UNH’s win over Marist just what they needed coming out of finals

DURHAM, N.H. – Saturday’s 73-56 win over Marist was just what New Hampshire needed in several ways. The Wildcats did it with their offense helping their defense, for one, as that’s been an area where they haven’t always played well. They also got a very balanced effort all the way around. It also came after a break for final exams, and one never knows what a team will be like in that first game after it. And there’s also something that jumped out at the eldest Wildcat.

“We never win games decisively like that,” said senior guard Alvin Abreu. “It feels good to get a win like that.”

… Continue Reading

Stepping back to look beyond basketball

This past weekend has reminded us that there are bigger things than basketball. Most teams are off for final exams for some/all of this week, and a major brawl on Saturday also brought out that sentiment. While we’ll have more on the brawl later, right now there’s something else to think about in keeping with the theme.

I’m sure others have said it, but I remember ESPN’s Buster Olney once remarking that when you’re in the media, you become a fan of the game instead of a particular team. It’s very true, and part of that is being a fan of the people involved in the game. This is a people business in every respect, and those who succeed the most in this industry, no matter what capacity they are in, know how to deal with people.

To that end, I give you Ken Dempsey, the associate head coach at New Hampshire. Tuesday is an important day for him.

Dempsey recently shared on the National Coaches’ Diary Series on College Chalktalk that he has been diagnosed with prostate cancer. On Tuesday, he goes for surgery to address it, and will take an undetermined leave of absence from the basketball team. He is not the first and won’t be the last college coach to have to deal with this dreaded disease, but fortunately the outlook is good and there’s some personal significance.

We all have people who have helped us get where we are. Dempsey has helped many people in that respect in 25 years of coaching at several Division I schools, but it isn’t just players who have benefited from knowing him. I have no better friend in basketball than Ken Dempsey.

When I was an undergraduate at Northeastern, Dempsey joined the basketball staff when Dave Leitao took over as the head coach my freshman year. Dempsey was the first coach I met, and after a badly failed attempt to walk on to the team, he didn’t forget me. I would see him around the gym (back then, Cabot Gym was not only where the team practiced, but also the student recreational facility), especially if I was playing basketball before the team came to practice. He sensed that I liked the game, and encouraged me to join them as a manager. I would stop by the office and have conversations with him and Darryl Hilliard, also an assistant there at the time, and the relationship grew from there.

The next year, I became a manager. My experience in doing that was tremendous for a lot of reasons, from being so close to the game that I love to traveling to places I had never been to understanding what goes into a team’s season. There is not enough space to share how much that helped me to get where I am today, and that’s before I mention some of the things external to my role as a manager. Dempsey gave me access to recruiting reports so I could see what they looked like and start having a feel for the next college stars, and introduced me to Bob Gibbons when he visited Northeastern one time. This was back when there weren’t nearly as many people covering recruiting as there are now, as the Internet was still in its infancy in terms of its effects on athletic media.

That was only the beginning. When Dempsey left Northeastern just before I graduated, we made sure to stay in touch, and have done that. After some time away from the northeast, he’s been back for several years now. Interestingly, I covered what proved to be his last game as an assistant coach at UMKC before coming to New Hampshire – a tough loss in the then-Mid-Continent Conference (now the Summit League) Tournament in Tulsa.

Dempsey is optimistic that his leave from the team will be on the order of weeks. He is well-connected and has been in contact with some people who have dealt with this to learn from their experiences, and has had great support from everyone in Durham. And as he goes in for surgery on Tuesday to start the battle against prostate cancer, I know I am one of many people who is praying for a positive result at the end of all of this.

We go coast to coast with other news from the college basketball nation

• About that brawl: Cincinnati and Xavier each suspended four players for their roles in the well-chronicled brawl at the end of Saturday’s meeting between the two teams. Cincinnati suspended Yancy Gates, Cheikh Mbodj and Octavius Ellis for six games each and Ge’Lawn Guyn for one game, while Xavier suspended Dez Wells and Landen Amos for four games each, Mark Lyons for two and Tu Holloway for one.
• Indiana scored a dramatic win over Kentucky with a buzzer-beater on Saturday. It’s the biggest win for the Hoosiers under Tom Crean.
• Murray State knocked off Memphis on Sunday night, which improves the Racers to 10-0. But what has unfortunately received a little more buzz from that game than how good the Racers look is Memphis’ public address announcer announcing John Calipari as the Tigers’ head coach, which was greeted with a round of boos.
• It’s a light week of game action, and Monday night was no exception as the most notable game was probably Oregon’s 79-70 win over Portland State.

Games to watch on Tuesday

• Wisconsin at Milwaukee, 8 pm EST
• Belmont at Middle Tennessee, 8 pm EST

First road win may help New Hampshire get going

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – New Hampshire hasn’t played as many games as a lot of Division I teams. Their sixth game of the season was played on Wednesday, and at times this looks like a team that hasn’t played together much. In knocking off Brown 69-56, the Wildcats picked up a road win after their coach had challenged them to do just that.

“The challenge that we’ve been handing to our guys is, can we go on the road now and win a game?” said head coach Bill Herrion.

… Continue Reading

New Hampshire Trying to Manage Through Injuries

DURHAM, N.H. – One team that’s been through its share of adversity is the New Hampshire Wildcats. A team that looked like a contender in America East before the season has had a rough go of it, with injuries and suspensions playing a role in their 8-11 overall record, including 2-5 in America East. On Sunday, they got a bright light as they easily handled struggling UMBC 80-60 with a good overall effort.

“These kids have been in a tough situation with injuries and suspensions, our numbers have been down,” head coach Bill Herrion said. “I’m really proud of these guys for hanging in there and sticking with it.” … Continue Reading

New Hampshire Hopes Richmond Trip Leads to Success

RICHMOND, Va. – Although New Hampshire lost by a deceptive 13-point margin in the final of the Holiday on the Hardwood Classic to host VCU, the Wildcats come away in good shape. They finish non-conference play with a 6-6 mark, and the six wins are the most before January since they also had six in 1994-95. While in Richmond, there were some good things that they hope to take with them.

The Wildcats started off the final slowly, turning the ball over early and often. They had ten turnovers in the first nine minutes of the game, then gave it away just six times the rest of the way. With that, some offensive rebounding kept them somewhat in the game, although they never got closer than 13 points at any time in the second half. … Continue Reading

Holiday on the Hardwood Classic – Semifinal Notes

RICHMOND, Va. – Wednesday night’s semifinal games in the Holiday on the Hardwood Classic are in the books. New Hampshire won the first game 68-66 over Cornell, and will take on host VCU in the title game after the Rams beat Wofford 75-66.

A few thoughts from Wednesday’s games:

• Cornell isn’t far away. The Big Red lost for the sixth time by five or fewer points, which means they’ve been right there. Cornell doesn’t have the star power of a year ago, but they do have veterans who have won like Chris Wroblewski (14 points, six assists), Errick Peck (game-high 19 points) and Adam Wire (team’s leading rebounder). But they’re all in different roles than before, an adjustment they haven’t quite made yet. … Continue Reading

America East Post Season Awards

The America East regular season wrapped up on Sunday; the seedings are set, the teams are ready, and Binghamton managed to once again cause another “international incident” (the Bearcats withdrew from the America East tournament). Certain circumstances have kept me from contributing as regularly as I had desired this season, but make no mistake; I’m still as involved in ever – still have my finger on the America East pulse so to speak – and the upcoming America East tournament will once again bring me past the 80-games-attended mark for the season.

Without further ado, here are my America East Awards; they are based on who I feel merits each award, and not predictions of how the coaches will actually vote.

