Colonial Athletic Association Notebook
Right Down to the Wire
With George Mason and UNC-Wilmington both winning on Saturday afternoon, nothing was decided for the top spot until the evening. It wasn’t until Hofstra knocked off Drexel that UNC-Wilmington was officially the top seed for the CAA Tournament in Richmond this weekend.
UNC-Wilmington gets the top seed by virtue of splitting with third-place Hofstra, while George Mason lost to the Pride in their only meeting last week. Both squads finished 15-3 in CAA play. The Pride was right behind both at 14-4, with Old Dominion next at 13-5.
Here is a look at the schedule for the first two rounds
First Round – Friday, March 3
No. 8 Drexel vs. No. 9 Delaware (noon)
No. 5 Northeastern vs. No. 12 James Madison (2:30 PM)
No. 7 Towson vs. No. 10 Georgia State (6:00 PM)
No. 6 VCU vs. No. 11 William & Mary (8:30 PM)
Quarterfinals – Saturday, March 4
No. 1 UNC-Wilmington vs. Drexel/Delaware (noon)
No. 4 Old Dominion vs. Northeastern/James Madison (2:30 PM)
No. 2 George Mason vs. Towson/Georgia State (6:00 PM)
No. 3 Hofstra vs. VCU/William & Mary (8:30 PM)
Tournament Won’t Move For a While
This season was the last with a set site for the conference tournament at the beginning. Next year could involve a new site, but on Wednesday, the conference announced that the tournament will remain in Richmond through 2012.
This will continue the long run of the tournament there, as it has been held in Richmond every year since 1990. It is a very central location for the conference’s teams, and that’s true even more with the addition of Northeastern and Georgia State, both of whom are at geographic ends of the conference members.
Weekend Ahead Promises Excitement
To say that this year’s CAA Tournament should be exciting and hard to predict would be an understatement. That is the sentiment of coaches and most observers.
There are reasons to pick any one of the top four teams to win, and it wouldn’t be a shock if No. 5 Northeastern or No. 6 VCU got hot and won it all as well. Some lower seeds could very easily pull off an upset or two along the way, sending a team or two home early and affecting later matchups.
UNC-Wilmington has the top seed, and the senior-laden Seahawks went 15-3 and were steady throughout the season. They won the BCA Invitational to start the season, so they already have winning tournament experience. George Mason tied for the regular season title after leading for a good part of the season, and the Patriots are a solid defensive team.
Hofstra is well-balanced just like the Patriots, and with their stellar guard trio of Loren Stokes, Antoine Agudio and Carlos Rivera, will be a certain contender. Old Dominion was thought to be a prohibitive favorite entering the season, and despite finishing fourth (aided by injuries), the Monarchs have won before and that counts for something.
If the regular season – arguably the best in Colonial history – is any indication, this weekend should be a tremendous tournament.
Award Time
Here are Hoopville’s picks for postseason awards. The conference’s awards will be announced on Thursday.
Player of the Year: Jose Juan Barea, Northeastern
This wasn’t easy to go with, especially considering Northeastern finished fifth. But the teams ahead are so balanced without a player who had a truly outstanding season overall that those teams (and players) were instead going to be rewarded with multiple All-CAA selections. Meanwhile, Barea led the conference in scoring and assists, and is arguably the most valuable to his team.
Rookie of the Year: Juwann James, James Madison
James led all rookies in scoring and rebounding, while winning the conference Rookie of the Week honors four times, posting five double-doubles along the way. He quickly became his team’s best player, and gives the team hope for the future.
Defensive Player of the Year: Shawn James, Northeastern
The nation’s leader in blocked shots changes ballgames, true. But there is more reason to pick him for this honor (over several terrific candidates) than just that. He improved as a rebounder, tying for third in the conference in that category, and was a better position defender than before. He also generally stayed out of foul trouble, which is of utmost importance for a shot-blocker as well.
Coach of the Year: Brad Brownell, UNC-Wilmington
Picked fifth in the preseason poll, the Seahawks have the top seed in the conference tournament. Brownell doesn’t consider this team as talented as the one he had his first season, but like that team, this one has won thus far, and more may be ahead in the conference tournament.
First Team All-Colonial
Antoine Agudio, So. G, Hofstra
Jose Juan Barea, Sr. G, Northeastern
John Goldsberry, Sr. G, UNC-Wilmington
Jai Lewis, Sr. F, George Mason
Loren Stokes, Jr. G, Hofstra
Second Team All-Colonial
Nick George, Sr. F, VCU
Isaiah Hunter, Sr. G, Old Dominion
Alex Loughton, Sr. F, Old Dominion
Harding Nana, Sr. F, Delaware
Tony Skinn, Sr. G, George Mason
Third Team All-Colonial
T.J. Carter, Sr. G, UNC-Wilmington
Aurimas Kieza, Sr. F, Hofstra
Dominick Mejia, Jr. G, Drexel
Gary Neal, Jr. G, Towson
Will Thomas, So. F, George Mason
All-Rookie Team
Calvin Baker, William & Mary
Rashad Chase, Georgia State
Tim Crossin, Towson
Juwann James, James Madison
Zaire Taylor, Delaware
Team Capsules
Delaware
The Blue Hens never recovered from their slow start this season, and support for star senior Harding Nana wasn’t consistently there. That problem became worse when senior guard Andrew Washington was lost for the season due to academics. Rulon Washington had a good year shooting the ball and freshman point guard Zaire Taylor showed plenty of promise. Delaware rides a three-game losing streak into the tournament, and will face off against long-time rival Drexel in the first round.
