Sudden Change at The Heights
In late April, Boston College looked like it would enter the ACC next season and make an immediate impact. With most ACC teams that finished near the top this season having personnel question marks entering next season, the door looked open for the Eagles to jump right in with a relatively stable roster.
The Eagles saw Gordon Watt (Purdue) and Steve Hailey (Iona) transfer, the latter a surprise, and they lose key seniors Jermaine Watson and Nate Doornekamp. Despite the unexpected transfers, the lineup looked good for next year with four starters returning, as well as key reserves and a crop of incoming freshmen that would contribute. Late signee Tyrese Rice will effectively take Hailey’s place, though he’s also a much better scorer than Hailey. Marquez Haynes figures to contribute as a combo guard who can create for teammates, while Evan Neisler will battle for minutes in a crowded frontcourt.
But some of that changed in the middle of the May. Akida McLain, a promising freshman forward, was arrested in his home of Penn Hills after allegedly passing counterfeit $20 bills. That is being regarded as a minor matter, according to reports, as McLain apparently came in possession of them incidentally – an unfortunately not uncommon occurrence in recent times. (There have been investigative television shows that have documented some of the ways this has happened.) That was not the big blow, especially since he should return.
Freshman Sean Williams made an immediate impact off the bench, setting a school record for blocked shots in a single season with 63. He figured to move into the starting lineup next season with the departure of Doornekamp. Those plans all changed on the morning of May 20, when he was arrested and charged with possession of marijuana and alcohol, which led to a suspension from the school for the summer and fall semesters. Williams left campus immediately and went home to Mansfield, Texas, and faces a July 8 pretrial hearing.
Reports on whether or not Williams is done at BC are mixed. Head coach Al Skinner told the Boston Herald that he could return if he takes care of business, but this isn’t the first strike against the talented 6’10” forward. Williams was suspended twice during the season, and the Herald also reported that class was never a high priority. He’s reportedly a very bright young man who had excellent SAT scores – and the school recruits players who are solid students, which is one reason they don’t get some of the elite prospects even in the Boston area – but appears to be a classic case of someone who doesn’t require enough of himself.
It’s easy to think that next season doesn’t look so good for the Eagles right now. With Williams gone for at least the first semester, Craig Smith may have to play center for longer periods of time, as John Oates (the tallest returning Eagle) clearly wasn’t ready last season. If things take a turn for the worse with McLain, it means Neisler might be pressed into more duty. But Skinner has had great seasons with this team when no one expected it, and the backcourt should be set, so the Eagles should still enter next season with fewer question marks than most ACC teams. The backcourt also figures to be better overall, and in the college game having good guards will often go a long way.
Rivalry Stays Alive – Barely
In April, it looked like a great rivalry in the Boston area would take a year off. Northeastern is headed to the Colonial Athletic Association, which means they will no longer have two regularly-scheduled conference games with cross-town rival Boston University. A heated rivalry for many years, even when the teams were headed in opposite directions, both coaching staffs expressed a desire to keep the rivalry going.
But the teams hit an impasse over where next season’s game would be played. The Terriers, naturally, would like to have the game at home since it would be played at the new Harry Agganis Arena, which opened up this past January. The Huskies, meanwhile, would like to have had another home game given the remainder of their non-conference schedule, which currently features games at Providence and a tournament at California, as well as an appearance in the Bracket Buster. The discussions got to the point where Boston University proposed a coin flip to determine where next year’s game would be, with the site naturally alternating every year after that. Northeastern refused the coin flip, adamant about the home game, so the teams parted ways for the coming season.
Then something rare in the world of sports happened: New York helped save Boston.
Iona, who visited the Huskies this past December and had a return date with them, put off the game by a year. That opened up a road date for the Huskies, and they agreed to play the Terriers at Agganis Arena next season, keeping the rivalry going. It now gives the Terriers five dates at the new arena, with the featured games being Michigan and Rhode Island. They will also host two conference games there.
Recently, more good news came for Boston University with the new arena as America East announced that the 2007 America East Tournament will return to Boston and be played at Agganis Arena. This will come after next season’s tournament once again takes place at the new Events Center at Binghamton.
Other off-season notes from around the nation
- New Eastern Kentucky head coach Jeff Neubauer and his staff moved very quickly to put together a recruiting class for next season. Point guard Taylor Morris from Indiana already committed in the fall while Travis Ford was still there, then in the spring the staff added 6’4″ Cincinnati wing Harrison Brown, Illinois guard Mike Rose and Richmond combo forward Greg Redford. Additionally, Lafayette transfer Jamal Douglass is also headed there. “That’s not bad for about 10 days’ work,” said new assistant coach Ted Hotaling, who had been an assistant coach at Yale prior to becoming Neubauer’s top assistant. With just one starter gone from last season’s team, the Colonels should certainly remain in contention in the Ohio Valley Conference next season.
- Glenn Miller has definitely found a home at Brown. With the success he has had, he was a finalist for the Stony Brook head coaching job, but removed his name before the decision was made. The Bears have become consistent contenders in the Ivy League under Miller, and the future continues to look bright. Despite the loss of Jason Forte, the Bears should remain among the Ivy League’s best teams next year now that the young players have a year under their belt. Meanwhile, Miller is hoping to get at least four home games in non-conference play next year after several seasons where they have been few and far between.
- Don’t be surprised if Virginia makes a nice improvement next season under new head coach Dave Leitao. The cupboard isn’t bare talent-wise, especially on the perimeter with Sean Singletary, J.R. Reynolds and Gary Forbes, so he isn’t starting all over. The most important thing he brings in the immediate is his focus on defense and discipline, two things that killed the Cavaliers last season. The Cavaliers were last in the ACC in field goal percentage defense and tied for last in scoring defense, and only Miami forced fewer turnovers.
- Miami head coach Frank Haith said that he wants to keep the local talent home, and he has wasted little time doing just that. The incoming class consists mostly of players from Florida, but that’s just the beginning: two more players from Miami have already committed to the school. Last month, guard Edwin Rios, one of the top rising juniors in the country, committed to the school, and forward Dwayne Collins recently announced his commitment as well. Both are teammates at Miami Senior High School and in AAU.
- On the subject of the NBA Draft, does anyone remember why Jason Conley decided to transfer from VMI to Missouri a couple of years ago? It was allegedly to get more exposure for an NBA future. Well, he got more exposure all right, and as we stand a week before the draft, Conley is nowhere to be found in any mock drafts and he was not invited to Chicago. The moral of the story would appear to be, “Be careful what you wish for.”
- Our condolences go out to the family and friends of John McAdams, a long-time figure in Philadelphia sports who passed away last Thursday. “Johnny Mac”, as he was known, was a legend in the sports world there, especially the Big 5. My own experience with his work came in the last three Big 5 Classics, in which he was the public address announcer for every game, as well as the final rounds of the AND1 High School Basketball Championship the past two years. This coming weekend, when the fourth annual AND1 HBC takes place at La Salle (where he was the primary PA announcer for the last 20 years), something will definitely feel different without his voice coming over the loud speakers. May he rest in peace.