Coach of the Year:
·    Candidates: Steve Pikiell, Stony Brook; Ted Woodward, Maine.

There was much talk earlier this year about Binghamton interim coach Mark Macon for COY – absolutely not! Once the going got tough for Binghamton, Macon sat on the bench like a statue, and appeared as if he could have cared less about coaching – and leading – a team. Woodward deserves considerable consideration (did I just type that as a sentence?). Woodward has made Maine – a school that has been a perennial play-in game team, and never once seriously competed for a conference title – a contender. Woodward has gotten the Black Bears to win on the defensive end – something they haven’t done before – and perhaps even more impressive has gotten the Black Bears to the top of the conference with only one “All-Conference” player. Pikiell was shafted out of the COY award last year, and has continued to shine on Long Island: Pikiell completed the Seawolves transformation from worst to first, and has the Seawolves playing as a team, hard, for 40 minutes. He has fielded and coached the closest thing the league has to a complete team, and has gotten the job done recruiting, game-planning, and in the community.

·    Winner: Steve Pikiell, Stony Brook.

In a very close call, Pikiell should get the nod – no slight or disrespect to Woodward, but the job that Pikiell has done at Stony Brook is second to none; down the stretch the Seawolves never buckled, and showed up every time their backs were against the wall.

Player of the Year:
·   Candidates: Marqus Blakely, Forward, Vermont; John Holland, Guard/Forward, Boston Univeristy.

There are only two possible candidates in Blakely and Holland. Binghamton’s Greer Wright looked at one point like he might deserve some consideration, but he floundered down the stretch, and quite simply looked like he didn’t give a… when the going got tough – which removed him from any consideration. Muhammad El-Amin for Stony Brook put points up in bunches for the Seawolves; helping to propel Stony Brook to a regular season title – including a game winning shot against Albany. But El-Amin simply does not get the job done on the defensive end, does not play with the basketball IQ or the sense of urgency needed from a POY, and is surrounded by more overall talent that anyone else in the league. And it’s hard to make a case for El-Amin when many people on the Stony Brook’s staff don’t view him as the team’s best player. Holland was the league’s best offensive player – there is simply no argument. In years past, Holland has struggled mightily with consistency – and often disappeared when the Terriers needed him most – but this season he was a monster, leading the league in scoring (19.9 ppg overall, 19.5 ppg in conference games) while pouring it on down the stretch (including 43 points in the Terriers “Bracket Buster” game). Holland even made am impact on the defensive end – he still makes mistakes, but he gambled much less down the stretch and has become a solid defender. Blakely is simply the league’s best all-around player: he makes an impact every single night in one way or another – offense, defense, rebounding: He not only led the Catamounts in scoring, rebounding, blocked shots, steals, and assists; he ranked among the America East leaders in those categories as well.

·    Winner: Marqus Blakely, Vermont.

It’s really not close – and that isn’t in any way disrespectful to Holland, who will most likely win a POY before graduating. Blakely simply impacts the game more than any other player in the league. Some fans still don’t give Blakely the respect he deserves – he’s never turned into the Taylor Coppenrath/Kenny Adeleke/T.J. Sorrentine/JJ Barea offensive juggernaut – and he can be stopped (or at least greatly slowed down) on the offensive end because, frankly, he can’t score from more than 4-feet away from the hoop. But he is a monster on the defensive end – he led the conference in steals and blocks (2.6 spg, 1.9 bpg) and disrupts the game both at the top of the 1-3-1 zone or defending in the paint. And on offense, Blakely is the catalyst for the league’s highest scoring team: far beyond his 17.4 points per game (16.5 ppg in conference games – good for 4th), Blakely draws constant double and triple-teams leaving his teammates WIDE OPEN. No one in the league gets to the line more, draws more fouls from opponents, or is more of a focus of opponent’s game-plans. Blakely will never be Coppenrath – but neither will anyone else in the league. Blakely is, quite simply, the best – overall, all-around – player in the league.

Defensive Player of the Year:
·   Candidates: Marqus Blakely, Forward, Vermont; Tommy Brenton, Forward, Stony Brook; Russell Graham, Guard, New Hampshire.

The two-time Defensive Player of the Year, Blakely is a one-man tornado: He disrupts the game at both the top and the bottom of the 1-3-1 zone. He can take over a game defensively on the perimeter, or on the low-post. He was the overall leader in both steals and blocks. There isn’t much more that needs to be said – perhaps the only knock on Blakely is that he gambles a lot, and occasionally hurts his team because of it, and isn’t the best man-to-man defender in the league. The fact that Brenton and Graham even merit consideration speaks volumes about their quality as defenders: Brenton is almost a lesser version of Blakely – he blocks shots, picks pockets, and defends both in the post and on the perimeter – and is actually a better man-to-man defender. He murdered the defensive glass (leading the league in defensive rebounding both overall and in conference games). Graham, a fire-hydrant bull-dog guard, is the best man-to-man perimeter defender in the league.

·    Winner: Marqus Blakely, Forward, Vermont.

Blakely is the league’s best overall defender; not much argument necessary.

Rookie of the Year:
·    Candidates: Dylan Talley, Guard, Binghamton; Mike Black, Guard, Albany; Ferg Myrick, Forward, New Hampshire.
* This was by far the weakest overall freshman class that I have seen in the 9 years I have followed the America East.

Talley, a 6’5” strong-guard type, lead all league rookies in scoring, both in conference games and overall (13.5 ppg in AE games, 11.8 overall), despite playing out of position at the point guard spot.  Talley also did a decent job on the glass. The knock on Talley is that he wasn’t much of a defender, and was not a team player (his offensive strategy at the point guard position was to put his head down and basically try to go 1 on 5 every time down the court). Black looks like Albany’s point guard of the future (although, we’ve said that about two different freshmen during the previous 2 years). After a slow start to the season, he blossomed; playing the most demanding position on the floor, averaging 10.4 points per game and 3.4 assists (7th in the league in conference games), while shooting .467 from behind the arc in league games (third best in the league). Myrick is, hands down, the league’s most talented rookie – as far as physical gifts it’s not even close – he averaged 10 points per game in conference game despite playing limited minutes.

·    Winner: Mike Black, Guard, Albany.

Talley’s numbers are certainly impressive – but it’s not that hard to put up numbers if you have some talent and are simply “trying to get yours” every night. Myrick’s talent trumps anyone’s, but he didn’t get the consistent playing time needed to put up numbers equivalent of his talent. Black had a very nice season, and did it all; ran a team, scored, shot from behind the arc, and even defended well on the ball.

1st Team All-Conference:
·    Candidates: Marqus Blakely, Forward, Vermont; John Holland, Guard/Forward, Boston University; Greer Wright, Forward, Binghamton; Muhammad El-Amin, Guard, Stony Brook; Joe Zeglinski, Guard, Hartford; Gerald McLemore, Guard, Maine; Tommy Brenton, Forward, Stony Brook.

