America East Notebook
Terriers Open New Arena in Style
Boston University opened the new Harry Agganis Arena on Saturday with a 61-55 win over Vermont in front of 5,736 fans, a new record for an America East regular season game. It was a hard-fought game, as the Terriers never trailed but never led by double digits.
The first half was dominated by Terrier seniors Rashad Bell and Chaz Carr and Vermont senior Taylor Coppenrath. The three combined to score all but 11 points as Boston University had a 34-31 lead at the break thanks to shooting 52% from the field and holding Vermont to 35.5%. The Catamounts rallied several times in the second half, eventually tying it at 47 when a layup by Coppenrath (37 points, 13 rebounds) was sandwiched between two three-pointers by T.J. Sorrentine for an 8-0 run. But the Terriers scored the next five points and led the rest of the way, hanging on despite missing five free throws in the final minute.
Bell had a career-high 29 points and Carr added 24 to lead the Terriers, who never trailed. Carr made several clutch shots along the way, including two clutch three-pointers before the game was tied, then a tough leaner inside that stopped a late mini-run by the Catamounts.
The Terriers shot just 32.1% in the second half, but held the Catamounts below that. All day long, the Terriers were a thorn in Coppenrath’s side defensively, getting a lot of hands on passes intended for him and either slowing down the Catamount offense or getting steals. Meanwhile, the Catamounts didn’t seem as patient as they usually are, perhaps a product of trailing throughout the game since that has rarely happened this season. The Catamounts entered the game having won conference by an average margin of over 18 points.
With the win, the Terriers are now within one game of Vermont, but the Catamounts are still the team that controls their destiny as the teams don’t meet again in the regular season. The Terriers have three more home games, including next Sunday’s matchup against Northeastern that could have second place on the line since the Huskies remain a game behind the Terriers.
Middle is Wide Open
After the top three teams, who are a combined 36-6 in conference play, there is a drop-off in the standings, as well as more competition. Albany has a two-game lead for fourth place at 8-6, then Maine and surging Binghamton are tied for fifth place at 6-8. One game separates the bottom four times, with two ties between them; three games separate fifth from last place.
The implications aren’t lost on Hartford head coach Larry Harrison, whose team is in a slump with six straight losses and a 3-11 conference mark.
“The thing about our conference right now – once you get past the top three, and Albany is probably in the top four (Vermont, BU, Northeastern and Albany, right now those are the top four) – right now, from five on down, everybody is still in there together,” Harrison said.
Players of the Week
Rashad Bell, Boston University and Taylor Coppenrath, Vermont
Both players went at it in a classic battle on Saturday, with the Terriers winning. Bell lead the Terriers to a 2-0 week, with his big effort being a career-high 29 points in Saturday’s win. He added 11 points in their win at UMBC earlier in the week. Coppenrath earns this honor for the fifth time this season and the 13th in his career after two double-doubles last week. He had 27 points and 10 rebounds in their win over Stony Brook, then had 37 points and 13 rebounds in a losing effort at Boston University.
Rookie of the Week
Shawn James, Northeastern
Earning the honor for the third time, James missed just two shots during the week (17-19) in averaging 20.5 points, 10 rebounds and six blocked shots per game as the Huskies went 2-0. He scored a career-high 23 points against Hartford, adding 14 rebounds and five blocked shots. Proving it was no fluke, he had 18 points and seven blocks in the Huskies’ win at UMBC on Saturday.
Albany (12-11, 8-6 America East)
The Great Danes maintained their two-game lead in fourth place by splitting their games this week, losing 67-53 at Binghamton and beating Maine by an almost identical score (67-54) on Saturday. With the win over Maine, they swept the season series against the Black Bears after losing the first six games against them.
Binghamton shut down the Great Danes’ stellar backcourt of Jamar Wilson (15 points, 2-7 shooting) and Lucious Jordan (6 points, 1-9 shooting before fouling out) on Wednesday. Besides their struggles from the field, they combined to commit 10 turnovers. Their defense in the second half gave them no chance to catch up after falling behind early.
