duke and Miami. If the Cavaliers hold court against those teams, they will find themselves among the top third of the conference entering the final few weeks of the regular season.

Next week:
Feb. 1 vs. Duke
Feb. 3 vs. Miami

Clemson Tigers (18-4, 4-4)

Last week:
Lost at Duke 68-66
Lost vs. Virginia 64-63

After starting the season 17-0 and becoming the last Division I team to lose a game, the Tigers have lost four of their last five games. Last week was especially taxing because Clemson lost heartbreakers to Duke and Virginia by a combined three points. As mentioned earlier, a timekeeping malfunction gave Duke an opportunity to win in regulation, and the Blue Devils delivered on schedule. The game-ending layup spoiled a spectacular second-half rally, capped by senior guard Vernon Hamilton’s game-tying three-pointer with somewhere between two and five seconds remaining in the game, depending on who was keeping time. Hamilton finished with 21 points and outplayed his more-heralded counterpart, Greg Paulus.

Hamilton had another strong performance against the Cavaliers in Clemson, finishing with 16 points. But the Tigers lost another emotionally draining game as the Cavaliers rallied from a double-digit deficit to win on a tip-in in the final 16 seconds of the game. Coach Oliver Purnell has a week to help his team overcome the past two games before Clemson plays at Georgia Tech. At 4-4, Clemson is in danger of slipping below .500 in conference play and onto the NCAA Tournament bubble after appearing to be a lock for a ticket to the Big Dance.

Next week:
Feb. 3 at Georgia Tech

Florida State Seminoles (15-6, 3-4)

Last week:
Lost at Boston College 85-82
Won vs. Wake Forest 73-66

Florida State split its two ACC games last week, losing at the buzzer to Boston College and overcoming Wake Forest in Tallahassee. The Seminoles continue to tread water as a quintessential bubble team. The Seminoles have a fantastic non-conference win vs. Florida on the résumé and have taken care of business at home, where the Seminoles are 12-1. But the best conference win is against Virginia Tech in Tallahassee, and Florida State has not won a true road game since playing at Georgia State during the first week of December.

Florida State has a world of talent on its roster, led by senior forward Al Thornton, who is having an All-ACC season while averaging 18.2 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. But Florida State needs to pick a few more big conference wins, especially on the road to solidify its NCAA Tournament status. The play of sophomore transfer Toney Douglas will be critical during the final six weeks of the regular season. Douglas is still adjusting to his new role as point guard, and he has only three more assists than turnovers after 21 games. Douglas needs to help the Seminoles reduce the number of turnovers to help the team steal a few road victories.

Next week:
Jan. 30 vs. Maryland
Feb. 4 at Duke

Maryland Terrapins (16-5, 2-4)

Last week:
Won vs. Georgia Tech 80-65

After handling Georgia Tech in College Park last week, the Terrapins are back in business in the ACC. Maryland’s NCAA Tournament aspirations would have received a devastating blow if Maryland had fallen to 1-5 in the conference. Junior forward James Gist was determined to lift Maryland to victory, registering a career-high 26 points on 10-of-11 shooting from the field. Like Florida State, the Terrapins need to pick up some big road wins in the conference. Maryland is 0-3 on the road in ACC play but has winnable games at Wake Forest and North Carolina State to potentially boost that record. A favorable schedule gives Maryland an excellent opportunity to finish at 8-8 in the conference despite a slow start.

Next week:
Jan. 30 at Florida State
Feb. 3 at Wake Forest

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (13-7, 2-5)

Last week:
Lost at Maryland 80-65
Lost vs. Virginia Tech 73-65

After dropping two more games last week, the Yellow Jackets are entering a four-game stretch that will make or break their season, at least in terms of NCAA Tournament aspirations. At 2-5 in the conference, Georgia Tech needs to take care of business at struggling Wake Forest then protect their home court vs. Clemson and North Carolina State. The Yellow Jackets will then play Connecticut, which is a must-win because the Huskies are having a rough year, and a loss in Atlanta would look bad on the résumé. If Georgia Tech runs the table during that stretch, the Yellow Jackets will be 17-7 and 5-5 in the conference. That’s a good position to be in entering the final three weeks of the season.

Georgia Tech is in this tight spot largely because they have played poor defense recently. They let both Maryland and Virginia Tech shoot at least 50 percent from the field. Georgia Tech added 19 turnovers to the fire in College Park, which helped spark Maryland’s dominant first half. The Yellow Jackets’ highly respected freshman duo of Thaddeus Young and Javaris Crittenton struggled against the Hokies’ seasoned veterans, and shot only 7-of-29 from the field. Coach Paul Hewitt needs to help his young team learn to overcome adversity, like last week’s two losses, and reverse that negative energy.

Next week:
Jan. 30 at Wake Forest
Feb. 3 vs. Clemson

Miami Hurricanes (9-12, 2-5)

Last week:
Lost vs. Virginia Tech 92-85

There’s no shame in losing to Virginia Tech this season. But the Hurricanes should be ashamed of their defense. Miami let Virginia Tech shoot over 58 percent from the field. The Hurricanes have allowed four consecutive opponents to eclipse the 50 percent mark and score at least 80 points. The Hurricanes have lost eight of their past 10 games, and the defense is largely the cause of the team’s struggles. On offense, sophomore guard Denis Clemente had his best of the season against Virginia Tech, scoring 24 points to lead the Hurricanes. With games at North Carolina and Virginia on tap this week, the Hurricanes figure to extend their losing streak to six.