Blakely and Holland need no explanation: Best player in the league, and best offensive player in the league, respectively. A 6’7” wing who can put the ball on the floor and take opponents of the dribble, Wright sputtered a bit down the stretch, but he finished the season fifth in overall scoring (15 ppg) and fourth in scoring in conference games (16.8ppg)., In conference games, Wright also finished fourth in assists (3.9 apg), fifth in assist-to-turnover ratio, and tenth in steals. El-Amin, McLemore, and Zeglinski are all pure-scorers. El-Amin – a 6’5” guard who is perhaps more adept at taking opponents off of the dribble than any other AE wing in recent history –  hit big shot after big shot for the 1st place Seawolves down the stretch, and was second in scoring in conference games (19.1 ppg), and third in overall scoring (16.8 ppg). McLemore ranked sixth in overall scoring, eight in conference scoring – and was the Black Bears offense. McLemore was a monster shooter from behind the three-point line, finished out the season on an unbelievable shooting streak from behind the arc, and his numbers become more impressive when considering that he was the focus of every opponent’s defensive scheme. Zeglinski bounced back from an ankle injury that derailed his previous season to rank fourth in overall scoring (16.7 ppg), and third in scoring in conference games (17.3). Zeglinski hit several big shots this season – including a buzzer beating game-winner at UNH – and made an impact on the glass as well. Brenton has been completely overlooked by most fans, because he has not become a scorer – yet. Brenton only averaged 7.7 points per game (7.9 in conference games), but he was the most important player for the Seawolves, and according to coach Pikiell, was the Seawolves best overall player. Brenton led the league in rebounding (both overall at 9.6 rpg, and in AE games at 9.8 rpg), and led Stony Brook in steals, assists, and field goal percentage. A 6’5” ball of super-athletic energy, Brenton was the heart and soul of Stony Brook, and the league’s toughest player. It was no coincidence that the Seawolves took off and ran the AE gauntlet precicesly when Pikiell turned Brenton into a “point-forward” and had him run the Seawolves offense as soon as Stony Brook crossed half court. Brenton is arguably the best defender in the league not named “Marqus Blakely” and was often put in man-to-man coverage with the opponent’s best offensive player – regardless of whether they were on the perimeter or in the paint.

·    Winners:
§    Marqus Blakely, Senior, Forward, Vermont: 17.4 ppg, 9.1 rpg, 3.7 apg, 2.6 spg, 1.9 bpg.

§    John Holland, Junior, Guard/Forward, Boston University: 19.9 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 1.6 spg.

§    Greer Wright, Junior, Forward, Binghamton: 15.0 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 3.2 apg, 1.2 spg.

§    Muhammad El-Amin, Senior, Guard, Stony Brook: 16.8 ppg, 19.1 ppg in conference games.

§    Tommy Brenton, Sophomore, Forward, Stony Brook: 7.7 ppg, 9.6 rpg, 2.8 apg, 1.8 spg.

Blakely and Holland need no explanation – they were the two best players in the league. Despite sputtering down the stretch, Wright was phenomenal in his first season. El-Amin, McLemore, and Zeglinski were all scorers who really didn’t defend at all, and El-Amin gets the edge in the “pure scoring department” as he averaged more points, hit more big shots, and played for the best team. Brenton is probably a shock and head scratcher to most fans, but he was a better overall player than any of the trio of scorers up for consideration – by the Marqus Blakely and Jay Greene factor of overall impact, Brenton made a bigger difference on the floor when considering the impact he had defending, rebounding, and distributing the ball.

2nd Team All-Conference:
§    Joe Zeglinski, R-Junior, Guard, Hartford: 16.7 ppg, 5.1 rpg.

§    Gerald McLemore, Sophomore, Guard, Maine: 14.9 ppg, .402 3pt-fg

§    Alvin Abreu, Junior, Guard, New Hampshire: 14.6 ppg.

§    Jake O’Brien, Sophomore, Forward, Boston University: 13.0 ppg, 6.6 rpg.

§    Maurice Joseph, Senior, Forward, Vermont: 14.3 ppg.

Zeglinski and McLemore were the last two kept off of the first team; both were big-time scorers and carried their respective clubs on offense. Zeglinski, a pint-sized fire-hydrant of a guard managed to dominate some games on the offensive glass, and was the heart and soul of the Hawks. McLemore still isn’t a “stopper,” but he made huge strides on the defensive end and was the Black Bears offense. Abreu was streaky, but was instrumental in the Wildcats 20 point win over 2nd place Vermont and 22 point win over 1st place Stony Brook. When on, Abreu is as good a scoring guard as there is, and also made a big impact on the defensive end. O’Brien was the 2nd best player on the Terriers, and took an absolute beating during the season as the Terriers only option in the low-post. He stretched the floor from behind the arc, gave the Terriers a scorer near the hoop, defended, and blocked some shots. Joseph is a one-dimensional player, but good-god can he shoot it when he gets into a groove, and down the stretch he was huge for the Catamounts.

3rd Team All-Conference:
§    Evan Fjeld, Sophomore, Forward, Vermont: 10.6 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 1.3 bpg.

§    Corey Lowe, Senior, Guard, Boston University: 14.1 ppg, 4.3apg.

§    Carlos Strong, Senior, Guard, Boston University: 10.1 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 1.6 spg.

§    Chris De La Rosa, R-Sophomore, Guard, UMBC: 11.8 ppg, 5.1 apg, 1.1 spg.

§    Brian Dougher, Sophomore, Guard, Stony Brook: 13.6 ppg, .423 3pt-fg.

Fjeld’s conference numbers were far greater than his overall numbers, as he became a real weapon during the conference slate. He also developed as a rebounder, and even shot blocker. What keeps Fjeld from the second team is that a great many of his buckets were completely uncontested, as he certainly benefitted from the double and triple-teams opponents employed on Blakely. Lowe’s numbers are considered a disappointment by many fans, but it wasn’t for lack of effort: Lowe completely bought into first-year head coach Pat Chambers’ scheme, and wore his heart on his sleeve during the season. For perhaps the first time in his career, Lowe truly sacrificed himself on both ends of the floor, played every game like it was his last, and put his team far above himself. Unfortunately, injuries took a heavy toll on Lowe down the stretch and prevented him from a 1st or 2nd team selection. Strong played the best basketball of his career down the stretch, and was instrumental in the Terriers late season surge. It is truly remarkable that De La Rosa lead the league in assists and assist to turnover ratio considering the team he was surrounded by. With any kind of supporting cast he might have been a 1st-teamer. Dougher was the best scorer and shooter on the league’s best team for a stretch, but cooled down the stretch. He was, however, still a terrific scorer.

All-Rookie Team:
·    Candidates: Dylan Talley, Guard, Binghamton; Mike Black, Guard, Albany, Ferg Myrick, Forward, New Hampshire; Murphy Burnatowski, Forward, Maine; Marcus Rouse, Guard, Stony Brook; Charles White, Guard, Hartford; Shawn Grant, Forward, UMBC; Adrian Satchell, Forward, UMBC; Logan Aronhalt, Guard, Albany.

·    Winners:
§   Dylan Talley, Guard, Binghamton
§    Mike Black, Guard, Albany
§   Ferg Myrick, Forward, New Hampshire
§    Murphy Burnatowski, Forward, Maine
§    Charles White, Guard, Hartford

Talley, Black, and Myrick are no-brainers. The other two spots were very much up in the air, but I give the edge to Burnatowski and White. Burnatowski was the best defender on a Black Bears squad that relied on defense. An incredibly tough, physical forward with athleticism and a mean-streak – the kind of good, Jason Grochowalski-Tommy Brenton mean-streak – Burnatowski made a huge impact on the defensive end, and showed some offensive flashes down the stretch while playing a crucial role in the Black Bears third-place finish. Charles White is a phenomenal perimeter defender – the best rookie defender in the league – and has done a remarkable job on some of the league’s best scorers (the job he did at home on Muhammad El-Amin was one of the more impressive performances by a freshman this season).

All-Defensive Team:
·    Candidates: Marqus Blakely, Forward, Vermont; Tommy Brenton, Forward, Stony Brook; Russell Graham, Guard, New Hampshire; Chretien Lukusa, Guard, Binghamton; Mahamoud Jabbi, Forward, Binghamton; Dane DiLiegro, Center, New Hampshire; Murphy Burnatowski, Forward, Maine; Garvey Young, Guard, Vermont; Dallis Joyner, Center, Stony Brook. Charles White, Guard, Hartford.

