2004-05 Terrier Basketball Outlook
November 10, 2004 | Men's Basketball
The question surrounding the 2004-05 Boston University men's basketball team is whether the Terriers can maintain last year's high level of play having lost one of the program's most well-rounded classes in recent memory. A season after graduating a senior class that led BU to unheralded success, head basketball coach Dennis Wolff turns to a group of proven veterans and a stable of newcomers to rekindle the fire that the Terriers possessed last year and to continue its order on the court.
Last year, the Terriers put together one of the best regular-season performances in their 95-year history, winning a team-record 23 regular-season games and posting a 17-1 conference record. They combined it, however, with a disappointing first-round loss in the America East Tournament. While the team did accept an NIT bid to make its program-record third straight post-season appearance, it was not the outcome the Terriers had been working so hard to position themselves for. Wolff, along with everyone associated with the program, took the loss hard.
"I'd be less than candid if I didn't acknowledge the fact that it took everyone longer to get over last year," said the coach, heading into his 11th year at BU. "Primarily because of how well everyone had played for three months, to have it end that abruptly was very tough."
A FRESH START Fortunately, the new season is here and with it comes renewed enthusiasm for the team's prospects. Wolff's first task is to incorporate six newcomers - five of them freshmen - into a program that appears to be primed for a long stay near the top of the America East standings. Those six fresh faces will be plugged into holes left by the departures of a class that led BU to unprecedented heights over the past four seasons.
Kevin Fitzgerald's stats may be the easiest to reproduce, but it's his superior leadership and poise on and off the court that Wolff will be attempting to replace. Ryan Butt's consistency over his four years at BU was remarkable, while both Jason Grochowalski and Matt Turner both brought potentially lethal scoring ability to the court nearly every night. Together, the class went 89-41 while leading the team to at least a share of three straight conference regular-season tiles and the 2002 America East Championship.
"Anytime you're replacing kids who were as successful as those kids were, you're heading into somewhat of a transitional phase," said Wolff.
If you think "transitional" means sweeping changes are coming to the program, think again. Twenty-six years of coaching experience has taught Wolff not to hit the panic button.
"Over the years I've learned a lot of lessons about how to do this," explained the coach. "I think we'll have to tweak some of the things we've done in the past, but we'll keep it mostly the same and let the new guys' basketball IQs help them pick up the faster pace.
"I believe we have a good enough mix of veterans and newcomers to enable us not to lose any ground," said Wolff. "My opinion is that we still have strong enough players to compete for the championship."
RETURNING VETERANS "We return three of the best players in the league in Chaz Carr, Rashad Bell, and Shaun Wynn," said Wolff. "Kevin Gardner showed us flashes last year and certainly will be able to contribute as a regular player this year."
This year, the Terriers will be young, but that youth is countered by the return of four very experienced players in seniors Carr and Bell - both former First Team All-Conference performers - and juniors Wynn and Gardner. Wynn is the conference's reigning Defensive Player of the Year, while Gardner is expected to step out of the shadow of last year's seniors and play a larger role in the Terriers' inside game. Additionally, Wolff expects sophomores Pat Martin and Etienne Brower to shoulder more of the workload this season.
"My feeling is that with this six-man group, alone, we should be able to compete," explained Wolff. "When we mix in the new guys, I think we have the nucleus to work with."
There is little doubt that this year's team will take its cue from senior guard Chaz Carr, who anchors the shooting guard spot and will be asked to provide more of a leadership role. Carr averaged a team-leading 13 points per game last year. His efforts netted him team MVP honors, as well as America East First Team honors and a spot on the National Association of Basketball Coaches District 1 Second Team. Carr led the Terriers in double-figure scoring last year, tallying 10-or-more points 23 times, including a team season-high 25-point effort in a 10-point win at Vermont in mid-February, a victory that avenged an earlier loss to the Catamounts. Even in games in which he doesn't lead the Terriers offensively, Carr still makes his presence known. Held scoreless through 39 minutes against Binghamton in January, he knocked down the game-winning jumper with 25 seconds remaining in an important win over the Bearcats.
Last year, forward Rashad Bell was a pre-season America East All-Conference pick. While he didn't pick up any post-season awards, his season could hardly be classified as a failure. Second on the team in scoring at 11.5 points per game, Bell was the team's leading rebounder at 6.8 boards per contest. He led the team in double-doubles, the most impressive of which was a 22-point, 10-rebound effort at Binghamton to help the Terriers wrap up the regular season in style with a 16-point win. A player who has proven he can score points in bunches, Bell was a catalyst in bringing the team back from an 0-3 start, scoring eight of his game-high 23 points in the two overtime periods in a three-point win at Ohio University in December.
Junior guard Shaun Wynn is another player Wolff will turn to for leadership on and off the court. After a solid freshman season in 2002-03, Wynn put all the pieces together in a sophomore campaign that saw him earn America East's top defensive player award and a Third Team All-Conference nod as well. Wynn averaged a solid 8.2 points and 4.4 rebounds per game, but it was at the defensive end of the court where he shined. He finished second in the conference with 60 steals, including a game in which he pilfered the ball a team-record eight times during the Terriers' 17-point win at Albany in early January. A solid, all-around player, Wynn also ranked in the top 10 in the league in assists with 83, and second on the team only to Kevin Fitzgerald's 86 assists.
