Know Thy Foe: No. 5 New Hampshire Wildcats

By Shep Hayes/DFP Staff

Welcome to Know Thy Foe, a new feature appearing twice daily this week in advance of the America East men’s basketball tournament. Know The Foe will help you, an undereducated fan of America East basketball, become an expert on every team in the conference. It's also possible you'll know less than when you began reading this. A 50-50 proposition, to be honest. 

What is the name of this school? It’s really nice and simple: the University of New Hampshire. So basic and classy, and I cannot think of any technicalities that would make it confusing or interesting at all. I kind of like it because of this. 

When was it founded? 1866, making it moderately old. It is a land-, sea- and space-grant school. I did not know the third option existed. Does this mean they have rights to build a space station? Will they soon be opening a campus on the moon? Is there an asteroid named after UNH? THE POSSIBILITIES ARE LIMITLESS, as long as the universe is expanding. 


Where is it located? Durham, New Hampshire, a town that always looks nice when I ride the train through it. There are some brick buildings, some trees, some hills and it always looks so collegiate through the long Amtrak windows. So much better than Exeter or Dover, the two other stops for the Amtrak Downeaster in New Hampshire.

How big is the campus? 2,600 rural acres. If you’re worried about not being able to connect to the Internet while on UNH’s campus, here’s a map showing their wireless access points. If you would like to know where you can go on campus to be active, try this map. And if you’ve ever wanted to see UNH on Google Earth instead of, you know, actually visiting, follow this link. Never believe rural means technologically inept. 

How many people attend UNH? The total enrollment is 14,596. Here are some fast facts, just so you can know a little more about UNH. 11,942 of those are undergrads. 55 percent are female and 45 percent are male. 20 percent are in the top tenth of their high school graduating class. The median SAT score is 1100. They have a comma in that number on their website. I’m not entirely sure why. 

Who or what is their mascot? UNH has not one, but two costumed mascots and they both look almost exactly the same. Both Wild E. Cat and Gnarlz are Wildcats, and both were introduced by the University in the 2000s. Wild E. Cat is the lighter mascot, designed for children and people who like bland things. Gnarlz is the more adventurous one, aimed at the student body because if there is anything that gets college kids going, it’s a furry, cartoonish Wildcat. 

UNH also once had a live mascot, which is always the coolest. It’s a shame they no longer have one. 

Who is their coach?  Bill Herrion is in his seventh season as the Wildcats' coach. His bio on UNH’s website says he is one of the most successful coaches in America East history, which is a pretty big claim to make. His son Ryan plays on the team, but has only been in for 30 minutes this year and scored only four points. I feel like that would be the worst. Your dad is the coach and he doesn’t play you? I would hate that. I feel kind of sorry for the kid.

Where do they play? Lundholm Gymnasium, which seats 3,000. It is the 303rd largest gym in Division-I according to KenPom. I saw it on TV this Sunday, when UNH played Binghamton, and it looks a lot like Case Gym. A small place that could easily do double duty as a large high school gym. I’m honestly surprised it seats almost a third more than The Roof. New Hampshire does have these weird marks in the corners of the court, and I’m not sure what they were all about. One looked like a shamrock. An explanation would be nice. 

Who are their basic statistical leaders? Senior guard Alvin Abreu (13.8 points per game, 1.0 steals per game), senior forward Brian Benson (8.4 rebounds per game, 0.9 blocks per game), junior guard Chandler Rhoads  (2.8 points per game)

Does this team have any notable wins? Vs. Vermont, 72-65;

Does this team have any notable loses? At Boston College, 67-64; vs. Loyola (Md.), 66-60

How did they do against BU? The Terriers got revenge for their loss last year in Durham, winning 52-50. But the Wildcats bit back at Case Gymnasium, upsetting the Terriers 56-54. 

Do they have a token non-Division-I opponent? Why yes, they do. Will Suffolk University please stand up and accept its check for an 85-64 loss to UNH? Thank you for starting the Wildcats off with a victory, the only time their record was above .500 this year. Maybe next time you'll win, Rams. Maybe next time.

Do you have some statistic from KenPom presented without any context whatsoever? 28.5 defensive 3-point percentage 

What about a random factoid from the game notes? There is a section on how many rebounds senior center Brian Benson has in his career entitled Windex. I’m certain S.C. Johnson has no problems with that at all. 

Know Thy Foe: No. 4 Albany Great Danes

By Shep Hayes/DFP Staff

Welcome to Know Thy Foe, a new feature appearing twice daily this week in advance of the America East men’s basketball tournament. Know The Foe will help you, an undereducated fan of America East basketball, become an expert on every team in the conference. It's also possible you'll know less than when you began reading this. A 50-50 proposition, to be honest. 