Blakely – who will, and should, win his third straight defensive player of the year – is a no brainer. Brenton is a defensive tornado who can lock down on both low-post and perimeter players and shut them down, and controls the defensive glass (he led the league in defensive rebounding – overall, and in conference games – by a considerable margin). Graham is the best perimeter defender in the league, with Lukusa and White battling for second. Jabbi – an incredibly bouncy forward – led the league in blocked shots in conference games. DiLiegro draws more charges than anyone in the conference, gets phenomenal low-post positioning, and is a monster on the defensive glass. Burnatowski is a physical forward who defends both the low-post and the perimeter, and was the best defender on a Black Bears squad that won games on the defensive end. Young is another very strong and physical perimeter defender.  Joyner came on late as a terrific low-post defender (the job he did on Blakely in the Seawolves regular-season championship clinching win over Vermont may well have been the best single defensive performance the league has seen this year).

·    Winners:
§    Marqus Blakely, Senior, Forward, Vermont
§    Tommy Brenton, Sophomore, Forward, Stony Brook
§    Russell Graham, Sophomore, Guard, New Hampshire
§    Mahamoud Jabbi, R-Junior, Forward, Binghamton
§    Charles White, Freshman, Guard, Hartford.

Blakely, Brenton, and Graham were locks. Jabbi’s shot blocking coupled with his rebounding, and White’s perimeter defense give them the slight edge over the rest of the competition.

All-Floor Burn/Blue Collar (The League’s five toughest guys):
§    Tommy Brenton, Sophomore, Forward, Stony Brook
§    Dane DiLiegro, Junior, Center, New Hampshire
§    Radar Ongeutou, Senior, Forward, New Hampshire
§    Joe Zeglinski, R-Junior, Guard, Hartford
§    Tyrone Conley, Junior, Guard, New Hampshire

All-Rim-Wreckers and Backboard-Shakers (Top in-game dunkers)
§    Marqus Blakely, Senior, Forward, Vermont
§    Tyrone Conley, Junior, Guard, New Hampshire
§    Tommy Brenton, Sophomore, Forward, Stony Brook
§    Dane DiLiegro, Junior, Center, New Hampshire
§    Dallis Joyner, Sophomore, Center, Stony Brook

Blakely may be the best all-around in-game dunker the conference has seen. Conley has the highest vertical leap in the conference and is an insane high-flying acrobat – much closer to 6’1” than his listed 6’3” – he has been finishing off alley-oops and dunking on people in a way the conference hasn’t seen (from a small-guard) since Matt Turner. Brenton is another top-end athlete, but unlike Blakely and Conley, his dunks aren’t about acrobatics: he just tries to dunk on people as hard as he physically can. Brenton has become the America East’s version of Charles Barkley when it comes to finishing off fast breaks like a runaway freight train. DiLiegro and Joyner are all about raw-power: they both try to rip the rim off every time.  Notables not making the list: John Holland, Chauncey Gilliam, and Carlos Strong – who are all terrific dunkers but just didn’t quite bring it enough this year.

All-Bust (The Biggest Disappointments)
§    Will Harris, Forward, Albany: Harris’s entire career as a Great Dane can be summed up in a line from Jay-Z: “You know the type, loud as a motorbike, but wouldn’t bust a grape in a fruit fight.” No one in the league talks more trash, makes more noise, or pounds their chest more prior to tip-off than Harris. And no one is quieter in big-game situations and big moments in their career. Harris is easily one of the three most physically talented players in the league, yet he couldn’t even rank in the top 20 in either scoring or rebounding during the conference slate. Harris simply doesn’t care, or doesn’t get it, or both. At the end of the day, he will have began his career starting at Virginia, and finished it sitting on the bench at Albany.

§   Tim Ambrose, Guard, Albany: Like Harris, Ambrose has incredible physical gifts, but has never come close to getting much out of the gifts he was blessed with on the court. He still doesn’t defend ANYONE, and doesn’t seem to have much energy or passion for the game.

§    Joel Barkers, Forward, Hartford: Barkers came out of the gate on fire in his first season at Hartford, and looked like the physical presence they desperately needed on the low-blocks. Alas, it wouldn’t last, as Barkers has looked uninspired and disinterested during most of the season.

§    Robbie Jackson, Center, UMBC: A transfer from Marshall, Jackson was billed as a 7-footer who would change the game in the America East. Jackson took the floor out of shape, overweight, and without much passion or fire. At 7 feet (more like 6’10”) he plays the game like he’s 6’1”.

§    Athletic Director Joel Thirer/Head Coach Kevin Broadus/Tiki Mayben/D.J. Rivera/Malik Alvin et all: What more needs to be said about this collective group of clowns that has imploded the Binghamton basketball program? They single handedly turned Vestal, NY, into the setting of a Road Warrior movie. Cocaine and Marijuana Dealing, condom stealing, credit card fraud, paying players, pressuring admissions to let in unqualified students, pressuring teachers to change grades, and in general allowing student athletes at a low-major school to live completely above the law; that sort of thing isn’t acceptable at UConn, let alone Binghamton. To quote Adam Sandler’s Billy Madison, “I award them no points, and may god have mercy on their souls.”

Catching Up on America East – January 26, 2010

(Author’s note: I would like to take a second to apologize to my readers, as well as the loyal fans of the America East conference, for my prolonged absence. I had several things that I was juggling on my plate that prevented me from writing more during the past few months, however I have still been able to keep my finger on the pulse of the America East conference – by my current count I have still managed to attend far too many America East games thus far. I hope that my readership will return to Hoopville, as I dive back into the action of covering the America East for the stretch run).

There’s no way to sugar coat it: The America East just isn’t good this year. After spending last season ranked in the mid-teens, the America East looks destined to end the season ranked in the mid-twenties. And to be blunt, in the nine years that I have followed the conference, this is the weakest it has ever been.

The silver lining, however, is that the “down year” could produce a tremendous conference tournament. Last season parity reigned supreme in the America East, and while there was no real “power” like Vermont and Boston University during the first part of the decade, Albany of a few years ago, or even UMBC from two years ago, what resulted was the most competitive conference tournament in recent memory, as every single game seemed to go down to the buzzer. With even more parity this season, the 2010 “AE” Tournament could prove to the most hard-fought, dramatic, and compelling in conference history. The common phrase thrown around every season is “on any night, any team can beat any other,” but nowhere has this phrase ever been more true than the upcoming tournament, as on a neutral court in Hartford, literally any of the nine America East squads has a real chance of beating any of the other eight.

For the conference as a whole, there is light at the end of the tunnel, as the league will be better next season (it couldn’t get any worse, right?)  The vast majority of the America East’s talent lies within it’s junior (John Holland, Joe Zeglinski, Dane DiLiegro, Greer Wright, Sean McNally, Tyrone Conley, Alvin Abreu, Tim Ambrose), and sophomore (Tommy Brenton, Gerald McLemore, Jake O’Brien, Brian Dougher, Dallis Joyner) classes.

