Niagara

GameNight: Niagara at Villanova

Raphielle Johnson — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 13:24:30 -0500

Start: Nov 19 2008 - 7:30pm

Preview & Prediction: By Raphielle Johnson

If you like guards and unlimited three-point attempts, this may be the game for you. Niagara, who will lean heavily upon a deep guard rotation this season, visits the school that just a couple of years ago used four guards (out of necessity) to nearly knock eventual national champion North Carolina out of the NCAA Tournament. A subplot would be the return of Bilal Benn to Villanova, playing for the Purple Eagles after transferring from the Big East school two seasons ago. And he’ll be coming back with some help, most notably backcourt returnees Tyrone Lewis and Anthony Nelson, fellow transfer Rob Garrison (Connecticut) and big man Benson Egemonye. Lewis, who was MVP of the 2007 MAAC Tournament as a freshman, dropped 20 points, 6 rebounds and eight blocks (that’s right, blocks) in Niagara’s win home win over Towson on Sunday.

As for the Wildcats, they once again feature a talented backcourt, led by juniors Scottie Reynolds and Reggie Redding, and sophomores Corey Fisher and Corey Stokes. But to focus solely on those talented guards is something that opponents do at their own peril this season, because Villanova is pretty good inside as well. Seniors Dante Cunningham and Shane Clark lead the way inside, with Cunningham hanging 31 and 11 on an overmatched Fordham squad on Monday night. Clark also returned in that 107-68 beating after missing the opener due to knee surgery on November 7^th. So expect him to have his time monitored, meaning more minutes for Antonio Pena. Pena showed flashes of what he’s capable of last March, and has picked up from there with a pair of double-figure scoring efforts. Casiem Drummond provides extra depth, making it imperative that Niagara (which doesn’t have that kind of interior depth) stay out of foul trouble inside.

Winner: Villanova Margin: 1-4 - 5-10 - 10+ - 20+

MAAC Basketball Preview: 08-09

CHN — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 09:04:06 -0500

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Conference Rank: 15th

10 year average: 17th

MAAC Conference Page

All-MAAC Team
Pos.	Player	Team	Yr.

G	Kenny Hasbrouck	Siena	Sr
G	Tyrone Lewis	Niagara	Jr
G/F	Ryan Thompson	Rider	Jr
F	Edwin Ubiles	Siena	Jr
F	Alex Franklin	Siena	Jr
CHN Award Winners		Returning Leaders
Mid-Major All-Americans Kenny Hasbrouck Ryan Thompson Edwin Ubiles		Points: Kenny Hasbrouck 16.2 Rebounds: Alex Franklin 7.8 Assists: Jonathan Han (Fairfield) 6.2

MAAC Standings
Nat'l	Team	League	Tourney

45	Siena**	MAAC	1	NCAA
101	Niagara	MAAC	2
120	Rider	MAAC	3
140	Fairfield	MAAC	4
172	Manhattan	MAAC	5
200	Loyola Md	MAAC	6
235	Iona	MAAC	7
268	Marist	MAAC	8
303	Canisius	MAAC	9
318	St. Peter's	MAAC	10

*Click on links for full Top 144 team preview

** returning conference champion

Poll: Who Do You Think Will Win the MAAC?

Other MAAC Content

Head Coach Q&A's

Fran McCaffery: Siena

Conference Media Poll

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Rise & Fall: MAAC

State of 08: New York

Daily Conference Poll: Who Will Win the MAAC?

Shawn Siegel — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 22:06:01 -0400

State of '08: New York

Shawn Siegel — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 11:11:24 -0400

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Duke or Carolina? BC or UMASS? Gonzaga or Washington.. or Washington State? What is the best program in each state? While there's not much competition in Hawaii.. there are great debates to be had in loaded regions like California, North Carolina, and Texas. The State of '08 is a ranking of every program in every state.. based mostly on recent success (the last five years) mixed in with subjective factors such as conference prestige, historical success, and overall program direction.

For more info, check out the State of '08 introduction.