Drexel
The Dragons may have finished eighth, but they are a dangerous team capable of sending anyone home as they showed in the NIT Season Tip-Off. They have been so inconsistent that they could just as easily lose to Delaware in the first round as they could make a run to the championship game. They haven’t been an offensive powerhouse, finishing last in the CAA in field goal percentage, but their defense has kept them in most games (third in the CAA in both major defensive categories).
George Mason
The Patriots enter the tournament in good shape to get an NCAA Tournament bid. They are well-balanced, and will be tough to beat like they have all season long. Chances are, one win probably puts them in the NCAA Tournament, but Jim Larranaga’s team will surely be trying for more than that. The Patriots play solid defense and have some depth, and they’ve been a model of consistency all season long. They could run into Hofstra in a dandy semifinal game, a chance to get revenge for the late-season loss the Pride handed them.
Georgia State
With four senior guards, Georgia State can’t be counted out easily. The Panthers lost their final seven games of the regular season and have young frontcourt players, and they’ve tried to find the right combination of starters all season long. They won’t have it easy against Towson in the first round, but they haven’t gone down easily all season long and aren’t likely to do so this weekend.
Hofstra
Hofstra has to be considered among the favorites to take home the conference’s automatic bid. Not only are they superbly balanced and have all five starters averaging double figures in points, but they went a combined 4-1 against the three other teams that get a first round bye. The guard trio of Loren Stokes, Antoine Agudio and Carlos Rivera makes this team go, but Aurimas Kieza is one of the most underrated players in the conference and Adrian Uter is a solid role player inside. The Pride could be in the mix for an at-large bid depending on how they do and how some other tournaments go.
James Madison
The young Dukes will be a team to keep an eye on to see what they show. Their young talent starts with Juwann James, but classmates Kyle Swanston and Joe Posey will also be players to watch. They started five freshmen in their final regular season game and they acquitted themselves well despite the blowout loss. While the younger players might be the focus, teams can’t forget about junior Ray Barbosa and seniors Daniel Freeman and David Cooper, the latter of whom has rebounded from an injury.
UNC-Wilmington
The Seahawks started and ended the season well and are certainly among the favorites this weekend. They do a great job of shortening the game and playing defense, winning a lot of low scoring games and ranking right behind George Mason in both major defensive categories. John Goldsberry and T.J. Carter are a solid backcourt and helped them put together the conference’s best turnover margin, forcing more turnovers than any other CAA team and turning it over less than all but one team.
Northeastern
The Huskies are a team capable of making a run to the final game – but they could just as easily lose in the first round. Much depends on the play of star guard Jose Juan Barea, but his supporting cast needs to play well in addition. They come into this game with four straight wins, including the last two on the road, which should give them some confidence. Should they knock off James Madison in the first round, they would get a rematch with Old Dominion, against whom they blew a 13-point halftime lead earlier in the season.
Old Dominion
As many felt they were the favorites to win it all, some feel like the Monarchs had a down year. But make no mistake about it, they are still the defending champions and in a good place to possibly come away with another NCAA Tournament bid. This is a team that has won, and that certainly counts for a lot. They are strong in the backcourt with Drew Williamson and Isaiah Hunter, the latter of whom has battled a stress fracture in his foot recently, and Alex Loughton and surging junior Arnaud Dahi in the frontcourt. The Monarchs may not be the favorites to win, but as one of the four teams with a bye into the quarterfinals, they are in a good spot.
Towson
If there’s a team that could be a surprise that won’t win, it’s the Tigers. It would be a shocker if they won the tournament, but they are capable of pulling off an upset along the way that would influence later matchups. Head coach Pat Kennedy likes the way the team has played away from home later in the season, and that bodes well for this weekend. They should have Gary Neal back, although he was just cleared to practice this week. Nonetheless, the impact of having him figures to help them, and it will make them more dangerous.
VCU
The hometown Rams are a dangerous team with their shooters, as they could get hot this weekend and pull off an upset or two along the way. Star forward Nick George leads the way, but he’s far from alone as Alexander Harper, B.A. Walker, Jesse Pellot-Rosa and Jamal Shuler are all long range threats. Freshman Eric Maynor got his first two starts last week, and earned the conference’s rookie of the week honors. The Rams have been to three of the last four championship games, so they have valuable experience coming into this weekend.
William & Mary
The Tribe has a young team that is hoping to gain some momentum heading into next season. Signs of a young team are not only in the team having just three seniors who play significant minutes; the Tribe has used 12 different starting lineups, and 12 different players have started at least one game. Calvin Baker is one of the conference’s top freshmen, while classmates Peter Stein and Chris Darnell have shown promise. The sophomore class is led by shooter Nathan Mann and skilled wing Laimis Kisielius, and juniors Adam Payton and Corey Cofield are solid veteran players.