Having seen all nine teams play live at least three times, here are some quick thoughts on the year:

• While parity reigns supreme, the foursome of Stony Brook, Vermont, Boston University, and Maine have separated themselves from the rest of the league (yes, that’s right, Maine!)  Amazingly, Binghamton (yes, the same Binghamton that lost its top 3 talents, head coach, Athletic Director and 3 other players, and struggled against division II schools early on) has already knocked off two of the top four teams in the standings, and looks to be straddling the middle ground between the top-four and bottom-four in the league.
• As always, winning on the road is going to play a large roll in determining the final standings, which is why I like Stony Brook as my top-team right now. Granted the Seawolves have had close calls at home against lesser conference foes (six-point wins over New Hampshire and Albany), and have lost to both Binghamton and Maine (perhaps the least “talented” of the top 5 teams in the conference). But Stony Brook has played the toughest conference schedule to start the league slate, playing all of the top teams in the league (Vermont, BU, Maine, Binghamton) on the road. The Seawolves went into Boston and punched BU in the mouth, thoroughly beating the Terriers in a game that wasn’t nearly as close as the final score (84-75), and trekked up to Vermont and out-toughed the Catamounts for a five-point win in a gritty, physical game. The Seawolves have depth (they use a ten-man rotation), play super-physical (toughest team in the league), and crash the boards and defend the heck out of the ball as a team, no matter who is on the floor. They also have the league’s most diverse offense, with Brian Dougher (and to a lesser degree Marcus Rouse) providing big-time shooting from downtown, Muhammad El-Amin, Chris Martin, and Tommy Brenton attacking the basket on drives, and Brenton and Dallis Joyner giving the Seawolves a threat in the low post. With that said, Stony Brook is still very short on experience, and has a tendency to rely on three-point shooting too much while ignoring their low-post scorers, and while I see the Seawolves as the favorites as of now, it is by the slimmest of margins.
• The two surprises of the conference have been Maine and Binghamton, and both deserve a tremendous amount of credit.
• Coming off of a season in which they won eight games, played completely uninspired ball, and “phoned it in” during their play-in game loss in the conference tournament, no one (myself included) expected much out of Maine, a team that seemingly hasn’t found a way to string two wins together since head coach Ted Woodward took over five years ago. The Black Bears shocked Boston College on the road for the America East’s “biggest” non-conference win (the Black Bears should expect that BC head coach Al Skinner will be removing them from his schedule from here on out), and currently sit atop the league standings at 5-1.  That includes a home win over Stony Brook and a win on the road at Binghamton.  Sophomore Gerald McLemore continues to impress, ranking 7^th in the conference in scoring (14.8 ppg), and junior center Sean McNally continues to play the role of school yard bully in the paint (11 ppg, 7.6 rpg). But the difference for the Black Bears has been their play on the defensive end, and the emergence of several very solid role players. Maine has controlled the tempo of the game – playing physical, clogging passing lanes, contesting shots, and generally slowing it down to a snail’s pace – and is holding America East opponents to a league-best 58.5 points per game.  For all his scoring, McLemore, who is a prolific three-point shooter who also gets tough buckets on drives to the basket, has made an equally big impact on the defensive end.Newcomers Murphy Burnatowski and Mike Allison, as well as the return of junior Malachi Peay and emergence of Troy Barnies, has given Maine a legitimate cast of complementary players to McNally and McLemore. Burnatowski, a freshman from Canada, is the Black Bears’ best athlete, and while still rough and without a position offensively, the 6’7″, 230-pound (more like 6’5″, 245) has a mean streak and toughness on the court that Maine has been missing for years, and makes things tough on the defensive end. Fellow Canadian Allison has given the Black Bears a nice touch and an offensive boost off of the bench, and at 6’9″ he should only get better when he puts some weight on his skinny frame. Peay returned after missing the first half to concentrate on academics, and is a defensive tornado who seems to always have his hands in the passing lane, and also gives the Black Bears a new dimension on the offensive end as he has a knack for getting to the hoop. Barnies may never develop into the player that Black Bears fans had hoped, but since being moved to the bench halfway through the non-conference season, he seems to finally be understanding that he’s 6’7″ and a decent athlete playing in a conference of 6’5″ post players, and is finally beginning to defend and rebound.
• As surprising as Maine has been, the biggest jaw-dropper of the season has been the play of the Binghamton Bearcats, who witnessed the implosion of last season’s conference championship squad, yet have found a way to not only be competitive, but frankly, be a very solid team. To be fair, the Bearcats do benefit from playing in front of the conference’s largest fan base, and the Events Center in Binghamton is the one true home court advantage in the America East.  The Bearcats are also a much more pedestrian team on the road than they are at home. But still, this is a team suiting up seven scholarship players.  This is a team which didn’t return one of its top four scorers from last season, and one which has ridden through more controversy and bad press than any team in the history of the America East. What is going on at Binghamton is a credit to the collective hearts of their remaining players. Binghamton has also benefitted greatly from the play of Greer Wright, a JuCo transfer who has played himself onto the 1^st team All-Conference. A springly 6’7″, Wright can score from all over and is proving to be a huge match-up problem in the America East. In Binghamton’s home victory over Vermont, Wright outplayed two-time Player of the Year Marcus Blakely, and poured in 30 points on 10-15 shooting. The Bearcats have also benefitted from the play of freshman Dylan Talley, who looks like the conference Rookie of the Year, and is also a tough match-up as a very strong 6’5″ guard. Binghamton doesn’t have enough bullets to win any shoot-outs, but they defend the hell out of the ball, play with tremendous heart for 40 minutes, and at home in front of their vocal fan base are going to be a very tough out for anyone.
• For all the talk of parity, the America East champion is going to be one of three teams: Boston University, Vermont, or Stony Brook. Binghamton just doesn’t have it to win on the road, and as excited as I am to see Maine competing, I still don’t have a ton of faith in Woodward, and they just don’t have the athletes or experience. Vermont is a “one trick pony” with Marqus Blakely carrying their team on both ends, but the America East might just be bad enough for that one trick to win. Boston University has absolutely no depth, but when John Holland, Corey Lowe, and Jake O’Brien are all playing to their potential  and they finally have been clicking at the same time as of late – they are going to be very tough to beat. Stony Brook is the most balanced team, as they are tough and athletic, they defend, and have a mean streak.

But what do I know? After all, here’s how I ranked the team in the pre-season:

1. BU
2. Stony Brook
3. Vermont
4. New Hampshire
5. Albany
6. Hartford
7. UMBC
8. Maine
9. Binghamton

And with half of the season in the books, here’s how the league standings look as of now:

1. Maine 5-1: (13-6 overall)
2. Stony Brook 6-2: (14-7)
3. Boston University: 6-2 (11-9)
4. Vermont: 5-2 (14-7)
5. Binghamton: 3-3 (8-13)
6. Hartford: 3-4 (5-15)
7. New Hampshire: 2-4 (7-10)
8. Albany: 1-6 (6-16)
9. UMBC: 0-7 (1-19)

I’ve got two right, that’s gotta’ count for something… right?

Make sure to check back in to Hoopville for upcoming bi-weekly conference notebooks, game stories, and player features, as well as a multi-part trip down memory lane.

It’s good to be back.

Wildcats Hang Tough, Hold Off Quinnipiac

DURHAM, N.H. – Dane DiLiegro opened and closed the game with authority, but it took a team effort during his absence to overcome a tenacious Quinnipiac team and earn a 77-70 victory.

With the win UNH improved to 3-1 on the season. Eric Gilchrese scored 20 points, while Mike Christensen added 17 and Alvin Abreu came off the bench for 14, as the Wildcats overcame 25 points each from Quinnipiac’s combo of DeMario Anderson and Evann Baker.

The local media might still be ignoring the Wildcats, but it’s apparent to everyone who’s seen them play that this New Hampshire team is for real. The Wildcats opened the season with a near upset of Boston College and haven’t lost since, improving every game. This years team isn’t the pushover that UNH has been in the past, and opponents are taking notice, as Wildcats’ Coach Bill Herrion reflected after the win.