Next week:
Jan. 31 at North Carolina
Feb. 3 at Virginia

North Carolina State Wolfpack (11-8, 1-5)

Last week:
Lost vs. Virginia 71-58

The Wolfpack dropped their only game last week at home vs. Virginia because they couldn’t defend the perimeter. Guards Sean Singletary and J.R. Reynolds shot 10-of-18 from behind the arc en route to a combined 56 points. The two nearly outscored the entire North Carolina State team.

The lack of depth looks like it is beginning to catch up to the Wolfpack. North Carolina State scored at least 70 points in eight of the team’s first 11 games. But they have only reached that mark four times in the past eight games. Freshman forward Brandon Costner led the Wolfpack against the Cavaliers with 14 points, and he scored nearly half that total from the free throw line. The good news in Raleigh is that senior guard Engin Atsur returned to the lineup last week to score nine points.

Next week:
Jan. 31 at Virginia Tech
Feb. 3 vs. North Carolina

Wake Forest Demon Deacons (9-11, 1-7)

Last week:
Lost vs. North Carolina 88-60
Lost at Florida State 74-66

Wake Forest fans sent this ACC writer several angry e-mail messages after last season when I predicted a rough 2006-07 season for the Demon Deacons in which they would struggle to avoid the conference’s basement for a second consecutive season. They insisted that a highly talented freshman class would deliver the Demon Deacons a surprisingly strong finish in the middle of the pack. After six consecutive losses, Wake Forest needs to make a major move this week to prove me wrong. Home games against Georgia Tech and Maryland are must-wins.

In fairness to the fans, Wake Forest’s freshmen have looked impressive at times. Freshman Ishmael Smith is a super quick point guard who will improve as he figures out how to play at the proper speed. L.D. Williams, Jamie Skeen and Anthony Gurley all have the potential to become double-digit scorers before they graduate. But this team is not good this season, mostly because the team forgets to play defense for long stretches. In eight of the 11 losses, Wake Forest has allowed opponents to score at least 75 points. With such a young lineup, coach Skip Prosser would be well-advised to slow down the game a little until the team plays consistent defense. Then pick up the pace.

Next week:
Jan. 30 vs. Georgia Tech
Feb. 3 vs. Maryland

Idaho State: Idaho State Coach Suspended

Idaho State Coach Suspended: Idaho State coach Joe O’Brien has been suspended for one game by the Big Sky Conference for criticizing officials after a loss to Portland State. O’Brien will miss Idaho State’s game against Northern Arizona after violating a rule that prohibits coaches from criticizing officials in public gatherings or with news media representatives present. Big Sky Conference commissioner Doug Fullerton said coaches are reminded of the rule before the start of the season and are fully aware of the consequences. [1/31/07]

Duke: Duke’s Latest Hero Could Miss Virginia Game

Duke’s Latest Hero Could Miss Virginia Game: Duke forward David McClure, who hyperextended his left knee in Duke’s 75-61 win vs. Boston College Sunday, is doubtful for the Blue Devils’ match up against Virginia tomorrow night. McClure had an MRI after the game that showed no structural damage to the knee. McClure’s heroic buzzer-beating layup gave Duke a thrilling 68-66 win vs. Clemson last week. He’s shooting 56 percent off the bench. McClure had been sidelined for the entire 2005-2006 season with an injury in the same knee. [1/31/07]

Louisville: Ex-center Back in Louisville

Ex-center Back in Louisville: Former Louisville center Ellis Myles has joined the Cardinals’ staff as an assistant coach and will remain with the team as he rehabilitates from a knee injury. Myles, 25, played with the Cardinals from 2002-05. He was one of coach Rick Pitino’s most reliable players then and has been brought back to work with troubled freshman center Derrick Caracter. Myles is one of only five players in school history to score at least 1,000 points and grab 950 rebounds. [1/31/07]

LSU: Minor Missed Trip to Athens and His Academic Status Is Unclear

Minor Missed Trip to Athens and His Academic Status Is Unclear: LSU senior guard Tack Minor did not travel with the rest of the Tigers to play Georgia Sunday, and his current status with the university is unclear. Coach John Brady said Minor was left behind to deal with an academic issue. Minor, when reached by the press, was unresponsive to questions about his status. Minor, who once looked like a rising star, missed the first half of his junior year after plagiarizing a paper and then was injured shortly after returning. He has played sparingly this season, averaging less than 15 minutes per game and had played only 36 minutes in SEC play this season. [1/30/07]

Notre Dame: Notre Dame Point Guard to Return Next Season

Notre Dame Point Guard to Return Next Season: Kyle McAlarney, who has been suspended by the Fighting Irish and was not allowed to attend classes this semester after being arrested for possession of marijuana, will return to Notre Dame this summer to take courses and will rejoin the team next semester. McAlarney’s decision was relayed to coach Mike Brey during a meeting between Brey and McAlarney’s family. Brey was in New York following Notre Dame’s loss to St. John’s. McAlarney, who had started 12 games for the Irish and was averaging 10 points a game before his suspension, will have two seasons of eligibility remaining. [1/30/07]

Temple: Temple’s Christmas May Get an Unwanted Vacation

Temple’s Christmas May Get an Unwanted Vacation: Dionte Christmas, the Atlantic 10′s leading scorer, is questionable for Temple’s game Wednesday against Richmond. Christmas was hurt in the final minute of Temple’s loss to Duquesne and required 17 stitches to close a wound between the third and fourth fingers on his left hand. Christmas had scored 30 or more points in three straight games and is averaging 21 points a game. [1/30/07]

Brian Cusworth’s College Career

Cusworth’s Late Blooming Ends in Cambridge Only

by Phil Kasiecki

Harvard center Brian Cusworth’s career ended on Saturday night against Brown. It was a career that had potential, some flashes of it, then a nice last semester that unfortunately ended early. It was also one that was hardly guaranteed to happen.

