Yardbarker: John Holland

0-3 Boston U. rallies to beat Indiana

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:37:45 -0500

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) -John Holland scored 21 points, Jake O'Brien had 14 points and 13 rebounds, and Boston University rallied to beat Indiana 71-67 on Friday night in the Puerto Rico Tip-Off.

Final from Puerto Rico: Boston University 71, IU 67

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:35:26 -0500

John Holland scored 21 points as Boston University knocked off Indiana 71-67 in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Tip-Off Classic in Puerto Rico. Maurice Creek paced the Hoosiers (2-2) with 17 points, all in the first half. More coverage to come.

BU Ain't Got No Tommy Brenton

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 08:36:00 -0500

If you sing that to the Rolling Stones "Satisfaction", it almost works.

Correct me if I’m wrong, again.
In last year’s preseason poll, wasn’t BU voted #1?
Why not? Corey Lowe and John Holland are two of the best players in the conference. The team had depth, size and a stud freshman.
I saw the Terriers play three times last year. Each time, the same word came to mind……finesse. Their big guys, depending upon which one you want to pick on, played soft or stay away from the hoop. And, they’re all back.

In watching Boston U. this season, we will see the effect of a new coach on a team that wanted to beat you on skill alone.
Vermont handled them with ease last season. The difference was in rebounding and hustle. BU blocked a total of three shots in two games against the Catamounts. In one game they had a total of just 21 boards. Finesse.
Please feel free to rip me a new one in explaining why a bigger, stronger, deeper Vermont team shouldn’t be able to repeat last year’s spankings. (This is your softball Hot Dog. Hit it outta the park.)

Can Pat Chambers can transform this team into one that plays tough defense, pounds the boards, goes after every shot and gets to the foul line? If the Terriers find some grit, they should have little problem winning the league. If not, I’m guessing other teams will find some level of success in playing very physical basketball to neutralize BU’s superior talent.

Gimme Boston University’s roster with Stony Brook’s hustle and toughness. We’ll kick your ass.

AE Coaches Poll Released, First Team Picks

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 10:25:00 -0500

We have our first look at the coaches poll from the Albany Times Union. Here is what we have:

Boston University (8 votes)
Vermont (1 vote)
UAlbany
Stony Brook
New Hampshire
Hartford (tied for sixth)
UMBC (tied for sixth)
Maine
Binghamton

Overall, I think it is a fair shake-up. I think there are three tiers to the league this year. I really can't see a big swing in any direction for any team.

The preseason first team looks like...

Tim Ambrose, G, UAlbany
John Holland, G, Boston
Corey Lowe, G, Boston
Joe Zeglinski, G, Hartford
Muhammad El-Amin, G , Stony Brook
Marqus Blakely, F, Vermont

Obviously as more information comes out of Hartford, we will get it up.

Terrier Tip-Off Recap

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 20:32:00 -0500

Tonight, Boston University held their annual Terrier Tip-off. The event was held at the Roof at Case Gymnasium. Status Quo got the place jumping with their dancing. Hot Dog and Jesus must have been going nuts. They are big fans! They were followed up by an awesome performance by the BU Drum Line. If the school is smart, that line is at every single home game. An awesome way to get the fans pumped before a game.

When the men's team was introduced, Pat Chambers jumped on the scorers-table to throw shirts to the fans. He then went into insane chanting for BU, Corey Lowe and others. The man screamed and yelled and jumped on the scorers-table again to get everyone up, ripped off his jacket and said, "we have a new attitude." He ended his speech by saying he wants to finally sell out Agganis for a BU basketball game against GW for the home opener.

Talk about excitement and energy. If you are a BU fan, and you saw it, you have to be jacked about this year and the future. The word, WOW, doesn't even describe the energy this guy has. You could tell by watching this event that this team has a swagger. It is an amazing thing to see. However, word of advice to BU, when you introduce the team, don't play Jay-Z's Empire State of Mind...YOU ARE IN BOSTON!

Let me say, the Dance Team, makes up for all of it. Can't wait for our friends Hot Dog and Jesus to do their annual dance team tournament, haha. (buy the way, nice rock, tree, bridge guys!) I did get a good laugh when the men's team started doing "Thriller" with them.