“The more games you play, the more tapes get out, and in the first couple of games you can catch people off guard, maybe people don’t know you that well,” said Herrion. “Well guess what, were 3-1, were not going to be surprising people anymore.”

Quinnipiac’s game plan was to attack the Wildcats in the post, as head Coach Tom Moore stated, “Initially what we wanted to do was try to score inside on those guys.” However, this strategy seemed futile early on, as DiLiegro continued to make his presence felt in the middle for New Hampshire.

After winning the opening tip, the freshman ripped down the rebound of an errant shot over two defenders, flashed a nifty spin move in the post and finished off despite hard contact from Quinnipiac’s Justin Rutty. DiLiegro quickly established himself on the defensive end, as on the ensuing possession he first deflected Rutty’s jumper, and then annihilated Louis Brookins’ lay up, eliciting a road from the crowd.

His early performance won the respect of the opposing coach, as after the game Moore raved about the young freshman, saying, “DiLiegro is an aggressive player, he’s a good defender, he’s a really aggressive rebounder, he has great strength and great energy for a freshman. He’s going to be a terrific player for these guys.”

Unfortunately for the Wildcats, DiLiegro also picked up two offensive fouls within the first three minutes, and was forced to the bench for the rest of the first half.

“He’s still really learning how to play,” said Herrion, “He plays very hard. His fouls were just ticky-tack fouls that he doesn’t need to commit. He’s got to learn how to play without fouling, but he’s a big, strong, physical kid, and he plays hard.”

Without DiLiegro on the floor, what had been advantage in the post for UNH quickly became a disadvantage as they got much smaller and much less physical in a hurry. New Hampshire could normally count on sophomore captain Radar Onguetou to step in and provide physicality and smart, tough-nosed defense, but Onguetou has been dealing with a persistent leg injury early in the season, and his effectiveness has been greatly limited. “Radar is banged up,” said Herrion, “he’s hobbling, but he gives you terrific effort. He’s just struggling offensively.”

The injury to Onguetou, and DiLiegro’s foul trouble affected the Wildcats the most on the defensive end, as Quinnipiac immediately began to have success scoring around the basket. UNH was forced to play freshmen James Valladares and Rony Tchatchoua extensively, and while their efforts were admirable, the absence of DiLiegro was apparent.

“Losing Dane was big,” said junior guard Tyrece Gibbs. “It’s always good to know that your shot blocker is behind you when you get posted up. Without him, it was a lot more stressful.”

Quinnipiac’s guards, whom had struggled to shoot over DiLiegro in the first three minutes, began to score at will once he left the floor. DeMario Anderson and Evann Baker each scored twelve points in the first half, coming almost entirely from posting up on the low block, as the Bobcats scored twenty points in the post during the opening period.

The points in the paint were especially troubling to Herrion, as Quinnipiac didn’t make a single first half three-pointer, yet controlled the game twelve minutes in. “We need to get tougher, collectively, defensively around the basket,” said the third-year coach.

Trailing by six with eight minutes to go, UNH was on the verge of letting the game get out of control, but the Wildcats, in what has been a staple of theirs so far this year, dug their heels in and clawed their way back into the game. What was most impressive during the Wildcats run was that they did it largely without the help of their best players, as captain’s Mike Christensen and Gibbs struggled the entire half. Last season, UNH lacked scoring depth, as their offense revolved around getting departed senior Blogoj Janev the ball and getting out of his way. As Janev went, so went the team, and if Janev, and to a lesser extent Christensen and Gibbs, struggled on offense, UNH didn’t stand a chance.

This year’s Wildcats squad has done a complete one-eighty. While Gibbs and Christensen (and starter Tyrone Conley) struggled to find the hoop in the first half, UNH’s bench took over. The Wildcats’ transition from last season was on full display, as New Hampshire’s speed and athleticism combined with their newfound bench depth turned the tide. Valladares scored on a nifty reverse lay up, Alvin Abreu nailed a jumper in transition, and Tchatchoua threw down an acrobatic two-handed slam in traffic, and suddenly it was a two-point game.

Abreu and fellow guard Eric Gilchrese then took over, as they seemed to feed off each other and excel in transition, with Gilchrese scoring several buckets leading the fast break and setting up Abreu for two huge three-pointers. Mike Christensen then got in on the action, nailing a deep three, and Onguetuo finished off a gutsy drive in traffic, and New Hampshire went into the half with a commanding 40-30 lead.

Abreu, who scored eleven first half points, was especially huge for the Wildcats, as his three’s were not only timely, but momentum changing, as they were each from well beyond NBA range. Abreu was fearless shooting over defenders, and played with a confidence and poise rarely displayed by freshmen. Abreu’s play in the first half earned him praise from both his own coach, as well as his opponent’s.

“Alvin Abreu offensively gave us a big lift,” stated Herrion, while Moore added “Alvin Abreu is terrific, in terms of his offensive confidence and his swagger.”

The influx of new talent has been huge for the Wildcats, as they are much more athletic and much more fearless then they have been in years past. But the youth movement has also given Coach Herrion some heartburn in the early going, as they may lack the experience to go for the knockout punch when their opponent is weak.

“I don’t know if we’re old enough yet, or experienced enough yet, to really know how to put people away and run somebody out of the building” commented Herrion.

The Wildcats once again did not put their opponent away when they had the chance, as Quinnipiac’s combo of Andrerson and Baker once again went to work. Anderson scored in the post and found Baker for easy buckets when New Hampshire doubled down on him. New Hampshire’s inability to switch over to the open man when playing zone defense has been a troubling trend this year, and it was evident Sunday as Quinnipiac’s guard duo each scored 25 points.

“Defensively, I’m not real happy, I mean two guys get fifty out of their seventy,” said Herrion. Added Gibbs: “that’s lay ups all around the basket.”

But UNH’s veteran leadership, something that also seemed to be lacking last season, proved to be the difference, as Gibbs and Christensen came up big when it counted the most. With Quinnipiac surging Gibbs finished off a terrific up and under move to put New Hampshire up 59-53. Another Quinnipiac run cut the lead to one with five minutes left, but New Hampshire once again answered back, as Christensen first nailed a jumper in traffic to put UNH up three with five minutes left. The Cougars fired back, again cutting the lead to one, but Christensen once again stopped the bleeding, nailing a deep three to put the Wildcats up 65-61 with four minutes left.

Quinnipiac had one final run in them, but Eric Gilchrese, the America East player of the game, put on a gutsy performance when it mattered most to help seal the game. Gilchrese’s competitive streak had already been on display earlier, when he and Quinnipiac guard Casey Cosgrove got into a verbal dispute that escalated into a shoving match at halftime, resulting in offsetting technical fouls. Gilchrese downplayed the incident, saying, “He was competing, I was competing, we bumped heads, and that’s what happened. When the game gets close like that, I’m not backing down from anybody, and that’s what happens with good competitors.”

As competitive as Gilchrese was in the first half, it paled in comparison to his gutsy performance in the game’s closing minutes. He has battled bad cramps often during the young season, but here he took a hard foul near the three-minute mark, and was visibly limping on his way to the free throw line before icing both chances from the charity stripe. A minute later, Gilchrese picked Evann Baker’s pocket and took it coast to coast for a lay up, pushing the score to 72-63. After once again converting in traffic, Gilchrese was limping badly as he got back on defense, and after an awkward attempt to block Cosgrove’s three, Gilchrese lay sprawled on the ground clutching his leg in obvious pain.

