Men's Basketball Faces Canisius Thursday
December 20, 2005 | Men's Basketball
ON THE MEND: BU began to regain some of its depth on Dec. 10 when freshman forward Ben Coblyn returned to action after missing four games with a high ankle sprain. CoblynâÂ?TMs presence now allows the Terriers to play a full-court scrimmage during practice, as he bumps the active number of players on the roster up to 10. BU is currently missing three players from the squad it started preseason practice with: On Nov. 29 against Rhode Island, sophomore guard Matt Wolff tore ligaments in his left knee and will be sidelined indefinitely. Freshman guard Tyler Morris tore ligaments in his ankle and developed bone chips during preseason practice, and will miss the entire season after undergoing surgery in mid-November. Forward Tony Gaffney was suspended from the team indefinitely for violating team policy. Of the now 10 healthy players, just four had seen action in a Division I college basketball game prior to this season.
BU-CANISIUS HISTORY: BU leads the all-time series 12-8, as the two teams were members of the ECAC and the North Atlantic Conference from 1979-1989. Canisius was a charter member of the original league, along with the Terriers. The Golden Griffiths handed BU one of its two league losses in 1982-83, as the Terriers eventually won the conference tournament and advanced to the NCAA Tournament, before losing to LaSalle. BU lost six of the first seven meetings between the schools from 1982-1986, but won seven of the final eight until the Golden Griffiths left the league. BU defeated Canisius in the first round of the 1988 North Atlantic Tournament en route to the title and an NCAA Tournament berth against Duke.
THE COACHES: The Terriers are led by 12th year head coach Dennis Wolff (Connecticut âÂ?~78). Wolff is 195-139 (.584) in his career at BU, 225-157 (.589) in 14 years overall, including a 30-18 record in two seasons at Connecticut College. Wolff is the all-time leader in victories at BU, having surpassed Mike Jarvis (101) on Jan. 22, 2001. Wolff is a three-time America East Coach of the Year (1997, 2003, 2004) and has twice been named both NABC District I and New England Coach of the Year (1997, 2004).
Under Wolff, BU has dominated in America East play, sporting a stout 126-67 (.653) mark, including 72-25 (.742) in home league contests. Wolff has led the Terriers to at least a share of four America East regular-season titles (1997, 2002, 2003, and 2004) and two America East Tournament championships (1997, 2002). BU has advanced to a pair of NCAA Tournaments under Wolff and has won 20 or more games on five occasions during his tenure.
WolffâÂ?TMs assistants are Orlando Vandross (America International âÂ?~92), Mike Winiecki (Richmond âÂ?~89) and Mike Costello (BU âÂ?~00).
Canisius is led by Mike MacDonald (St. Bonaventure âÂ?~88), who is 100-139 in his ninth year overall and with the Golden Griffins. MacDonald led the Griffs to just the sixth 20-win season in school history in 2000-01 and was named the Basketball Coaches Association of New York Co-Coach of the Year.
BU vs. MAAC: BU is 53-36 all-time against current Metro-Atlantic Athletic Conference schools. The Terriers dropped a 71-64 decision at Rider earlier this season. BU has played each of the current MAAC schools at least once. Dennis Wolff is 9-2 against the MAAC (his record against each school is in parentheses):
Loyola MD 1-0 (1-0)
Niagara 16-7 (1-0)
Iona 2-2 (0-0)
Siena 9-8 (0-0)
Canisius 12-8 (2-0)
Fairfield 5-4 (0-0)
Manhattan 2-2 (2-0)
Marist 2-1 (0-0)
Rider 1-2 (1-2)
St. PeterâÂ?TMs 3-2 (2-0)
UMASS RECAP: BU saw its three-game win streak come to an end, as the Terriers fell to the University of Massachusetts 64-45 at the Mullins Center in Amherst, Mass., on Dec. 12. BU was led by Corey Hassan, who had 10 points and Shaun Wynn, who had nine, all in the first half, as the Terriers lost to the Minutemen for the eighth straight time since 1988.
BU trailed by three at halftime, and was within two, 39-37 with 12:07 remaining after Hassan hit a runner in the lane. However the Terriers would not score another basket for over eight minutes, and UMass exploded on a 21-2 run to put the game out of reach. James Life hit consecutive three-pointers and Maurice Maxwell also drained a trey to fuel the Minuteman run, as BU managed just two Brian Macon free throws. Life finished with a game-high 20 points.