Tyler Morris took down Corey Strong 5-4 in the three-point contest. He would then go on to defeat Alex Young from the women's team 11-7 to take the competition. However, the dunk contest was the big event. It pitted B.J Bailey, Patrick Hazel, Jake O'Brien, Jeff Pelage, John Holland, and Carlos Strong against one another. Holland nailed down a solid windmill, but Carlos Strong nailed a beautiful 360-spin off a bounce in the first round. O'Brien nailed a solid MJ side-windmill dunk in the 2nd round. However, Holland nailed a beautiful guerrilla slam. Strong came back with a foul line dunk, even though he didn't jump from the foul line. Holland and Strong would advance to the finals.

In the finals, Holland failed three times to jump over Michael Schulze. However, Strong would need to go to his third try to nail another reverse dunk to take the title. Strong would win the title for the second year in a row.

Overall, a great event put together by BU. Like I said before, the event clearly should put a spark into Terrier fans. The season is pushing even closer!

Note - Stony Brook has announced that they will have an event on October 28th on their campus. B-Ball Madness in Pritchard Gym will start at 7:00 p.m.

2009 NABC Division I All-District Teams

Wed, 04 Mar 2009 23:02:12 -0500

Vermont's Marqus Blakely and Boston's John Holland were selected to the District 1 First Team while Binghamton's DJ Rivera and UMBC's Darryl Proctor were named to the Second Team.

NABC 2009 All-District Selections

Rivera and Holland honored by conference

Wed, 04 Mar 2009 21:22:07 -0500

Binghamton University's D.J. Rivera and Boston University's John Holland were each honored by the America East on Wednesday. Rivera was tabbed this season's selection as the 2009 America East Men's Basketball Fans' Choice Player of the Year while Holland was named 2009 America East Player of the Game.

America East Link

BU's Love of Overtime is a U'useless Stat of the Day

Fri, 23 Jan 2009 14:14:21 -0500

Over on Mid-Majority:

A lot of people sent this one in, and we'll get to another mailbag soonIpromise once things get settled down again, but Boston University certainly has played its share of overtime games lately. Last night at the venerable and historic Roof, the Terriers outlasted America East champions UMBC in an 80-77 double-OT thriller-chiller. This came just three days after a four-overtime win over Stony Brook. John Holland played all 60 minutes!

Add in earlier OT wins over George Washington and Bucknell, and BU has played eight overtime periods this year. It probably doesn't surprise you to know that that leads the nation, but there are three previously tied teams with six: William & Mary, Idaho State and Bucknell. And there are the 129 squads that haven't played any extra periods at all.

Boston University has already tied last year's national high in overtime periods with about two months to go in the season -- Quinnipiac played eight of them in 2007-08. BU's next OT period would match the endurance kings of recent memory, the Indiana State Sycamores of 2005-06. They played nine extra frames.

LINK

Too Bad Nobody Gets Time and a Half Out of This One

Wed, 21 Jan 2009 16:55:50 -0500

There were a collective six overtime frames yesterday in America East play.

Of course, everyone by now BU and Stony Brook played four overtimes with BU coming out on top 99-97. John Holland played all 60 minutes, and was Jeff Goodman's Stud of the Night, and had another little blurb (which names SB's Brain Dougher the ROY thus far in the AE) written about him on Foxsports.com.

It is interesting that in four OTs, BU only used seven players. Rockin it UMBC style. Fresh. Only BU actually had more than seven players available. More on that in a bit, but it really shows how much of an intense game it was, going back and forth with everyone in rhythm...or how much Dennis Wolff mistrusts his bench.

A tired BU team gets UMBC at home on Thursday.

The Retrievers were already an undermanned team. It didn't help matters at all when Jay Greene sat out against Vermont because of a concussion from the Hartford game, and that Rich Fleming had a twisted ankle. That left UMBC with seven dressed players...two of whom basically never see the floor. So it shouldn't come as a shocker that Vermont manhandled them 76-42.

