Live Blog: Boston University vs. University of New Hampshire

Here are the starting lineups for today's 1:00 p.m. game at Lundholm Gymnasium between the Boston University Terriers (13-9, 8-2) and the University of New Hampshire Wildcats (9-12, 4-5). The Terriers enter the game winners of their last seven, while UNH has won two out of its last three. BU won the first meeting between the two squads at Case Gymnasium on Jan. 11, 68-37.

Boston University Terriers
02 F Matt Wolff
13 G Corey Lowe
21 F Jake O'Brien
23 F John Holland
31 F Scott Brittain

University of New Hampshire Wildcats
04 G Tyrece Gibbs
21 G Tyrone Conley
25 G Alvin Abreu
32 F Radar Onguetou
01 C Dane DiLiegro

Final score: Boston University 67, University of New Hampshire 49

Leading scorers:
BU -- Corey Lowe, 19
UNH -- Tyrece Gibbs, 20

Leading rebounders:
BU -- John Holland, 12
UNH -- Radar Onguetou, 9

Leading assists:
BU -- Matt Wolff, 4
UNH -- Alvin Abreu, 5

GAMEDAY: Boston University vs. University of New Hampshire

One more win. One more win and the Terriers will tie their longest winning streak (of eight) since they reeled off a program-high 12 wins in the 2003-04 season. One more win and BU will be done with its two toughest stretches of the schedule (save the America East Tournament) where they played four games in nine days followed by four-in-eight.

And while Saturday's game against the University of New Hampshire is by no means the penultimate contest of the schedule for the Terriers (though their contest Wednesday against the University of Vermont at Patrick Gymnasium just might be) it has the potential to mark what will be the end of a remarkable run by a depleted Terrier squad. Not only have the Terriers endured the loss of two key players and logged an almost unhealthy amount of minutes, but they've found a way to win in a variety of ways during the entire stretch.

UNH coach Bill Herrion, who recently received a five-year contract extension, said he was admittedly worried about BU coming to Lundholm Gymnasium, especially given their 7-4 road record and only one conference loss away from Boston (62-61 against Albany). In fact, the Terriers have demolished America East opponents in their house of late, especially on BU's recent three-game road swing that kicked off with a 18-point come from behind win over Maine and concluded with an impressive win at the RAC against UMBC.

The last time the Terriers and Wildcats met, BU dominated the game wire-to-wire, forcing UNH to shoot a paltry 24.1 percent from the field and 2-of-33 from beyond the arc. There's rarely any chance of BU forcing the Wildcats into such a poor shooting afternoon once again, so BU's offense will have to continue putting up points at the rate it has since it entered conference play. The Terriers are averaging 74.9 points per game. Interestingly enough, UNH's defense has been the best in the conference, allowing 63.6 points per game. Given the short rest (one day) and early travel, it will be interesting to see how the Terriers react on the the road against the Wildcats. There's no doubt Corey Lowe and John Holland will need to continue their absurd pace of dominant play, but if every player for the Terriers shows up, the game could get out of hand. Also, it's unknown whether Marques Johnson will be ready to go given he injured his knee in practice Wednesday. As soon as we find anything out, we'll let you know.

Bottom line: At the end of this game, the Terriers could be in prime position for a showdown that has the potential to decide the conference on Wednesday afternoon against Vermont, as BU is in sole possession of first place and controls its own destiny with seven games remaining -- a situation that even the Terriers' veteran group of players has never found themselves in.

Projected starting lineups:

A Century of Tradition: Reversing the Agganis Curse

The important question, of course, is whether the curse even exists or not, which is debatable. So consider this to be A Century of Tradition: Fox News Edition. We'll report, you'll decide -- this time, without accusations of bias!