Players recruited by Ivy League schools are rarely of the can’t-miss variety. Naturally, academics come first, as players have to have the requisite grades and test scores to get a serious look. There are no scholarships, making the league the last of its kind as all Patriot League members now have scholarships with Lafayette having made the move this year. That’s one less thing to entice a good prospect with. It all adds up to one thing: there is a real element of luck in recruiting for Ivy League teams.

Cusworth is an example of a prospect a team took a chance on that worked out. The St. Louis native certainly was no one’s can’t-miss prospect during his high school days; asked if he wished he had played in a bigger conference given his size and abilities, he said, “If you had seen me four and a half years ago, this question would never have come up. I was blowing around in the wind.”

Indeed, though he now stands an even seven feet tall and weighs in around 255 pounds, he remembers the day when he was a lanky 6’9″, 185-pound forward late in his high school years. He remembers hearing from very few Division I schools at all, while getting plenty of attention from Division II and III schools and mostly close to home. He remembers going around to all of the Ivy League campuses with his dad, a doctor who is also a basketball junkie, hoping that he could wind up at one of them. (His mother, also a doctor and now retired, is not absent from loving basketball, as she wore basketball earrings at his last game.) And he remembers arriving on campus on a senior-laden team at the same seven feet but weighing barely 200 pounds. It wasn’t even a given he would be a member of the Crimson in the first place, let alone be invited to the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament in April as one of the top NBA senior prospects.

“I was even told there was a chance I would get cut from this team,” he recalled, mentioning that there were about nine freshmen going for the final spots.

It seems hard to believe now that it was possible. Cusworth finishes his career with just over 1,000 points, surpassing the milestone in his next-to-last game. In his final 18 games, he averaged 17.4 points, 9.2 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game. He shot 51.5 percent from the field, a number that’s a little deceiving as he played for most of the last month with a partially torn ligament in his right (shooting) middle finger. Prior to that, he was shooting well over 70 percent from the field. In his last week of play, he earned the Ivy League’s Player of the Week honor for the second time in his career.

His career began with some promise, as he capably backed up another seven-footer named Brian, senior Brian Sigafoos. He scored 6.2 points and hauled down 3.7 rebounds per game in 17.5 minutes per game, and looked like he would be the sure starter in the middle for the next three years. NBA scouts had an eye on him already.

That plan got derailed slightly when he suffered a stress fracture in his foot early in his sophomore year. He withdrew after the fall term, which due to Harvard’s rule that degree requirements must be met in eight semesters or less meant he had just five semesters of eligibility left. It meant that when his senior year came, he would only be able to play for one semester. Meanwhile, the young Crimson struggled mightily, as they had no seniors and two juniors in a 4-23 campaign.

The following year, the promise he showed as a freshman was evident again when he returned. He earned second-team All-Ivy League honors after finishing sixth in scoring (13.4), second in rebounding (8.4) and leading the league in blocked shots (2.0). The Crimson still had their struggles, but by the end of the season had improved noticeably en route to a 12-15 finish overall and 7-7 in the Ivy League. They improved enough that many prognosticators felt they could be the top contender to knock off perennial power Penn in 2005-06 as Cusworth and Matt Stehle would combine to form the league’s top inside tandem.

The 2005-06 season began auspiciously, as the Crimson won their first five games and at one point received a vote in one of the top 25 polls. They concluded non-conference play at 8-5 and looked like they had done little, if anything, to dispute the notion that they could be a title contender. But the season fell apart starting with back-to-back heartbreaking losses at Cornell and at home to Princeton, the latter a game where the Tigers scored the final seven points of the game in the last 77 seconds for a one-point win. With the Crimson finishing 5-9 in Ivy League play, Cusworth’s efforts earned him an honorable mention All-Ivy League selection.

Cusworth had a decision about his senior year, and one that might seem a no-brainer for many. He had one semester to play, and for most schools, the second semester would be the obvious choice since that’s when the bulk of games are played. But for Harvard, that isn’t the case. Their semester ends in mid-January, and their unique rules also meant that he couldn’t be on campus during the first semester if he opted to play the second semester. It all added up to a decision to play the first semester, with 18 games as opposed to ten in the second semester.

Having made the most of it, Cusworth will now embark on a potential professional career. He will be back home in St. Louis until the Portsmouth Invitational, trying to get stronger and working on what he can while not being able to play live basketball very much in the interim. He is not on many NBA draft boards, but his size will likely earn him an invite to a team’s summer league to see what he can do. Overseas opportunities are sure to be plentiful as well. Clearly, multiple trips to the Pete Newell Big Man Camp have helped him out, so he has a history of getting better and taking to coaching.

The overall experience at Harvard is one he enjoyed, though he says it was quite challenging as he is a pre-med student in addition to playing basketball. When it’s all said and done, the Biology major plans to follow in his parents’ footsteps as a doctor. Although he’s not entirely sure where within the medical field he plans to go, he said that he won’t follow his dad’s steps entirely, saying with a laugh that he’s heard enough horror stories.

But for now, medical school will wait. He wants to play basketball as long as he’s physically capable and enjoys it, and he has the opportunity in front of him. He knows there’s a lot in front of him – working out, signing with an agent, going to Portsmouth and then evaluating opportunities – but he’s eager to get going with it. Having already gone from a lightly-recruited high school player to one of the best in the Ivy League, the late-blooming big man’s journey isn’t complete yet.