The Terriers started out the game on fire, jumping out quickly to a 16-6 lead. Kevin Gardner had a pair of strong post moves and Corey Hassan hit a three to spark BU in the early going. WynnâÂ?TMs three from the top of the key gave the Terriers their 10-point lead with 14:28 remaining. UMass inched its way back, scoring six straight points to cut the deficit to four, but Wynn and Hassan combined for the next six BU points, and the Terriers lead was 22-15 with 10:03 remaining. BU would then grow cold and not score another point for almost six minutes, enabling UMass to take the lead. Maurice MaxwellâÂ?TMs bucket put UMass ahead for the first time, 23-22 and closed out an 8-0 Minutemen run. Ben Coblyn ended the drought with a floater to reclaim the lead for BU, however Jeff Viggiano drained a three from the corner and the Minutemen took a 31-29 advantage into the halftime locker room.
UMASS NOTABLE:
- The Terriers have now dropped eight straight at UMass, and have not beaten the Minutemen since Nov. 30, 1988.
- BU went 0-3 against the Atlantic 10 in 2005-06.
- Corey Hassan scored a team-high 10 points, his fourth consecutive game scoring in double figures. He has also led the Terriers in scoring in each of the last four games.
- Hassan has hit at least one three-pointer in each of BUâÂ?TMs nine games this season. ItâÂ?TMs the best run for a Terrier since Chaz Carr had treys in 20 straight games last year.
- Hassan also tied his career-high in assists with three. He had three of the TerriersâÂ?TM four handouts.
- BU outrebounded the Minutemen 37-35, the third time they have had more boards than an opponent this season.
- Freshman forward Ben Coblyn had a fine performance in front of his hometown fans. Coblyn, a native of Amherst, Mass., played a career-high 20 minutes and scored six points. He was very physical in the paint and drew loud ovations everytime he scored.
- Senior guard Shaun Wynn started out hot, hitting four of his first five shots. Wynn would miss his next six shots but still finished with nine points, his third-best output of the season.
- Wynn also had a season-high nine rebounds, his best total since he grabbed a career-high 11 at Vermont in 2003-04.
- BU managed just four assists against the Minutemen, its lowest total of the season.
- After a hot stretch of shooting, which saw the Terriers hit better than 50% from the floor in three straight games, BU has struggled a bit the last two games. The Terriers shot just 36% against Maine on Dec. 10 and hit 33.3% of their shots against UMass.
- Senior forward Kevin Gardner played a season-low 20 minutes as he was plagued by early foul trouble. He managed six points and four rebounds, after scoring in double figures in three of his previous four games.
- After having shot just 13 free throws in its first three games, the Terriers are 50-79 from the line in the last six contests. Opponents still hold a 139-92 advantage in free-throw attempts on the year and a 87-58 advantage in free throws made.
A HELPING HAND: Senior Shaun Wynn continues to get his teammates the ball in scoring opportunities. Wynn has handed out a team-high 35 assists in nine games - and has committed just 16 turnovers, a 2.19 assist:turnover ratio, which is second-best in the league. He had a stretch earlier this year where he had 12 assists and just one turnover in three games (Harvard, UNH, Maine). He had a game-high six assists at Duke (the same amount as the entire Blue Devil team) and seven against Michigan and has led the team in dishes six times this season. Last season, Wynn was fifth in the America East with 100 assists (3.4 apg) and he now has 247 for his career. Jeff Timberlake âÂ?~89 holds the school record with 772 dishes, but Wynn could climb into the top-10 with a solid year; Jim Schwartz âÂ?~97 currently is 10th all-time at BU with 332 assists.
HASSAN THE ASSASSIN: Just nine games into the season, true freshman Corey Hassan is proving to be a legitimate long distance threat. The Merrimack, N.H., product leads the team with 24 three-pointers, and has hit at least one in every game. Although very early, Hassan has a chance to be one of the great freshman three-point shooters in school history. Paul Seymour made 70 threes as a rookie in 1999-2000, while Chaz Carr hit 45 during his freshman year of 2001-02. Hassan already ranks in the top-10 on that list, checking at no. 8. Hassan leads the team in scoring with 11.0 ppg as well. The last freshman to lead BU in scoring was Tunji Awojobi, who averaged 18.9 ppg in 1993-94.