NEW YORK

SYRACUSE - Led by one of the all-time great coaches, Syracuse has been a perennial power under Jim Boeheim. The Orange have missed the last two NCAA Tournaments, but should be back in 2009.

SIENA - Its been a good decade for Siena, with 3 NCAA Tournaments and 2 NIT trips. Last year, the Saints knocked off Vanderbilt in the opening round, and some pundits even think Fran McCaffery's crew has a chance to finish in the Top 25..

NIAGARA - With the exception of a poor 2006 campaign, Niagara has been very solid in the last decade. They've finished over .500 overall and in MAAC play in 9 of 10 seasons, and advanced to the Tournament in 2005 & 2007.

HOFSTRA - After the amazing job Jay Wright did at Hofstra around the turn of the century, Tom Pecora's tenure has been a bit more pedestrian (but still good for NY standards). The Pride did ride the shooting stroke of Loren Stokes to the 2007 NIT (their 3rd in a row), but were disappointing last year despite the return of Antoine Agudio.

MANHATTAN - Bobby Gonzalez led Manhattan to four postseason trips between 2002 and 2006. Barry Rohrssen hasn't been able to maintain that high standard, though this year's team has potential.

6. ST. JOHN'S - Once one of the game's top programs, St. John's still isn't close to getting out of the mess created by Mike Jarvis. The Storm haven't finished in the RPI Top 100 since 2003, and that futility should continue in 2009.

7. MARIST - Although the Red Foxes haven't had much success in the MAAC tournament the past three seasons, the team has been consistently dangerous and was invited to the 2007 NIT.

8. ALBANY - Unlike Binghamton and Stony Brook, who joined D1 and the AE around the same time, Albany has had some success in recent years. Will Brown, the Great Danes coach for pretty much their entire D1 existence, deserves credit for the job he's done. Brown led the team to the 2006 & 2007 NCAA Tournaments.

9. CORNELL - The Big Red have come a long way under Steve Donahue. When he took over in 2001, the program was one of the worst in the Ivy League. But their RPI has improved every season since 01 (from 311th to 65th in 08), and their Ivy League record has improved each season as well (though you can't top last year's perfect 14-0 run). Most expect Cornell to repeat as Ivy champs in 2009.

10. FORDHAM - Although Dereck Whittenburg has done a nice job getting Fordham back on track since taking over in 2003, there's still been no postseason trips and last year's team failed to meet lofty expectations.

11. WAGNER - With 23 wins last year, the Seahawks set a new record, although they missed out on the postseason. The program had accomplished little in the previous four seasons, unable to follow up on a good 02-03 run that culminated in a Tourney bid.

12. IONA - The Gaels have been all over the place in recent seasons. Great in 2006, with 23 wins and an NCAA bid. Horrendous in 2007 with just a 2-28 record. And then very mediocre last year.

13. BUFFALO - Long one of the country's worst programs, Buffalo is back to their losing ways after a rare winning spike from 2004 to 2006. In 2005, the Bulls were a few points from making their first NCAA Tournament in program history.

14. COLGATE - The Raiders are coming off their best season since 2002, an 18-win campaign that included two wins in the Patriot League tournament. 1996 was the last time they reached the conference finals.

15. BINGHAMTON - Less than a decade into their D1 existence, Bingamton is still looking for a breakthrough on the hardwood. 2nd year coach Kevin Broadus will be relying on a lot of transfers to push the Bearcats up the America East standings.

16. CANISIUS - 2001 was the last time Canisius was any good. 2009 should be another losing season, though fans are at least hopeful some of last year's young talent improves.

17. LIU - There hasn't been much to cheer about in the last decade as last year's 15 wins were the best in a decade. Since taking over in 2002, Jim Ferry's teams have won just one NEC Tournament game.

18. ST. FRANCIS - 2004 was the last time the Terriers were decent, and 2001 was the last time they were good. Last year was one of the worst in the program's history, with an RPI of 313 and a 4-14 NEC record.

