Northeastern

Turnarounds: 31 Teams to Watch For: Part Two

Raphielle Johnson — Wed, 14 May 2008 10:56:40 -0700

With the off-season now upon us and the spring signing period well under way, this is a good opportunity to attempt to forecast some of the teams who could make the jump next season. Is there a team out there like this past season’s Drake Bulldogs, who went from ninth place to a dominating run through the Missouri Valley? Or how about Arizona State, a team that went from dead last in the Pac-10 to fifth place and could have the makings of a conference title run this season? With one pick for each conference, here are 31 teams you should keep an eye on next season. (Return to Part One.)

Big 12: Oklahoma State

2007-08 Record: 17-16 (7-9)

The Cowboys made some news during the Final Four, even though they weren’t playing in the event. Their desire for alum Bill Self to come back to Stillwater wasn’t hidden, but in the end the national champion coach decided that it was in his best interest to remain in Lawrence. Enter Travis Ford, who led UMass to back-to-back twenty win seasons and a spot in this season’s Postseason NIT title game. While there will be an adjustment period in the early going, the cupboard certainly isn’t bare with key contributors such as James Anderson, Byron Eaton and Obi Muonelo all coming back next season. This is a team that should make a run at an NCAA Tournament berth.

Big West: Pacific

2007-08 Record: 21-10 (11-5)

Not going out on a limb here with this pick, but I really like Bob Thomason’s Tigers to get back to the top of the Big West standings with seven seniors on the roster. No key contributors from 2007-08 were lost, which could make Pacific a popular choice in some circles to make some serious noise come March. Three players averaged double figures in scoring led by First Team All-Big West selection Steffan Johnson. Rising sophomore Terrell Smith was named to the conference’s All-Freshman Team, and Anthony Brown and Chad Troyer were both honorable mention All-Big West selections. All this coming back to Stockton makes the Tigers the early favorite to win the Big West…and maybe send some unsuspecting foe home come NCAA Tournament time.

Colonial: Northeastern

2007-08 Record: 14-17 (9-9)

Bill Coen didn’t have a lot of experience to work with last season, having just one senior (forward Mark Washington) on the roster. Matt Janning, a second-team all-conference selection, will lead a cast that will have another season of experience under their belts. Guard Chaisson Allen was named to the CAA’s All-Rookie Team, having led all conference newcomers in assists and steals. This is one of those teams that while everyone may predict them to be “one year away” from a title, they’ve got just enough to let everyone know that next year is now.

Conference USA: SMU

2007-08 Record: 10-20 (4-12)

A move up the ladder in Conference USA won’t be easy for Matt Doherty and his young program, as C-USA stands to be even better as a whole in 2008-09. But the commitment from the athletics department is certainly there, something that couldn’t always be said in years past. But the young talent is definitely taking notice of the changes, with Coach Doherty inking top guard prospect Paul McCoy just last week. The Mustangs will have to replace two of their top three scorers from last season in Jon Killen and Derrick Roberts, but big men Bamba Fall and Papa Dia will both be back next season. If some of the returnees can step into the holes left by the loss of Killen and Roberts, they’ve got a shot at moving into the middle of the Conference USA pack.

Horizon: Wisconsin-Green Bay

2007-08 Record: 15-15 (9-9)

With their top five scorers all slated to return (there was only one senior on the roster in 2007-08), the Phoenix could end up being one of the chief challengers to Butler in the Horizon League. Mike Schnachter led the team in scoring last season, and received help from the likes of Ryan Tillema and Rahmon Fletcher. Fletcher did a good job of running the point, and should only get better with a full season under his belt. Caught in a logjam in the middle of the Horizon standings last season, look for UWGB to make that move up in 2008-09.

Ivy: Harvard

2007-08 Record: 8-22 (3-11)

Tommy Amaker’s first season at Harvard was highlighted by their home win over his former employer Michigan. Unfortunately for the Crimson, they received more attention for an article on their recruiting in the New York Times than they did their play in within the league. But with a lot of Ancient Eight rivals (Cornell pretty much has everyone back) losing key contributors to graduation, maybe they can move up a couple of slots. Jeremy Lin, a second-team all-conference selection, will lead the charge in 2008-09, and he’ll be helped out by the likes of Pat Magnarelli, Evan Harris and Drew Housman. By no means is this a prediction that the Crimson will compete for the Ivy’s automatic bid (I think Cornell’s a safe bet on that), but they should be drastically improved.