On Saturday, they corrected the second half issues as they held Maine below 32% shooting in the second half and took over the game, using runs of 8-0 and 12-4 to take the lead and then pull away. Jamar Wilson, who led with 20 points, started the second run with three straight baskets.
The Great Danes have two home games on tap this week, as Vermont comes to town on Wednesday and UMBC visits on Saturday.
Binghamton (9-14, 6-8)
The Bearcats improved their winning streak to four games this past week after a 67-53 home win against Albany and a win at New Hampshire. What might be the best sign for this team going forward is that they were without key senior Billy Williams in three of those games. They have responded with a balanced attack on offense and good defensive efforts.
On Wednesday, they rode a solid defensive effort, especially against Albany’s high-scoring guards, to their 67-53 win. Albany’s starting guards went 3-16 with 10 turnovers, and they held the Great Danes under 28% shooting. In Sunday’s win, they scored 15 unanswered points after a New Hampshire free throw to open the scoring, never trailing after that despite a few rallies by the Wildcats. They shot 48% in the first half and held on despite slumping in the second half at the offensive end.
The Bearcats look to keep rolling as they host UMBC on Wednesday, then head to Stony Brook on Saturday.
Boston University (18-5, 12-2)
With two wins this past week to run their winning streak to seven games, including Saturday’s aforementioned home win over Vermont, the Terriers have come within a game of the top spot in the conference. They remain the conference’s top defensive team by a good margin, ranking fourth in the nation in scoring defense, and they did nothing to change that this week.
On Wednesday, they picked up a 61-51 win at UMBC in a game that featured a stretch of more than five minutes in the second half where neither team scored. The Terriers broke the game open with a run of 16 unanswered points in the first half.
In the midst of a four-game homestand, the Terriers will host Stony Brook on Wednesday and take on cross-town rival Northeastern on Sunday at Agganis Arena.
Hartford (7-16, 3-11)
The Hawks remained in a slump this past week as their losing streak hit six with am 86-66 loss at Northeastern and a home loss to Stony Brook. The biggest issue continues to be at the offensive end, as the Hawks have shot below 40% in every game in the losing streak, and their season long struggles taking care of the ball continue. The Hawks have nearly twice as many turnovers as assists in conference games.
Against Northeastern, the biggest bright spot was the play of sophomore forward Bernard Lowndes. The long 6’9″ forward got the first of what should be several good chances to show what he can do, and he produced with career-high totals of 22 points and 7 rebounds. The Hawks will need him as long as Bo Taylor is out with a broken jaw, which he suffered in practice early last week. The Hawks shot under 40% from the field, though they were a respectable 6-16 on three-pointers.
In Sunday’s 74-60 loss to Stony Brook, Lowndes started but was in foul trouble for much of the game. The Hawks’ defense also suffered again, as they allowed the Seawolves to shoot over 51% from the field. The backcourt of Aaron Cook (23 points) and Charles Ford (14 points) carried them in the scoring column, but Ford also had eight of the team’s 17 turnovers.
The Hawks will have a tough time getting back on track this week, as they hit the road for two games and have not won a road game all season. They play at New Hampshire on Thursday, then head further north to play at Maine on Saturday.
Maine (11-12, 6-8)
Maine’s up and down play of late continued last week as they split their games. On the offensive end, the loss of leading scorer Ernest Turner to a separated shoulder certainly hurts, but it’s just the latest of a host of injuries that have hampered them this season. Only three Black Bears have appeared in every game this season, and Joe Campbell is the only one to start every game. Further thinning the corps is the recent departure of guard Jermaine Jackson, who quit the team late in January.
On Wednesday night, it was all Kevin Reed as the junior guard scored a season-high 31 points to carry them to their fifth straight win over New Hampshire, a 76-70 home win. Reed also grabbed eight rebounds and had six steals, and the Black Bears scored 51 points in the second half on 65.4% shooting.
In Saturday’s 67-54 loss at Albany, the Black Bears could never catch up in the second half after the Great Danes broke a 39-39 tie. After two runs that broke the game open, the Black Bears never got within single digits.
The Black Bears play at Northeastern on Wednesday before returning home to take on Hartford on Saturday.