BU TOP-10 FRESHMAN THREE-POINTERS MADE
No. Name Total Year
1. Paul Seymour 70 1999-2000
2. Chaz Carr 45 2001-02
3. Tremain Byrd 38 1993-94
Jason Grochowalski 38 2000-01
5. LeVar Folk 35 1995-96
6. Raja Bell 33 1994-95
7. Mike Costello 32 1996-97
8. COREY HASSAN 24 2005-06
9. Mark Daly 22 1988-89
10. Brian Holden 21 1990-91
GARDNER HARVESTING THE BOARDS: If there is a missed shot in a game, there is a good chance Terrier senior forward Kevin Gardner will be the one to grab the rebound. Gardner leads the team and is second in the America East with 6.9 rpg, and is on a pace to destroy his career-high on the boards. He passed the 400-rebound mark for his career against UNH (12/8) and now has 413. Gardner came in to 2005-06 with a 4.1 rpg average in his three years, with his best season of 5.7 rpg coming last year. He has already recorded games of 11 boards (Michigan 11/22) and a career-high-tying 12 rebounds (URI 11/29) this season. In 85 previous games, Gardner had just three performances of 10 or more rebounds (@BC in 2003; Binghamton and Northeastern in 2005). Tunji Awojobi was the last Terrier to average double figures in rebounding in a single season, grabbing 10.2 caroms per game in 1996-97.
WYNN IN THE RECORD BOOKS: After WynnâÂ?TMs lethally efficient season last year, in which he handed out 100 assists and recorded 53 steals while only committing 44 turnovers, the senior guard has an opportunity to leave his mark in the Terrier record books. Wynn has 136 career steals, placing him 9th all-time at BU. Shawn Teague holds the school mark with 201 thefts, but a comparable season to 2004-05 could move Wynn as high as fourth. Wynn also has a career assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.94, the fourth-best in school annals. Jeff Timberlake (âÂ?~89) is tops on the list at 2.24.
A FAMILY AFFAIR: For BU head coach Dennis Wolff, the office can feel like home sometimes. His son, Matt, is a sophomore guard on the Terriers this season. Matt Wolff, who is 6-6 and played in every game as a freshman, is a solid defender who can light it up from the outside and creates match-up problems for opposing defenses. He tore ligaments in left knee against Rhode Island on Nov. 29, however, and is out definitely this season. Matt played his high school ball at Walpole HS, where the family lives, where he averaged 19 ppg as a senior. The basketball connection for the Wolff family does not end with the father-son combo; Nicole Wolff, DennisâÂ?TM daughter and MattâÂ?TMs sister plays for the University of Connecticut as a junior guard. Dennis Wolff graduated from UConn in 1978, where he was a two-year letterwinner.
COUNTDOWN TO 200: Dennis Wolff is just five wins shy of his 200th win at BU. Wolff is 195-139 in 12 seasons on the Terrier bench and is already the schoolâÂ?TMs all-time leader in victories. Wolff won his first game at BU in his debut, an 80-78 victory over Rider on Nov. 25, 1994. It took Wolff 80 games to reach the 50-win mark, 108 games to go from 50 to 100, and 83 games to go from 100 to 150. BU is 45-18 since Wolff won his 150th game.
Dennis Wolff: DEAN OF AMERICA EAST: With the retirement of VermontâÂ?TMs Tom Brennan at the end of last season, Dennis Wolff is now the elder statesman among America East coaches. Wolff is in his 12th season on the bench, and no other leading man in the conference has coached at his current school for more than five years. Brennan had been at Vermont for 20 years. Coming in to 2005-06, WolffâÂ?TMs 192 wins at BU were more than the coaches at the other eight schools in the America East combined (174). In terms of total years coached among league mentors, WolffâÂ?TMs 13 total years of experience trails New HampshireâÂ?TMs Bill Herrion (18), BinghamtonâÂ?TMs Al Walker (17) and UMBCâÂ?TMs Randy Monroe (14).
BU ON TV: The Terriers will make a minimum of six television appearances in 2005-06. BU begins the season at Duke on ESPN2 in the preseason NIT. The Terriers will then play three games at Agganis Arena (Michigan, 11/22; Vermont, 1/22; Maine, 1/29) on the New England Sports Network (NESN) as part of a university package with the station. Eric Frede will provide play-by-play for those games, with Ronny Perry handling analysis. The Terriers will also be televised at Holy Cross (NESN), Albany (2/4 - NESN) and at Vermont (2/23 - NESN).
