Full Court Press

From the FreeP: Free throws, rebounds end men’s basketball’s streak

noreply@blogger.com (René Reyes) — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 06:44:00 +0000

By Shep Hayes/DFP Staff

Seven times on Friday, the lead changed between Stony Brook University and Boston University men’s basketball teams, theoretically changing possession of first place in the America East conference along with it.

When the final buzzer sounded at Pritchard Gymnasium on Long Island, the Seawolves beat BU for the first time in the pair’s last six contests, 66-57.

Stony Brook (13-7, 8-1 America East) moves into sole possession of first place in the conference while BU (11-12, 7-2 America East) dropped its first game since the Terriers received a drubbing at the University of Vermont on Jan. 5 to open conference play.

BU opened the game in control, working its way to a nine-point lead 9:07 into the first half, limiting the Seawolves to only ten points. Momentum would switch, however, and Stony Brook spent the latter portion of the half building a four-point lead, 37-33.

Read more at dailyfreepress.com.

From the FreeP: Men’s basketball takes on rival Stony Brook

noreply@blogger.com (René Reyes) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 12:45:00 +0000

By Craig Meyer/DFP Staff

Almost halfway through the America East Conference season, two teams – Boston University and Stony Brook University – have separated themselves from the bottom of the pack as each team only has one loss in the conference.

Friday night, inside the 1,700-seat confines of Pritchard Gymnasium on Stony Brook’s Long Island campus, the score will be settled and one team will put itself in prime position to win the conference’s regular title as the Terriers (11-11, 7-1 America East) and Seawolves (12-7, 7-1 America East) tip off.

The Terriers enter the game on their longest win streak of the season – a seven-game unbeaten run which has vaulted them from a 4-11 record back to the .500 threshold and in the driver’s seat to snag the league’s top seed for the conference tournament, even at this relatively early juncture in the season.

The current run is not indicative of BU being a streaky team – rather it is more of a referendum on a conference that the Terriers have found a significant level of success against in the last several years. Each of the Terriers’ seven wins have come over America East foes.

Read more at dailyfreepress.com.

From the FreeP: Reserve players key in dominant win

noreply@blogger.com (René Reyes) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 07:54:00 +0000

By Shep Hayes/DFP Staff

The Boston University men’s basketball team played 21 games this season before facing off against the University of Maryland-Baltimore County on Tuesday evening at Case Gymnasium. Those 21 games are separated into four streaks: a four-game winning streak, a four-game losing streak, a seven-game losing streak, and a six-game winning streak.

One major factor in the wins has been the offensive outputs from senior guard Darryl Partin and sophomore guard D.J. Irving. Both players have made major contributions to the Terrier offense in BU coach Joe Jones’ first season on the bench, each taking advantage of his signature style. Partin takes shot after shot until they finally begin to fall and Irving quietly controls the offense from the perimeter, while occasionally driving to the hoop.

Tuesday night, as BU (11-11, 7-1 America East) worked its way to an 83-48 blowout victory over UMBC (3-17, 2-6 America East), Irving and Partin played less of an impactful role than usual, especially in the second half.

Both were on the floor for a mere 24 minutes apiece. In the second half, Partin took only four shots, well below his usual pace. Irving only took five the entire game, though he did add seven assists.

Read more at dailyfreepress.com.

From the FreeP: Men’s basketball routs Retrievers

noreply@blogger.com (René Reyes) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 07:49:00 +0000

By René Reyes/DFP Staff

University of Maryland-Baltimore County coach Randy Monroe didn’t think twice when asked if the Boston University men’s basketball team belongs in the upper echelon of the America East Conference.

“They’re certainly one of the top three teams in the league, without question,” said Monroe, whose squad has suffered 40- and 28-point losses to Stony Brook University and the University of Vermont, respectively, thus far this season. “They have some very good players. I think they have good balance.

“They’re definitely one of the top four teams in the league, without question. Top three, I should say.”

BU flexed its muscles and took it to the visiting opposition Tuesday, reminding everyone in attendance at Case Gymnasium why it was tabbed as the preseason favorite to capture the conference title with a 83-48 shellacking of UMBC on “BUnited to Help Cure Breast Cancer” night.

Senior guard Darryl Partin scored 17 points to lead the Terriers, sophomore forward Travis Robinson recorded 10 points and six rebounds and redshirt freshman Malik Thomas chipped in nine points for BU (11-11, 7-1 AE), which now sits atop the America East standings after its seventh win in a row.

Despite BU converting on 50 percent of its field goal attempts, receiving 33 points from its bench and limiting UMBC to 30.9 percent shooting overall, first-year head coach Joe Jones wasn’t ready to label Tuesday’s performance as his team’s most complete game of the 2011-12 campaign.

“I don’t know if I would say that,” Jones said. “I think because of the margin of victory and because other guys had a chance to play and they played well. But I thought the [University at] Albany game we really did a great job. I thought the Stony Brook game at home was a great win. I don’t know if it’s any better than those games.”

Sophomore forward Chase Plummer tallied a game-high 17 points and reserve guard Jamar Wertz had 12 on an efficient 3-of-6 shooting for the Retrievers (3-17, 2-6 AE), who never led as they were called out by Monroe in his postgame presser for not having the same fiery demeanor that he has.

Partin and Robinson combined to score 14 of their team’s first 18 points of the ballgame, and as a result, the Terriers quickly jumped out to an 18-9 advantage at the 8:42 mark.

They never looked back.