Stupid fact of the day: UMBC sucks without Jay Greene. It was painfully obvious, and as much as Darryl Proctor hit shot after shot, and Chauncey Gilliam picked up wherever the garbage lay, it wasn't going to be enough because the only other person to score was Matt Spadafora with five points. Spotting Greene 15 points would have had little difference in the outcome of this one. Losing Greene and Proctor next year is gonna be a huge blow for UMBC. They are going to be relying heavily on a transfer at the point guard and a freshman. They better pray those two can take care of the basketball, and that the rest of the newcomers can contribute to a rotation or it won't be pretty.

It really is crazy to think about UMBC's situation right now. With a healthy Greene and Fleming, that is nine healthy players. Uwem Eshietedoho is listed as a roster player, but he is out for the season, as his career has been plagued with injuries. They have two transfers sitting out: guard Chris de la Rosa from Siena, and Robbie Jackson, a 7-footer from Marshall. That is 11 players right there. It is no wonder they brought back Cavell Johnson to be "Head Manager" while he finishes his degree, they needed to field a full practice!

I really hope Randy Monroe held an open tryout today, or called the players that left earlier in the year asking them back, maybe promising to play them 1 minute a game. UMBC needs bodies, or they are just going to see full court pressure the rest of the way. You really couldn't expect anything out of walk on in terms of contribution, but what if three guys fouled out last night? They'd have to go Albany style way back when the Danes didn't know what double-digit win seasons were like and play with four men on the floor in the final minutes of the game. I can't envision that being inspirational like it was in Hoosiers, especially with Monroe, he no Norman Dale. Even if Greene can break the press all by himself, its gonna be hard when the guys he passes to not named Proctor can't score.

Hartford blew a 13 point lead with just under 12 minutes left to lose against Binghamton. The Bearcats when on a run and suffocated the Hawks to come back and win. Tough. Hartford is still going to be tough, every team is going to be in the league this year, but they are going to have to be given a bit of a mulligan. Losing a game-changer like Zeglinski is killer. Who knows if he can get a redshirt or not, but this team isn't the same with Jaret von Rosenburg as it's leading scorer. Morgan Sabia is a real nice player, but he is really a number two to a dominator like Zeglinski. Nobody is out of this race for the league crown (but if Stony Brook loses another game, they are, officially), but Hartford's series of events is really unfortunate, considering where they came from a year ago.

There is no Stony Brook or UNH on the schedule next, a team Hartford would match up with well. It's Vermont. This Blakely kid of theirs averaged 26ppg and 16.5rpg against them last season, including a 30 point, 20 rebound performance in Burlington. The Catamounts also happen to have other players that can score the basketball.

Lastly, in the battle of irrelevant New England basketball rivalries, Maine defeated UNH in two overtimes 78-75. Scoring in the final OT: 6-3. Stat line of the night: Tyrone Conley: 35 mins. 0-12FG, 0-7 3PT 0 pts. Rough.

Maine is on a two game winning streak right now and .500 in league play. I have six editions of Replacing Ted I have to do to catch up for the losses during my vacation. I'm waiting for them to lose to post it, but I don't have the full six (and seven when they lose again). Help is appreciated. america.least@gmail.com. Give me a candidate and tell me why you like them, try and be realistic, or completely over the top and outlandish. None of this middle ground crap. Also, look through the Replacing Ted archive to see if your candidate has already been mentioned.

Does This Weekend Indicate Maine has a Shot at the AE Title??

Sun, 18 Jan 2009 13:42:37 -0500

No. However, they sure made things interesting.

Right now, UNH is in first place in the league. Granted, they have played one less league game than everyone else. Enjoy this while you can:

Of course, as we all now know, the league's previous top two teams in the standings were handed some ass-shellackings yesterday, with the most shocking coming from the Black Bears of Maine putting a whooping on Albany. Maine would lead by as many as 23 at one point. The Danes would cut it to 10, probably when they all collectively figured out "oh shit, we are losing to MAINE!" but, no dice. They now fall to 3-20 in conference play. Someone needs to do a better job proofing their AP stories...