MAAC: Manhattan

2007-08 Record: 12-19 (5-13)

I’m going with the Jaspers slightly ahead of Iona here, but I really like both to make move in the MAAC. Given the growth experienced in the MAAC Tournament by Barry Rohrssen’s club (a stronger commitment to defense and Devon Austin became more assertive as a team leader), and the fact that they return every key returnee leads me to believe that they can challenge for a spot in that 2-5 area of the standings. Antoine Pearson is one of the conference’s best point guards, and rising sophomores Chris Smith and Rashad Green should be ready to take the next step in their development. All that separates them from where they are and where they want to be is the consistency on the defensive end of the floor. And when that comes, look out.

MAC: Bowling Green

2007-08 Record: 13-17 (7-9 East Division)

While the change to Louis Orr didn’t mean an increase in overall wins (they won thirteen games in 2006-07 as well), it did mean four more league victories to get to 7-9. And while they’ll have to replace three of their top five scorers, led by Nate Miller, they should be improved with another year of seasoning under their belts. Chris Knight, who led the team in rebounding and was second in scoring, will be back next season along with guard Joe Jankubowski. Not too sure if the improvement will mean a jump in the MAC East standings, but the Falcons will be a better team next season.

Part One: ACC, Big East, Big Ten etc

Part Three tomorrow: MVC, MWC, Pac-10, etc

Northeast non-TV Bracket Busters preview

Raphielle Johnson — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 11:23:55 -0800

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.

Three Stars of the Day: November 16th

Shawn Siegel — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 06:08:23 -0800

Three Stars of The Day

Presenting a new daily feature on Collegehoops.net, the Three Stars of the day. We handpick the best performances of the day, whether it be stat lines that make you drool, or clutch performances. Either way, its our way of showing the love:

J.J. Hickson - North Carolina State

Continuing with the theme of freshman domination, the NC State forward opened his career with 31 points on impeccable 12 of 12 shooting.

James Gist - Maryland

The Terps needed all 27 of Gist's carreer-best total, as they barely escaped with an overtime win over Northeastern.

Matt Janning - Northeastern

Last year's CAA rookie of the year scored 26 points as the Huskies came oh so close to knocking of Maryland in College Park.

Other Top Performers

Jamont Gordon - Mississippi State - 23 points and 12 boards are star worthy, but 6 turnovers and a home loss to Clemson relegate him to "other performances"

Stanley Robinson - UCONN - After underachieving his freshman year, the sophomore finally is showing signs of life with back-to-back double-doubles after putting up 14 and 10 vs Gardner-Webb

Sam Young - Pittsburgh - Young has been feasting on weak non-conference competition at home, putting up 17 and 12 boards last night, and averaging 19 and 10 after 4 games.

Previous Top Stars

November 16th - Jon Brockman, F, Washington

2007-08 Preview & Awards | Interviews | Discuss the Preview

NBA Walk Ons

Jeff Fox — Wed, 18 Oct 2006 11:18:37 -0700

For most college students, the period directly after leaving school and entering the “real world” is an uncertain time. Now that you are not a student anymore its time to make important decisions on what you are going to do with the rest of your life. The outlook of a college basketball player is no different at this point in their lives – except the important decisions on their future often aren’t in their hands.

The top players, like the top students, have it easy. Great jobs and money are waiting for them. First round NBA picks are living it large with multi-year million dollar guaranteed contracts and usually big time sponsorship dollars. Second round picks are on a little less stable ground – at least a team likes them enough to pick them, but usually a spot on a NBA roster isn’t guaranteed. For the undrafted player it is do-or-die, sink-or-swim time. There are no sponsors lining up to fill their pockets and often no teams lining up with guaranteed money and training camp invites. This would lead one to believe that any undrafted player who does crack an NBA roster is doomed to a short career as the last man on the bench. Well au contraire mon frere, you’re dead wrong.