Sophomore forward Dom Morris, senior center Patrick Hazel, sophomore guard D.J. Irving, senior guard Matt Griffin and freshman guard Zach Chionuma all netted points in the opening frame, as BU rolled into the intermission with a comfortable 39-22 lead.

“One of the keys of the game was just to come out and get better,” said Robinson, who rained in all of his 10 points in the first session. “We know UMBC is not one of the better teams in the league, but we take it just like we’re playing Stony Brook or Vermont. It’s just the next game on the schedule.

“We just wanted to get out and play the best basketball that we can. We had to jump out on them and make our statement.”

Known as a second-half player for stretches during this seven-game winning streak, Partin scored eight points and attempted just four shots, making two of them, in the final 20 minutes of regulation.

For Partin, who entered the matchup averaging 17 points per game in the second half, he didn’t have to resemble the America East Player of the Year candidate he’s become.

Just ask his teammates.

“We depend on Darryl a lot,” Robinson said. “We know that if he doesn’t have a good first half, he’s going to come out in the second half on fire or we know he’s going to get it started. But I guess he didn’t really have to today because everyone pretty much chipped in today. He didn’t have to be the dominant player that he usually is in the second half.”

BU stretched its cushion to as many as 37 points in the second half of a game that rapidly became an embarrassing defeat for UMBC.

Sophomore guard Mike Terry Jr. flushed down a left-handed slam that served as the proverbial punctuation mark of the blowout win. Twelve players made it onto the floor for BU, all but one of whom scored, and redshirt freshman Mat Piotrowski sunk two free throws for the first two points of his collegiate career.

“That’s definitely really big because I know they work hard every day,” Robinson said of the Terriers’ less heralded players who contributed to Tuesday’s victory. “To see them get a chance to play some good minutes and play well was real big for us and their confidence, too, going on in the season.”

Jones likes what he’s seeing from his team, which reached the .500 mark for the first time since early December.

“We have some guys who really like to compete, even in practice when we’re playing,” Jones said. “If I take guys out and I want to rest them, they want to go onto the scout team and play. They just always wanna be playing.”

Snap Judgments: 1/24 vs. UMBC

noreply@blogger.com (Shep Hayes) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 06:09:00 +0000

By Shep Hayes/DFP Staff

BU dominated the glass
The final rebounding numbers were 45-28 in favor of the Terriers. BU had 31 defensive boards while UMBC had a mere 17. BU had 21 second-chance points, which seems absolutely insane for this team. Rebounding has come up in every one of the press conferences I’ve attended over the past few games, and Joe Jones has consistently said it is something he did not focus on at the beginning of the season, but has begun to place more of an emphasis on now. The Terriers haven’t rebounded insanely well the past few games, but UMBC was different. If anything, Tuesday was a chance for BU to see just how well it can rebound.

Darryl Partin had a consistent game
The senior shot 40 percent in the first half and 50 percent in the second, which sounds consistent, right? Except he took 10 shots in the first and only four in the second. Still, tonight was one of Partin’s better first-half performances as of late and it can only help the Terriers when he finds his stride (or rhythm, in the language of the team) earlier. Partin takes such a high amount of the Terriers' shots – 37.1 percent of all BU shots when he is on the floor, according to Ken Pomeroy – that for more of them to fall can only help.

Randy Monroe is insane
Before Tuesday night, I had never seen the UMBC coach in action. My first real experience with him came in the first half when I saw him screaming at his players as they tried to break down the BU starting five. Over the next hour-and-a-half of real time, I had the pleasure of witnessing Monroe yell, jump, stomp, get called for a technical foul and lead the weirdest timeouts I have ever seen. The man is mad, and rightfully so. His team is now 3-17 this season, and his squads the past few years have come nowhere near the number of wins the 2008 America East championship squad hit. He has watched his team fall from heights, but there is one saving grace: Binghamton.

Mat Piotrowski had his first career points
The redshirt freshman isn’t getting as much playing time as his counterpart, Malik Thomas, so it was nice to see him get into the total points column of the stat sheet for the first time in his career. Piotrowksi didn’t officially attempt a shot, but he had a number of looks that kept getting blocked off by UMBC defenders. By virtue of UMBC’s relentless, if ineffective defense, Piotrowksi was fouled. He sank both of his free throws and became the eleventh Terrier to score Tuesday.

BU should partner more with Greek Life
It’s kind of a thing with Daily Free Press writers to talk about the low attendance at BU sporting events. There is some truth to our argument, even if we may push it a little too much. No one really does go to events besides men's hockey, and men's basketball is certainly not an exception. The student sections are usually full of a few diehards and casual fans.

But Tuesday night, BU partnered with Pi Kappa Alpha for a breast cancer awareness event and a rough estimate suggests the most students were in Case Gymnasium since the season opener against Northeastern University. My suggestion: BU Athletics should partner more with Greek Life. Don’t saturate the market, certainly, but if you can get the student sections mostly full for a game against UMBC, anything should be possible for contests with the best teams in the conference.

Malik Thomas was:
Lethal off the bench. 3-for-5 in 15 minutes off action, two of which were from beyond the arc (one of which got the crowd going). 1-for-2 at the free throw line, four defensive rebounds, three personal fouls, two turnovers, two blocks and zero offensive boards.