Seems as if Maine now has an emerging talent in Malachi Peay, who has scored in double digits in his last four games after only appearing in seven prior to that. I'm going to go out on a limb here and say it probably is not going to help them any more, but I suppose it is nice to see someone younger step up. Who knows, maybe with him, Socoby, the brothers McLemore, some Canadians and a UMass retread, Maine could get a lot better next season. With a new coach of course...

The Albany loss seems to boil down to probably not taking the game very seriously, not shooting the ball well, and not playing any defense (first time they didn't outrebound a team this year?). Kind of sounds like Vermont about a week ago. Everyone throws up a stinker now and then, and all it does is show that every team is not infallible.

Boston U. finally decided to show everyone they were picked number one in the preseason for a reason. That rhymed. Unintentional. The Terriers knocked off Binghamton 81-64 on the road. They clearly did a good job defensively on all of Binghamton's scores as Rivera/Alvin/Jackson combined to be 11-for-35 from the field.

And, John Holland is a beast. He is averaging 24.3ppg through four conference games this season while shooting 59% from the floor. Straight up nasty.

So after starting off 3-0, the Bearcats are losers of two straight. They get Hartford at home next, and that's an enigma game since I don't think anyone really knows what Hartford's deal is.

Vermont shot the three ball well yesterday, and they needed it. Considering that Mike Trimboli is good for five misses at the free throw line (12-of-17) and Vermont always has their lull in a game where they let the other team get back into it, as Stony Brook got it to a one point game with about six minutes left. Vermont went on a 16-3 run to end the game, but it got seven three pointers from Maurice Joseph and Joey Accaoui, which helped a lot, considering they have not exactly been shooting the outside shot well to start conference play.

So Vermont's season is officially salvaged, for now. The suicide watch in Burlington has deterred slightly. Remember, its a game to game basis with Catamount fans. Lose, and they want to burn down the head coach offices and chuck themselves off ledges like lemmings; win and its about UVM being the best team in the league.

Stony Brook is a lot better too. It is mostly because now they work as a unit and not as the AND1 MixTape Tour: America East Edition. The way they work is on the defensive end, and then play extremely boring basketball to keep them in it so the games stay in the 60s. At least they are trying now, and maybe, just maybe it means they are on the path to something good in the coming years. Most likely, Pikiell gets extended to 2030 if the team finishes in 6th place. Oh yeah, Stony Brook is 3-5 at home and 6-2 on the road...they are at BU on Monday. Be wary Terriers.

The rematch of last year's championship game, may or may not have been in doubt this time around, as UMBC only won 69-60 over Hartford. A nice bouceback game at home for the Retreivers, and I guess Matt Spadafora's eye is okay, considering he had 15 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists. OH MAN THOSE ARE BRIAN LILLIS NUMBERS! But, let's not get carried away.

UMBC has a tough road ahead on its upcoming four game stretch: @ Vermont, @ Boston U, @ Albany and home vs. Binghamton. That will tell a lot about this edition of the Retrievers, and if they truly are a one hit wonder.

Also, for those wondering about certain TV games that were supposed to be on CN8: Since CN8 folded operations in New England, there are some AE basketball games that were effected. All the games have been moved to Comcast Sports Net New England. However, CSNNE also plays all the Celtics games during the regular season. So if a Celtics game is on the night an AE game was supposed to be, well, guess what takes precedence. That was the case with the UNH-UMBC game in Durham the other night.

Monday's UVM-UMBC match-up is CSNNE, also the same night as a Celtics game. But have no fear, the game will be broadcast. The Celtics start at 8pm, and are on TNT, so no conflict! Hooray!

Order on the Way to Being Restored; Shocking Revelations about Jeff Pelage

Thu, 15 Jan 2009 23:57:03 -0500

Last night there were two rivalry match-ups between America East schools. They are rivalry games that nobody from either fan base or coaches for that matter care for because it doesn't have the snooty Catholic school from down the street in the same sentence. Sometimes people don't take geography and history past the last five years into account when they think of these types of things, but oh well.

About ten minutes into the Boston University-Vermont game, it looked as if UVM was going to poop the bed once more, buckle down and lose to be 0-3 to start the season, likely prompting about two "Fire Mike Lonergan" blogs, just two weeks after people where afraid he would be considered to take of the mess that is George Washington basketball. When John Holland is making 30 foot jumpers as the shot clock expires, that can be soul crushing.

