Hello loyal America East fans, I apologize for my prolonged absence, but I’m back, and more enthusiastic than ever! Here’s a quick look around the conference:
· Not to look past the regular season, but I’m really excited for this year’s America East tournament: The University of Hartford will host the first ever combined men’s and women’s tourney, and if league Media Day was any precursor, it’s going to be great. Hartford secured a heck of a sponsor in Newman’s Own (the first time the men have had a sponsor in several years), and pulled out all the stops in a top-notch tip-off: Great food, great atmosphere. The league couldn’t have chosen a better school or administration to host, and the centralized location should help attendance.
· For much of their home opening 69-59 loss to George Washington, BU looked like they were still playing for former coach Dennis Wolff, as they looked completely lost on offense. But don’t despair yet Terriers fans; it’s going to take the Terriers a WHILE to grasp coach Pat Chambers’ system, which is a 180 from Wolff’s. What fans should be encouraged about: Chambers’ enthusiasm, as after the George Washington defeat he gushed about his team, the opportunity to continue to build on an already tight-knit group during their trip to Puerto Rico, and he even kidded John Holland about his responses to reporters questions. It was a drastic change from previous seasons when Terriers players seemed nervous in press conferences; hopefully it translates onto the court. Chambers wants the Terriers to play with confidence and not fear, and to play “free.” In previous years BU seemed to collapse down the stretch, and to play either too scared or without any heart, a change in attitude would be nice.
· BU fans should be worried about the absence of Scott Brittain. The senior center is out indefinitely with post concussion syndrome, and he may not be back for a very long time, as word is this is the sixth concussion Brittain has suffered in his life. Without Brittain, BU could struggle mightily against teams with strength in the post, and Stony Brook, Vermont, UNH, and even Maine could provide problems in conference play.
· Binghamton, of course, was the lone school with not represented at Media Day (no coaches, administration, etc), and while it’s understandable that the league, and Binghamton itself, did not want the event to turn into a Binghamton centered sideshow, the general feeling amongst America East coaches was that by not being there, Binghamton only made themselves more of a story.
· For anyone who thinks that Mark Macon (or anyone “in house”) is the answer to right the Bearcats ship: I’ve got a bridge to sell ‘ya.
Malik Alvin’s adventures in Walmart shopping/condom stealing, and Tiki Mayben’s arrest for cocaine were well-published, but trust me, there is a hell of a lot more that has yet to go public. In fact, there are some pretty substantiated rumors of, among other things, credit card fraud, Marijuana dealing, and improprieties an the part of several members of the basketball staff and athletic administration. Broadus allowed a culture at Binghamton in which men’s b-ballers were not held accountable for any of their actions, and were allowed to live above the law, and all the members of his staff were on board with it (without getting into specifics, some of them crossed the line themselves). And what did Macon do shortly after taking over as the Interim head coach? He publicly lead the Bearcats in a sign of solidarity at “Midnight Madness” with the aforementioned Mayben, symbolically reaching out and extending T-shirts to him. Yeah, that’s the kind of leadership that an already reeling program needs. To quote one America East coach, “Yeah, that was classy.”
You stay classy Mark Macon… you stay classy…
· Due to fear of injury, coaches would never sign off on it, but how cool would it be if the America East held a slam-dunk contest to tip-off the conference tournament? I think it would be a huge hit either the night before, or day of, the play-in game, and a great way to further pump up fan interest. I’d choose a field of Marqus Blakely (UVM), Chauncey Gilliam (UMBC), John Holland (BU), Tim Ambrose (Albany), Brian Benson (UNH), Tyrone Conley (UNH), Andrew McAllister (Stony Brook), and Prey Preyboye (Stony Brook). Blakely would likely be favored by the fans, but as of now Gilliam has impressed me the most during various Mid-night madness contests… But I wouldn’t sleep on Preboye pulling off an upset.