SPECIAL GUESTS HIGHLIGHT RADIO BROADCASTS: BU alum Doug Brown returns to the microphone to broadcast Terrier basketball over the airwaves this season. A collection of former Terrier players and former rival coaches will aid Brown in providing color analysis.
Former forward Billy Collins (2000-2003) will serve as the color commentator in the majority of the broadcasts. Collins will anchor Brown in all 11 home games, as well as select road contests. Collins was a two-year starter and three-year captain for BU and averaged 10.3 ppg in 74 career games in the Scarlet and White. Former Vermont head coach Tom Brennan, who led the Catamounts to the second-round of the NCAA Tournament in 2005 before retiring in the off-season, will work games at Duke (11/14) and at Binghamton (2/14). Dave Wallace (1992-95), who was captain of Dennis WolffâÂ?TMs first team at BU, will work the games at George Washington (12/2) and at UMBC (1/5). BU Hall-of-Famer Drederick Irving (1984-88), who is second in Terrier history with 1,931 points, will work the Rider game (11/26). Jim Schwartz (1994-97), who was a captain on the Terriers 1997 America East championship team, will work at Stony Brook (1/19), and former Boston College and Ohio State head coach Jim OâÂ?TMBrien will call games at Canisius (1/22) and at the Cable Car Classic in Santa Clara (12/28-29).
PRESEASON PROGNOSTICATIONS: Despite losing its top three leading scorers from a team that went 20-9 and advanced to the NIT a year ago, the Terriers were chosen to finish second in the America East Preseason CoachesâÂ?TM Poll. BU garnered 52 total points, including three first place votes, to finish behind Albany and just ahead of Maine. This marks the third straight season BU has been the coachesâÂ?TM choice to finish second. The Terriers were picked to win the conference in 2002-03. BU won the league crown in 2002-04 and finished third in 2005.
Preseason CoachesâÂ?TM Poll
Rank) Team - Points (First-Place Votes)
1) Albany - 61 (5)
2) Boston U. - 52 (3)
3) Maine - 46 (1)
4) Binghamton - 43
5) Hartford - 41
6) Vermont - 31
7) Stony Brook - 21
8) UMBC - 15
9) New Hampshire - 14
WYNN PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE: Senior guard Shaun Wynn (Brooklyn, N.Y.) was tabbed by league coaches as a preseason all-conference selection. Wynn led the Terriers with 3.4 assists per game in 2004-05 and his 2.27-1 assist-to-turnover ratio was the seventh-best in school history. Wynn was the 2003-04 America East Defensive Player of the Year.
Preseason All-Conference Team
Lucious Jordan, Albany
Jamar Wilson, Albany
Andre Heard, Binghamton
Shaun Wynn, Boston U.
Kevin Reed, Maine
FOUR INCREDIBLE YEARS: The BU basketball program has flourished in the last four seasons under head coach Dennis Wolff, accomplishing things never seen before in the programâÂ?TMs 103-year history. BU went 20-9 in 2004-05, the TerriersâÂ?TM fourth consecutive 20-win season. BU went 22-10 in 2001-02, 20-11 in 2002-03 and 23-6 in 2003-04. The 85 wins are the most in any four-year period in program history. Prior to 2001-02, BU basketball had achieved 20 or more wins just seven times in 92 seasons of competition. The Terriers also earned an invitation to the 2005 postseason NIT, marking the fourth consecutive season the school participated in postseason play. BU earned an NCAA Tournament bid in 2001-02, and has been to the NIT three straight years. Prior to 2001-02, BU basketball had made seven postseason appearances: NCAA in 1959, 1983, 1988, 1990 and 1997, and NIT in 1980 and 1986.
BU LEADS NATION IN FG PCT DEFENSE IN 04-05: A major reason for BUâÂ?TMs success last season was its ability to gum up opposing offenses. BU led the nation in field goal percentage defense, allowing foes to shoot just 37.1% from the floor. The Terriers also held opponents to just 55.7 ppg, the third-lowest total in the country. BU allowed 59 points or less in 18 of 29 games last year, and the Terriers were 16-2 in those contests. The Terriers completely neutralized Hartford on Jan. 6, holding the Hawks to just 22 points in a 73-22 victory; it was the lowest point total scored by a Terrier opponent in 64 years.