“It’s been an amazing ride, and hopefully I’m still climbing upward,” he reflected.

Big 12 Notebook

Big 12 Conference Notebook

by Neal Heston

An important week for four schools
Two squads have an opportunity to keep the ball bouncing uphill on Wednesday when Missouri visits Kansas State. Aside from the top three in the Big 12, the Tigers and Wildcats are the two hottest teams in the league.

Saturday presents another critical day for two other schools heading in the opposite direction, as the Baylor Bears head to Iowa State. Both have dropped four consecutive contests, possibly five by the time this game takes place.

Rising: Missouri (13-6, 2-4), two consecutive wins
Since nearly pulling off an upset against Kansas, the Tigers have rolled off a pair of wins and are poised to hit .500 in league play with victories this week. That is very possible if Mizzou is able to avenge its loss from earlier this month to Kansas State when the two squads meet on Wednesday. Nebraska (12-7, 1-4) comes into Columbia on Saturday.

If the Tigers are to defeat Kansas State Wednesday, fortunes from the free throw line will need to improve. Missouri combined for a poor 58 percent from the charity stripe during its last two wins (11-of-20 and 11-of-18). That could spell the end of a winning streak if the contest is as close as the 85-81 thriller earlier this month.

Rising: Kansas State (15-6, 4-2), five consecutive wins
Kansas State will enter Wednesday’s contest on a five-game winning streak. The team it knocked down to begin that streak: Missouri. Even with Missouri playing this strong lately, it might be easy for Kansas State to look past this game with Texas and Kansas looming on the schedule. Doing that could send the conference’s hottest club into a tailspin for the bottom half of the standings. What a difference a week might make.

David Hoskins and Cartier Martin will be keys to a successful week. In two wins over Iowa State and Nebraska, the two averaged 13 and 17.5 points per game, respectively.

Falling: Baylor (11-9, 1-6), four consecutive losses
The Bears, who were looking at the program’s most successful season two weeks ago, are stuck roaming the bottom of the standings with Colorado after a 1-6 start in Big 12 play. Two losses in their four-game skid have come convincingly to Oklahoma (91-51) and Kansas (82-56). There is hope on the horizon, though. After taking Texas to the brink this past weekend, Baylor will play two contests against squads who are also struggling mightily, Colorado and Iowa State. If the Bears play to their potential, they will be just one victory away from tying the program’s highest season win total.

Baylor took a six-point lead into halftime at Texas on Saturday, but free throws proved to be the difference during defeat. Although BU converted 8-of-10 from the charity stripe, Texas went to the line 23 more times and converted on 25 total for the game.

Falling: Iowa State (11-9, 2-4), four consecutive losses
Excitement built a little too quickly in Ames after Greg McDermott’s squad bolted to a 2-0 Big 12 start and nearly upset Kansas. But since that defeat to the Jayhawks, the Cyclones have continued to drop, losing three more contests including ones against Kansas State and Oklahoma State, where the offense has not looked impressive. It’s possible for Baylor to come into town on Saturday with Iowa State on a five-game skid, as the Cyclones head to red-hot Texas A&M on Wednesday.

Mike Taylor has been a consistent contributor during losing streak for the young squad. The guard averaged 17 points in two games last week.

Enjoying the view: Kansas (18-3, 5-1), Texas A&M (17-3, 5-1) and Texas (15-5, 5-1)
Kansas: Since its three-game spurt earlier in January, where the Jayhawks survived scares against Iowa State and Missouri and then lost to Texas Tech, Kansas has cruised – to say the least. KU won its last two contests by an average margin of 24.5. We might see one more blowout Monday against Nebraska before Texas A&M heads into Lawrence on Saturday.

Texas A&M: After an opportunity to feast on the Iowa State Cyclones on Wednesday, Texas A&M will face an even larger storm this weekend. A trip to Kansas awaits on the schedule for Saturday. Two days later, Texas comes to town. It will be an excellent opportunity for the Aggies to not only take first place in the league, but prove it can beat the best of the Big 12.

Texas: In addition to the Aggies, we will learn how good this other team from Texas is this week, as the Longhorns head to Texas Tech, face Kansas State and then head to Texas A&M the following Monday. Texas may be 5-1 in conference play, but it is 0-1 against the upper half of the league – where all three of this week’s opponents reside.

Oklahoma State: Oklahoma State Remembers the 10

Oklahoma State Remembers the 10: For the first time since 2001, Jan. 27 fell on a Saturday, and Oklahoma State commemorated the sixth anniversary of a plane crash that killed 10 associates of the Cowboys’ basketball team, including players Daniel Lawson and Nate Fleming, with a home game. The plane crashed as they left Boulder, Colo., after a game Jan. 27, 2001. Big 12 officials have been cautious by not scheduling Cowboy games on the disaster’s anniversary. But officials approached Oklahoma State this season, which said the team would be willing to play on the date as long as it was a home game. The university has always commemorated the crash in private ceremonies and, after consulting the victims’ families, decided not to hold a formal memorial service. [1/29/07]

Arizona: Arizona Loses Game and Leading Scorer

Arizona Loses Game and Leading Scorer: Arizona’s loss against North Carolina cost them their leading scorer, Marcus Williams, who went down with an apparent ankle injury Saturday. The Wildcat sophomore rolled his right ankle while landing after a jump shot. He was carried off the court and taken to the locker room with 4:47 remaining in the first half. Williams is averaging 18.1 points and 7.6 rebounds in 18 games this season, and there is no word on his return. [1/29/07]

Saturday Notebook

Cusworth Ends Career With Milestone, Victory

by Phil Kasiecki

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Brian Cusworth’s career at Harvard ended the way he wanted it to – with a Crimson win. The only blemish is that he wasn’t on the court at the end to celebrate it.