Last season in the NBA approximately 20% of the league’s players, 88 in total, were undrafted players. Now many of these only played a handful of games and enjoyed a miniscule amount of court time. However, there are quite a few who have enjoyed long and lucrative careers. A team consisting of Ben Wallace, Brad Miller, Bruce Bowen, Raja Bell and Mike James starting, with Udonis Haslem, Troy Hudson and Earl Boykins coming off the bench wouldn’t be too shabby. And yes, all these guys were undrafted coming out of college and had to scratch and claw their way onto an NBA roster.

While it is too early to tell if there are any players of this caliber amongst this year’s rookie free agents, there are quite a few guys who look to have a good shot at cracking a roster. Here are the leading suspects:

The Sure Shot

Pops Mensah-Bonsu - Dallas (George Washington ‘06)

Despite going undrafted in June, Pops is sitting pretty after signing a one year contract with the Mavericks, with a team option for a second year. He will make NBA chump change – about $400 000 a year according to Hoopshype.com. Pops showed enough promise playing in two NBA summer leagues with Dallas – averaging about 8 points, 5 boards and a block – for the Mavericks to lock him up. So far in the preseason he is averaging about 11 minutes per, putting up 3 points and 3 boards a game. With some guy named Dirk and veteran Austin Croshere ahead of him at the power forward spot, Mensah-Bonsu probably won’t see much NBA court time this year.

The Contenders

Allan Ray - Boston (Villanova ’06)

The Celtics already have a full roster of 15 players, so for Ray to crack the opening day roster Boston would have to buy out a contract. Draftexpress.com reports the C’s have given Ray a partially guaranteed contract – with $100 000 the amount guaranteed – so the team seems to be taking him seriously. Boston have also played three small guards on the court at the same time in the preseason, similar to what Ray’s Wildcats did last season, with Ray sharing the court with Sebastian Telfair and Rajon Rondo. Ray is putting up 6 points and getting 13 minutes per game in the preseason thus far.

Jose Juan Barea - Dallas (Northeastern ’06)

Barea is another free agent that Draftexpress reports has a partially guaranteed contract (he gets 25 Gs guaranteed). Barea is one of 4 guys battling for the Mavs’ last roster spot, going up against CHN Draft Diary writer Darius Washington among others. So far Barea has been the most impressive of the four – 25 minutes, 9 points, 5 assists and 3 rebounds per game.

Ivan McFarlin –Philadelphia (Oklahoma State ’05)

The Sixers only have 12 players signed this season and 16 players in camp total, so the team would only have to cut 1 player to get to the limit of 15 if they choose. McFarlin, who averaged 16.4ppg and 9.9rpg in France’s second division last year, is averaging about 3 points and 5 boards in his 12 minutes per game in the preseason.

Chris Quinn - Miami (Notre Dame ’06)

Quinn is making a strong push to stick with the Heat as a back up point guard, getting about 20 minutes of court time per game and averaging 4 points, 3 assists and 2.5 boards. Draftexpress says the team owes him at least 75 grand whether he makes the cut or not.

Louis Amundson – Sacramento (UNLV ’06)

Amundson already has some heavy hitters in his corner – coach Eric Musselman and Ron Artest have praised his play. Amundson is battling with another undrafted free agent – Wyoming’s Justin Williams.

Roger Powell (Illinois) - Utah (Illinois ’05)

Powell is another player guaranteed a little money ($125 000 by Draftexpress’ figures). After playing extremely well last year in the CBA and for the Jazz in this year’s summer league, Powell might have a better shot at making the squad than his drafted former college mate Dee Brown. Powell is averaging more minutes (13.5 to 7.5) and points (5.5 to 4.0) per game in the preseason than Brown.

Mike Hall – Washington (George Washington ’06)

Washington is the camp to be in if you are looking to work your way onto a NBA roster with the Wizards having lots of open roster spots. Hall impressed the coaching staff in training camp and is averaging about 16 minutes and 3 points per game in the preseason.