MACON: A RARE JUCO FIND FOR BU: Guard Brian Macon becomes just the second junior college transfer to suit up for the Terriers in Dennis WolffâÂ?TMs 12 seasons. Macon comes to BU from Miami Dade College, where he averaged 10.1 ppg and 7.1 apg for a SharksâÂ?TM team that went 27-5 and won the Southern Conference. Stijn Dhondt (2001-02) is the only other juco player in the Dennis Wolff era.
TOP THREE SCORERS DEPART: The Terriers lost 59% of their scoring output from last year with the graduation of Rashad Bell and Chaz Carr and the transfer to UMass of Etienne Brower. Bell led the team with 15.6 ppg and finished his career ninth all-time in scoring at BU with 1,367 points. Carr averaged 13.1 ppg and was eighth all-time in scoring with 1,406 points. Brower averaged 8.3 ppg. At least one member of the trio led the Terriers in scoring in 26 of 29 games.
DUAL HOMES OF BU BASKETBALL: BU will split its home games this season, playing four contests at the sparkling new Agganis Arena, which opened in January 2005, and seven games at its traditional home, Case Gymnasium, otherwise known as âÂ?oeThe Roof.âÂ?Â? The games at Agganis Arena feature some of the heavyweights on BUâÂ?TMs schedule, as the Terriers host Michigan (11/22), Rhode Island (11/29), Vermont (1/22) and Maine (1/29). The Maine contest will be the nightcap of a doubleheader with the womenâÂ?TMs team. Agganis Arena seats 7,200 and was christened in basketball last season when the Terriers upset Vermont 61-55. Agganis Arena is the permanent home of BU menâÂ?TMs hockey and the facility will host the early rounds of the 2007 America East MenâÂ?TMs Basketball Championships.
BU has played at The Roof since 1972-73, compiling an extraordinary 180-74 (.709) record there. Dennis Wolff-coached teams have been even better, running up a 94-32 (.746) mark at Case since his arrival in 1994-95. BU has a current nine-game home win streak at The Roof and is 39-8 (.830) there since the beginning of 2001-02.
A LITTLE GREEN: The 2005-06 edition of BU basketball ranks among the youngest in the America East. The 12 players on the active roster have combined to start 90 games in their college careers - 89 of which have come from two players. Seniors Shaun Wynn and Kevin Gardner have combined for 167 games played and 89 starts, leaving the other 11 Terriers with 106 games played and one start (Matt Wolff, last season) between them. Only Vermont has a more inexperienced team, as the Catamounts lost four starters who helped lead them to three straight NCAA Tournament berths. A look at the leagueâÂ?TMs experience coming in to 2005-06:
School Games Started Games Played
Vermont 40 177
BU 90 273
UMBC 119 289
New Hampshire 126 228
Maine 133 292
Binghamton 155 283
Stony Brook 169 299
Albany 247 396
Hartford 271 449
In terms of total games played on the current roster, this is not the youngest BU team in Dennis WolffâÂ?TMs 12 years. The 1999-2000 Terriers combined for just 231 career games played heading into the season.
ELITE COMPANY: BU has won 20+ games in each of the last four seasons. The Terriers are one of just 23 Division-I programs in the nation that can boast such a streak: BU, Vermont, Wake Forest, Duke, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas Tech, Texas, Connecticut, Syracuse, Pittsburgh, Illinois, Utah State, Memphis, Kent State, Southern Illinois, Creighton, Utah, Arizona, Kentucky, Florida, Mississippi State and Gonzaga.
MORRIS OUT FOR THE SEASON: Freshman guard Tyler Morris (Indianapolis, Ind.) will miss the entire season after tearing several ligaments in his foot in preseason practice. Morris, who was expected to contend for playing time in the backcourt, landed on a teammateâÂ?TMs foot less than two weeks into practice, and underwent surgery on November 7 to repair the ligaments. Morris will redshirt this season and return for his freshman year of eligibility in 2006-07.
NOT AFRAID TO PLAY THE BIG BOYS: A staple of the Terriers under Dennis Wolff has been their willingness to play anyone, anytime, anywhere. A look at some of the major programs BU has gone up against in the regular season in WolffâÂ?TMs first 11 years: Providence, Kentucky, Duke, Oklahoma, New Mexico, North Carolina State, George Washington, Rhode Island, TCU, Connecticut, Alabama, Colorado, Massachusetts, California, Iowa, Boston College, Stanford, Florida State, Arizona, St. JosephâÂ?TMs and Michigan. Some of the most significant wins in school history have come against this list, including back-to-back victories at Michigan (2003 and 2004) and a 15-point win over Florida State in 2002.