Last night's victory against the University at Albany was a rare occurrence for the Terriers -- a win in Agganis Arena. Those wins don't come very often. BU has played 17 games at Agganis when you include the 2007 America East Tournament; that's a small enough number that we can list all of them:

BU 61, Vermont 55 (02/12/2005)
Northeastern 63, BU 48 (02/20/2005)
Michigan 51, BU 46 (11/22/2005)
Rhode Island 48, BU 38 (11/29/2005)
BU 43, Vermont 41 (01/22/2006)
Maine 53, BU 51 (01/29/2006)
George Wash. 70, BU 57 (11/10/2006)
UMass 56, BU 54 (12/06/2006)
BU 62, Binghamton 58 (03/03/2007)*
Albany 59, BU 49 (03/04/2007)*
Saint Joseph's 57, BU 48 (11/17/2007)
Vermont 70, BU 57 (01/25/2008)
G. Wash. 63, BU 58 (OT) (11/14/2008)
Marshall 84, BU 80 (12/06/2008)
Holy Cross 68, BU 49 (01/02/2009)
Vermont 70, BU 56 (01/14/2009)
BU 77, Albany 67 (02/05/2009)
*Denotes America East Tournament

The Terriers' record in those 17 contests is 4-13, but separating the games by opponent is revealing. BU sports an 0-8 record against non-conference foes at The Greek and a 4-5 record in America East play (3-4 in the regular season, 1-1 in the 2007 America East Tournament). Considering that the majority of the conference games at Agganis have been against teams in the conference's upper tier, specifically Vermont and Albany, a 4-5 record is respectable if somewhat less than outstanding. If there's a Curse of Harry Agganis to be found, the second half of the season is where to look.

No, the meat of a pro-curse argument is found in the non-conference schedule. Is BU's record a product of a curse or tough scheduling? Here are BU's opponents' resumés in the years they visited Agganis (listed as: overall record (conference record and finish), conference postseason, other postseason):

2005-06 Michigan: 22-11 (8-8 Big Ten, 7th of 11), lost in opening round, lost in NIT championship game
2005-06 Rhode Island: 14-14 (8-8 A10, 8th of 14), lost in opening round.
2006-07 George Washington: 23-9 (11-5 A10, 3rd of 14), won tournament, lost in NCAA Round of 64
2006-07 UMass: 24-9 (13-3 A10, 2nd of 14), lost in Atlantic 10 quarterfinals and NIT Round of 16
2007-08 Saint Joseph's: 18-11 (9-7 A10, 5th of 14), lost in Atlantic 10 finals and NCAA Round of 64
2008-09 George Washington: currently 6-13 (0-7 A10, 14th of 14)
2008-09 Marshall: currently 9-13 (2-6 CUSA, 11th of 12)
2008-09 Holy Cross: currently 11-11 (6-1 Patriot, T-1st of 8)

BU has not played in a postseason tournament since the 2004-05 season, when the Terriers went to the NIT, so none of the four tournament teams on this list are ones BU should be expected to beat. There is also evidence that the Terriers are playing their more difficult conference games at Agganis. However, all of this season's Agganis games were winnable ones, and UMass escaped defeat at the Greek by the narrowest of margins two years ago. Surely zero wins in eight tries is below expectations.

If BU is affected by their second home venue, there's most likely evidence in the box scores beyond wins and losses. But what precisely? That's another topic for another day.

The Day After: (BU 77, Albany 67)

Not one, but two impressive streaks were impacted by BU's win over the University of Albany on Thursday night at Agganis Arena. The first? The Terriers finally won a regular season game at Agganis after having lost their previous nine contests. The second? BU continued its string of impressive play, running its winning streak to seven games with a 10-point victory over a team that beat the Terriers at the start of conference play.

Corey Lowe and John Holland were once again brilliant as the pair combined for 52 points to counteract Will Harris' 28 points on 12-of-27 shooting. Harris' 27 field goal attempts were the most by any America East player this season and a Division-I record for any UAlbany player.

Not much else needs to be said that hasn't been linked in the press below. The Terriers will have one day of rest before ending their second (and final) physically-demanding stretch of the season Saturday against UNH.