What is the name of this school? University at Albany is the name listed on the top of its website, and I’m not about to suggest that is wrong. University at Albany seems to be shorthand for State University of New York at Albany, but the SUNY title is listed under University at Albany title on the website. This is all very confusing and it would be much easier if they simply changed the name to Albany University or the University of Albany. Is that too much to ask for? As the esteemed Chris Berman and Company say on far too many Monday nights throughout the fall, “C’mon, man.”

I can't believe I just wrote that ending.

Where is it located? Albany, the state capital of New York. There are technically five campuses, one of which is located across the Hudson River, but the majority of the school is in Albany. And really, the other campuses are down the street or across the highway from the main campus. 

How old is it? The University was founded in 1844, so that means it will celebrate its 168th birthday this year. It was originally called the “Normal School” and was a teaching school. More on the fascinating history of the school can be found on its brief History & Traditions page, where every fact for this section was found.

How many people go there? 12,959 undergrads and 4,656 graduate students. The Fast Facts page on their website also lists “155,000-plus living alumni.” Sadly, it does not list how many dead alumni there are, which is the number everyone really wants to know. 

How big is the campus? 586 acres is what U.S. News & Report says, and it’s probably best to side with them. You can find maps of the whole place here, with the main campus broken down into eight individual maps. I can almost guarantee you will never get lost at Albany with these maps. 

Who or what is their mascot? Albany has some sort of passion for Great Danes. I don’t know why they are the Great Danes, but it’s original enough. The best thing about the Great Danes is it allows them to name their student section  the DANEger Zone, which in turn allows me to post Kenny Loggins’ “Highway to the Danger Zone.” They should name a road to Albany after the song. 

Who is their coach?  Will Brown, who has held the post since 2001. According to his official university biography, he’s the longest tenured coach in America East, which I’m not really sure is a good thing or a bad thing. He also recently received an extension.  He also has his own website, CoachWillBrown.com, where you can get updates from him  and a look into his coaching philosophy. There’s no coachspeak on there, I swear.

Where do they play? The Great Danes play at SEFCU Arena, which seats 4,538. According to KenPom, it’s the 244th largest gym in Division-I, which makes it sound really small. Judging by the few photos I have seen of the place, it seems like the seats behind the baskets are steep. Just a random observation, you know? 

UAlbany is also normally home to the New York Giants Training Camp, though the NFL lockout kept the Giants from having their normal camp in Albany this past summer. Don’t worry about any sad Great Danes, however, because the Giants plan to be back next year, Eli Manning, his one facial expression, and all.


How did they do this year? 18-13, 9-7 in the America East


What would be their rank in the tournament?  No. 4. Albany will play No. 5 New Hampshire on Saturday. 

Who would be their basic statistical leaders? Junior guard Gerardo Suero (21.7 points per game and 5.7 rebounds per game), junior guard Mike Black (4.2 assists per game), junior forward Blake Metcalf (0.7 blocks per game)

Do they have any notable wins? Vs. Navy, 69-62

Do they have any notable loses?  At Syracuse, 98-74; at Cornell, 85-82; vs. Vermont, 50-47.

How did they do against BU?  The Terriers easily won the first contest, 70-57, at Agganis Arena. In the second game, BU came back from a large first half deficit to win 81-78 at SEFCU. 

Did they play a token non-Division-I opponent?  Nope. Instead, Albany played the current No. 2 team in that nation, Syracuse, in its third game of the year. That is an effort to be rewarded. Nice work, Albany.

Do you have some statistic from KenPom presented without any context whatsoever? 75.0 free throw percentage 

What about a random factoid from the game notes? “UAlbany is one of nine schools out of 338 Division I men’s hoops programs without a senior on the roster” 

Know Thy Foe: No. 2 Vermont Catamounts

By Shep Hayes/DFP Staff

Welcome to Know Thy Foe, a new feature appearing twice daily this week in advance of the America East men’s basketball tournament. Know The Foe will help you, an undereducated fan of America East basketball, become an expert on every team in the conference. It's also possible you'll know less than when you began reading this. A 50-50 proposition, to be honest. 

What is the name of this school? The University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, though the University of Vermont works just as well.  Technically, it is the only state university in Vermont, but there are five other “state colleges” that receive public funding. When you compare this to the size of the SUNY system, you realize Vermont is a tiny state. 