Another thing that was soul crushing was this:

That is BU's Jeff Pelage. Apparently, he is black. WHAT? REALLY?! I honestly thought based on name only, that he was white. No offense to Jeff, but his name reeks of "tall pale white dude." Welcome to the Scheafer Jackson All-Stars Jeff.

Whilst I was staring at the television amazed that Jeff Pelage is actually black, Vermont ratcheted up the intensity on the defensive end and started to get their offense going to put BU away on a 50-26 run over the last 25-30 minutes or so of the game. Vermont really showed how good they can be...everyone looks good when they bring the pain defensively and has as much offensive power as they do.

BU looked, well, like the typical overrated BU team. The certainly could have used Tyler Morris and Carlos Strong out there. Even if Morris is half the player he used to be, his ability to hit open shots and Strong's athleticism and ability to hit open shots might have swayed things more for BU. But they are stuck with the basketball abomination that is Matt Wolff. Seriously, I don't care if he can set a bone crushing screen or is first on the team in rebounding (kind of sad), that kid is terrible.

So Vermont got their first win in conference. Yay! Some people backed away from suicide watch and realized Mike Lonergan might not be that bad at his job after all. Then again, people blaming the coaching mostly had their heads in their ass because they didn't realize that the BU game was the first time the players decided to play team defense for more than 10 minutes or something.

That other game that happened had no fist fights in the end, which made me somewhat sad, but Albany beat Binghamton 72-66 at home. Speaking of fights, what is the over-under Anthony Raffa gets involved in an altercation somehow this season? The dude looks like he is going to kill someone every time he comes down the court, and he isn't exactly endearing to opponents. I'm shocked that Jaret von Rosenburg and he did not square off. Maybe in round two.

I heard there were some good signs regarding some Bearcat extracurricular and recruiting activities, and some confiscated, but if anyone has pics, america.least@gmail.com. The Danes brought Binghamton back to earth, handing them their first defeat of the conference season. Albany also proved for some reason, they are beneath having a "down year" as they once again sit atop the standings early on at 3-1.

I'm sure JoMo can fill people in on how this game went, ya know, being that I didn't see it and he (presumably) did. And, for everyone's edification, I'm told JoMo really, really hates UMBC. So for anyone out there that got their hopes up, sorry. If there is one core value of this blog is that we thoroughly enjoy kicking the league's lone member past the Mason-Dixon line down constantly, or so some people believe. All this whining about "northern aggression" from people in the Baltimore seriously discredits the city's rep. The existence of whiners in a place that is supposed to be straight up full of OGs means that The Wire might actually be fictional.

Speaking of kicking said team while down, UMBC lost to UNH, BADLY, 65-47. The Retrievers first three games in conference were against teams that finished 7-8-9 in the league last season and they come out of that stretch 1-2. That is either a testament to how much the bottom feeders improved, or how much the champions declined. Your choice. And, the Retrievers are tied with the evil Catamounts in league play right now, the horrors!! And, furthermore, the next game is a home game with Hartford, and depending on which team shows up for both sides, it should be an interesting game. Hartford seems back on track, but they did play Maine (I'm way behind on Replacing Ted). After that, the next three games: @ UVM, @ BU, @ Albany. Thats tough, no matter who you are.

Hopefully people aren't freezing to death out there. Maine isn't playing at home this weekend. Having it be -10 in Alfond would be a homecourt advantage, except for the fact that Maine doesn't win at home.

Just Maybe...(For Boston Fans)

Mon, 12 Jan 2009 19:35:10 -0500

Just maybe, BU fans, the sky is not falling! Just maybe yesterday, on the mean streets of Beantown, the Terriers showed that they do have what it takes to win the conference.

Let me first say one thing: THAT IDEA OF UNH AS A CINDERELLA...YEA, UMMMMMM. If anything, yesterday showed that just maybe Boston can be the darling of the conference despite the record. Just maybe, Cinderella's slipper is a shade of scarlet and white .