The Crimson held off a late barrage of three-pointers by Brown for a 92-88 win. Cusworth fouled out with 1:34 left and the game seemingly in hand after scoring 19 points on 7-8 shooting, grabbing six rebounds and blocking three shots.

Harvard led throughout the game, but never really put away the Bears, who saw five players foul out. They led by 14 in the first half at one point, as the Bears couldn’t stop them and they consistently broke through the 1-3-1 halfcourt trap to get easy baskets. That changed in the second, when the Crimson committed eight of their 15 turnovers and the Bears cashed them in for 14 points.

“We weren’t getting as many misses, so we weren’t in transition as much,” Harvard head coach Frank Sullivan said. “We couldn’t go at them and flatten them in transition. We lost our comfort zone against it, basically.”

Around the midpoint of the second half, the Bears rallied to within four on two occasions, but the Crimson had answers and eventually pushed the lead back into double digits, leading 74-63 at one point. They still led by ten with 57 seconds left, but the Bears came back with five straight points in 19 seconds, then got within three on a three-pointer by freshman Colin Aldridge with 29 seconds left. Brad Unger helped finish the game off with three free throws in the closing seconds.

“It was good to see the guys in at the end of the game finish the game without him,” said Sullivan.

Jim Goffredo led Harvard with 20 points after reaching double figures just once in the previous four games. Evan Harris, one player who will have to step up with Cusworth having finished his eligibility, added 18 points.

Cusworth’s situation came as a result of an injury during his sophomore year and Harvard’s unique rule of having to finish the coursework in eight semesters or less. He was injured at the beginning of his sophomore year and withdrew after the first semester. After playing all of last season, he had one semester of eligibility left. The most practical thing to do was to play the first semester, which had 18 games on the schedule; the second semester has just ten. Additionally, in playing the first semester, he was able to practice with the team from the beginning, which he would not have been able to do otherwise.

Cusworth surpassed 1,000 career points the night before, finishing his career with 1,042. In the 18 games, he averaged 17.4 points, 9.2 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game. He shot 51.5 percent from the field, a number that took a drop starting in December after partially tearing a ligament in his right (shooting) middle finger, still playing with that right to the end.

The Crimson must play the bulk of the Ivy League schedule without their best player, and with a young team remaining. That would be a major adjustment for any team to make.

“We have to guard,” said Sullivan of what they have to do to win from here on. “Our defense is not where it has to be. We’re not getting enough steals, our field goal defense is not overall where it needs to be to win in our league. Globally, our team defense has to improve dramatically. Even if Brian was here, that would be the case.”

Sullivan is happy with Harris’ progress, and he’ll be needed more than ever. They’ll also need role players like Unger and Brian Darcy to step up in the frontcourt, which is hurt more by the absence of Kenyon Churchwell as he is suspected of having a heart condition. The departing big man, who received an invite to the Portsmouth Invitational earlier in the week, is confident in what the team has remaining.

“They pulled off a tough one without me. I think that’s a good sign for what’s to come,” said Cusworth, who is headed back to St. Louis to work out in the interim.

Other Notable Games

North Carolina 92, Arizona 64: Look at this as a sign of just how good the Tar Heels can potentially be. Not everyone can put up a 28-point blowout at Arizona, even though the Wildcats have now lost four of five.

Georgetown 82, Cincinnati 67: Roy Hibbert’s double-double (26 points, 11 rebounds) helps the Hoyas stay right in the mix near the top of the Big East as they have now won four straight.

Ohio State 66, Michigan State 64: The Buckeyes had to hold on for this one, as the Spartans made a gallant effort to come back after being down 20 at halftime. Drew Neitzel did everything he could, scoring 24 of his game-high 29 points (and out of the Spartans’ 41 points) in the second half.

Indiana 76, Michigan 61: The Hoosiers bounce back from the loss at Illinois with this home win.

Arkansas 63, Alabama 57: The Razorbacks sweep the season series and move into a tie atop the SEC West – with a 3-4 SEC mark.

Oregon 77, Washington State 74 (OT): The Ducks salvage one game out of their trip north. Aaron Brooks’ return clearly made a difference, as he led the way with 31 points.

Vanderbilt 85, Mississippi 79: The Commodores have now won four straight and are right there in the mix for second to Florida – their next opponent, on Wednesday in Gainesville – in the SEC East.

Southern Illinois 73, Illinois State 62: Jamaal Tatum’s 22 points helps the Salukis keep pace with Creighton in the race for the top of the Missouri Valley.

Providence 84, Connecticut 72: The Friars get their first road win of the season and bounce back from Tuesday’s home loss. Meanwhile, the Huskies have now lost four straight.

VCU 75, Drexel 68: VCU becomes the second team in CAA history to start the season with ten consecutive wins in conference play, as the 1985-86 Richmond team won their first 11. The Rams improve to 18-3 overall and 9-0 on the road.

Memphis 67, Southern Miss 64: This game was nearly a monumental upset, as the Tigers had to rally late after being down six with over six minutes to go.

Brigham Young 61, Air Force 52: The Cougars know how to win at home – this is their 27th straight home win. This win makes the Mountain West a little more interesting, as they are now a half game behind the Falcons and even in the loss column.