· Blakely did a terrific job of shutting me up in Vermont’s season opener: The Catamounts fell to Loyola in their season opener 79-66, but not because of Blakely, who did everything he could to carry the otherwise sluggish Catamounts. Blakely scored 26 points, rejected 5 shots, pulled down 7 rebounds, came away with 3 steals and dished out a pair of assists. More importantly, he nailed 2 jumpers and a 3-ball, and went 11-13 from the charity stripe. Blakely followed that up with 17 points, 12 boards, 7 assists, 3 blocks and 3 steals in a gutsy win over Buffalo. I’m still not convinced that Blakely can consistently create his own shot or take over a game on offense when defenses center their game plans around staying between him and the basket – Loyola focused on trailing him all game, which allowed him to beat his man to the hoop on a number of back-door cuts – but a few more games like that and I will likely change my tune.
· Boston University fans continue to label John Holland as a forward, but as of now the 6’5″ super-athlete and super-talent is a big guard: Holland has length, athleticism, shooting ability, and ball-handling to be one of the greatest players in AE history, and is the only real NBA-prospect in the conference. But what Holland doesn’t do, at least not right now, is utilize his size and get to the hoop. Holland brings the house down when he gets out and running on the fast break, but in the half-court offense he is far too content to sit behind the three-point arc and jack up three-pointers. He is a good shooter, but not good enough to simply chuck up shots, and with his length and athleticism, he should be attacking the rim at will. And in the post Holland has been the tin man when it comes to the heart needed to be a rebounder. Until he is willing to mix it up on the glass, and get to the hoop in traffic, he’s not a forward in my book, and the Terriers need him to start being one. With Chambers’ new style, the Terriers are going to be running and gunning in a lot of four-guard sets, and they need Holland (the biggest of the four) to start making an impact on the glass.
· Fans have short memories, and had already forgotten just how good Hartford’s Joe Zeglinski was. Some have gone so far as to claim that JuCo transfer Milton Burton is the “best talent head coach Dan Leibovitz has ever brought in,” among many other such lunacies. But the fact is, prior to last year’s ankle injury, which cost the redshirt junior his season, Zeglinski was a first-team all-conference player, and well on his way to not only being one of the greatest players in school history, but AE history. Zeglinski is a bulldog of a guard with a fearless mindset and top-notch athleticism (he was a D-I caliber recruit as a running back in high school). After struggling during his rehabilitation and in pre-season, and after a sluggish first game back, Zeglinski showed up in a big way in Hartford’s 71-69 heart breaker at Baylor: Zeglinski scored 23 points, nailing 7 three-pointers, and for long stretches was the best player on the floor, and he followed it up with 22 points on 8-11 shooting in Hartford’s romp over Marist, and he could have scored more – a lot more.
· It’s a tradition of mine whenever I head down to West Hartford, to stop by Rein’s Deli (exit 65 off I-84 – shameless plug) to pick up sandwiches for myself and coach Dan Leibovitz. A funny thought crossed my mind the last time we knoshed on Ham sandwiches on white bread with mayonnaise: somewhere, there must have been an ancestor of one of us rolling in their grave. By the way coach, what’s a guy gotta do to get mentioned in your blog???
· Say what you want about Albany head coach Will Brown – and many fans (and some coaches) do, as many think he is arrogant, pompous, and a sore loser – but I want to go on record as being a “Will Brown guy”. I agree, he could perhaps use a tad bit of humility in defeat, but Brown is the most entertaining quote in the conference, and he has the marbles to go on record and speak his mind, as opposed to the same cliché sayings we usually hear regurgitated by most coaches. And as an aside, big ups to coach Brown for the shout out on his twitter page.
· I am neither a Kevin Broadus, nor Al Walker guy… Binghamton deserves better.
· Boston University first-year head coach Patrick Chambers may be certifiably insane – and I couldn’t be more psyched: At the “Terrier Tip-off” Chambers jumped on tables, tore off his suit jacket, and led the students in chants of “Corey Lowe,” all while pumping up the packed house and imploring fans to sellout the Agganis Arena for the Terriers’ season opener against George Washington.