Does it have some sort of geographically confusing acronym? Why, yes it does. The commonly used abbreviation for the University of Vermont is “UVM.” According to Wikipedia and the university website, UVM stands for Universitas Viridis Montis, which is Latin for University of the Green Mountains. However, UVM may have once led the author of this post to believe the school was in Montpelier, the capital of Vermont. It is not, something this author did not find out for a very long time. He also did not find out for a very long time how pretentious it is to refer to oneself in the third person.

Wait--that was confusing. Where is it located? Burlington. Do not doubt this, and always remember I have very little idea of what I’m talking about. The University of Vermont is located in Burlington, a nice city of approximately 40,000 people. Do you enjoy Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream? That all was started in a gas station in Burlington. Vermont is awesome.

When was it founded? 1791. Only Harvard, Yale, Dartmouth and Brown are older schools in New England. Those Vermonters, they figured out this higher education thing early. 

How many people go there? 13,488. The official website of the university offers this tidy breakdown, which we present here for your inspection. Always good to know Vermont does not have students from every state. 

Total enrollment: 13,488
Undergraduate students: 10,459
Graduate students: 1,540
Medical students: 449
Post-baccalaureate certificate students: 17
Non-degree (CE) students: 1,023

Undergraduates enrolled from 48 states

347 international students from approximately 50 countries

Not to harp on this whole geography thing because, frankly, you’re really not all that good at it, but how big is the campus? The University of Vermont is spread over 460 acres of land in, again, Burlington. We remind you, once again, that Burlington is a different place from Montpelier. There are six sections of the campus, with three additional complexes, a business park and a place. A handy map of the whole thing can be found here. 

Who or what is their mascot? Rally the Catamount. Rally is a popular--

HOLD UP! What’s a catamount? ARE THEY REAL? *Sigh* They always ask. I’ll turn to the official website of the  Vermont Athletic Department for an answer:

“On February 6, 1926, the UVM Cynic (the student newspaper) asked undergraduates whether they wanted a mascot and offered a ballot with lynx, wildcat, or other as options. They recevied [sic] a limited response. So, they tried again with a vote later in the year. Only male students were allowed to vote and the ballot this time included tomcat, camel, cow, or catamount. Catamount won by a vote of 138-126.Since that vote in 1926, the University of Vermont athletic teams have been nicknamed the Catamounts after a legendary mountain cat found in the state's Green Mountains. The species is believed to be extinct in the state since the mid-1800's.

Just one other Division I school shares the Catamount nickname - Western Carolina University, located in Cullowhee, North Carolina.”

Please tell me their coach is not a catamount. Why no, he is not. He’s John Becker, a perfectly normal human basketball coach in his first season at UVM. Before he became the head coach last May, he was an assistant under his predecessor, Mike Lonergan. According to his official biography, he was also once a color commentator for Division-III basketball, a job we can only assume requires a great deal of passion and dedication. I mean, would you ever be an analyst for small college basketball?

Where do they play? Patrick Gymnasium, where 3,266 fans can enjoy Catamount basketball. There are five different 360 degree views of Patrick Gym avalible on Vermont’s website, so even you can feel exactly what it is like to enjoy Vermont basketball. It is the 284th largest gym in Division-I, according to KenPom. 

Who would be their basic statistical leaders? Senior forward Matt Glass (11.9 points per game), sophomore forward Brian Voelkel (8.3 rebounds per game and 5.0 assists per game), sophomore forward Luke Apfeld  (0.4 blocks per game)

How did they do this year? 20-11, 13-3 in America East.

What is their rank in the conference tournament? No. 2. Vermont will play No. 7 Maine on Saturday at 6:05 p.m. in Hartford.

What are some of their notable wins? Vs. Stony Brook, 68-49;

What are some of their notable loses? Vs. Harvard, 55-48; vs. Quinnipiac, 62-58; vs. Northeastern, 53-51; at Binghamton, 57-53 (I have no idea how that happened either)

How did they do against BU? 2-0. Vermont opened BU’s conference schedule by handing them an 83-69 loss in Burlington. The Catamounts then beat the Terriers at Agganis, 68-67, almost a month later, holding off a late run from BU after Vermont had lead by double digits. 

Do they have a token non-Division-I opponent? No, the Catamounts did not use that trick this year to get a win. Their effort should be applauded. 

Do you have some statistic from KenPom presented without any context whatsoever? 35.2 offensive rebounding percentage 

What about a random factoid from the game notes? Freshman guard Four McGlynn’s real name is Patrick McGlynn IV. I understand how disappointed you are right now. I cried that much too when I found this out. Everything will be okay.