UNLV 76, New Mexico 72 (OT): Also right on the Falcons’ heels in the Mountain West are the Runnin’ Rebels, winners of four straight with two road games ahead.

Wichita State 66, Evansville 61: Two straight for the Shockers as they climb within one game of .500 in Missouri Valley play.

Drake 74, Northern Iowa 61: A game the Bulldogs needed to win as they start a three-game homestand that could help them get some momentum again.

Purdue 64, Illinois 47: The Illini continue to struggle ever since winning their first seven games of the season, as they are 8-8 since then and 3-5 in Big Ten play with another road loss.

Missouri 71, Texas Tech 58: The Tigers finally get their first Big 12 win after losing several close ones that could have gone either way.

Rutgers 74, Seton Hall 70 (2 OT): The New Jersey holy war has another classic, with the home team winning both games this season.

George Washington 82, Rhode Island 78: The Colonials take over the top of the Atlantic 10 with this road win behind 27 points from Maureece Rice.

Xavier 83, Dayton 67: The Musketeers are quietly right there in the Atlantic 10 race, getting a good win here.

Fordham 62, La Salle 54: The Rams have won four straight and are quietly a game back in the Atlantic 10 at 5-2, getting 20 points from Marcus Stout in this road win.

George Mason 59, James Madison 41: The Patriots bounce back from Wednesday’s home loss to VCU and have now won six of seven.

Wright State 59, Loyola (Ill.) 47: The Raiders stay right on Butler’s heels in the Horizon League, as they are a half game behind the Bulldogs.

Bucknell 74, Army 49: The Bison stay a game behind Holy Cross in the Patriot League.

Austin Peay 66, Samford 48: Quietly, the Governors have run off ten straight and are a game and a half up on Samford in the Ohio Valley.

Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 78, Texas-San Antonio 63: The Islanders have now won nine straight heading into a showdown with Stephen F. Austin, which is a half game behind them in the Southland West Division.

Conversation With John Ross

A Quick Five With Wright State’s First Basketball Coach

by Bill Kintner

DAYTON, Ohio – Back when Wright State had existed just six years as an institution of higher learning and just three years as an independent university, John Ross was given the job of creating a basketball program. It took a little more than just finding and recruiting some players: with no on-campus gym he was forced to find a place to practice and play games.

Ross coached for five years, compiling a record of 60-54.

That first year, 1970-71, he managed to guide the team to a 7-17 record. The next year he improved to 9-14. That was with playing most of the games on the road. Finally, by the third year he had the Raiders on the winning track to stay. The last three years his team’s records were 17-5, 17-4 and 15-10.

After leaving Wright State Ross did a stint as an assistant coach at Stetson University in Florida. Ross then came back as an assistant coach for Ralph Underhill in the late eighties.

He is now retired and living in Central Florida, where he has basketball season tickets at Stetson. Every year he comes back to the Dayton area where he catches games at several colleges and high schools. I caught up with him while he was attending a recent Wright State game.

Bill Kintner: So what have you been doing with yourself these days.

John Ross: (chuckle) I go to a lot of basketball games. I worked at Stetson University in Florida after I left Wright State. I am in my later years and I just don’t do too much. I still enjoy basketball and I go to a lot of games.

BK: What schools do you follow?

JR: I have season ticket at Stetson University and I go to some junior college games. Junior college games are big in Florida. I also go to the state high school tournament. I come up here every year and take in some Ohio basketball. I try to get to Wilmington College, a couple high school games and of course, Wright State.

BK: How has the game changed since you last coached in Division I?

JR: It is faster today. I am not sure the players are drilled in fundamentals like we used to do. It seems like so many of the players are not used to having someone in their face when they are getting a shot off. They go out in the shoot-around or pre-games and it is a different tempo from once the game starts. They don’t shoot quickly enough.

BK: What was it like in the early days of Wright State basketball?

JR: We had to practice where we could. We practiced at the old fairgrounds one year. We practiced at Stebbins High School one year and then we started playing some games at Stebbins.

BK: Did you ever envision that Wright State’s program would get to as big as it is right now?

JR: Yes I did. I didn’t think I would ever see it. I knew that if they would ever commit themselves, an administration that would commit themselves with the budget and that’s what it takes, budget It takes a budget to in order to hire personnel and then to get out a recruit. Recruiting was very difficult and I think that is one of the problems today. This is a very difficult area to recruit in. You have Ohio State, Dayton, Xavier, Cincinnati and a lot of the schools in the Mid-American Conference. They have many more alumni in the area than Wright State.

BK: You were the coach at Wright State, left and then you came back. Tell me about that?

JR: I was down south coaching at a couple different schools down there over the years. Then my mother got sick and we had to put here in a nursing home and I thought this is where I belong, up here. I would go up and watch Ralph Underhill’s (Raider coach) practices. He asked me one day to help at practice. So I became a coach and started helping him.

BK: What was your biggest accomplishment at Wright State?

JR: I would say just getting the program started. We didn’t have a gym, heck, we didn’t have anything. I think after the third year we got scholarship money and that was probably the biggest thing that we needed to get going. I worked continually to try to build a schedule. It was difficult because nobody wanted to play us. They would have us come there, but they didn’t want to come play in a high school gym. Recruiting was tough. We got some good kids, some hard-nosed kids. I don’t think they’ve ever have been given their credit.

BK: Thanks Coach Ross.

JR: I enjoyed it.

