America East Off-Season News, Notes and Analysis
by Sam Perkins
The off-season can be a hard time to take for college basketball fans, and it can be a downright death valley for fans of small conferences like the America East, in which off-season reporting from news outlets is even rarer than a good haircut on Greg Ostertag.
So once again, here’s some news and notes from around the conference, along with some other thoughts.
- Hartford coach Dan Leibovitz has taken what is, unfortunately, the road less traveled in the America East when it comes to his schedule for next season. Instead of lining up an array of low-major opponents (or even non-DI if you’re north of Massachusetts), Leibovitz has already put together one doozy of a schedule, which is rumored to include Stanford, URI, Penn State, Connecticut, and an array of solid mid-majors. Expect one more big, big money game to be added against a big-time opponent before all is said and done.
- Fire codes put the kibosh on Hartford’s plans for connected seating all the way around the court in Chase Arena, but they are still putting in all chair backs along both sidelines, and it still gets my vote for hosting the America East tournament (provided that Mohegan Sun never comes to fruition). The way I look at it, it is going to come down to Albany and Hartford, and Hartford is just a nicer venue: better lighting, better sound, better appearance on TV. At either venue, however, for the tournament something is going to need to be done in the way of food, as right now both have insufficient concession stands.
- It’s always hard to tell what you are getting in a “drop-down” player, meaning a player who comes to the America East from a much higher conference. Some, like Kenny Adeleke completely dominate, but far too many fail to live up to the billing, putting up no better (sometimes worse) stats then they did then when they played in bigger conferences. So I am hesitant to go to gaga over Michigan State transfer Maurice Joseph, who will be playing for Vermont next season. But it is really, really hard to not get really excited about Joseph, not because he gives Vermont the athletic guard they have been desperately needing (which he certainly does), or because he has a bulldog’s mentality (the kid is unshakeable). The big reason is because during his transfer year, a year in which he could not suit up for the Catamounts, Joseph emerged as the team’s unquestioned leader, not through ego or brash talk, but through his work every single day in practice. No one cared more or worked harder than Joseph, and he is the player that the other Catamounts look to for guidance and leadership.
- Dane DiLiegro is going to be a very, very good player. This is a feeling not only shared by his coaching staff, but by most opposing coaching staffs around the conference. DiLiegro’s numbers on offense this year (4.2 ppg) were pretty pedestrian, but in the America East, freshmen bigs in the 6’8″ range rarely produce. New Hampshire fans need look no further than former Wildcat Ben Sturgill, who as a freshman was a 6’8″ beanpole with little game, but by his senior year had turned into an All-Conference performer. DiLiegro has tremendous athleticism to go with his 6’8″, 240-pound frame, and his lean muscular build would seem ideal for putting on muscle, and another 20 pounds within the next two years is certainly feasible. Already a tremendous rebounder, and a vicious finisher around the basket, DiLiegro struggled with staying out of foul trouble during his freshman campaign, but a year of college basketball can do wonders for a player’s development, and the coaching staff expects big things down the road from DiLiegro.
- Speaking of talented bigs, Hartford might have a steal on their hands with incoming freshman Malcom Campbell. Campbell joined the Hawks from prep school halfway through the year and sat out as a redshirt. Campbell is a basketball 6’10” with a tremendous wingspan, solid athleticism, and runs the floor like a deer. The America East sees very few players Campbell’s size with his skills and athleticism, as he certainly is not in the Kyle Robbins or Brent Gifford mold. Don’t get me wrong, Campbell is a project – he is still growing and physically maturing, and may struggle to pick up the Hawks’ incredibly complex offense and defense. But by his junior year he should make a very big impact on the court.
- Perhaps no player in the league takes as much verbal abuse night in and night out as Matt Wolff. I suppose that’s in the cards when you play for your father. Wolff may be a limited player on the offensive end, but he doesn’t deserve the flack he takes, as he has turned into a very solid role player, who gives it everything he has every night. Wolff is a very heady defender, and was the one player on the Terriers who brought physical toughness to the court consistently day in and day out. Wolff showed a complete willingness, and even eagerness, to get in and mix it up, something the Terriers need more of from the rest of their roster.