19. ST. BONAVENTURE - Early in the decade, the Bonnies had a good run, until a string of poor choices, rules violations, and bad luck destroyed the program. Some progress has been made since the low of 2005 (2 wins), but Mark Schmidt and crew still have a long way to go.

20. COLUMBIA - I'm sure Columbia's good teams at some point in the past, but they were just before my time. Back to back 7-7 Ivy League seasons have been the peak of Joe Jones' five year tenure.

21. STONY BROOK - The Seawolves haven't won 10 games since 2005, and have never finished above 200th in the RPI. Most publications project a finish near the bottom of the AE in 2009.

22. ARMY - From 2003 to 2006, Army was not only the worst team in New York, but arguably the worst team in the country. They won just 11 D1 games in those four seasons, but have since returned to a more mediocre standard. Another sub-.500 season is a lock in 08-09.

Last: New Jersey - Next: North Carolina

State of '08: The Introduction (& State list/links)

2008-09 Niagara Basketball Preview: #101

Joel Welser — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 11:24:08 -0400

Niagara Purple Eagles

Overall Rank: #101

Conference Rank: #2 Metro Atlantic

2007-08: 19-10, 12-6, 3^rd

2007-08 postseason: none

Quick, which player led the nation in scoring last year? Tyler Hansbrough? Stephen Curry? Michael Beasley? Some guy from VMI? Not quite. The answer is Charron Fisher of Niagara who tallied 27.8 points per game last year. The 6-4 wing has now graduated and the question for the Purple Eagles is whether or not they can continue their success without Fisher.

Who’s Out:

Fisher was not just a scorer. He also grabbed 9.5 rebounds a game and could pass and play a little defense too. The questions on the perimeter continue with the departure of Stanley Hodge. Hodge did not take as many attempts from long range as Fisher and some others, but he did knock down 1.7 three-pointers per game and led the team shooting 36.2 percent from beyond the arc. Hodge also ranked third on the team in rebounds and second in assists. Another guard, Andrew Patterson, has transferred and will not be suiting up for the Purple Eagles this season.

Who’s In:

Niagara and Coach Joe Mihalich will not need any of the newcomers to be Fisher or Hodge right away, but a few of them should play a major role this season. Big East transfers Bilal Benn and Rob Garrison have the most experience. Benn, who played two years at Villanova, is a strong wing who can help out on the glass. At 6-5, he is a little undersized to play the four spot, but Niagara is lacking in experienced size and Benn is strong enough to handle most opposing power forwards in the MAAC. Like Benn, Garrison saw limited playing time during his two years in the Big East. Garrison, who returns to Niagara after a stint in Storrs, Connecticut, showed promise as a freshman, but only played in 12 games as a sophomore. The 6-2 guard can handle the ball and will provide an outside shooter, something this group could really use. Austin Cooley is not too bad at hitting the long balls either, but the 6-4 incoming freshman is better known for getting to the basket. Cooley, much like Hodge who he will help replace, can fill up the stat sheet. How much he can do as a freshman remains to be seen, but Cooley certainly has the potential to make a big impact off the bench. Redshirt freshman Kashief Edwards will add more depth at the small forward spot and incoming freshmen Eric Williams and Dutchman Luuk Kortekaas are both intriguing prospects for the frontcourt.

Who to Watch:

Despite losing Fisher and Hodge, the group on the perimeter still has a couple dangerous weapons. Tyrone Lewis managed to average 16.1 points per game and that was with Fisher taking over 22 shots a game. Now this is Lewis’ team and his scoring could stretch a little closer to Fisher-type numbers. Yet, what Lewis lacks is size. At 5-11, Lewis is just not that effective finishing around the basket. He will still be very aggressive with the ball and get to the charity stripe quite often, but the size does cause some problems once he is there. Anthony Nelson started all 29 games as a freshman and dished out an impressive 5.1 assists per game. On a team that likes to score, and could run more this year, Nelson did a decent job committing just 2.7 turnovers per contest. As a sophomore that number should get better.