BU-UMBC Slideshow

noreply@blogger.com (René Reyes) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 06:07:00 +0000

All photos by Junhee Chung/DFP Staff

BU-UMBC Press Conferences

noreply@blogger.com (René Reyes) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 04:54:00 +0000

BU vs. UMBC Live Blog

noreply@blogger.com (René Reyes) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 07:16:00 +0000

BU vs. UMBC Live Blog

Starting lineups:
University of Maryland-Baltimore Country Retrievers
F Chase Plummer
F Jake Wasco
G Jarrel Lane
G Ryan Cook
G Brian Neller

Boston University Terriers
F Dom Morris
F Travis Robinson
F Patrick Hazel
G Darryl Partin
G D.J. Irving

Final Score: BU 83, UMBC 48

Team leaders:
Points
UMBC: Chase Plummer, 17
BU: Darryl Partin, 17

Rebounds
UMBC: Chase Plummer, 9
BU: Dom Morris, 8

Assists
UMBC: Joey Getz, 3
BU: D.J. Irving, 7

Ugly win continues six-game streak for Terriers

noreply@blogger.com (René Reyes) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 06:37:00 +0000

By René Reyes/DFP Staff

DURHAM, N.H. – First-year head coach Joe Jones didn’t want to dwell too much on the ugly aspects of Thursday night’s game at the University of New Hampshire.

He did not want to talk about how the Boston University men’s basketball team had committed 16 turnovers in a mistake-filled affair, or how the 52 total points were the fewest BU had scored in a win since 2005 or how UNH was a 3-point shot away from overcoming a 10-point second-half deficit and stealing a victory in the contest’s final seconds.

For Jones, whose squad managed just five assists compared to 16 turnovers, including 10 in the second frame alone, grinding out a 52-50 road win against the Wildcats in front of 857 at Lundholm Gymnasium was good enough.

“These kids played their hearts out,” Jones said. “Instead of talking about how ugly it was, it was a hard-fought win. It was a road win for us. There’s nothing ugly about it. It’s basketball. It’s a road win on the road.”

And indeed it was. Since a loss at the University of Vermont on Jan. 5, BU has rattled off three straight road wins versus the University of Maine, New Hampshire and the University of Harford. But none was as ugly as the victory on Thursday. UNH fumbled the ball away 23 times, and BU made it pay for its mistakes and shoddy play on offense, scoring 25 points off of those turnovers.

Wildcats coach Bill Herrion admitted that turnovers were the primary culprits behind the discouraging defeat for his team, which has lost back-to-back games and five of its last six.

During the offseason, while relaxing on Ryan Beach, Herrion never imagined such an unsatisfactory start to the 2011-12 campaign. The losses the Wildcats have been dealt this season have been self-inflicted, he said.

“We are a team that continually beats ourselves,” Herrion said. “You’re not gonna win many basketball games when you turn it over 23 times. Give [BU] credit, they’re a very good defensive team, but our inability just to make simple plays and pass-and-catch, it’s very disappointing.”

Herrion did concede that BU’s efforts on defense played a major role in forcing the turnovers and handing the Terriers the extra possessions in what eventually would become a two-point win for the visitors.

But the difference between both teams – and their respective basketball programs – is clear and simple: BU possesses the ability to win close games with its experience while an inexperienced New Hampshire squad has been unable to come up on the right side of the scoreboard in tight games.

“We just didn’t complete plays,” Herrion said. “The second half, they turned up the heat defensively. Give them credit. They’re very good. They’re a good defensive team. When you’ve won a championship and you’ve been in that situation and you’ve experienced that, you have that confidence, you have that swagger, you have that fight.

“You win close games like they won. That’s the difference between their team and their program and ours.”

Defense has been the Terriers’ calling card during their six-game winning streak, and despite out-rebounding the Wildcats by a 30-29 margin, the Terriers can still improve in other facets of the game, especially on the offensive and defensive glasses.

“I think that’s the main reason for our run right now because we’ve picked it up on the defensive end,” said sophomore guard D.J. Irving. “When we get going in the rebounding we’ll be pretty good.”

Senior guard Darryl Partin, who led all scorers with 20 points on 7-of-19 shooting, said he was pleased with his team’s overall performance in an ugly contest, considering the one-hour drive up to Durham, N.H., and the Wildcats’ intensity on both ends of the floor.

“We know they’re a really tough team,” Partin said. “We lost here last year by a lot. The coach, a real tough-minded guy. We knew their team was going to come out with a lot of energy and really make us compete. It’s tough when you’re an hour away. You’re on an hour little bus ride just to come and play and get off the bus and just play.

“It’s a tough ticket but we pulled it together, so I’m just excited about that.”

A close win on the road has helped BU continue on its six-game winning streak in the America East.

“Every win feels great,” Partin said. “This definitely felt great, especially when you’re on the road. … The road in college basketball is just rough wherever you’re playing, no matter who you’re playing against, you have to rise to the challenge.”

From the FreeP: Streaking men’s basketball team earns pair of wins

noreply@blogger.com (René Reyes) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 06:22:00 +0000

By Craig Meyer/DFP Staff

WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – If the 2011-12 season for the Boston University men’s basketball season has been anything thus far, it has been a year of runs, both good and bad. But, now just over three weeks removed from a 4-11 overall record, BU is back to streaking again – this time, at just the right moment in the season.

Continuing what has been a nearly unblemished run through conference play, the Terriers (10-11, 6-1 America East) captured two more America East games last week on the road as they took down the University of New Hampshire 52-50 Thursday and routed the University of Hartford 65-46 Sunday.

The pair of wins now gives BU a season-high six-game winning streak that has it within a single game of the .500 plateau, a mark the Terriers have not seen since the Dec. 3 win over Boston College.

Playing in Lundholm Gymnasium for the first time since it scored a season-low 48 points last January, BU was engaged in a half-court, low-scoring and overall defensive battle against a Wildcats (7-11, 2-5 America East) team that thrives off such a style of play.