Know Thy Foe: No. 1 Stony Brook Seawolves

Shep Hayes/DFP Staff

Welcome to Know Thy Foe, a new feature appearing twice daily this week in advance of the America East men’s basketball tournament. Know The Foe will help you, an undereducated fan of America East basketball, become an expert on every team in the conference. It's also possible you'll know less than when you began reading this. A 50-50 proposition, to be honest. 

Could you please tell me a little about the full name of this school and the system it is a part of? Sure, straw man I’ve invented for this week-long exercise. The full name of the first school featured this week is Stony Brook University, though State University of New York at Stony Brook would also be considered acceptable. It is one of the four flagship schools of the SUNY system, a system which includes a school in every tiny hamlet in the state. No, really. It seems almost as big as the entire California state system, and there are far too many state schools in California. 

When was it founded? Stony Brook was founded in 1957. My dad was born in 1953. Ergo, my dad is older than Stony Brook. Also, he’s almost 60. I only realized that as I was writing this.

Don’t let the young age of SBU (not my dad) fool you, however. It’s not really much smaller than one university I’m quite familiar with that was founded in 1839. Stony Brook is a major research university and one of the pillars of the SUNY system, and it doesn’t even look a day over 55. 


Where is it located? The main campus is in Stony Brook, New York, a nice-looking town on the north shore of Long Island with a population of 13,727. The first website Google returns when you search “Stony Brook,” not associated with the university, is for Stony Brook Village, a downtown business district offering a number of retail businesses, medical services, and upcoming events. After looking at that fine website, perhaps you would like to book a stay in Stony Brook? Remember, It’s All Here In The Stony Brook Village Center.

The university also has three other facilities on Long Island, and a center in New York City. Fine places, all of them, I’m sure.

How big is their campus? 1,454 total acres, 1,039 of which are on the main campus. If you would like to see a total breakdown of acreage by campus, it can be found here. It really is something you should know.

How many people go there? The total enrollment is 24,103, which is broken down into two major groups: East Campus and West Campus. Both groups are on the main campus, so I have no idea why this matters, but West has almost seven times the number of students as East, 20,654 to 3,367. The only logical conclusion is everyone must hate East.

Who or what is their mascot? Wolfie the Seawolf, a sort of swimming wolf the university tried to popularize in 2009 with a campaign entitled “Where in the World is Wolfie?” The campaign is ongoing, and you can catch up with Wolfie’s latest adventures on the “Where in the World is Wolfie?” Facebook page.

Is their coach a different creature? Yes, yes he is. Steve Pikiell is not a seawolf. He does not bleed seawolf blood. He is human; he bleeds human blood. He has held the job since 2005 and graduated from the University of Connecticut in 1990. He’s been an assistant at Connecticut, Central Connecticut State, and George Washington. 

Where do they play? Pritchard Gymnasium. It holds 1,680 people, making it the 322nd largest in Division-I according to KenPom. It is a cramped place, by all accounts, and I’m still not entirely sure how national television broadcast crews manage to squeeze in there. I guess they employ smarter people than me to get the job done. And if you’ve read this far, you know how smart I am.

What was their final record? 20-8 overall, 14-2 America East

What is their rank in the conference tournament? No. 1. The Seawolves will play the winner of the play-in game between No. 8 UMBC and No. 9 Binghamton.

Who would be their basic statistic leaders? Senior guard Bryan Dougher (13.4 points per game), redshirt junior guard Tommy Brenton  (7.8 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game), senior forward Dallis Joyner (0.7 blocks per game)

What are some of the notable wins this team has? Vs. Cornell, 68-59; at Northeastern, 76-69; vs. Vermont, 65-59

What are some of the notable losses this team has? at Northwestern, 63-58; at Boston College, 66-51; at Vermont, 68-49

How did they do against BU? 1-1. The Seawolves lost to the Terriers at Case Gymnasium, 61-55, on January 14th, but beat them two weeks later on Long Island, 66-57. The second game was televised on ESPNU, and was played in a sea of red. Seriously, the place was filled with people wearing almost nothing but bright red. It was cool, and an example of how smaller gyms can be as awesome as Cameron Indoor Stadium or another less-clichéd arena. 

Who was their token non-Division-I opponent and does that opponent even acknowledge the game ever took place? For their first win of the year, the Seawolves beat Mount Ida College, 93-39, at home. Mount Ida is a Division-III school located in Newton that lists “arranging a visit to campus is easy” as its 10th best reason to attend Mount Ida. The Mustangs do not list their game against the Seawolves on their online schedule, claiming only their games against D-III opponents actually happened. 

The Mustangs went 9-17 in games they remember, and lost 79-43 to Saint Joseph’s University (Maine) in the quarterfinals of the Great Northeast Athletic Conference tournament. We here at Full Court Press congratulate Mount Ida on a great season and a strong performance against Stony Brook.