New Hampshire (7-16, 3-11)
With four straight losses, the Wildcats have clearly hit a bad patch. Given their struggles in conference play, it might surprise one to know that two of their three conference wins have come on the road – the Wildcats have struggled mightily at home. They lost 76-70 at Maine and 62-54 against visiting Binghamton on Sunday.
The problem for the Wildcats certainly hasn’t been senior captain Ben Sturgill, who had 20 points and nine rebounds in the loss at Maine and a double-double (15 points, 10 rebounds) against Binghamton. Freshman Chris Vetrano shot the ball well last week, but they needed more than that to complement Sturgill’s play.
Two key areas of struggle have been rebounding and taking care of the ball. Only Hartford and Northeastern are outrebounded worse than the Wildcats, while only Maine has committed more turnovers.
The Wildcats host Hartford on Thursday for their only game of the week, with the loser falling into the cellar of the conference. They travel up to Vermont to take on the Catamounts next Monday.
Northeastern (15-8, 11-3)
The Huskies stayed right in the mix with two blowout wins this past week, remaining a game behind Boston University for second place. After handling Hartford on Wednesday, they traveled south and blew out UMBC 85-55.
In Wednesday night’s 86-66 win over Hartford, the Huskies held the Hawks below 40% shooting and shot nearly 59% in the second half. They broke the game open with a 24-6 run after the Hawks came within 44-42, highlighted by three consecutive dunks by sophomore Bobby Kelly, with a breakaway reverse dunk sandwiched between two alley-oops coming from Jose Juan Barea (career-high-tying 14 assists, one shy of the school record).
Head coach Ron Everhart looked past the highlights for how that happened.
“We defended well enough to get ourselves out on the break, where we could make some fun plays,” said Everhart, who was concerned about their defense after a bad practice.
Shawn James had a career game as he continues to be one of the conference’s top freshmen. He had a career-high 23 points, 14 rebounds (ties a career high) and five blocked shots.
Against UMBC, the Huskies shot a season-high 58.5% from the field and opened up an early 17-3 lead, never being threatened. They led 48-21 at halftime and rode the stellar guard play of Marcus Barnes (22 points) and Barea (21) to the win.
The Huskies host Maine on Thursday before heading across town for a showdown with Boston University on Sunday at the new Harry Agganis Arena.
Stony Brook (9-14, 4-10)
After splitting road games last week, with an 82-55 loss at Vermont and a 74-60 win at Hartford, the Seawolves are right in the mix with the bottom four teams.
The Seawolves were no match for the Catamounts on Wednesday, as they were never really in it. On Saturday, things were reversed, as they jumped out early and shot 54% in the first half while shutting down the Hawks and taking a 38-23 lead into the locker room. Cori Spencer had a good week, leading the team with 17 points and six rebounds against Hartford after topping the team against Vermont with 15 points. Antwan Hardy remains the conference’s top scoring freshman, scoring 16 against Hartford and averaging 11.7 points per game on the season.
The Seawolves finish their three-game road swing at Boston University on Wednesday, then return home to host Binghamton on Saturday.
UMBC (9-14, 4-10)
After quietly making a move towards the middle of the conference, the Retrievers have lost five in a row after two home losses last week to the Boston schools.
The Retrievers appeared to be no match for Northeastern on Saturday, shooting under 34% from the field and not giving much resistance on the defensive end. John Zito (13 points) and Mike Housman (10) were the only players to score in double figures. On the bright side, they outrebounded the Huskies and had a 20-6 edge in second chance points. Their starters struggled mightily, scoring a combined 15 points on 7-31 shooting.
Two road games are on tap this week for the Retrievers as they try to get back on the winning track. They play at Binghamton on Wednesday, then head to Albany on Saturday.
Vermont (18-4, 13-1)
The Catamounts rolled over Stony Brook on Wednesday by an 82-55 score, then lost Saturday at Boston University. Despite the loss, they still control their own destiny; they split their two games with the Terriers and hold a one-game lead, so they will be the top seed in the conference tournament if they win out.
The Catamounts will hit the road this week, playing at Albany on Wednesday and heading west to take on Nevada in the ESPN Bracket Buster on Saturday. They have a quick turnaround after that, as they come home to take on New Hampshire two days after that.