But with less than two minutes left, and Quinnipiac within six, leaving the game was not an option for Gilchrese, whom hobbled back onto the court to gut the rest of the game out.

“It was really my call,” said Gilchrese, “I looked up the clock and it said a minute fifty-four seconds left, and I just wanted to tough it out… when I got back over to the bench, I told Coach that I was ready and wanted to tough it out.”

Gilchrese’s physical abilities have given New Hampshire something that they have been sorely lacking in recent years, as he is a true point guard who can score in transition as well as set his teammates up by getting them the ball in scoring position. But it’s his toughness and leadership that may be the most beneficial to the young Wildcats. After his refusal to come out, New Hampshire put the game away, as Mike Christensen sank two free throws to put New Hampshire up 74 to 67.

In a true “statement game” for New Hampshire, DiLiegro closed it out with a statement of his own, as he corralled a half court pass from Christensen, and threw down an emphatic two-handed dunk right over Anderson while being fouled. DiLiegro completed the three-point play by icing his free throw and giving New Hampshire a 77-70 win.

The win was huge for New Hampshire, as the Wildcats are now riding a three-game winning streak, and the benefits of getting off to a good start are not lost on their coach.

“At UNH, we’re just trying to win games, we’re going to respect and appreciate every win that we get,” said Herrion. “Winning early in the year helps your confidence and it helps you’re practice.”

Herrion even joked that, “When you win early, you can keep their attention every day in practice, you can keep them motivated, and they will really listen to what you say.”

Just being able to joke after a game was an accomplishment of its own for Herrion, whom came under fire from fans early and often last season, as the Wildcats seemed unmotivated, and disorganized, and by the end of the season some fans were even calling for Herrion’s head. But fans need to understand that its not easy to turn around any program, especially one with the history of ineptitude that New Hampshire has. Turning around this program is one of the hardest jobs in college basketball, as it’s an incredibly tough sell on recruits, and fans need to temper their expectation. It will take time for Herrion to bring in a team full of players whom will play in his system.

“We missed the whole first year, we didn’t recruit anybody the first year when we got the job,” Herrion reflected. “And we only want kids who want to be here. I think we have kids right now that are really competitive, that love to play, and that want to be here and appreciate the opportunity. It’s not going to be a quick fix turning this around… and it’s not going to happen over night.”

The Wildcats still have a long way to go before they are truly contenders for a conference title, and dreams of an NCAA birth are still a long ways away, but it is easy to get excited about this team, as they are easily the best squad that New Hampshire has fielded in the past five years. And while the Wildcats have struggled on the defensive end, the positives far outweigh the negatives at this point, as UNH already can boast several things that have been lacking in the past, the first being a team which doesn’t need to rely on one player to provide most of the scoring.

“The nice thing about our team is that Tyrece Gibbs, who was huge versus BC, wasn’t a huge factor offensively today, and we won the game,” said Herrion. “Last week at Central Connecticut he gets three fouls five minutes into the game, he only plays like twenty minutes and we win the game, that’s positive.”

And while New Hampshire has struggled to put teams away, perhaps even more importantly they haven’t gotten rattled like many most teams have, and they have displayed the ability to recover from their mistakes and still come out on top. Said Herrion: “The nice thing is, in the Central game last Saturday and today, we had control of both games in the second half, then both teams made runs at us and we withstood it. That’s positive.”

But perhaps the biggest gain this season is simply the Wildcats’ ability to give everything they have day in and day out. Last season’s squad seemed to quit on Herrion half-way through the year, but there is absolutely no let up in these Wildcats.

“It’s clearly about us out there this year, we just come together as a team when things get rough and stick it through,” said Gibbs. “Heart is the biggest thing right now, because when it got late in the game, we could either fold or pull through, and we pulled through pretty well.”

Reports of BU’s Demise Have Been Greatly Exaggerated

BOSTON – They say that death and taxes are the only certainties in life.  There are other things that are so virtually certain they could almost be added to that list, like college football being a joke as long as the BCS is around or a pleasant driving experience in Boston being elusive.  Another possibility in that category is that Boston University will win at home against New Hampshire, and the latest exhibit for it came at just the right time for the Terriers.

Sunday’s 68-37 thumping of the Wildcats was the 15th straight win in Boston for the Terriers against their rivals just to the north.  The last time New Hampshire beat the Terriers on Commonwealth Ave was a little less than 15 years ago, and the two head coaches prior to Bill Herrion, who was then the head coach at conference rival Drexel, never did it.  Sunday was not the first ugly score during that time, either.  Two years ago almost to the day, the score was 53-29; nearly 10 years ago, it was 84-49.

But this homecourt dominance of the Wildcats takes a major backseat in terms of significance on this day.  The Terriers had seemingly hit a couple of lows in recent weeks, with one poor performance after another during a five-game losing streak.  In consecutive games, they lost by 30 at Cornell and by 19 at home to a banged-up Holy Cross team before dropping a close one at Albany in their America East opener.  In the Albany game, they showed signs of coming around, but couldn’t pull out the win.

So it’s safe to say that there was a little more urgency to Sunday’s game for the home team, and a real happy feeling when they came away with the win.  It seemed like a relief for the team.

“It feels good to finally get off this losing streak,” said sophomore John Holland.

“Obviously we needed a win,” said head coach Dennis Wolff.  “I thought that we, for two straight games now, have looked way more cohesive than we had maybe even in the first semester when we were playing better.  To me, the credit goes to the kids.  No one’s liked the situation we have found ourselves in.  We played two bad games, we didn’t act right, we had two guys have terrible, terrible injuries, and we’re still playing.  So I think the kids deserve a lot of credit.”

The injuries Wolff alluded to are season-ending ones to guards Tyler Morris and Carlos Strong, two-thirds of the trio of guards that everyone expected over a year ago would help the Terriers rule the conference for three years.  But Morris has never been the same since an injury he suffered in the preseason last year, while Strong hasn’t improved since his freshman season when he showed a lot of promise.  Even so, losing two regulars for the season never helps.  With the other starting guard, Corey Lowe, out due to being ejected from the prior game, the Terriers played seven players at Albany, three of whom played all 40 minutes.

In fact, because the Terriers are basically down to seven or eight players, Wolff went with a zone defense against New Hampshire.  He would rather not do it, as he’s built his reputation on tough man-to-man defense, but needing to stay out of foul trouble was the major reason, and he’s also aware that most teams don’t really know how to attack a zone defense, even drawing on his team’s own issues in attacking opposing zone defenses.

Lowe didn’t have his best game, although he made a few key plays early on, so the support is what won this game.  Holland set a tone early and scored 16 of his 25 points in the first half, and is starting to look more like the player he was in the latter part of last season.  It was the second straight game in which he scored 25 points.

“I’ve been John’s biggest critic,” said Wolff, who then added, “John’s been fabulous the last two games.  That’s about the only way you could characterize his play.  He’s concentrating, he’s playing off two feet, he hasn’t been going in the lane out of control.  He probably has played two of the best games he’s played at BU the last two games.”

The other player who came up big in this game was Scott Brittain.  Largely a defensive presence for his two-plus seasons on Commonwealth Ave, the junior forward is perhaps the best candidate to give the team some much-needed post scoring.  Wolff has said all season long that he was concerned about the lack of it, no matter how good his perimeter players are, and with two key players there lost for the season, that gets magnified.

Brittain moved into the starting lineup at Albany, and Sunday was his second straight double-digit scoring game.  He scored 15 points on 5-7 shooting and was seemingly automatic when the ball got to him inside.  The 15 points surpassed his point total for the entire season prior to the Albany game; in the last two games, he has tripled his season point total.