So stop and reflect BU fans. Despite the 6-8 record (1-1 in conference):

Just maybe you have a stronger three headed monster on the court without Morris and Strong.

Just maybe you have a first team all-conference player and POY candidate who is only a sophmore.

Just maybe this league continues to underestimate a coach that knows how to win.

Or just maybe it was another typical UNH game in Boston, just like the last 14 years!

All I know is that Wednesday night the Terriers are playing just maybe the most important game of the early conference season. At home, against a down Vermont team predicted to finish right behind them, and a chance to get above .500 and get right back into the swing of things.

Just maybe BU fans, the season has only just begun!

America East: Almost a Power Conference! (Thoughts 12/5)

Thu, 04 Dec 2008 22:22:48 -0500

So lots of good stuff has happened this week. The AE is 7-1 so far! The RPI stands at 12, AHEAD of the Colonial and the MAAC! Woo! Suck one "superior conferences"!!

Anyways, Vermont gave Dartmouth a nice kick in the pants, pulling away big time in the second half of the game. Three Catamounts combined for 69 of the 88 points. Nice. Dartmouth's Alex Barnett lit them up yet again though, thankfully this time, he lost (I think he scored 27 or something last year when UVM lost to the Big Green). Barnett is a damn good player if you have never seen him. He would be all-conference first team in the AE. My sources tell me however that because he is black, has tattoos and dreadlocks, some UVM fans instantly labeled him a thug. Classy. These are the same people who boo Mike Lonergan at games and essentially want to see him fail, and when the team gets up big they still make fun and resort to making terrible remarks about his wife and children. The person who told me this would never lie to me (except that one time YOU KNOW WHAT I AM TALKING ABOUT!). I have to say, that is awfully low, to bring the man's family into it because you simply don't like the guy. If you dislike him so much, why do you go to the games? From what I'm told, nobody would miss this bunch, in fact, there might be a parade and fireworks if they never come back to games.

Vermont gets Pitt Saturday. Keep that under 20, and I consider it a success.

Stony Brook did the league the ultimate favor. They did not lose to NJIT. Dewy (get it! DUI...Duh-ew-iii! Awful joke, I'm sorry) Adedeji returned to action playing six minutes. World-breaker Tommy Brenton only had 8 points and 5 rebounds. I am saddened. Some guy named Bryan Dougher scored 24. That much closer to breaking the school scoring record...which everyone loves to hear come from their point guards right?

Last night, UNH finally did some good and squeaked out a win against Colgate. That will happen when you shoot 50% from three. However, if you keep shooting 38% from the floor and don't make half your long range shots, consider yourself a loser (of the game).

BU dispatched a pretty good Harvard team. I mean, Harvard has like the best Asian college basketball of all time, so says Ricky Ricardo, in Jeremy Lin. Knocking off a team with that guy? Good job Terriers. The three headed monster that is Corey Lowe, John Holland and Jake O'Brien were all sex on fire. Hopefully they snag a win against Marshall and keep the AE dominance (2-0) of the MAC up.

UMBC pooped the bed against Towson for the only defeat of the week thus far. GEE THANKS GUYS! Well, really, shooting as bad as they did (32%FG, 18%3PT 60%FT), doesn't win. Don't know what to say other than the Retrievers were just bad.

Hartford gained some redemption tonight. Not only did they win against Lafayette, but they actually tied a team in total rebounds. Considering where they have been so far this season, that is a giant step. They also had a night where they shot the ball very well, 55% from both the field and three. Hopefully this is a confidence booster for them. La Salle will be tough, but they are a very beatable team, and they are probably going to want to get some wins before they go play Baylor and Stanford. Then again, Yale played Stanford close and Vermont ass-smoked them, and I think Hartford is a lot better than Yale, so the Hawks have a fighting chance.

Maine stat padded an entire game by playing some local dump in the pants D3 team and beating them 126-50. Their freshman walk on, Ryan Martin led eight scorers in double figures with 20. Troy Barnies grabbed 20 rebounds and had 16 points, while three other players had double doubles. 70 rebounds as a team. Enjoy that box score Maine. Isle-Presque is no Oklahoma, or Colgate for that matter.

The important part here is that the league is winning. And that someone else writes about it and mentions me in their article.

