Rice, Spears Lead Young Eagles
CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. – One thing was clearly evident on Monday night: having Tyrese Rice and Shamari Spears in the lineup makes a difference for Boston College.
The pair had to sit out a one-game suspension for playing a game during the summer, a game they said was not in a league of any kind and that involved other college players. Without them, the Eagles had their struggles and trailed for a good portion against New Hampshire, pulling out a 67-57 win.
In the Eagles’ 68-62 win over Florida Atlantic, they had plenty of struggles, not unlike they did in their season opener two days earlier. There were stretches where the Eagles couldn’t stop Florida Atlantic, especially in the half court set, and at times one had to wonder if they might pull it out.
That’s when Rice and Spears took charge.
With the Eagles trailing 53-45 with eight minutes left, Rice made two free throws and then hit a three-pointer, then a three-point play on an offensive rebound by Spears knotted the game at 53. The Owls would briefly regain the lead, but then back-to-back baskets by the pair put the Eagles ahead for good.
Both had 10 points in the second half, with Rice finishing with a game-high 21 points and Spears scoring 18. Rice added nine assists and Spears had eight boards.
“Clearly, both showed their impact,” said Boston College head coach Al Skinner. “Shamari showed his impact on the game, his rebounding was important and his aggressive attitude was important.”
Spears lost over 20 pounds during the off-season, and looks much better physically. Just looking at him will show the difference, but watching him on the floor adds to the impression as he’s more active and more athletic. He made several plays he wouldn’t have made a year ago.
Rice, meanwhile, looked like he could have a big game early. In just the first few minutes, he scored a couple of baskets and found open teammates on several other possessions as the Eagles scored the game’s first seven points and led by as many as seven in the first half. There is clearly scoring ability on this team, and that will only help Rice as the team’s most proven scorer on a team with a good deal of youth and veterans needing to do more.
The importance of Rice and Spears was evident in this game not only in their numbers, although that’s one area where it will be noticed. Whereas freshmen like Biko Paris and Rakim Sanders picked up the slack in the season opener, they looked like freshmen at times on Monday night. Sanders had 11 points, but also turned it over three times. Paris had just three points and didn’t make a field goal. They also got 20 good minutes from Corey Raji, a big scorer in high school who might not have the role of a scorer here.
Perhaps the biggest area where their importance came in was when the Eagles still trailed later in the second half. Rice never showed any worry, noting that even if he felt concerned he didn’t want to show it because his younger teammates were going to follow his lead. He was aware that if he showed fear or responded in the wrong way, his teammates would follow him in that regard.
The Eagles had stretches where they struggled defensively, but were in better shape when they put more pressure on the Owls’ guards. The Owls have a new point guard this season in Carderro Nwoji, a junior college transfer who scored 15 points on Monday but had two assists with five turnovers, and more youth there behind him. Once the Eagles sped the game up, things started to turn in their favor.
Related to that, it is clear that this team can run. They looked good when running, and several players can really thrive in transition. Rice got several assists in transition, with players like Sanders, Paris and Spears capable of getting out on the break. With the lack of firepower in the paint, as neither Tyrelle Blair nor John Oates will make anyone forget about Craig Smith, the Eagles will rely on perimeter scoring.
Even though this team is young, the talent is there and that includes scoring ability. The Eagles won’t struggle to score even with their youth, but that youth will surely show itself in other ways. Skinner can see one of them right now, mainly a product of players trying to play together for the first time.
“I’m not sure if we really trust each other and really understand each other and what we’re trying to do,” said Skinner. “So errors are being made, mistakes are being made.”
Boston College has some growing pains right now, and may very well have them this entire season. It’s a season to have no expectations if you’re an Eagle fan, but one where they will surely have some good moments mixed in. With Rice and Spears, they have two good pieces to build around and be competitive with.