Read more at dailyfreepress.com.

Jones Press Conference following BU's 65-46 win over Hartford

noreply@blogger.com (René Reyes) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 04:09:00 +0000

Snap Judgments: 1/22 @ Hartford

noreply@blogger.com (Craig Meyer) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 02:22:00 +0000

By Craig Meyer/DFP Staff

WEST HARTFORD, Conn. -- With the Boston University men's basketball team notching its sixth consecutive win with a 65-46 victory over the University of Hartford, it's time for some quick takes and thoughts on what went down at Chase Family Arena.

-- Let's just get one of the obvious things out of the way: that was one of the worst halfs of basketball I've seen on any level higher than pick-up games at my neighborhood YMCA. There is a fine line between good defense and bad offense, and that line was crossed and more. This isn't to say that the BU defense deserves no credit in holding Hartford to 13 first half points, because they certainly deserve some, but when the teams combine to shoot 12-for-48 in that half with a good portion of those shots being open looks, that's just teams not executing on the offensive end.

-- Darryl Partin may have been the team's leading scorer, but make no mistake: D.J. Irving was the Terriers' best performer Sunday. Irving was the model for offensive efficiency out on the floor today, shooting 6-of-7 and going 3-for-3 from 3-point range, the latter of which is a testament to the work he put in this offseason to improve what many saw as a weakness in his game last season. He commanded the floor and was the critical component in BU's offense throughout the game, all with seven assists to just two turnovers. The Terriers' MVP, for all intents and purposes, played like it.

-- It's hard to be too critical of BU's frontcourt since it was the large reason BU was able to outrebound the Hawks 39-17, but between Patrick Hazel and Dom Morris, someone has to finish those shots down low, some of which are even relatively uncontested. It wasn't a problem today against an overmatched Hartford team, but it's something that can come back to haunt them against better competition or in closer games.

-- After going 7-of-24 from the field in the first half, BU started the second half on a 7-of-9 tear. Furthermore, it only took BU just over six minutes in the second half to score 21 points, surpassing their point total from the first half in that brief time.

-- On a more individual level, Partin went off for 22 in the second half after playing only 11 minutes in the first half with foul trouble and an 0-4 shooting performance. But, as he has for the past few games lately, Partin exploded in the opening minutes of the second half and was responsible more than any other player for BU turning a pretty closely contested game into a blowout. I can't explain the difference in halfs myself, but 22 points is 22 points at the end of the day.

-- When Zach Chionuma makes 3-pointer, BU is 3-0 this season. For whatever that's worth.

-- Can't emphasize what a pleasant surprise Malik Thomas has been off the bench this season. When BU was struggling for much of the first half, Thomas was a spark of energy and smart play. As long as he's not shooting treys like he was today, Thomas could very well evolve into a matchup nightmare for America East coaches in the coming years.

-- Hartford has seven freshmen on its team this season, so take most of the Hawks' setbacks this season with a grain of salt. With a promising young core of Wes Cole, Yolanzo Moore, Mark Nwakamma and Nate Sikma, this will be a team that will compete for America East titles in two years. Count on it.

-- An easy game awaits BU on Tuesday against UMBC at Case Gym, but after that, it's a road date at Stony Brook that could ultimately decide the conference regular season champion and a home game against a Vermont team it has already lost to. The next few games will be very telling as to where this team is at this point in the season.

BU @ Hartford Live Blog

noreply@blogger.com (René Reyes) — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 16:05:00 +0000

<p><a href="http://www.coveritlive.com/mobile.php/option=com_mobile/task=viewaltcast/altcast_code=cb8d4bca11" >BU @ Hartford Live Blog</a></p>

Starting lineups:
University of Hartford Hawks
F Mark Nwakamma
F Nate Sikma
G Clayton Brothers
G Andres Torres
G Yolonzo Moore II

Boston University Terriers
F Dom Morris
F Travis Robinson
F Patrick Hazel
G Darryl Partin
G D.J. Irving

Final Score: BU 65, Hartford 46

Team leaders:
Points
Hartford: Wes Cole, 11
BU: Darryl Partin, 22

Rebounds
Hartford: Mark Nwakamma, 4
BU: Dom Morris, 12

Assists
Hartford: Andres Torre, 3
BU: D.J. Irving, 7

BU-UNH Press Conferences

noreply@blogger.com (René Reyes) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 05:08:00 +0000

BU @ UNH Live Blog

noreply@blogger.com (René Reyes) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 18:48:00 +0000

BU @ UNH Live Blog

Starting lineups:
University of New Hampshire Wildcats
F Ferg Myrick
F Kazadi Nyanguila
G Chandler Rhoads
G Jordon Bronner
G Alvin Abreu

Boston University Terriers
F Dom Morris
F Travis Robinson
F Patrick Hazel
G Darryl Partin
G D.J. Irving

Final Score: BU 52, UNH 50

Team leaders:
Points
UNH: Alvin Abreu, 16
BU: Darryl Partin, 20

Rebounds
UNH: Chandler Rhoads, 6
BU: Dom Morris, 7

Assists
UNH: Chandler Rhoads, 5
BU: D.J. Irving, 3

From the FreeP: Terriers aim to avenge rockbottom performance

noreply@blogger.com (René Reyes) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 06:05:00 +0000

By Craig Meyer/DFP Staff

For many members of the Boston University men’s basketball team, Lundholm Gymnasium is somewhere they remember quite well, although not for the right reasons.