· Few coaches in recent history have been as polarizing as former BU head coach Dennis Wolff, whom was fired after 14 years at the helm of the Terriers’ ship. Fan’s and alums either loved or hated him, but it’s not that black and white. Wolff was a terrific recruiter: during a three-year stretch from the 2001-2002 season through 2003-2004, Wolff fielded easily the most talented (top-to-bottom) roster the conference has seen in a very long time. BU didn’t just have an “A-10 roster” they had a GOOD A-10 roster as far as talent goes. In fact, their 2002-2003 squad boasted nine (yes you read that right, nine) players whom would be named to an All-Conference team at one point in their careers. Wolff was also a phenomenal defensive coach who guided the Terriers to two NCAA tournament births and 3 NIT’s. But the end of his career was defined by player departures and America East postseason failures.
Aside from the rumors of running players out of the program, perhaps his real downfall was that he simply could not get the most out of the talent he recruited. When I take a step back and really think about it, I can name 3 players whom Wolff maximized their potential: Kevin Gardner, Kevin Fitzgerald, and Stijn Dhondt. On the reverse side, does anyone think he really got the most out of guys like Matt Turner, Jason Grochowalski, Billy Collins, Chaz Carr, Shaun Wynn, Rashad Bell, Ryan Butt, Etienne Brower, and Tony Gaffney to name a few? (The latter two were shown the door from the program, only to relocate to Umass and put up big numbers in the Atlantic-10.) And the Terriers developed a terrible habit of simply failing to play up to their potential come tournament time. With that said, a part of me is sad to see Wolff go: He patrolled the sidelines when I was still in high school sitting courtside with my dad, and there was something comforting about that continuity every time I walked through the doors at Case Gymnasium.
· Glad that BU kept Associate head coach Orlando Vandross: Good guy, good coach.
· Five guys I’d go to war with: Tommy Brenton (Stony Brook), David Bookman (Hartford), Joe Zeglinski (Hartford), Marqus Blakely (Vermont), and Dane DiLiegro (UNH).
· Poised for breakout years: Tyrone Conley (UNH), Chris Martin (Stony Brook), Gerald McLemore (Maine), Carlos Strong (BU), Dallis Joyner (Stony Brook), Dane DiLiegro (UNH),
· If he ever gets healthy, Stony Brook forward Danny Carter is going to be a stud in the America East: A 6’9″ shooter, he has serious athleticism and can finish with authority around the hoop. Carter showed his talent last year with a 20 point outburst against UConn, hitting floaters in the lane above lottery pick Hasheen Thabeet.
· New Hampshire freshman point guard Chandler Rhoades has no business playing in the America East: He could play at a much higher level. A legit 6’4″, he’s a helluva athlete with sprinter speed, and is the biggest, most athletic point the AE has seen in quite some time.
· Former UMBC Retriever Andrew Feeley (05’) has quietly carved out a lucrative career for himself overseas. Feeley spent three season’s dominating the BJ and JBL leagues in Japan, and has gotten his foot in the European door this year, playing terrifically in Slovenia. And while his conference peers have disappeared into 9-5 life (only two other players from his graduating class, Taylor Coppenrath and Rashad Bell, are currently under professional contracts), Feeley, who never even made an All-Conference team, has been climbing the professional ranks every season.
· Teams I’m excited to see: The super-athletic Seawolves who could win the whole conference, New Hampshire, Hartford, Vermont, and Binghamton – that’s right, Binghamton, in the same way you get excited when you see a Nascar crash or a terrible movie in that you just don’t know how ludicrous or bad it’s going to get.
· Quote of the week, from my good friend Matt Bernstein after hearing that Binghamton did not attend the America East Media day: “Do you think they’re seceding from the Union?”
· Until next time America East fans.