Pros:
-- Winning at Agganis: 'Nuff said.
-- Lowe/Holland again: Fifty-two points between the duo carried the Terriers on Thursday and while BU has been receiving complete team efforts on a nightly basis during the winning streak, it'll be very hard for the Terriers to win if the pair isn't on top of their respective games.

Cons:
-- Rebounding margin: The Terriers are last in the conference in defensive rebounding, which basically means that even if they hold opponents to a low shooting percentage, it still might not be enough to win the game if teams are getting second and third looks from short range.
-- Holland's second half: Albany's triangle-and-two sufficiently shut down Holland and he seemed frustrated even in the press conference after a win. If other teams learn how to replicate the same guard of Holland, it could throw a kink into BU's newly incredibly efficient offense.

Links:
Vanquishing the ghosts
BU finally breaks the Agganis curse
Returned player lays UAlbany low
UAlbany-Boston U. postgame thoughts

Post-game Audio & Photos (BU 77, Albany 67)

Below is audio from Thursday night's press conferences in BU's 77-67 victory over the University at Albany.

BU coach Dennis Wolff's opening statement


UA coach Will Brown's opening statement


Wolff talks about BU's play since the injuries


Corey Lowe thinks the Terriers can look past fatigue


Lowe and Wolff discuss the current winning streak


Wolff reflects on the amount of attention paid to Agganis Arena


Brown felt his team shut down Holland very well in the second half


UA's Will Harris can't explain why Albany got off to a slow start

Live Blog: University at Albany vs. Boston University

Tonight's game between the University at Albany Great Danes (13-8, 5-3) and the Boston University Terriers (12-9, 7-2) tips off at 7:00 p.m. from Agganis Arena.

Here are the starting lineups for tonight's game:

University at Albany Great Danes:
11 G Anthony Raffa
23 G Tim Ambrose
03 F Will Harris
33 F Brian Connelly
54 C Brett Gifford

Boston University Terriers:
02 F Matt Wolff
13 G Corey Lowe
21 F Jake O'Brien
23 F John Holland
31 F Scott Brittain

Final Score: Boston University 77, University at Albany 67

Leading scorers:
UA -- Will Harris, 28
BU -- Corey Lowe, 27

Leading rebounders:
UA -- Brian Connelly, 12
BU -- Corey Lowe, 7

Leading assists:
UA -- Two tied at 3
BU -- Corey Lowe, 7

GAMEDAY: University at Albany vs. Boston University

As grueling as the last two weeks have been for the Boston University men's basketball team, that's how relaxing things have been on the campus of the University at Albany. Tonight, however, a matchup between the Terriers and Great Danes will kick-off an equally trying stretch for Albany, which will face the top three teams in the conference in a span of five days. BU is the first, Vermont the second and Binghamton the third. The Terriers, meanwhile, will play the third game in a stretch of four-in-eight days which will come to an end Saturday against the University of New Hampshire.

Tonight's game at Agganis Arena symbolizes much more than a highlighted spot among personal schedules, however. The matchup could solidify the Terriers (if they haven't been already) as one of the clear-cut top teams in the conference with a victory over an Albany team that defeated them 62-61 at SEFCU Arena on January 8th. That game was the first the Terriers played without the services of Tyler Morris and Carlos Strong and it was also played without Corey Lowe, who was serving a one-game suspension.

The Terriers won't have Morris and Strong on Thursday, but they will have Lowe (17.1 points per game), who's become one of the best point guards in the league since being pushed into the role after Morris got injured. Aside from his scoring numbers (which have been consistently good throughout his career) Lowe is playing the most balanced basketball of his life, and BU coach Dennis Wolff attested to that fact. Since moving to the point, his assists have skyrocketed (40 over his last six games), his turnovers have diminished and his appearance of poise on the court has been a steadying presence for a team that's on a conference-best six-game winning streak.