It was there roughly 11 months ago that the Terriers (8-11, 4-1 America East) hit what they repeatedly called the “rock bottom” of their 2010-11 season, in a 60-48 loss to the University of New Hampshire. A humiliating defeat that not only sent BU to its third loss in five games, but also dropped its overall record to 10-13.

But for that BU team, the lowest depths and setbacks proved to be the catalyst of an extraordinary run, which saw the Terriers reel off an 11-game win streak sending them to the program’s first NCAA Tournament in almost a decade.

Now, almost a full year and an entire coaching staff later, the Terriers return to Durham, N.H. for the first time since the fateful day as they are set to take on New Hampshire (6-10, 1-4 America East) Thursday.

Read more at dailyfreepress.com.

From the FreeP: Terriers quiet Albany star shooter

noreply@blogger.com (René Reyes) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 05:40:00 +0000

By Craig Meyer/DFP Staff

Going into its game against the University at Albany, the Boston University men’s basketball team knew what it had to focus on in order to win – neutralize a potent Great Danes offense led by forward Gerardo Suero.

For the Terriers (8-11, 4-1 America East), it didn’t matter that Albany (12-8, 4-2 America East) had the conference’s second highest scoring offense or that Suero entered the game as the nation’s fourth-leading scorer; if they could clamp down on both Suero and subsequently the Albany offense, they would be able to come out on top.

Ultimately, BU was able to do that – and more – as it limited Suero to a season-low six points and the Great Danes to 57 points in its 70-57 win Monday night at Agganis Arena.

“Our guys did a great job in the game plan,” said BU coach Joe Jones. “I thought they really understood what we were trying to do from a defensive perspective and an offensive perspective. We played like a very good team for most of the game.”

Read more at dailyfreepress.com.

From the FreeP: BU defense subdues greatness of Danes

noreply@blogger.com (René Reyes) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 05:35:00 +0000

By René Reyes/DFP Staff

On game day, Curtis Wilson takes his usual spot on the bench a few seats down from Boston University men’s basketball coach Joe Jones and does his coaching from there. He is two months into his first year as a member of the BU coaching staff and rarely given the credit he deserves for the Terriers’ on-court success.

That all changed, though, due to his invaluable contributions these past few days in having BU (8-11, 4-1 America East) well prepared and equipped with solid strategies for its Monday night matchup with the University at Albany (12-8, 4-2 America East), a 70-57 win.

Wilson, whose game plan limited the Great Danes to almost 18 points below their season average and held their dynamic guards Gerardo Suero and Mike Black to 19 total points on a combined 5-of-23 shooting, scouted Albany to perfection. As a result, BU had considerable success in neutralizing the conference’s second-highest scoring offense.

Jones made sure to praise his assistant coach’s efforts following the Terriers’ win over the Great Danes at Agganis Arena.

Read more at dailyfreepress.com.

BU defense shuts down Suero, Albany

noreply@blogger.com (Craig Meyer) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 06:51:00 +0000

By Craig Meyer/DFP Staff

Going into its game against the University at Albany, the Boston University basketball team knew what it had to focus on in order to win, a strategy that could be completed with a quick look at a stat sheet – neutralize the potent Great Danes’ offense led by forward Gerardo Suero.

For the Terriers, it didn’t matter that Albany had the conference’s second highest scoring offense or that Suero entered the game as the nation’s fourth-leading scorer; if they could clamp down on both Suero and subsequently the Albany offense, they would be able to come out on top.

Ultimately, BU was able to do that – and more – as it limited Suero to a season-low six points and the Great Danes to 57 points in its 70-57 win Monday night at Agganis Arena.

“Our guys did a great job in the gameplan,” BU head coach Joe Jones said. “I thought they really understood what we were trying to do from a defensive perspective and an offensive perspective. We played like a very good team for most of the game.”

Riding the momentum of a three-game win streak, many of the key questions that faced the Terriers (8-11, 4-1) revolved around the Albany offense that was averaging 74.4 points per game entering the contest.

Even from the game’s tip-off, it was clear that it was not going to be a typical offensive performance for Albany because of BU’s defense as well as some self-inflicted wounds. The Great Danes (12-8, 4-2) scored just 25 points in the first half on 30 percent shooting. For the game, Albany players combined to shoot 30.6 percent on field goals.

The Great Danes’ 57 points were their second fewest of the season behind the 46 points they scored in a 20-point loss to George Mason University on Nov. 22.

Throughout the game for Albany, the offense was stalled, something that, according to head coach Will Brown, was a testament to BU and a slight at his own team.

“I thought they played very good team defense and this is the first game where we haven’t scored enough points to win since our George Mason game,” Brown said. “It was a combination of how well they played defensively and how poor we played offensively.

“We weren’t patient offensively, we didn’t attack the zone, which we’ve had no problem with zone all year.”

A large part of Albany’s offensive woes derived from a subpar offensive performance from Suero, who came into the game averaging 22.4 points per game.

BU sophomore point guard D.J. Irving said that the Terriers’ biggest gameplan heading into the game was to stop Suero and the team followed through on that goal, holding Suero to 1-of-10 shooting from the field for six points. Monday night marked the first time all season that Suero did not score double figures in points.

Suero, who entered the game leading the nation in free throws attempted and free throws made, scored four of his six points from the charity stripe.

For Jones and the Terriers, rendering one of the nation’s most potent scorers ineffective came from a multitude of factors, most notably compressing driving lanes even in a spread out 2-3 zone that BU employed for much of the night.