Do you have some statistic from KenPom presented without any context whatsoever?  51.5 effective field goal percentage in conference play 

What about a random factoid from the game notes? Each player has a QR code on their page of the game notes, so if you would rather read about their statistics on your tiny phone screen instead of an 8.5-by-11 piece of paper, you can! Technology for the win!

On Senior Day, resilient upperclassmen pull through

By Craig Meyer/DFP Staff

For some, the Boston University men’s basketball team’s game Saturday against the University of Hartford would seem moot. The Terriers were playing a team they had already throttled earlier in the season and, more importantly, they had already locked up the third seed in next week’s America East Conference Tournament.

Good luck trying to tell that to BU’s seniors.

Playing the last home game of their college careers, barring BU hosting the conference championship game, the Terriers’ five seniors contributed 38 points to help carry BU past an energized and resilient Hartford team 64-55 Saturday at Case Gymnasium.

With the end of the Terriers’ season quickly approaching, regardless of how far they advance, first-year BU head coach Joe Jones used the moment as a chance to stress how important this senior class has been to the program.

Terriers outlast Hartford 64-55

By Craig Meyer/DFP Staff

The Boston University men's basketball team beat the University of Hartford 64-55 at Case Gymnasium Saturday in its final regular season game.

The win lifted the Terriers above the .500 mark for the season at 16-15 and gave them a 12-4 mark in conference play. With that, the team is locked in for the third seed in next week's America East Conference Tournament in West Hartford, Conn.

On the team's Senior Day, senior guard Darryl Partin was the only scorer in double figures for the game with 21 points. Fellow senior guard Matt Griffin and sophomore forward Travis Robinson each added eight points. Senior center Jeff Pelage added seven points, his highest scoring total since Jan. 17, 2010 when he was a sophomore.

For the game, the Terriers outrebounded the Hawks 38-17, including a 12-4 edge on offensive boards.

A full game recap and sider will be posted on the website by tomorrow night.

BU-Hartford Slideshow

All photos by Junhee Chung/DFP Staff

BU vs. Hartford Live Blog

Starting lineups:
University of Hartford Hawks
F Mark Nwakamma
F Nate Sikma
G Andres Torres
G Yolonzo Moore II
G Clayton Brothers

Boston University Terriers
F Patrick Hazel
F Chris Kurz
C Jeff Pelage
G Darryl Partin
G Matt Griffin

Final Score: BU 64, Hartford 55

Team leaders:
Points
Hartford: Yolonzo Moore II, 17
BU: Darryl Partin, 21

Rebounds
Hartford: Nate Sikma, Andres Torres and Clayton Brothers, 3
BU: Darryl Partin, Malik Thomas and Matt Griffin, 5

Assists
Hartford: Andres Torres, 6
BU: Matt Griffin, 5

Five things to look out for in BU vs. Hartford

By René Reyes/DFP Staff

Since this afternoon’s matchup with the University of Hartford marks the final regular-season game of the year, Full Court Press decided to spruce things up a bit and list five storylines for this game. Here they are:

1.) Senior Day
Seniors Darryl Partin, Jeff Pelage, Chris Kurz, Matt Griffin and Pat Hazel will be honored in a pre-game ceremony before tip-off. They'll be introduced with their families and presented with frame jerseys. This ceremony is one of the most emotional ones that the players will ever experience, and from the looks of all the cars outside, Case Gymnasium could be packed. To capacity? We'll just have to wait and see. It'll be nice to see BU coach Joe Jones end up going with these five seniors as a starting lineup. It just works out perfectly. What a moment that would be for these players.

From the FreeP: Terriers trounce UMBC, get back to .500

By René Reyes/DFP Staff

Freshman guard Zach Chionuma picked the right time to record his first-ever double-figure scoring game for the Boston University men’s basketball team.

After a one-minute appearance in last Sunday’s BracketBusters matchup, the Jamesville, N.Y. native made the most of his extended minutes off the bench against the University of Maryland-Baltimore County.

Chionuma scored a career-best 12 points in 18 minutes, senior guard Darryl Partin netted a team-high 17 and sophomore forward Travis Robinson and senior center Patrick Hazel each chipped in 10 apiece as BU trounced UMBC 73-52 Wednesday at RAC Arena.

“I thought we played well,” said BU coach Joe Jones. “I felt coming into the game that [UMBC] was one of the more improved teams if you look at their scorers and see what they were doing in their last four or five games. They have played very, very well.

Read more at dailyfreepress.com.