Final Projection:

It is possible that Cooley and Benn will be on the floor, or even starting, at the same time. That would be a pretty small team, but it would probably put the five most talented players on the floor. The big man in the middle would be Benson Egemonye. After averaging less than eight minutes a game two years ago, the 6-10 center emerged as a quality big man in 2007. For his senior season, Egemonye hopes to improve on his 9.0 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game. He will need to stay out of foul trouble if he wants to see more minutes, but Egemonye can certainly score. He shot an amazing 62.6 percent from the floor…now he just has to take more shots. Demetrius Williamson could see plenty of time if the team wants to go a little bigger and Kamau Gordon will battle the newcomers for minutes off the bench. As long as the power forward spot can be effective, the Purple Eagles have enough talent to stick around the top of the conference race. If not, Fisher and Hodge will not be around to mask the team’s weaknesses.

Projected Post-season Tournament: none

Projected Starting Five:

Anthony Nelson, Sophomore, Guard, 5.7 points per game

Tyrone Lewis, Junior, Guard, 16.1 points per game

Austin Cooley, Freshman, Guard, DNP last season

Bilal Benn, Junior, Guard, DNP last season

Benson Egemonye, Senior, Center, 9.0 points per game

Complete Top 144 Ranking | 2008-09 Preview & Awards | Coach Interviews | Discuss the Preview

MAAC Quaterfinals Recap: Rider Survives, Niagara Dethroned

Raphielle Johnson — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 13:22:20 -0400

ALBANY, N.Y.- On paper, the matchup between conference co-champion Rider and last-place Canisius looked like an absolute snoozer. The Broncs, in sweeping the Golden Griffins, won the two games in blowout fashion. The second of which was a 102-51 whipping that underscored just how bad Canisius has been all year. But a not so funny thing happened: Canisius didn't fold.

Thanks to eighteen points and eleven rebounds from MAAC Player of the Year Jason Thompson, Rider fought off Canisius by the final score of 75-71 Saturday night. The Golden Griffins had three players in double figures, led by Greg Logins with twenty. However, the victory may have been a Pyrrhic one for Rider as both Ryan Thompson (concussion) and Justin Robinson (leg) went down with injuries that could keep them out of tomorrow's semifinal against Marist.

All of a sudden, a team that was able to capitalize off of its depth due to their healthy season has to juggle the possible absence of two key starters. "If it could've gone wrong it did go wrong tonight," said head coach Tommy Dempsey.

Thanks to 56% shooting in the second half, the Golden Griffins were tied at 71 with 1:14 remaining. But a Patrick Mansell three-pointer put the Broncs up for good. The differences in the game were free throw shooting and rebounding. Rider, although they shot a sub-standard 57.7% from the charity stripe, made 15 of 26 while Canisius was 4-7. The Broncs also enjoyed a 38-30 rebounding edge.

Canisius finishes the season with a record of 6-25.

Marist 66, Niagara 62

In a ragged game more suited to the Red Foxes tempo, three players reached double figures as Marist defeated the defending tournament champions 66-62 in the fourth quarterfinal of the day in Albany. Charron Fisher, who played all forty minutes, went for 23 and 16 in a losing effort.

Niagara, even though they're ranked third in the MAAC in points per game, is ninth in field goal percentage. But the tempo that normally allows the Purple Eagles to make up for it wasn't to be found on this night as the MAAC's premier defensive team held NU to 36% from the field and won the battle on the boards 43-38. A team with six seniors is using last season's disappointing MAAC Tournament as motivation, and now faces a possibly shorthanded Rider team on Sunday night.

Afternoon quarterfinals-

Loyola (MD) 64, Fairfield 59

Gerald Brown converted an inbounds pass into a layup, moving the Loyola lead to five with seventeen seconds left to seal the victory for the Greyhounds. Brown led the Greyhounds with eighteen, but they also received help from Brett Harvey (16 pts) and Michael Tuck (14 and 8 boards).

Loyola won the rebound battle 37-28, and the Stags helped them out by not taking advantage of numerous opportunities (including the foul line) to overtake the Greyhounds. Fairfield, who was led by Jonathan Han's 14 points and eight assists, finishes their season at 14-16. Loyola will take on top seed Siena Sunday night.

