Drexel has had to beat more than just opponents this season

BOSTON – Raise your hand if you thought Drexel would be in the middle of the pack in the CAA this season.

No hands? None at all?

It’s hard to blame anyone who would keep their hand down. There was just about every reason to think Drexel was the clear team to beat in the CAA this season, and we won’t go through those now. But as we are more than halfway home, the Dragons are mired in mediocrity with a 5-5 conference record after losing 59-52 at Northeastern on Saturday night.

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Drexel Dragons 2012-13 Preview

Drexel Dragons (29-7 overall, 16-2 conference)

Projected starting five:

Jr. G Frantz Massenat
So. G Damion Lee
Sr. G Derrick Thomas
Jr. F Dartaye Ruffin
Sr. F Daryl McCoy

Important departures:

F Samme Givens (11.6 ppg, 7.9 rpg, 1.8 apg) is the only player of any significance the Dragons lose.

Returning:

82.2 percent of scoring and 77.8 percent of rebounding

Additions:

Fr. F Tavon Allen (redshirt)
Fr. F Casey Carroll (redshirt)

Schedule Highlights:

The Dragons open the season at Kent State before hosting Missouri Valley contender Illinois State. They will play in the Anaheim Classic, starting with Saint Mary’s and then playing either Xavier or Pacific in the second game. The toughest road game the rest of the way is at Ivy League favorite Princeton, as they get Atlantic 10 favorite Saint Joseph’s at home to close out the non-conference slate. In CAA play, the Dragons have a four-game home stretch in February followed by the second three-game road stretch.

Projected finish and outlook:

There’s every reason to pick Drexel to win the CAA. The Dragons lose just one player of any significance, and while Givens is no small loss there is plenty coming back. The Dragons will have the conference’s best backcourt, best defense, a veteran cast and plenty of good candidates to take Givens’ place up front. If Ruffin is more like the player we saw as a freshman than the one we saw last year, Givens’ loss will be minimized, and while long known for their defense the Dragons have become a terrific offensive team with Massenat running the show. They led the conference in three-point shooting last season, among other things, and it helps that they bring high-scoring guard Chris Fouch off the bench. There is good leadership all the way around and the intangibles are off the charts, so the Dragons are going to be very difficult to beat this year.

Next: George Mason Patriots

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Bruiser Flint won’t be stressing out the next few days

RICHMOND, Va. – In theory, the next six days should be quite stressful for Drexel and head coach Bruiser Flint. After losing in the Colonial Athletic Association championship game on Monday night, the Dragons must wait to find out which tournament they will be playing in. As the regular season champions of the CAA, they are guaranteed a bid to the NIT, but naturally hope the NCAA Tournament comes calling. Flint doesn’t seem stressed at all about it, however, and his experience is a key factor in that.

Drexel was in a similar position in 2007. The big difference is in the NCAA Tournament profiles of the two teams, as the one in 2007 was better than this one. A look at the numbers doesn’t help Drexel: their strength of schedule entering Monday was 259, and their non-conference SOS is 228. Their best non-conference win is probably their win over Princeton at home, and the Tigers will finish third in the Ivy League.

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Drexel on the verge of putting some questions behind them

RICHMOND, Va. – In recent years, Drexel hasn’t had a great deal of success in the CAA Tournament. It’s led to Bruiser Flint being asked about it, and he’s responded almost like it’s a running joke to keep it light, as he tends to do. But now he has a team that is on the verge of doing more than just putting those questions behind them, as the Dragons knocked off two-time defending champion Old Dominion on Sunday to reach the championship game.

Asked about it last year, Bruiser found a light way to deal with it. He’s a pro at that, which is part of what makes him a great interview, but it’s understandable that he’d rather not answer such questions because the premise is flawed no matter the coach. Many surely remember when it was said that one coach after another, whether it be Jim Calhoun or Roy Williams, couldn’t win “the big one”, as if they weren’t validated until they got a Final Four or national title.

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Harvard’s path to the elusive NCAA Tournament bid just got tougher

Harvard is the nation’s oldest and most prestigious institution of higher learning. Many of the brightest young people grow up dreaming of attending the school, unless you’re like me and dreamed of going to MIT (or Cal Tech) because of engineering. The university has produced a number of high achievers in just about every field imaginable.