“We just did a good job of packing it in when he drove it, we took away his space, they took a few charges on him early which I think anytime a kid gets a charge or two on him that sends a message,” Jones said. “He’s a heck of a player, he’s one of the most talented players in the league. He won’t have many nights where he’s 1-for-10 and I’m just happy it was tonight.”

Just over halfway through the second half and with Albany down over 20 points, Brown made the decision to take Suero out for the remainder of the game, something that Brown called “a learning experience” for his junior forward.

In Suero’s absence, the Great Danes were able to reduce their deficit to as low as 10points with about four minutes remaining in the game.

With shots not falling and suffocating defense applied for much of the game, frustration proved to be too much for Suero and for Brown, it was a sign that his star needed to sit.

“He was thoroughly frustrated for the first time since our Siena [College] game this year and he was frustrated then because they were beating the heck out of him, Brown said. “Today, he was just frustrated because he didn’t have it and it’s the first time that he hasn’t had it this year.”

With conference play continuing Thursday with a game at the University of New Hampshire, Jones hopes that his team can continue to play disciplined defense in an attempt to make another run to a conference title and the NCAA Tournament.

“I think the big thing for us is we have to bring a defensive mentality to every game,” Jones said. “If we do that, we’ll be in great shape.”

Snap Judgments: 1/16 vs. Albany

noreply@blogger.com (Shep Hayes) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 04:35:00 +0000

By Shep Hayes/DFP Staff

Gerardo Suero had a bad night . . .
Suero shot 1-for-10 from the field before he was benched by Albany coach Will Brown with 11:54 remaining in the second. Suero is one of the leading scorers in the nation, and it was an odd experience for him to miss shot after shot. He made none of his four shots from beyond the arc. His one basket came after a drive to the hoop, a simple layup.

Brown said he decided to bench Suero as a “learning experience.” Brown noted Suero has not had a performance similar to Monday evening all season long, but that he knew Suero’s bad game would come one day. Even BU coach Joe Jones was a bit surprised with how Suero shot, calling him “one of the best players in the league” who has not and will not have many nights like Monday.

. . . the rest of the Great Danes were not that much better.
Collectively, they made only 19-of-62 field goal attempts, including a 10-for-28 performance from beyond the arc. Besides Suero, a few other Albany shooters had bad nights on the stat sheet. Logan Aronhalt did have a number of deep, clutch 3s, but he was 7-for-21 overall. Co-America East Player of the Week Mike Black was only 4-for-13. No Great Dane made an exceptional number of their shots and it did not work out well for them in the end.

“D.J. Irving is the best player on their team”
Before he said the above, Brown paused for a moment to consider the consequences. There are two Terriers who, at least on paper, look like the best Terriers on the court almost every night. One is Irving, who shoots less, but makes more of his baskets. The other is senior Darryl Partin, who will take shot after shot after shot. As a natural result, he leads the Terriers in points per game.

Brown decided to call Irving the best player on the Terriers, though he quickly tabbed Partin as BU’s best shooter, a title that is indisputable. But Irving is most certainly the Terriers' finest player when he steps onto the court. Part of Irving’s success originates in Partin. In BU’s past two games, Partin has had woeful first halves, but has returned for the second and performed as one of the top scorers in the nation that he is.

But Partin struggled Monday in both halves. He had a slightly more commendable first, shooting 2-for-7. But his second half was as impressive as it had been as of late. Partin was only 3-for-7, not quite lights-out. That is where Irving steps in, however. Irving can distribute the ball to other members of the BU offense or take a shot himself. He can hang around the perimeter, to use his size to drive to the hoop. While Partin’s love of shooting can keep BU afloat through every game, Irving is always available to bail BU out, just like Monday.

BU continues to struggle on the glass.
The third factor listed in Dean Oliver’s essay “Roboscout and the Four Factors” is offensive rebounding. “If a team can get back its missed shots, it can partially make up for a problem with that first factor [shooting the ball],” Oliver writes. “It still eventually has to put the ball in the basket, but giving itself multiple opportunities allows a team a chance when its gunners from the outside are misfiring.”

The Terriers had only five offensive boards against the Great Danes, who picked up 22 defensive rebounds. In the opposite direction, the margin was much smaller. BU had 26 defensive rebounds to Albany’s 18 offensive. The difference in rebounding allowed the Great Danes to make 20-second chance points, while the Terriers had a mere two.

Jones has been unimpressed with his team’s rebounding after almost every game this season, and he was no different on Monday. “It’s an area of major concern for me because I think if we’re going to have success in this league, we’re gonna need to defend and rebound at a high rate, much better than we did tonight, in terms of the glass,” he said.

Agganis Arena is a terrible place for BU to play basketball.
The 6,221 seats of Agganis Arena were designed for fans to watch hockey. The banners on all four sides of the arena are hung to celebrate hockey. The Jack Parker Rink was built as a place to play hockey. Agganis Arena is a building made for hockey. It is a fine place to watch a hockey game. It is a horrible place to watch basketball.

The problem isn’t really with the arena’s layout, to be totally honest. For the most part, the seats, the banners and the rink all do a fine job of accommodating the occasional basketball game. But there are rarely any fans to be accommodated. 852 people settled into the scarlet and black chairs on Monday night, a game that was nationally televised on the CBS Sports Network. Agganis is an empty cavern for basketball, and reflects poorly on the program as a whole. 852 people would have half-filled Case Gymnasium and made for an entertaining and exciting environment. Instead, 852 people were disconnected from the game at Agganis. It is a nice building, and a place BU should be proud of. But it’s not nice for basketball. Case Gymnasium should be the Terriers' home.