Siena 66, Manhattan 58

Alex Franklin was unstoppable for the Saints, dropping 26 and 9 rebounds on the Jaspers in Siena's eight-point win. Devon Austin led the young Jaspers with seventeen. Kenny Hasbrouck, who only scored nine points, suffered a shoulder injury but was able to return later in the second half.

Even with the substitution of Laurence Jolicoeur for Andrew Gabriel, who did well on Friday against Todd Sowell of St. Peter's, Manhattan had no answer for Franklin. Manhattan also didn' help their cause by shooting a frigid 5-12 from the charity stripe and 3-14 from behind the arc. The Jaspers end their season with a record of 12-19.

While Marist, led by David Devezin with fourteen, had scoring balance while no player other than Fisher or Tyrone Lewis (21) scored more than seven.

Northeast non-TV Bracket Busters preview

Raphielle Johnson — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 14:23:55 -0500

Here’s a quick preview of the ESPNU O’Reilly Bracket Busters games this weekend that will not be shown on television involving northeast teams. In most cases, the organizers of this event have done a better job of limiting the travel for non-television games, with the exception of UC Davis visiting Loyola (MD) among games involving northeast leagues. Bracket Busters, originally put together to provide schools in non-BCS leagues one last opportunity to add to their resume, now involves some 100 schools from sixteen conferences. Niagara @ Appalachian State (Saturday, 1 PM) The nation’s leading scorer, Charron Fisher, takes his act on the road as the Purple Eagles visit the Mountaineers of the Southern Conference. Fisher has eclipsed the forty point mark in two of his last three games, including 45 and nine rebounds against Loyola (MD). Niagara (with help from Tyrone Lewis, Stanley Hodge and an improving Benson Egemonye) will look to run and put up a lot of points, but the Mountaineers are also capable of scoring some points. Six players score at least seven points per game, led by senior forward Donte Minter. I’ll take the Mountaineers due to the home court advantage. Northeastern @ Holy Cross (Saturday, 4 PM) The Huskies make the short trip to Worcester to take on a Crusader team still trying to recover from a slow start in Patriot League play. Tim Clifford is Holy Cross’ best offensive option, but it’s been the health of PG Pat Doherty that has been the concern. His Achilles injury at San Francisco was the catalyst for a five-game skid early in 2008, and the team has been up and down ever since. Northeastern, looking to end their two-game skid, will counter with a balanced scoring attack led by wing Matt Janning. Normally, I’d go with the home-court advantage, especially with an environment as hostile as the one awaiting NU’s arrival. But I’m going to take the Huskies due to the fact that they’re a more balanced team on offense. Bucknell @ Old Dominion (Saturday, 7 PM) The Bison, like their Patriot League rivals, have uncharacteristically struggled in league play this year. But given the number of losses due to graduation over the last two seasons, you can understand why this team isn’t in its usual perch atop the conference standings. Guards John Griffin, Justin Castleberry and Stephen Tyree are the main men on the offensive end of the floor, and they’re going to have their hands full in Norfolk. Forward Gerald Lee leads the Monarchs in scoring, but they have seven players averaging at least six points per game. In their last four games, all wins, three different Monarchs have led the team in scoring (Lee twice, Brian Henderson and Abdi Lidonde once apiece). I like the Monarchs to win this one. Vermont @ UNC-Wilmington (Saturday, 7 PM) If you’re looking to find a candidate for the most improved player in the country (yes, country), look no further than Vermont’s Marqus Blakely. After averaging 5.8 points and 3.1 rebounds per game last season, the sophomore forward is up to 19.8 and 10.8 this year. And only two players have a 30/20 game to their credit this season: Michael Beasley and…Marqus Blakely. Mike Trimboli and Kyle Cieplicki are also more than capable of scoring from the perimeter. As for the Seahawks, four players average at least twelve points per game, led by senior guard T.J. Carter’s 15.8. Possessing a home record of 11-2, UNCW comes into this one riding a four-game win streak. Expect this one to be a close one, but I like the Seahawks to come out on top. UC Davis @ Loyola-Maryland (Saturday, 1 PM) Well, this one could get ugly