Eagles Show Signs of Coming Alive
KINGSTON, R.I. – Don’t look now, but Boston College is coming alive with a full squad.
The Eagles have certainly looked less-than-stellar at times during non-conference play, and head coach Al Skinner has remarked after a few games that the team played well in spurts. It doesn’t help that they were without two key frontcourt players for some time, as Akida McLain was suspended until the ACC opener at Maryland due to an off-season incident and Sean Williams has been back for less than two weeks from a suspension.
But with both in the fold and others having gained key experience, the Eagles now look very much like the ACC contenders many projected them to be, and they certainly looked the part in Saturday’s 78-56 win at Rhode Island.
The Eagles controlled the game right from the get-go, scoring 16 of the game’s first 18 points and leading by as many as 15 before the Rams tried to make a game of it. Dawan Robinson, who didn’t start because he violated a team rule, came into the game and got the Rams back into it with several baskets. He scored 10 points in the half on 5-8 shooting, and the Rams would get as close as seven before going into the locker room down 38-29.
The Eagles didn’t relent in the second half, scoring the first seven points and never letting the Rams get closer than 12 after that. Sean Marshall (21 points) got hot, aided by the crowd’s response to an airball on a free throw, and the rest of the Eagles kept going from there.
“I really didn’t expect to shoot the airball, but it came off wrong, and the crowd got into me, and I just came down and knocked down some shots,” Marshall said after the game.
All in all, it was the best game the Eagles have played all season. They shot 58 percent from the field and had 20 assists against 13 turnovers, and they out-rebounded a good rebounding team by four. Looking up and down the stat sheet, just about everyone who played significant minutes either made key plays or had a good stat line. Craig Smith had 20 points on 7-7 shooting; Jared Dudley had 11 points and eight rebounds; Louis Hinnant had five assists with no turnovers; Akida McLain had eight points and four rebounds in 17 minutes and looked good.
“Guys did a real good job of establishing ourselves early, something we haven’t been doing early this season,” Smith said. “We got it going today, we got a good feel, and we’re starting to show a little of our identity.”
Williams, in his third game back, had six rebounds and three blocked shots in 14 minutes. A couple of those blocks were of the highlight-film variety, and he looks like he’s making strides.
“His timing is not where it needs to be, but every game he’s getting better,” said Skinner.
The Eagles clearly have their best days ahead, and Saturday was a big step in it. They played like they are capable of, and the rest of the season should see more games like Saturday than some other games this season where they only played well in spurts.
“We’ve only had maybe three games with this team that we presently have, so we’re still a work in progress, we’re still adjusting some things,” said Skinner, who also noted that the team has a lot of flexibility with its personnel. “We’re still a work in progress, but obviously we have something to work with, and we’re going to continue to get better.”
Game Notes
- Skinner was coaching at his old school for the first time since becoming the head coach at Boston College. Before the game, he received a warm response from the crowd as he was recognized for his accomplishments as the head coach at the school from 1988-97.
“It was nice to see a lot of familiar faces, and that’s what I enjoyed,” Skinner reflected. “The community here, while I was here, was extremely supportive, was always very encouraging, and everybody treated myself, my players and my staff extremely well, and because of that, it just made it a great job.” - The Eagles were 16-20 from the free throw line, a point of emphasis after they went 11-25 at Duquesne four days earlier. Skinner said they worked on that in recent practices because he knows they have a good free throw shooting team and just needed to correct a few things.
- Rhode Island junior Darrell Harris fell down while battling for a loose ball late in the game, and struck his head on the floor. He had a mild concussion, but head coach Jim Baron said he was doing well after the game.