Duke: ACC Finds Time to Admit Error

ACC Finds Time to Admit Error: The Atlantic Coast Conference recognizes that an error occurred with the time during the final seconds of the Duke-Clemson match up. Clemson scored on a Vernon Hamilton layup with five seconds to play. He then stole the inbounds pass from Duke’s Josh McRoberts and hit a three-pointer to tie the score at 66. The game clock didn’t start until after Hamilton’s shot was almost in the basket. The Blue Devils then had time to sprint down the court to score on a game-winning layup. [1/27/07]

Texas: Injured Hoof Sidelines Longhorn

Injured Hoof Sidelines Longhorn: Texas freshman forward Matt Hill is out indefinetly with an injured foot. He averages 2.7 points and 2.8 rebounds per game. The 6-9 forward from Lincoln, Neb., did not play against his hometown team Wednesday as Texas beat Nebraska by one. [1/27/07]

Western Carolina: Western Carolina Point Guard Heads Home from the Hospital

Western Carolina Point Guard Heads Home from the Hospital: Western Carolina point guard Kyle Greathouse was released from the hospital after being in critical condition following a car accident. The senior, who started 17 of 19 games, was in a car that hit a tree and ran into a river about 2:20 a.m. Wednesday morning. [1/27/07]

Buffalo: Cohane Tries to Restore His Credibility

Cohane Tries to Restore His Credibility: Tim Cohane, former coach of Buffalo, will try to prove that the school and NCAA tried to ruin his credibility. The coach was forced to resign in 1999 after seven seasons. The NCAA ruled that he and his staff broke the rules for working out players and observing practices out of season. [1/27/07]

Holy Cross Remains Undefeated

Crusaders Undefeated at Halfway Point

by Phil Kasiecki

WORCESTER, Mass. – The best place to be for a sports fan in Massachusetts on Friday night was about 50 miles west of Boston. It wasn’t for a Celtics or Bruins game, the Patriots are done for the season, and the Red Sox don’t report to training camp for a few more weeks. That probably didn’t stop the majority of fans who called sports talk shows from talking about the Red Sox or Patriots, but that also doesn’t change the scene on a big hill in Worcester.

Friday night during the college basketball season is the time for smaller schools to shine. There were just seven Division I games across the country on this night, with two coming in the Ivy League, which plays on that night. The Metro Atlantic also has games that night, and the Patriot League often has a game or two as well. The only Patriot League game on this night involved league leader Holy Cross, which remained undefeated with a 64-53 win over Lehigh.

The atmosphere was live even 30 minutes before tip-off. The crowd was already quite full and could be heard almost as soon as you walked into the arena. The Hart Center was packed, with plenty of people standing to watch the game unfold, and there were plenty of times where it was hard to hear even the person next to you. In other words, the atmosphere was one that sums up what a great college basketball game is all about.

The nearly 3,500 people who gathered (the Hart Center seats 3,600) got to see a desirable result not only in the victory, but a big night for senior guard Torey Thomas. In the first half, Thomas surpassed 1,000 career points, and the crowd went wild with the announcement. But he wasn’t finished by a long shot.

Thomas went on to lead the Crusaders with 18 points, but he added eight assists, six rebounds and a school record-tying seven steals. He also helped shut down Lehigh’s talented guard duo of Jose Olivero (18 points on 5-14 shooting) and Marquis Hall (4-14), the latter the clear top freshman in the league. The Crusaders held the Mountain Hawks to 35.4 percent shooting on the night.

Thomas and classmate Keith Simmons (16 points, six rebounds) once again made many key plays for the Crusaders, but the inside play held its own as well. The Crusaders had 16 second chance points and a 28-18 edge in points in the paint. Tim Clifford still has moments that can make one shake their head, but he had nine rebounds in the game and several were at key junctures in the final minutes, when the Crusaders made enough plays to pull this game out.

“Our team all year has shown the ability to make plays at crucial times,” said head coach Ralph Willard.

Holy Cross forced 15 turnovers in the first half, but had their struggles at the offensive end and was up by just six at the half. It was similar in the second half (the Crusaders shot just under 37 percent from the field on the night), when the Mountain Hawks made several mini-runs to come back but never tied or led in the latter frame.

Not only did Simmons make key plays, he did something else that the box score won’t show easily. With 18:43 left, he picked up his third foul, something that might normally land a player on the bench for a few minutes. Simmons stayed out there and never picked up his fourth foul until over 12 minutes later.

With the win, Holy Cross is now 16-6 and 7-0 in the Patriot League, maintaining their lead over Bucknell, which hosts Army on Saturday. Being undefeated right now is better than it might sound considering there isn’t much distance in talent and experience between many teams in the league, something Willard has stressed. Indeed, the Crusaders have simply won games.

“To get through the first half of the league undefeated is great,” said Willard. “You can’t do any better than the start we had, so I’m pleased with it.”

Before their next game, which is against American on Wednesday, the Crusaders will learn their opponent in the Bracketbusters event. They will be playing on the road, and thus far have made a good case to potentially get a televised game.

Big Sky Notebook

Big Sky Conference Notebook

by Nick Dettmann

Players of the week: Carlos Taylor, Montana State and Dupree Lucas, Portland State

Eastern Washington Eagles (10-10 overall, 4-4 conference)
Last week’s results
At Cheney, Wash., Jan. 18: Northern Arizona 90, Eastern Washington 81
At Cheney, Wash., Jan. 20: Eastern Washington 91, Northern Colorado 79
This week’s games
Jan. 25 at Sacramento State
Jan. 27 at Weber State

Against the Lumberjacks, EWU made just 2-of-14 3-pointers, and was 8-for-22 from the free throw line. Rodney Stuckey scored 24 points with eight rebounds and five assists. Against the Bears, Stuckey, who is just a sophomore, moved into ninth place on the school’s all-time scoring list following a 31-point game. Stuckey also had seven rebounds, four assists and five steals. Paul Butorac and Matt Penoncello each scored 17 points.