Malik Thomas was:
Silenced by fouls. 1-for-3 shooting, 0-for-2 in free throws, four rebounds, three personal fouls, one assist, block and steal and zero turnovers.

BU-Albany Slideshow

noreply@blogger.com (René Reyes) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 04:34:00 +0000

All photos by Junhee Chung/DFP Staff

BU-Albany Press Conferences

noreply@blogger.com (René Reyes) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 04:30:00 +0000

BU vs. Albany Live Blog

noreply@blogger.com (René Reyes) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 17:03:00 +0000

<p><a href="http://www.coveritlive.com/mobile.php/option=com_mobile/task=viewaltcast/altcast_code=f479b63342" >BU vs. Albany Live Blog</a></p>

Starting lineups:
University at Albany Great Danes
F Luke Devlin
F Blake Metcalf
G Logan Aronhalt
G Mike Black
G Gerardo Suero

Boston University Terriers
F Dom Morris
F Travis Robinson
F Patrick Hazel
G Darryl Partin
G D.J. Irving

Final Score: BU 70, Albany 57

Team leaders:
Points
Albany: Logan Aronhalt, 20
BU: Darryl Partin, 15

Rebounds
Albany: Logan Aronhalt and Gerardo Suero, 6
BU: Dom Morris, 7

Assists
Albany: Mike Black, 6
BU: D.J. Irving, 6

Despite cold start, Partin shines in second half against Seawolves

noreply@blogger.com (Shep Hayes) — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 20:01:00 +0000

By Shep Hayes/DFP Staff

In the first half of its past two games, at the University of Maine on Wednesday evening and against Stony Brook University on Saturday afternoon, the Boston University men’s basketball team has played decent basketball. The Terriers were down by only six in Orono and then jumped out to a strong lead early in the SBU contest at Case Gymnasium. But, in both of those first halves, the Terriers' leading scorer and one of their primary offensive threats (along with D.J. Irving), has been quiet on offense.

Senior guard Darryl Partin has taken shots in the opening frame – 10 on Wednesday and six on Saturday – but they’ve failed to fall through the hoop, bouncing off the rim or the backboard and into the hands of either opponents or his fellow Terriers. In both contests, Partin made only one of his first-half field goal attempts.

The opening frame performances are not what one would expect from a player who averages 20.1 points per game, an average that puts him in a tie for 14th best in the nation.

Partin averaged 20 points or more in eight of the Terriers' first 10 contests, the only exceptions coming in blowout losses at the University of Texas, which BU lost 86-42 and Partin scored 14 points, and at Agganis Arena against a Harvard University Crimson team on the verge of entering the Associated Press Top 25. BU lost that contest as well by a score of 76-52 and Partin scored 12 points.

But, when Partin returned to the court for the second half in both contests, he left the locker room a completely different shooter. Partin shot 9-for-12 in the second against Maine and 8-for-11 versus Stony Brook. The transfer from LaSalle turns into a lethal weapon, making shot after shot after shot from all around the perimeter and occasionally on the inside.

In a back concourse of Alfond Arena on Wednesday, BU coach Joe Jones was impressed with Partin’s transformation.

“He was sensational and really got his groove back in the second half and really played well for us,” Jones said.

Jones continued the above thought on Wednesday, by noting that Partin’s performance as of late reminds him of how Partin was able to score when the Terriers earned their first four wins of the year, their only wins before conference play began last week.

When BU faced the University of Rhode Island and Hofstra University in Rhode Island as part of the Kingston Regional of the Ticket City Legends Classic, Partin scored 20 and 25 points, respectively. When BU earned its first home win of the year, playing former America East foe the University of Delaware, Partin had 27 points. And when the Terriers got their first win over Boston College at Conte Forum, Partin contributed 27 points.

“In the games that we won early in the year, Darryl played, obviously, he didn’t shoot the ball 6-of-7 from 3, but, you know he was throwing in the, you know, high-20s, mid-to-high 20s when we were on a four-game winning streak,” said Jones.

On both Wednesday and Saturday, Jones alluded to balancing two rhythms: the rhythm of Partin’s shooting and the rhythm of the Terriers offense. The coach said that after the BU’s first four wins, the team made an effort to “balance the offense” more, but that it’s still important to find Partin when he is on a hot streak as he has been in the second halves as of late.

“I think he’s the type of guy, when he gets into a rhythm like that, you’ve got to try to find him,” Jones said on Wednesday.

On Saturday, in the lounge above the entrance to The Roof, Jones elaborated further on what is necessary for his offense.

“The challenge for me as a coach is to make sure he’s getting those shots within the rhythm of our offense, because he’s such a talented player that at times we can stand an watch him,” Jones said.

“We’ve got to make sure that we’re getting him open within what we do, so he’s not holding the ball and now we start to get our of our flow,” he continued. “Our offense is played with a flow, and we’ve got to continue to do a better job of that, and he’s got to continue to understand how he can get shots when we have the flow on the offense.”

Still, Jones prefaced the above statements with a bit of awe at just how good a shooter Partin can be, saying, “All he has to do is make one shot. It’s unbelievable. I’ve never seen a kid like this. He makes one shot, he’s like a completely different player.”

Terriers hold off late Seawolves' charge for 61-55 win

noreply@blogger.com (René Reyes) — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 23:00:00 +0000

By René Reyes/DFP Staff

Apart from his patented “tapping the stone” expression, former Boston University men’s basketball coach Patrick Chambers habitually referred to America East Conference tilts as hard-fought battles.