“We need Scott to play the way he’s played in the last two games,” said Wolff.

The Terriers look more like a team on a mission.  Wolff feels that people are writing them off, especially after the injuries, but also that doing so is a bit hasty.  His comments are indicative of a team that is more focused and listening to what the staff is telling them, and they look like they might be more balanced offensively.  Even if the balance comes out of necessity, it’s a plus because the alternative is that the Terriers could simply not develop it in the first place.  It all comes at a good time since the team doesn’t have much margin for error.

“We’ve had two games where we’ve kind of stayed with what we thought we would like to accomplish beforehand, and we hadn’t done that in the two prior games,” Wolff said.

So the Terriers continue to dominate New Hampshire at home, making that matchup look more and more like a sure bet.  This time around, the timing couldn’t have been better for the home team, and the best thing that came out of it wasn’t the win itself.

New Hampshire Finally Wins a Close One

DURHAM, N.H. – A new day, new month, even new year, and the result was different at long last.

New Hampshire has been in a number of close games since the beginning of the 2007-08 season, but all too often has wound up on the short end.  They were 7-12 last season in games decided by single digits, including a 1-9 mark in games decided by five points or less, and they lost all three overtime games they played in.  This season, they are 3-4 in games decided by five points or less through 13 games – more than half of their games have been that close.  So it’s not a stretch to say that Sunday’s win over Santa Clara is a win that’s been a long time coming.

“Great win for us, much-needed just to feel good in conference, because we’ve been knocking on the door,” said head coach Bill Herrion.

But don’t just ask him.  Ask his players, who said the difference in the locker room following Sunday’s game and that following their last game was night and day.

“It feels really good to get a win.  Those close losses, man, those really hurt,” said Alvin Abreu, who led the way with a huge shooting afternoon.  “In the locker room, we’re in there with our heads down after those close losses because we fight so hard, we work so hard, and you want to get rewarded for the hard work you put in.”

“We’ve been in so many close games, it gets to the point where you’re kind of like, we have to win one,” said senior guard Tyrece Gibbs.  “It feels good to finally win.”

Abreu has had his struggles this season, but was lights out shooting the ball on Sunday.  In scoring a career-high 28 points, he was 8-14 from the field and made all seven of his three-point attempts.  He scored 19 of those points in the second half and keyed a big run to start the half where the Wildcats took the lead for good.

Gibbs was the only other player in double figures with 12 points, as the Wildcats won this with defense.  They forced 19 turnovers and scored 21 points off them, and frustrated and shut down Santa Clara big man John Bryant.  They doubled him often since they didn’t have the size, but they also made it difficult to get the ball in to him and made the catch difficult.  Bryant scored a season-low seven points.

Last year, and so far this year, the Wildcats have not been out of many games.  Big leads have not been safe against them.  But they’ve had trouble breaking through, and that they’re a young team is only part of it.  And at some point, youth ceases to be a real explanation for a team coming up just short by virtue of either not starting well, not finishing well or otherwise not being able to win.  Herrion may be reaching that point, but as troubled as he has seemed at times after some losses, one can sense he’s had optimism all along.

“These kids play hard, and even coming into this game at 3-7, I got a feeling with this team,” Herrion said.  “They don’t stop playing.  Would we like to have a few more wins and have the record be a little bit better?  Absolutely.  But you’ve got to learn how to do that, we’re a young team.”

Herrion has almost never had a problem with the effort of his kids in the last season-plus.  It’s not hard to believe when one sees how they compete.  The results aren’t there, but there’s reason to believe they will be in time, even if it’s not this season.  But what’s always a question is if a team will really get better after showing promise while young or not.  It doesn’t happen automatically, no matter how much some of us in the media might make it seem that way at times.  It takes work to get to another level along with being older – it’s not being older, but what one does with it.

In light of that, along with what he sees from his team in practice, Herrion remains optimistic.  He’s also keeping some perspective.

“I think the first thing in trying to build a program and trying to win is you have to compete,” the fourth-year mentor reflected.  “They have to learn to play hard and compete first, and we do that.  I just said to the kids in the locker room, what we’ve got to really work on right now is becoming better basketball players and a better basketball team from the neck up – not physically, from the neck up, mentally, with our understanding of the game.”

Sunday’s game might not be the beginning of a trend where the Wildcats start winning the close games more than they lose them.  But they broke through at a good time, after losing several and not giving up hope that they could eventually be on the other side of such a game, and with America East play ready to begin with Hartford visiting on Wednesday.

It’s a new day, new month, new year on the calendar, and for a change the result was new as well.  The Wildcats hope it’s also a new day in the direction of the program.

Quick Hitters For the New Year

Quick hitters as we start 2009:

Holy Cross continues to be beset by injuries. On Tuesday night, Alex Vander Baan didn’t dress for the second straight game due to his continuing back problems, and at this point the Crusaders are planning to hold him out of remaining non-league games. They are also without Eric Meister for about the same duration. The best news is that they are more optimistic that point guard Pat Doherty may be able to return later in the season, although that’s far from a guarantee that he will.

All the while, freshmen R.J. Evans and Devin Brown continue to carry this team. But Brown isn’t a natural point guard and is having a trial by fire at the position, so the Crusaders are having some serious growing pains to go with the great deal of promise the two are showing. Currently, only Colin Cunningham and Adam May have more assists than turnovers.

While knowing a team is young at times can bring about a feeling that things will get better in time, at some point that reality ceases to have much value as an explanation for some of a team’s struggles. New Hampshire head coach Bill Herrion seems to be reaching that point with his team.

“It’s getting a little old,” said the fourth-year head coach recently. “I’m a competitor, I coach hard, I demand a lot. You can’t keep saying that. At some point, we’ve got to figure out how to win these close games. It’s frustrating for everybody. I don’t think we’re a 3-7 team, I think we’re a little better than that, but we are what we are.”

While the Wildcats’ frontcourt has been inconsistent, perhaps the biggest issue has been the point guard spot. Eric Gilchrese has struggled, no doubt in part because his mother just passed away after a long illness. Freshman Russell Graham has shown promise, especially defensively, but he’s still learning the offense.

The Wildcats host Santa Clara on Sunday in the second of two games in the area for the Broncos. The bulk of the Wildcats’ remaining schedule is America East games.

Harvard had to go with a small lineup in its last two games in large part due to injuries and illness. Keith Wright, who hasn’t been very healthy for a lot of the season, missed four games with mono before playing 20 minutes in Wednesday’s loss at William & Mary, and senior Evan Harris has missed the past two games but should return soon. On the plus side, junior Pat Magnarelli, who was injured during early practices and hasn’t played this season, could begin working out soon and rejoin the team at some point during the Ivy League slate.

The Crimson could use some more size for their next game, as Santa Clara comes to town on Friday with star big man John Bryant as the leader of their team.

The latest national prep poll, in which I am a voter, has been released, with a few changes from the preseason one.

1. Patterson School (Lenoir, NC) (20-0)
2. Hargrave Military Academy (Chatham, VA) (12-1)
3. Notre Dame Prep (Fitchburg, MA) (14-2)
4. Bridgton Academy (North Bridgton, ME) (11-2)
5. Northfield Mount Hermon (Northfield, MA) (9-1)
6. South Kent School (South Kent, CT) (7-2)
7. Tilton School (Tilton, NH) (10-0)
8. Winchendon School (Winchendon, MA) (6-4)
9. Fork Union Military Academy (Fork Union, VA) (6-3)
10. Brewster Academy (Wolfeboro, NH) (7-5)

Also receiving votes:  St. Mark’s School (Southborough, MA), Blair Academy (Blairstown, NJ)