The fourth player who saw regular action last year is junior forward Kevin Gardner. Wolff describes Gardner as showing "flashes" of strong play last season. The numbers back up that assertion, as he has, at times, excelled at nearly every aspect of the low-post game. He pulled down a career-high 12 rebounds at Boston College, blocked a career-best five shots at Maine, and went 5-for-7 for 10 points and eight rebounds at Northeastern. It's in those games that he displayed a single-minded, hard-nosed style of play that Wolff hopes he brings to the court every game this year. Overall, he led the team in field goal percentage, making 52.5 percent of his shots.
Both Pat Martin and Etienne Brower will get the opportunity to play a larger role this season. According to Wolff, Martin will most likely get the starting point guard assignment early in the season, with Brower one of the first reserves off the bench. Last year, both players showed they were talented enough to play, but each also showed that he was a freshman dealing with the tough transition to the college ranks.
"Martin is heady enough to help us at the point, while I think Brower is capable of making as significant a [freshman-to-sophomore-year] jump as Wynn did," said Wolff.
Junior Kevin Burton rounds out the list of returnees for BU. The 6-foot-7 reserve saw action in five games last year.
THE NEWCOMERS Out of the class of six new Terriers, all of them stand a good chance of seeing quality playing time this year. Only time will tell which ones rise to the forefront, but Wolff believes that all six have the talent to play every night at this level.
The elder statesman of the bunch is sophomore transfer Omari Peterkin, who comes to Commonwealth Avenue after a one-year stint at the University of Notre Dame. Eligible with the beginning of the second semester, Peterkin is a 6-foot-8, 264-pound center who has worked hard since joining the team in January, 2004 with the primary goal of trimming his weight, increasing his speed, and improving his low- and high-post footwork. Wolff and his staff have been impressed with his work ethic.
"Since the season ended, I don't know if we've ever had a guy who has worked harder than Omari," said Wolff of Peterkin, who hails from the Virgin Islands. "He's lost 30 pounds, reduced his body fat, and has worked very hard individually. He has a great chance to come in and help us as soon as he's eligible."
Amherst, Mass. native Ben Coblyn will instantly bring a new outlook on low-post play to "The Roof". In addition to a standout hoops career at Amherst Regional, Coblyn was also an All-League tight end / defensive end for the Hurricanes' football team. The 6-foot-8, 251-pound Coblyn brings the football mentality to the basketball court, as his face-to-the-basket style will add a dimension that the Terriers have lacked in previous years.
"The thing we've liked about Coblyn is that he's always trying to take the action to the guy who's guarding him," said Wolff. "He's not taking fall-away jumpers and he's trying to power the ball up. He has a chance to contribute immediately."
Another player with a promising outlook for this season is Tony Gaffney, a long-armed and athletic wing. Gaffney will be the first to tell you that he's gained 15 pounds of muscle (up to 194 pounds) on his 6-foot-8 frame since arriving at BU, and if he keeps it up, he'll be a force for the Terriers on the wing. As a senior at Somerset High School in 2002-03, he averaged 23 points, 12 rebounds, 11 blocks, and 7 assists per game, leading the team to the State sectional championship and garnering league MVP honors. He spent a prep year at Northfield Mount Hermon School.
"Gaffney is as skilled a wing player as we've had come in," said Wolff. "At 6-foot-8, he can handle the ball, knows how to play, and has the potential to be a good defender."
The next in a line of standout players from New York City's St. Francis Prep (Kevin Fitzgerald and Rashad Bell), Bryan Geffen will challenge Martin for time at the point. Described by Wolff as "tough enough and smart enough to get it done at this level," Geffen combines the acumen of a leader on the court and a scorer's mentality. Standing only 5-foot-11, Geffen earned All-City First Team and All-Brooklyn-Queens First Team honors as a senior last year. "What's impressed everyone is that he has a presence to him, and he has a good feel of how to play the game," continued Wolff. "He scored a lot of points in high school and he's someone the other team will need to guard closely."
Wolff is quick to admit the team needs to replace the outside shooting of the graduated Grochowalski and Turner. A player who he thinks may fit the bill is his 6-foot-6 son, Matt Wolff, who averaged 19 points per game as a senior at Walpole, helping lead the Rebels to a 25-0 record, their second straight conference championship, and the Massachusetts Division II State title.
"The combination of his shooting ability and his knowledge of the game will put him in the mix," said Wolff.
Ibrahim Konate brings to the Terriers an athlete a little different than the others. Worcester Academy's MVP last year after averaging 15 points, eight rebounds, and three blocked shots. The 6-foot-8, 191-pound Konate, a native of the West African country of Mali, was a dominant shot-blocker and defender at Sharon (Pa.) High School before his prep year at Worcester Academy. As a senior, he averaged a triple-double the hard way with 13 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 blocked shots per game.
"As bouncy and into the game as he gets, he's going to give us a shot-blocking and defensive-rebounding presence that we didn't have," said Wolff of Konate.
Also joining the team as a freshman this season is 6-foot-3 Chris Vasiliou, a teammate of Gaffney's at Northfield Mount Hermon last year.