As if his ex-bench boss’ voice still echoed in Case Gymnasium’s press conference room, senior forward Patrick Hazel channeled his inner-Chambers but went just a step further in describing BU’s matchup with Stony Brook University.

“I was telling my teammates before the game it was going to be a war,” Hazel said after BU’s 61-55 victory over SBU Saturday. “We knew that mindset coming in that they like to hit the glass, and that’s what we like to pride ourselves on, too – defending and rebounding. We knew it was going to be a battle for 40 minutes and that’s exactly what it was.”

In a rematch that mirrored bits and pieces of last year’s America East championship game, including the same result, one team stormed out to a double-digit advantage rather quickly only for the other squad to methodically claw its way back.

The Terriers saw their 14-point cushion drop to one five times in the second half, but responded with opportune buckets and held off a furious Seawolves’ rally led by guards Dave Coley and Bryan Dougher.

Senior guard Darryl Partin scored 16 of his team-high 18 points in the final session to lead three Terriers in double figures and Hazel nearly posted his second double-double of the season with eights points and nine rebounds for BU (7-11, 3-1 America East), which has now rattled off three straight wins.

BU coach Joe Jones, who’s in his second go-around in the conference after a four-year stint with Hofstra University from 1994-97, deemed Saturday’s matinee as a microcosm of the competitive America East.

“This game is really what our conference is all about,” Jones said. “I thought both teams played extremely hard. They’re a very physical team, very disciplined in what they do. Just a hard-fought win. I have a lot of respect for [SBU coach] Steve [Pikiell] and what he does with his program. It says a lot about the league in terms of how hard these kids play.

“It was great to see. We just happened to be on the winning end tonight.”

Coley netted a game-high 21 points on 8-of-16 shooting, Dougher tallied 14 and forward Al Rapier added 10 for SBU (9-7, 4-1 AE), which had its six-game winning streak snapped and was limited to its second-lowest offensive output of the 2011-12 campaign.

Stony Brook’s missed field goal attempts and sloppy play (eight turnovers) in the contest’s first 10 minutes spotted BU its early edge on the scoreboard.

Sophomore guard D.J. Irving set the tempo from the outset with his pace and received a huge ovation from the crowd after he nailed a straightaway 3-pointer as the shot clock expired to put BU ahead by six at 5:03.

By the time Hazel had backed into Rapier on the low block for a right-handed layup, the Terriers had reeled off a 13-5 spurt and sported a healthy 21-7 lead with 8:33 remaining in the first frame.

Jones credited his team’s attitude – the same word BU players wore on their red, rubber bracelets during Chambers’ two seasons on Commonwealth Ave. – and commitment to the defensive end as the main reasons for the fast start.

“I thought our guys were ready to play, mentally ready to play,” Jones said. “They played with a lot of confidence early on. I thought we did a good job in our changing of our defenses, playing some three-quarter-court defense, playing some zone, playing some man. We did a good job within the schemes of what we do defensively.

"We did a good job of guarding them. We were able to get out in transition and make some baskets.”

The speedy Irving, who had five points and three assists by halftime in 18 minutes, was the catalyst behind the Terriers’ opening run, sparking them to that 14-point lead midway through the first half.

“He’s huge,” Hazel said of Irving, BU’s all-important floor general. “I was telling Darryl the other day when we were up at [the University of] Vermont, he wasn’t at 100 percent, so it really hurt us against Vermont. But he’s back to his old self. He’s the engine. He gets us going in transition, on defense, all that. He’s huge for us.”

But the Seawolves closed out the half on a 13-5 run of their own and entered the intermission on a high note, trailing only 26-20.

In back-and-forth action, both teams traded buckets on their first few trips down the floor in the second half. Senior guard Matt Griffin buried a 3-pointer to extend the Terriers’ cushion to 38-31, but Coley and Dougher combined on two free throws, a trey and a midrange jumper en route to seven unanswered points to tie the game at the 9:24 mark.

With BU’s advantage all but gone, Partin, who had scored two points while shooting a paltry 16 percent (1-of-6) overall and zero percent (0-of-3) from 3-point territory in the first half, decided to take control.

He gave the Terriers the lead back for good with a jumper on the ensuing possession. After Rapier’s layup didn’t fall, Partin stuck a 3-ball to make it 43-38 in favor of BU with nine minutes left.

Coley drilled a 3 at the 12:19 mark, but there was Partin to rain in the jumper from in front of the BU bench to stretch the lead to 47-43. With BU clinging to a 51-49 edge with less than three minutes remaining, he came though once more and connected on another baseline jumper.

The Seawolves trimmed the deficit to one at 18:01; yet to no surprise, Partin countered with a fallaway jumper to keep the Terriers in front.

Whenever BU desperately needed a timely basket down the stretch, Partin delivered.

“Once he gets into a rhythm, all he has to do is make like one shot,” Jones said. “It’s unbelievable. I’ve never seen a kid like this. He makes one shot, he’s like a completely different player.”

He had plenty of help, though, in crunch time, as Irving and Hazel sunk 6-of-7 freebies in the final 27 seconds of regulation to secure the Terriers’ victory.

For Partin and his teammates, they face a quick turnaround after the win over Stony Brook with another game in two days, but they won’t approach Monday’s contest at Agganis Arena against the University at Albany any differently.

“We just take it next game on the schedule,” Partin said. “We had a tough non-conference schedule. We want it that way. We always pride ourselves on making things hard. When we practice, we prepare like we’re on the road. It’s really just the next game on the schedule. Albany, they’re a good team. We don’t take anybody light.

“We’re just trying to come out with energy, get our strategies together, get rest and get ready for Monday.”