Idaho State Bengals (10-9, 5-1)
Last week’s results
At Missoula, Mont., Jan. 18: Idaho State 79, Montana 69
At Bozeman, Mont., Jan. 20: Montana State 58, Idaho State 57
This week’s games
Jan. 25 vs. Weber State
Jan. 27 vs. Portland State

Against the Grizzlies, ISU won in Missoula for just the third time in the past 29 tries. Akbar Abdul-Ahad scored a collegiate-high 26 points, hitting six 3-pointers. David Schroeder added 22 points. Against the Bobcats, ISU suffered its first loss of the conference season in a game they never led. Logan Kinghorn and Schroeder each scored 16 points.

Montana Grizzlies (9-10, 3-3)
Last week’s results
At Missoula, Mont., Jan. 18: Idaho State 79, Montana 69
At Missoula, Mont., Jan. 20: Montana 90, Weber State 86 (OT)
This week’s games
Jan. 25 at Northern Arizona
Jan. 27 at Northern Colorado

Against the Bengals, Matt Dlouhy scored a collegiate-high 27 points with eight rebounds in a losing effort. Montana was 16-for-37 from 3-point range, and Andrew Strait scored just four points. Against the Wildcats, Matt Martin scored a collegiate-high 28 points, hitting 7-of-10 3-pointers. Strait bounced back by scoring 22 points.

Montana State Bobcats (6-13, 3-3)
Last week’s results
At Bozeman, Mont., Jan. 18: Montana State 63, Weber State 48
At Bozeman, Mont., Jan. 20: Montana State 58, Idaho State 57
This week’s games
Jan. 25 at Northern Colorado
Jan. 27 at Northern Arizona

Against the Wildcats, MSU outscored Weber State 43-20 in the second half. The Bobcats trailed 28-20 at the half. Prior to that, MSU was 0-11 when trailing at halftime. Carlos Taylor scored 21 points off the bench. Against the Bengals, Taylor scored 19 points with three rebounds and two assists, also off the bench.

Northern Arizona Lumberjacks (10-9, 5-3)
Last week’s results
At Cheney, Wash., Jan. 18: Northern Arizona 90, Eastern Washington 81
At Portland, Ore.., Jan. 20: Portland State 83, Northern Arizona 78
This week’s games
Jan. 25 vs. Montana
Jan. 27 vs. Montana State

NAU’s Steven Sir scored 25 points against the Eagles, hitting 7-of-10 3-pointers. NAU shot 54.1 percent from the field in the game. Josh Wilson had a collegiate-high 14 assists. Ryan McCurdy added 18 points, and Tyrone Bazy scored 19 points with five assists off the bench. Against the Vikings, Ruben Boykin Jr. recorded his 10th double-double of the season, scoring 17 points with 13 rebounds. He added seven assists as well. Sir scored 21 points.

Northern Colorado Bears (3-17, 1-7)
Last week’s results
At Portland, Ore., Jan. 18: Portland State 86, Northern Colorado 71
At Cheney, Wash., Jan. 20: Eastern Washington 91, Northern Colorado 79
This week’s games
Jan. 25 vs. Montana State
Jan. 27 vs. Montana

Against the Vikings, the Bears continued their road struggles, dropping to 0-10 on the road this season. Kirk Archibeque scored a team-high 14 points, and Sean Taibi scored 12. UNC was out-rebounded 47-26. Against the Eagles, Archibeque scored 21 points on 10-of-13 shooting with eight rebounds. Taibi scored 21 points off the bench, and Dwayne Birden added 15 points off the bench as well.

Portland State Vikings (13-8, 4-4)
Last week’s results
At Portland, Ore.., Jan. 20: Portland State 83, Northern Arizona 78
At Portland, Ore., Jan. 18: Portland State 86, Northern Colorado 71
This week’s games
Jan. 26 at Sacramento State

Dupree Lucas scored a collegiate-high 33 points with four assists and three steals against the Lumberjacks. Lucas made 12-of-21 shots from the field, and was a perfect 7-for-7 from the free throw line. Juma Kamara scored 19 points with 10 rebounds off the bench. Against the Bears, Kamara scored a game-high 25 points. PSU shot 64.3 percent from the field in the first half.

Sacramento State Hornets (7-12, 2-4)
Last week’s results
At San Luis Obispo, Calif., Jan. 16: Cal Poly 74, Sacramento State 65
This week’s games
Jan. 26 vs. Portland State

Against Cal Poly, the Hornets shot just 31.1 percent from the field. Haron Hargrave led four players in double figures with 14 points. Davon Roberts, Angel Alamo and Alex Bausley each scored 13.

Weber State Wildcats (12-9, 5-3)
Last week’s results
At Bozeman, Mont., Jan. 18: Montana State 63, Weber State 48
At Missoula, Mont., Jan. 20: Montana 90, Weber State 86 (OT)
This week’s games
Jan. 25 at Idaho State
Jan. 27 vs. Eastern Washington

WSU made just 3-of-17 shots in the second half against the Bobcats, and blew a 28-20 halftime lead. David Patten and Tyler Billings each scored 13 points. Against the Grizzlies, J.P. Silveira scored 23 points, with six rebounds and five assists. Patten added 19 points.