Lowe's had help, however, as every player has defined their role and latched onto it, especially Holland, who's in serious contention for Player of the Year honors (18.1 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 1.9 spg). Perhaps more than anything, the biggest sign of improvement is the way the Terriers have won on the road during conference play. BU is 4-1 against America East opponents away from home, outscoring them 369-300. Tonight's game, however, isn't on the road -- it's at Agganis Arena -- a building where BU has lost its last nine regular-season games and lost by 10 to the Great Danes when BU hosted the America East tournament two seasons ago. While the Terriers have dispelled any shooting woes that may impact the team at Agganis (thanks in large part to Lowe's 36-point performance against Marshall) BU still hasn't found a way to win in the dead-atmosphere arena. Doing so tonight would go a long way to proving the Terriers are for real, especially against a physical team such as Albany.

The Danes rank 20th and 12th in the nation respectively in rebounding offense and defense and that's by far their biggest advantage over the Terriers, who are not a particularly strong rebounding team. The battle should be fairly defensive, despite the fact that BU's averaging over 70 points per game thanks to a torrid scoring pace in conference play.

One X-factor could be whether or not UA's starting point guard, Anthony Raffa, is healthy enough to play. As reported in the Albany Times Union, Raffa has turf toe in his left foot (which he suffered in their most recent win over Hartford on January 28) and he "hasn't done anything" since, according to UA coach Will Brown. Raffa reportedly received a special orthotic today and would attempt to practice. If Raffa's unavailable, Mike Johnson will start in his place.

Links:
M. Bball takes on Albany
UAlbany ready to play again, with or without Raffa
3-Part test for Great Danes

Projected starting lineups:

The Day After: (BU 82, UMBC 65)

Pros:
-- Jake O'Brien's career high: O'Brien notched 25 points on 9-of-19 shooting after setting a career-high of 24 two games prior. The emergence of O'Brien as a top and go-to scorer (especially in clutch situations, even when he may be having a bad shooting night) is vital to BU's continued success.
-- Scott Brittain's free throws: Brittain went 10-of-10 from the line after BU coach Dennis Wolff got on him for missing too many in practice. As Brittain continues to get fed in the post and draw fouls, his ability to make the freebies could set him apart.
-- Road blowout: BU continues to demolish conference opponents on the road with another double-digit conference win away from Boston.

Cons:
-- Getting behind big early: It may not seem like an issue anymore, as the Terriers have become awfully good at coming from behind, but still, BU would ideally not like to be trailing to start a game.

Links:
Youth Movement
O'Brien on a Terrier tear

Stat of the Week

23 and 20

As January came to a close, Marqus Blakely decided to remind the rest of the conference why he is the reigning America East Player of the Year. Maine was the unfortunate team stuck in his way. Blakely went over, around, and through the Black Bears en route to collecting 23 points and 20 rebounds in a 75-65 Catamount victory. Only six other players have managed to grab 20 of each in a game this season; the list reads like a who's who of dominant post players. Hey, Blake Griffin, DeJuan Blair, could you move over and make some room? Mr. Blakely's looking for a seat.

As for Maine's rebounding efforts, well, we've seen this before. About a month earlier, in fact. In the Black Bears' 56-43 loss to Canisius, the Golden Griffins' Chris Gadley pulled down 25 rebounds. No other player has managed to collect 25 rebounds in a game this year; in fact, the feat hadn't been accomplished since February of 2007.

The Day After: (BU 72, Hartford 47)

Pros:
-- Closing out the game: In the past, BU has been hampered by its inability to finish games and become lackadaisical after going up big, but a key 3-pointer by Marques Johnson followed by a trey from Corey Lowe helped prevent that.
-- Bounce-back ability from a bad practice: The Terriers had a poor practice two days before the game, but were able to regroup and dismantle a Hartford squad that beat them in last years' America East Tournament.
-- Scott Brittain's blocks: Brittain had five blocks as he continues to swat more shots as conference play progresses.

Cons:
-- Even rebounding margin: There's really not much else at all to find negative about the way the Terriers won this game, but something's got to go in the "con's" spot. No?

Links:
Terriers crush Hartford