as the Greyhounds host the Aggies. UC Davis, currently dead last in the Big West, has lost their last nine and are the league’s worst defensive team (opponents shoot 48.1% from the field). And when you’ve got to stop a player like G Gerald Brown, that could be bad news for the Aggies. Brown will have some help on the offensive end, supplied by Michael Tuck and Marquis Sullivan. The Aggies are led by guards Vince Oliver and Shane Hanson, but they have a road record of 1-11 for the season. I like Loyola to win this one. Hofstra @ Iona (Saturday, 2 PM) The Gaels host one of the nation’s best scorers in Hofstra’s Antoine Agudio, and with Iona preferring to quicken the pace this could be a game in which Agudio puts up some points. But the trend all season has been that the Pride are only as successful as Agudio’s supporting cast, and a group led by Charles Jenkins has become more confident as the season has progressed. On the other side, Kevin Willard’s first year as head coach has been streaky in regards to results, with a three game win streak followed by a short losing spell. Iona ended a two-game skid with a win at Canisius on Monday night, and five players averaging about eight points per game (Kyle Camper averages 7.8 to be exact). The key to this one will be how well Hofstra takes care of the basketball, something they haven’t done well on the road this season (3-9 away from home). I’ll take Iona by a basket. Fairfield @ Drexel (Saturday, 4 PM) The Stags, winners of five in a row, take their on one of the CAA’s worst offensive teams in the Dragons of Drexel. Center Frank Elegar leads Drexel in both scoring and rebounding, but the points have been few and far between for a team looking to replace the likes of Bashir Mason and Dominic Mejia from last season’s team. Fairfield, on the other hand, has received a boost from the likes of seniors Marty O’Sullivan and Mamadou Diakhate, two players who weren’t expected to see much playing time throughout the remainder of the season. But the team runs based on the play of PG Jonathan Han, the MAAC’s assist leader. With six road wins already to their credit, I like the Stags to pick up a seventh. Youngstown State @ Buffalo (Saturday, 4 PM) With two of the bottom feeders in their respective leagues on display, you have to dig a little deeper to figure out who to watch in this one. How about guards Andy Robinson (Buffalo) and Byron Davis (Youngstown State)? Both lead their teams in scoring, but truth be told each team has a couple of places from which the points can come. I’m taking Buffalo for one simple reason: The Penguins are 1-11 on the road this season. Binghamton @ Manhattan (Saturday, 4 PM) One of three matchups between America East and MAAC schools, this one will be an interesting affair due to the age difference between the backcourts. Manhattan, led by Antoine Pearson and Devon Austin (Austin’s a wing), rely primarily on sophomores while Binghamton’s backcourt is manned by seniors Mike Gordon and Richard Forbes. The Bearcats’ leading scorer, however, is sophomore forward Lazar Trifunovic (14.3 ppg, 7.3 rpg). I like the Jaspers to move their three-game win streak to four due to the fact that they’re at home (Binghamton is 3-10 on the road this season). Albany @ Canisius (Saturday, 7:30 PM) There’s no Jamar Wilson, but the Great Danes are still in third place in America East. The leader this season is Brian Lillis, a wing currently averaging sixteen points per game. In all, five Great Danes are averaging at least 7.7 points per game. Their opponent has one of the quickest guards in the MAAC in Frank Turner, but little has gone right this year for the 4-22 Golden Griffins. Losers of five straight games, I don’t think Canisius plays good enough defense (allowing 73.1 points per game) to end the skid in this one. Boston University @ St. Peter’s (Saturday, 2 PM) The Terriers have won six of their last seven, while the Peacocks have lost eleven of thirteen. SPC has one of the toughest competitors in the MAAC in senior Todd Sowell, but as a team they simply don’t defend well enough or take good enough care of the basketball (averaging sixteen turnovers per game). When you have four players scoring in double figures, turnovers are a sure way to keep your win total low. Corey Lowe, one of the best guards in America East, leads BU with eighteen points per game, but the improved play of freshman John Holland has been the catalyst for their recent run of good play. I like the Terriers to get a road win in this one.