Afterthoughts 11/26

Wed, 26 Nov 2008 13:16:55 -0500

A 3-4 evening for the America East last night, and it really could have been a lot better, but asking for that to happen never does any good.

In the winners bracket, Vermont put the wood to Delaware and won 78-63. The Catamounts were up by 25 with about a minute and a half left in the game until Delaware got some garbage points. Colin McIntosh was simply put, Sex On Fire (good song, really awkward video) with 25 points on 11-of-15 shooting. Marqus Blakely dealt with some foul troubles again, but finished with 16 and 11. Mike Trimboli added 19 points, 5 assists and 7 rebounds. They also held Delaware to 34% shooting and the Blue Hens shot 47% from the free throw line. Vermont actually did well for themselves at the line, relatively speaking, by going 22-for-29, but still had 17 turnovers.

Regardless, even with the 2-2 record, we can say this team is dangerous. If you have a three headed monster like that, and add in the fact that there is a fourth player, Maurice Joseph who is capable of scoring lots of buckets too, not many teams will stop that unless they can try to get them to inbound the ball the entire game.

It is a good thing Boston U won 83-75 against Northeastern last night. Hot Dog and Jesus might have been on suicide watch, especially if you coupled an NU loss with getting swept by the hockey version of the Catamounts this past weekend. Word to the wise fellas, pimps don't commit suicide.

Corey Lowe was mackin' it like a pimp daddy in the first half scoring 23 of his 27 points. The torch, or pimp cane (?) was passed on to freshman Jake O'Brien who scored 18 of his 21 in the second including going 5-of-7 from three point range. And did I mention that O'Brien rocks a neck beard? What is more pimp than that? John Holland added 17 points too. I don't think anyone can expect O'Brien to be going off like that every game, but it is certainly nice to know he can. Get Scott Brittain back at full strength, and having a guy like Carlos Strong who can explode for scoring, well there is the makings of a great team this season. Just don't go messing it up, and that is not out of the question either.

Albany beat Columbia 66-49. I like that the Danes are outrebounding their opponents in every game. I don't like that they shot the ball poorly (39% and 0-for-11 from three) and turn the ball over quite a bit. Also, only six assists for them against Columbia. That will not get you victories against better teams. All in all though, I think they have the makings of a decent squad come conference time. It is hard to comment more because first off, I have yet to see the Danes play and secondly, when I make my stupid analysis judging from box scores and statistical trends, I can't see everything and frankly, Albany's box scores are boring looking for the most part. But if they are boring and win games against out of conference foes, I'm all for it.

As for losing, there is one "okay" loss. Hartford getting beat up by URI 94-71. URI is a very good team. Not much to tell other than Hartford doesn't rebound the ball. If that is not solved by conference play, well they are in for a really long season. Too bad because even if they got some production on the glass from Minor/Estes/Maciel, like 12 between them, that could be the difference in some games.

Who in the hell is Tommy Brenton and where did he come from? Stony Brook lost 56-53 to a solid American squad. That, the losing, is not news. Brenton is. It is his second straight double-double and he is averaging 10.5ppg and 11.3rpg on the season. How does Stony Brook get a player like that, especially a player that rebounds? Something tells me that when the DWI guy comes back, Pikiell will take all of Brenton's minutes away and he will wallow on the bench as Adedeji averages 4 and 6 every game while shooting 32% from the floor and heaving up 12 shots a game.

Everyone always talks about how Stony Brook usually never deserves anyone on the all-conference teams, but if Brenton keeps it up, you can't deny him of that, especially if he is keeping them in games. What isn't keeping them in games in eight assists. Oh yeah, Brenton was tied for the team lead in assists with three. When Stony Brook figures out if you pass the ball to create baskets, that it actually gives you points and you can win games, maybe they will crack double digit wins this season.