- BU has a ton of perimeter talent, and if Tyler Morris can return to his freshman form after battling injuries, and Corey Lowe and John Holland continue their skyrocketing trajectory, the Terriers are going to be one tough team to play. But BU needs a presence in the low blocks to be a real contender. Scott Brittain is a nice player with a soft touch around the hoop, but he is not the physical presence BU needs. Too often this year BU was physically pushed around, especially in the low blocks, something that never happened when Jason Grochowalski, Ryan Butt, Rashad Bell, and Billy Collins were wearing the Crimson and White. The America East may be a perimeter-oriented league, but BU is not going to be able to separate themselves from the pack, nor go dancing, without someone who can do some damage in the post.
- With the addition of freshman Bryan Dougher and JUCO transfer Jonathan Moore, the Stony Brook Seawolves will have (barring any unforeseen departures) five, that’s right, five point guards on their team next season with Eddie Castellanos, Nick Carter, and Chris Martin all returning. You have to wonder why coach Steve Pikiell needs this many distributors when the team doesn’t seem to have many people to distribute the ball to. Stony Brook has some talent in the low post, especially in Demetrius Young, but they ran a game plan that was devoid of any passes into the paint. The Seawolves need a go-to scorer, one true multi-talented offensive weapon to keep defenses honest. They seemed to have that two years ago with Tre Cunningham, a 6’4″ wing who could do a bit of everything, but Cunningham transferred, and the Seawolves really need to find a replacement.
- I like Rio Pitt, who will be a junior next year for Stony Brook, as he has nice size (6’7″) and very good athleticism. More importantly, he showed flashes this year of an array of low post moves. The question is, will the Seawolves ever develop a game plan for their low-block players?
- UMBC added seven-foot transfer Robbie Jackson from Marshall. Jackson won’t be a star, and likely won’t dominate, but he’s a seven-footer with a good frame and decent skills, and he will certainly alter shots and some game-plans.
- UMBC wing Matt Spadafora is going to be a very, very good player in this league. As a sophomore Spadafora’s game improved by leaps and bounds, and when senior Brian Hodges went out with a leg injury, Spadafora took over his starting role and shined. Already a lock down defender, Spadafora went from a shaky outside shooter as a freshman to a deadeye this year. More importantly, by year’s end Spadafora became aggressive on offense, driving to the basket and using his great leaping ability and length to elevate in traffic at will, even showing off a soft touch on jumpers and hooks around the hoop, not to mention turning a few heads with some big-time dunks.
- Maine has been hitting the recruiting circuit really hard, having already locked up 3 players for next season (and talented ones at that). But my real question remains: how does Ted Woodward re-energize and engage a team that seemed to completely quit on him down the stretch?
- Maine junior forward Philipe Tchekane-Bofia has regressed every season for the Black Bears. As a freshman, Bofia showed off some incredible low-post moves and instincts, and looked to have all the tools to dominate the league, but his production has dropped every year along the way, and he seems to have become more and more of a disruptive influence to the rest of the team. This season he seemed content to shoot threes and joke around on the bench, when he should have been dismantling teams in the low block and leading the Black Bears emotionally.
- I really hope that coach Kevin Broadus brings in a freshman or two. While he has certainly brought in some big-time talent with transfers for next year, the big complaint with Al Walker was that he didn’t bring in enough freshmen to build a consistent program, instead relying on JUCO transfers. Broadus is toeing a fine line of going down that same road.
- I was once again awestruck and dumbfounded when I took a step back and really looked at exactly what Marqus Blakely has become. I really think that the league should have a Most Improved Player award, but when I was going over who the most improved player was, it took me a few days to realize that it would be Blakely, hands down. It is absolutely shocking when you look at the fact that Blakely was the Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the year, led the league in scoring, rebounds, blocks, and was an AP All-American (Honorable Mention) all in only his sophomore year, and it becomes even more shocking when you realize that as a freshman he played less than 14 minutes a game. And the kid has only scratched the surface of his potential.