Monday Report Card: Fisher Goes Off For 45

Shawn Siegel — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 12:16:03 -0500

The Report Card

A - Charron Fisher / Calvin Murphy

Scoring points has never been a problem for Fisher, but he took it to another level by scoring 45 last night. He was neck and neck with VMI's Reggie Williams for the national scoring lead, but moved to 27.6 ppg (0.9 ahead) after last night's outburst. It was the highest total by a Purple Eagle in over a decade and just one off the MAAC record set back in 1986. But what's truly amazing is that it wasn't even one of the Top 10 scoring totals in Niagara history. This due to the unstoppable sums put up by the legendary Calvin Murphy, recently named one of college basketball's Top 25 all-time best players by ESPN. Murphy scored 47 or better 11 times, including a high of 68. That's getting it done.

B - South Alabama

Another ho hum win for the Jags last night, who improved to 20-4, 12-1 on the season. With a solid RPI of 34, its time people give USA more respect as a potential at-large bid. Locked in a tight race with Western Kentucky, the Jaguars will have some serious competition for the Sun Belt title. Their lone big non-conference win was at home over Mississippi State, who looks like they'll make the Tournament at this point. Their lone losses in OOC play were at Ole Miss, at Vandy, and against Miami (OH). All three of those teams were great teams at the time (lets not forget Miami had just beaten Xavier and took USC down to the wire the next time out), while Ole Miss and Vandy didn't lose a game in 2007. The losses to the SEC teams were on the road and extremely close, so USA certainly good have won those games at home or on a neutral court. If

C - Clemson

It's amazing that Clemson still has never beaten UNC on the road. 0-53 now, the longest losing streak at one opponent in NCAA history. You'd figure, just by pure chance over the past 50 years that the Tigers would catch the Heels on a night that their shots weren't falling and that their point guard was out.. Oh wait, last night was that night and they still lost. It's amazing how last night's loss was reminiscent of their results in recent seasons: A great start, getting out to what seems like an insurmountable lead (ie, a tournament lock), before collapsing in an inevitable and comical fashion.

D - Chase Budinger

What happened to Budinger's game? He's been nonexistent in Arizona's last two losses.. combining for 13 points on 5 of 24 shooting (21%). In the two losses to ASU, Budinger's 5 for 25 (20%). Its safe to say the Sun Devils simply own him right now. I'm still not sure what to make out of Arizona right now.. they have a lot of decent wins over Top 100 teams and no really horrible losses. Yet they seem primed to get too high of a seed thanks to the RPI, and then proceed to lose in the 1st or 2nd round.

F - Tim Morris

You've probably seen the clips by now of the Huskies senior throwing the ball of Alfred Aboya's face. There's really nothing to add here that the clip doesn't show.. except for ouch that hurts.

The Daily Report Card tells you all you need to know about the day in college hoops. From good to bad and bad to worse, I'll be laying down the law.

Previous Best / Worst

February 8th - Big West / Virginia

February 6th - Chris Lofton / Dick Vitale

February 5th - Bob Knight / Josh Heytvelt

February 4th - New York Giants / Washington State

February 1st - Nevada / Penn

January 31st - Kansas State / St. John's

January 29th - Winthrop / Dyson & Wiggins

January 28th - Rutgers / Doris Burke

January 25th - Ron Hunter / Princeton Offense

January 23rd - Kentucky / Archbishop Burke

January 22nd - DJ Augustin / Scott Sutton

January 21st - New York Giants / Marquette

January 20th - Maryland / ESPN.com editors

January 18th - Cleveland State / Marquette

January 17th - Drake / HP Laptops

January 14th - Roy Hibbert / Michigan State

January 10th - Tony Bennett / Saint Louis

January 9th - DJ White / CSTV

January 8th - Robert Morris / Schedule Makers

January 7th - Wayne Ellington / Illinois

January 6th - Herb Sendek / Kentucky

Some weekly honors in the Northeast

Raphielle Johnson — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 23:59:03 -0500

