|
Beginning Monday, June 21st,
2004 CHN began unveiling 144 Team previews in 144 Days. CHN ranked the
nations top 144 teams, and is unveiling one per day leading up until the
opening day of the 2004-05 Season.
Bookmark the
144 Teams in 144 Days home page, and check back
each day to see which team is previewed next.
#29 Boston College Eagles
Big East
2003-04: 24-10, 10-6, 5th
2003-04 postseason: NCAA Second
Round
By
Joel Welser
Boston College will be a dangerous
team for a while. Head coach Al Skinner signed an extension through the
2009-2010 season, only one senior is not returning for this season and only
two seniors are on the roster this year. But the Eagles are leaving for the
ACC for the 2005-2006 season and many aren’t happy that one of the original
members of the Big East is splitting. That might give some teams an edge
and the hunger to knock off the Eagles while they still have a chance. That
won’t be easy for any team in the conference though with junior Craig Smith
(16.9 ppg, 8.3 rpg) ready to dominate once again.
Who’s Out: Uka Agbai was
Craig Smith’s frontcourt partner. Agbai scored 10.6 points and grabbed 5.0
rebounds per outing. The 6-8 forward is the big loss for the Eagles this
year. Senior center Nate Doornekamp is likely to see a vast increase in
minutes to replace the departing Agbai. Sparingly used Devon Evertsen,
Tavio Hobson and Johnnie Jackson will not be playing basketball in Chesnut
Hill this season.
Who’s In: Sean Williams
should see some minutes and may even get a chance to start under the basket
if Doornekamp doesn’t work out alongside Smith. Williams averaged 16.0
points, 10.1 rebounds and 5.6 blocks per game as a senior at Mansfield High
School. At 6-10 and 235 pounds, he is a strong body that can battle under
the basket. Even if Williams isn’t starting this year, they’ll need him to
come off the bench quite a bit. Akida McLain will provide some more depth
at that spot. He’s long, but lean and won’t be able to battle under the
basket like Williams, but McLain is a solid shot blocker who should get a
chance to see some minutes this year. Small forward Gordon Watt should help
out the depth for the two guard and small forward positions. Forward John
Oates was a late pickup for Coach Skinner and should help out with the
frontcourt depth. Oates averaged 12.5 points, 13.7 rebounds and 3.3 blocked
shots as a senior in high school last year.
Who to Watch: The
frontcourt will be fine, even having to replace Agbai. The backcourt
doesn’t have many question marks either with Louis Hinnant and Steve Hailey
running the point and Sean Marshall at the two guard. Small forward Jared
Dudley was the surprise of last years recruiting class. As a freshman he
scored 11.9 points, grabbed 6.6 boards, dished out 2.8 assists and had 1.3
steals per outing, which at least tied for second on the team in each of
those categories. The 6-7 small forward can play with his back to the
basket or step out for the jumper. On occasion, Dudley will float around
the perimeter and put up a three-pointer. He made 18 of 57 attempts from
behind the arc last year, but just the fact that he can go out there causes
trouble for the opposing defense. Dudley is a tough player and will earn a
lot of trips to the charity stripe, where he shot over 72% last year. If he
can avoid a sophomore slump, Dudley won’t be an unknown in the college
basketball world by the end of the year.
Projected Conference Rank:
Boston College will be in the upper half of the Big East. A 5th
place finish again doesn’t give respect to how dangerous this team can be,
but competing against the likes of UConn, Syracuse and Pitt; 5th
place is still a great year in the Big East.
Projected Post-season
Tournament: NCAA
«
Team #30 ,
Team #28
»
Email Joel Welser:
jwelser_chn@ameritech.net
Chat About CHN's Top #144
Ranking:
http://pub14.ezboard.com/fcollegehoopsnetfrm8
Return to the
144 Teams in 144 Days home page
|