On the hardwood, it’s been a different story. Harvard has had seasons of 20 or more wins, and they’ve been to the CollegeInsider.com Tournament and NIT the past two seasons. But they have yet to get to the holy grail of college basketball, the NCAA Tournament. That has eluded them, including last year when they went to a one-game playoff against Princeton and lost on a buzzer-beating jumper in New Haven. And after Saturday night, they might be on a path to such a game once more, as Penn came to Lavietes Pavilion and stunned Harvard 55-54 on Senior Night.

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BracketBusters takes center stage once again

Every year, there is a lot of talk about how to make BracketBusters better, or if it should just go away entirely. While teams have undoubtedly benefited from it over the years of its existence, the feelings on it seem a bit mixed, and it’s debatable whether or not it has been good as a whole. Right now, it’s what we have, and on Saturday it was center stage.

Proponents have talked about teams getting an extra national television appearance for people to see them. They have also cited the chance to get an RPI boost. Certainly, some of the teams that have benefited can look back and argue that they would not have made the NCAA Tournament if not for a win in the BracketBusters, including Final Four teams from George Mason and VCU. … Continue Reading

Drexel rounds into form among the CAA’s best teams

BOSTON – Once Drexel regained the lead in the second half of Wednesday night’s game at Northeastern, the Dragons were well on their way to another win. They closed out the Huskies in a fashion that one would expect of a conference contender, and it’s the latest example of the Dragons looking like the team they were predicted to be in the preseason.

Northeastern took an early 29-27 lead in the second half, which was their first lead since the first minute of the game. But that lead was short-lived, and once Drexel went up 36-31 on a layup by Frantz Massenat, the Huskies were never within one possession the rest of the way.

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Drexel Dragons 2011-12 Preview

Drexel Dragons (21-10, 11-7)

Projected starting five:

So. G Frantz Massenat
Jr. G Chris Fouch (out until December due to injury)
Jr. G Derrick Thomas
Sr. F Samme Givens
So. F Dartaye Ruffin

Important departures:

G Gerald Colds (9.7 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 2.4 apg) is the only starter gone from last season’s team.

Returning:

83.9 percent of scoring and 89.9 percent of rebounding

Additions:

Fr. F Kazembe Abif
Fr. G-F Tavon Allen
Fr. F Casey Carroll
Fr. G-F Damion Lee
Fr. G Aquil Younger

Schedule highlights:

While not an overwhelming nonconference slate, the Dragons will be challenged with their season opener at Rider in a 6 a.m. tip as part of ESPN’s 24-hour marathon, and they could play Virginia in the Paradise Jam. They also head across town to play Saint Joseph’s and host Ivy League contender Princeton and MAAC contender Fairfield. In CAA play, they get George Mason and VCU only at home.

Projected finish and outlook:

The Dragons were picked first in a vote of the conference’s coaches, sports information directors and media, and it’s a selection that makes sense. Colds is the only significant departure from last season’s team, and they welcome an excellent recruiting class that will add depth and play good minutes right away. Massenat settled the point guard spot last season after it was a question mark, while Fouch will give them a proven scorer once he comes back from an injury that will keep him out past the start of the season. Thomas is one of the best players no one knows about mainly because he earns his keep defensively, while Givens and Ruffin will lead the way as this team beats up opponents on the backboards once again, something junior Daryl McCoy and Abif, the latter of whom has a great motor, will also help right away. Don’t be surprised if Lee and Allen make an impact right away as well, especially while Fouch is out of action. The Dragons will remain a tough team to score on, and that should get to another level with this group, while the offense should be better as Massenat improves and other players become scoring threats before Fouch comes back.

Next: George Mason Colonials

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CAA Tournament Quick Hitters – Quarterfinals

RICHMOND, Va. – Some quick hitters from Saturday’s quarterfinal games at the CAA Tournament:

• A common theme thus far has revolved around the teams with byes into the quarterfinals starting slowly because they aren’t in the same rhythm as the teams who had to win on Friday to get to this point. It happened in every game on Saturday, and even the coaches felt it made a difference at first. Clearly, though, each team found their footing after a while as all four top seeds advanced to the semifinals.
• A little related to that, all eight games thus far have either been tied or had a two-point margin at halftime. … Continue Reading

CAA Tournament Quick Hitters – First Round

RICHMOND, Va. – A few more quick hitters from the first round of the CAA Tournament:

• Georgia State big man James Vincent didn’t have big numbers, but you couldn’t help but notice him. He scored six points on 3-3 shooting, but all came on nice post moves to get close shots. UNC Wilmington doesn’t have much size, but Vincent could have scored on a lot of post players with what he showed. It’s enough to make you wonder why he didn’t do it more often. … Continue Reading