Maine has re-entered the earth's atmosphere and have taken a loss in typical Maine fashion. That is, losing to a sub-par team. Even though Quinnipiac is 2-0 against AE schools, I still don't think they are that good. If they don't get a career night from Justin Rutty (30 points), they would have been awful last night. Not that Maine did themselves any favors either, they shot badly, Socoby and McLemore combined to be 11-of-30. Maine has a tough schedule ahead (minus the game against a local DIII or NAIA school), so it will be telling on how they do an that stretch. Quinnipiac was the first test and they let a big man just take them to town. If they are competitive for the rest of their schedule and maybe sneak a win or two out of it (Colgate and Canisius likely suspects) then that means they could move from 8th place into 7th in the AE this year.

Worst loss obviously goes to Binghamton who were destroyed by Central Connecticut 76-51. 29% from the field. 0-for-19 from distance, seven total assists compared to CCSU's 26. Just wow. Kevin Broadus can be pissed all he wants, but let's face the music here folks. That team is not going to change. Broadus knew that when he took those guys on, and now he looks like a total fool. I'm sorry Binghamton fans that you have to put up with this. Utah Valley has a guy that averages 29 ppg and they are 4-0. Rather than seeing the Bearcats try and limit his opportunities to score and keeping them off the glass with a good team defensive effort, I'm sure you will see Rivera and Mayben throwing the ball up with reckless abandon in order to show the guy up and end up losing the game.

Tuesday Wrapup: Doug Birdsong is One Annoying Man

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 23:37:47 -0500

That would be Bucknell's radio voice, Doug Birdsong. Apparently, he gets a little too excited at games. More on that in a bit. The Bison played Boston University tonight. The Terriers sucked hard to begin the half, but battled back to tie the game. With one second left, Corey Lowe (19 points), missed the front end of a 1-and-1 to win the game. John Holland came alive in overtime scoring seven of BU's 12 overtime points. A nice surprise was Jake O'Brien, who scored 15 points in his second career start. A win is a win, and it is good to get it over a Patriot League foe, but it sounded like it was ugly for the first frame. Sounds as if Tyler Morris struggled, and that cannot happen often. But the team did show some resiliency to come back and pull out a victory.

Anyways, onto Mr. Birdsong. Those AE fans who suffered through watching the free video and listening to this man at his craft had this to say:

"The guy sounds like a hyena on it's third orgasm every time Bucknell does anything, even if it's a rebound."

"A BUMA victory would be awesome to see here, hopefully the radio guy will flog himself for our enjoyment."

-Bosiydid

"I'd love to listen to him commit suicide on air. I've muted it for now though."

"This radio guy is horrendous. Pretty sure he ejac-ed all over his console when O'Brien picked up that foul."

-Hot Dog

Sounds like a great time. Imagine if BU lost?

Vermont buttsmoked Yale 89-58. Man, Yale sucks hard. How did they play close with Stanford? How were they picked third to win the Ivy League? And the fact that they lost by 31 when Marqus Blakely only played 20 minutes due to foul trouble is sad. Colin McIntosh had a really nice game with 17 and 8 and Maurice Joseph (17pts), Mike Trimboli (16pts, 7 assists) and Joey Accaoui (10pts) reached double digits. That is a nice way to get the George Mason game out of your mind. Apparently, this matchup was selected for the ESPN 24 hour marathon in the 10am spot, but Yale turned it down. Idiots. That is what you get for turning it down. A 31 point loss. Drexel-Penn was picked instead (that ended up being a close game, Drexel won 66-64). Still, who the hell turns down ESPN? Seriously? It isn't like Yale is going to be on the World Wide Leader anytime soon. It is a wonderful marketing opportunity to show your program on national television. That shit ass gym that is Patrick Gym would have been packed with students skipping class, fans skipping work, it would have been sweet. Oh well. Great job Yale. You suck...just win some games from here on out so this blowout doesn't look terrible on the AE resume.

The blemish was Stony Brook who dropped a 80-71 decision to Lafayette. Not really a shocker. Stony Brook just did their rotating leading scorer thing. This time it was some guy named Muhammad El-Amin who had 15. I wonder if he is related to Khalid El-Amin? Otherwise, it is just a mess of minute distribution, hardly any assists (six as a team) and poor free throw shooting (65% as a team). And they had everyone's hopes up after beating Maryland-Eastern Shore. Did I just type that?

Good slate of four games tomorrow, all of which are winnable.