Blakely may have the most raw potential, athleticism, and talent out of any player to come through the league since Malik Rose, and he isn’t simply a great athlete for the America East, he’s as athletic a player as you will find in the country. Blakely averaged 19 points, 11 rebounds, and shot 55 percent from the floor despite really not possessing much of an actual game. Blakely was able to dominate the America East, and compete against top-flight teams by relying simply on sheer athleticism. Blakely really didn’t display any type of low-post moves, no jump hooks, drop steps, or much of a jump shot from more than four feet away, yet he was able to score by simply jumping over people. Furthermore, Blakely didn’t practice for much of the season, and was playing at only about 75 percent due to a foot injury which hindered his explosiveness. It is truly scary to think of what kind of player he can become if he develops a real game to go along with his athleticism, he could literally score 30 points a game in the America East.
But the best thing about Blakely is he hasn’t let it get to his head, and he is not only a tremendous talent, but a workout warrior. In fact the word “ego” very well might not exist in his vocabulary. Word from Vermont is that Blakely is shooting hundreds and hundreds of jumpers and threes every single day, sometimes multiple times a day to expand his offensive arsenal. Teams were able to finally clamp down a bit on Blakely towards the end of the year when they really crowded him around the basket, because he didn’t have any kind of a consistent jumper. However, if Blakely develops a mid-range game, teams are going to have to guard him away from the hoop, and by drawing defenders away from the basket Blakely will then be able to break them down and beat them regularly off the dribble, and really put up some jaw-dropping numbers. - After a period in which three-guard offenses were the trend in the America East, the conference as a whole seems to be shifting back to a conference of true wing players. This is very encouraging, because the America East of the past few years, with most teams starting a trio of guards 6’2″ or below, made matching up against top-tier teams, or even squads from the Colonial and A-10, incredibly difficult. But the three-guard trend seemed to change this year, and for the first time since 2003 – when the league had the likes of Billy Collins, Jerrell Parker, Javorie Wilson and others – true small forwards made a resurgence.
BU’s John Holland, a 6’5″ wing with a smooth outside shot, a guard’s ball handling skills, and tremendous hops and finishing ability won the Rookie of the Year award, and wings such as Spadafora (UMBC), Brian Lillis (Albany), Mark Socoby and Troy Barnies (Maine) all made big impacts. And it only gets better, as all but Lillis of this year’s wings return, and the returning wings coupled with the incoming freshman will give the AE one of the best collective groups of small forwards in a long time.
The two most talented incoming freshmen for next season, Hartford’s Drake Uu, and Vermont’s Jordan Clarke are true small-forwards who can light it up from outside, put the ball on the floor, attack the rim, and finish with authority. At 6’7″, 235 Clarke is built like a tight end with athleticism just a bit below Blakely’s, and has Vermont head coach Mike Lonergan salivating at his potential. Uu may well be the best freshman in the conference next season, and is at least an A-10 level player. (Most west coast recruiters swear that he is a Pac-10 level player). At 6’5″ and 230 pounds of rock-hard muscle, Uu is already built like a man, and the word is that he is a far superior shooter to current Hawk Morgan Sabia, whom was easily the deadliest player in the conference this season from behind the arc. Uu can handle the ball like a point guard, play lock down defense, and has the athleticism to drop jaws with a tomahawk dunk or windmill in traffic. Albany incoming frosh Logan Aronhalt is another uber-athletic wing in the 6’4″-6’5″ mold, and UNH will gain the services of James Madison transfer Colby Santos, a good athlete and lock-down perimeter defender who sat out this season. - By the way, Hot Dog and Jesus, for the record, Andres Torres speaks perfect English and was born in Puerto Rico, making him just as much of a legal US citizen as you or me.