Team of the Week: Rhode Island Results: Providence (W: 77-60), @ Syracuse (W: 91-89) These two key wins put the Rams at 10-1 on the season, and truth be told they should have been ranked in both polls this week. But for the critics who pointed to their schedule as a reason to overlook their start, here are two impressive "resume" wins. Jim Baron, who has to rank up there with some of the more underrated coaches in the country (in terms of the mainstream), took a chance last season by letting these Rams run. The end result there was a trip to the Atlantic 10 final, and more success has come this season. Guard Jimmy Baron and forward Will Daniels lead a solid group of offensive options, one that would make Frank Keaney and his "two points a minute" teams quite proud. Overlooked in the polls, but people had better keep tabs on the Runnin' Rams. Player of the Week: G/F Charron Fisher (Niagara) Stats: 36 pts, 8 rebounds against Rider (W: 89-77); 31 pts, 12 rebounds at Towson (L: 75-72) To be frank, Fisher, a senior from Pennsauken, NJ was a man among boys this past week. In their MAAC opener, Rider had no answer for his versatility. The same goes for Towson, but they were able to get the hard-fought win. Think being 230 pounds relegates Fisher to being an undersized banger inside? Well, he went 8-12 from behind the arc against Rider. Teams within the MAAC have known for a couple of seasons that they've got their hands full with Fisher. Let's see if St. John's is up to the challenge on Saturday. Surprising Score of the Week: Iona 92, Loyola (MD) 68 Iona, in their first season under Kevin Willard, was expected to be an improved team. Well, when you only win two games the previous season, there really isn't anywhere to go but up. But to drop this kind of beating on a team picked by many to contend for the MAAC title is an eye-opener. Four Gaels reached double figures, led by Dexter Gray's 18 off the bench, and Iona shot 59% from the field while limiting the Greyhounds to 32.7%. Besides Gerald Brown, who put up 31, not much went right for Loyola in a game that got out of hand in the first half (halftime score: 49-24). Loyola went the first 4:49 without a field goal, and then topped that with a 5:46 drought to start the second half. One question to think about: what if Loyola doesn't go 27-33 from the charity stripe? Ouch. This win along with their close loss at Siena two days later (81-76) shows that Coach Willard has this program headed in the right direction, despite their 2-7 record. Some other notes on teams in the Northeast: - St. Francis (NY) has been relying too much on the three point shot. Heading into their game at Columbia tonight, the Terriers were 64-for-202 from distance, good for 31.7%. All of last season, SFC attempted 440. With a player the caliber of forward Robert Hines, there should not be this many attempts from beyond the arc. But Hines isn't absolved of any guilt in this either. In 06-07, Hines attempted 106 three-pointers. Through ten games, he's already attempted 52...and made 15. Until the Terriers as a whole commit to attacking the basket, they will have a hard time ending their four-game losing skid. - LIU has replaced the scoring of James Williams by committee. Quite a few people, yours truly included, didn't expect much from the Blackbirds with the graduation of James Williams. But after a win tonight at New Hampshire, LIU is 6-3. Four Blackbirds are averaging at least 10.6 points per game, led by senior forward Kellen Allen at 12.1. Last season, Allen averaged a meager 4.4 points per game. While it's too early to expect LIU to contend for the NEC crown, the wide-open nature of the league combined with their early start means that we shouldn't rule this team out just yet. - Also, keep an eye on Maryland- Baltimore County. The Retrievers have gotten off to a good start this season, possessing a record of 7-2 heading into their game at Central Connecticut State tomorrow night. UMBC holds wins over the likes of Richmond, George Washington and Morgan State, and while that may not be an impressive list, keep in mind that they won twelve games all of last season. Four Retrievers average at least fourteen points per game, led by guard Brian Hodges (18.8 ppg). Also, it doesn’t hurt to shoot 44.4% as a team from behind the arc. It’ll be interesting to see if they average of 79.7 points per game holds up in America East play as well.