TIP-OFF: The Boston University mens basketball team returns home in search of its first win of the season as the Terriers (0-5) take on the Harvard Crimson (5-1) Tuesday night. Game time is 7 p.m. at Case Gymnasium - the Terriers first game of the year at The Roof after playing two other home games at Agganis Arena. BU has won nine straight games at The Roof. The Terriers are in the midst of perhaps their toughest schedule ever. The five losses have come against teams with a combined record of 22-4 this season - with #1 Duke, #22 George Washington, Michigan and Rhode Island combining for a 20-1 mark. BU's strength of schedule is seventh most-difficult in the nation according to the Dec. 4 Sagarin rankings published by USA Today. Harvard has a pair of wins over America East schools, defeating Vermont 65-57 and New Hampshire, 71-50, both at home. The Crimson were 12-15 last year, 7-7 in the Ivy League, and return a pair of starters.
RADIO-TV COVERAGE: The BU-Harvard game will be broadcast on radio on WTTT 1150-AM. Doug Brown and Billy Collins will provide the call. The radio broadcast can be accessed on the internet at http://www.bu.edu/athletics/fans/tv-radio-schedule.html. The BU student radio station will also broadcast the game on 89.3 FM. Jonah Goldberg and Jonah Kaplan will provide the call. The broadcast can also be accessed on the internet at www.wtburadio.org.
BEGINNING OF IN-STATE BATTLES: The Harvard contest will mark the first of three games BU will play against fellow Bay State programs. In addition to the Crimson, BU travels to Amherst to take on the University of Massachusetts on Dec. 12, and then will face Holy Cross in Worcester on Jan. 2, 2006. The Terriers went 1-3 against Massachusetts schools last year, beating Harvard and losing close battles to Holy Cross, UMass and Boston College. BU is 266-239 all-time against programs in the Commonwealth.
WOUNDED TERRIERS: BU will be looking for some help during practice just to field enough players to compete in five-on-five drills. The Terriers began the season with 13 healthy scholarship players, but that number has dwindled to just nine after numerous injuries and suspensions dwindled the ranks. On Nov. 29 against Rhode Island, sophomore guard Matt Wolff tore ligaments in his left knee and will be sidelined indefinitely. Freshman forward Ben Coblyn suffered a high ankle sprain against Michigan on Nov. 22 and has missed three games and is considered questionable against Harvard. Freshman guard Tyler Morris tore ligaments in his ankle and developed bone chips, 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 remaining nine healthy players, just four had seen action in a Division I college basketball game prior to this season.
BUSY STRETCH FOR BU: The Terriers are in a stretch which will see them play seven games in 18 days, beginning with Rider on Nov. 26 and ending with UMass on Dec. 12. Including the Harvard game, the Terriers will play four games in seven days: Harvard (12/6), New Hampshire (12/8), at Maine (12/10) and at Massachusetts (12/12). BU will then have a 10-day hiatus during final exams before returning to the hardwood at Canisius on Dec. 22.
BU-HARVARD HISTORY: Harvard leads the all-time series 32-23, however BU has won four straight by an average of 24.5 points. The Terriers dominated the Crimson 92-55 in Cambridge last season and won 86-42 in Boston two years ago. HarvardâÂÂ?TMs last win in the series came back in the 2000-01 season, 76-60. BU has won 11 of the last 12 meetings between the schools in a rivalry that has been played every year since the 1991-92 campaign. Terrier head coach Dennis Wolff is 10-1 in his career against the Crimson.
LAST TIME OUT VS. HARVARD: BU hammered the Crimson 92-55 at Lavietes Pavilion for its fifth straight win on Dec. 7, 2004. Rashad Bell scored 17 points and joined the BU 1,000-point club in the victory. Shaun Wynn scored a season-high 19 points and was 5-5 from three-point land to lead five Terriers in double figures. Etienne Brower and Kevin Gardner added 12 apiece while Chaz Carr chipped in with 11. BU used a 19-5 run at the end of the first half to push a seven-point lead into a comfortable 44-23 advantage at halftime. Wynn buried four of his triples in the second half, as the Terrier lead grew as large as 41. BU shot a sizzling 56% from the floor for the game, including 53% from beyond the arc.
THE COACHES: The Terriers are led by 12th year head coach Dennis Wolff (Connecticut âÂÂ?~78). Wolff is 192-138 (.582) in his career at BU, 222-156 (.587) 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 124-67 (.649) mark, including 71-25 (.740) 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.
WolffâÂÂ?TMs assistants are Orlando Vandross (America International '92), Mike Winiecki (Richmond '89) and Mike Costello (BU '00).
Harvard is coached by Frank Sullivan (158-216, 15th season at Harvard, 272-302, 19th season overall). Sullivan is the all-time leader in victories at HArvard and he is the longest-tenured coach in school history. The Crimson have finished in the top half of the Ivy League in four of the last five years. Sullivan coached at Seton Hall under P.J. Carlesimo from 1982-84.
BU vs. IVY LEAGUE: BU is 43-85 all-time against current members of the Ivy League, including 23-32 against Harvard. BU has won six of its last seven against the conference, however, since 2001-02. The TerriersâÂÂ?TM play just one Ivy this season in Harvard, as has been the case in each of the last two years. In 2002-03, BU beat both Harvard and Dartmouth, and in 2001-02, the Terriers beat Harvard and Dartmouth and lost to Columbia.
Dennis Wolff is 12-2 against the Ivy League in his career at BU. A look at BUs all-time marks against the Ivy League, with WolffâÂÂ?TMs career record in parentheses:
Brown 12-25 (0-0)
Columbia 1-2 (0-1)
Dartmouth 7-21 (2-0)
Harvard 23-32 (10-1)
Pennsylvania 0-1 (0-0)
Princeton 0-2 (0-0)
Cornell 0-0 (0-0)
Yale 0-2 (0-0)
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 8.6 rpg, and is on a pace to destroy his career-high on the boards. 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.
GEORGE WASHINGTON RECAP: Shaun Wynn scored a game-high 18 points and hit six three-pointers, but it was not enough to help the stubborn Terriers beat 22nd-ranked George Washington on Dec. 2. The Colonials prevailed 75-62 in front of 4,009 fans at the Smith Athletic Center. BU opened the game on fire, hitting its first five shots to jump out to a 12-3 lead less than four minutes into the game. Wynn and Macon drilled three-pointers and the Terriers responded strong after shooting just 28% in their previous game, a 48-38 loss to Rhode Island.
George Washington shook off its sluggish start and roared back, going on a 17-2 run in the next four-and-a-half minutes to take a 20-14 lead. The Terriers cut the deficit to one, 20-19 on Bryan GeffenâÂÂ?TMs three-pointer, but the white-hot Colonials would hit 7-11 three-pointers in the first 20 minutes and took a 42-29 lead into the halftime locker room.
BU began the second half like it did the first and quickly whittled the Colonial lead to one, 46-45 with 14 minutes remaining. Wynn buried three triples in less than five minutes and Corey Hassan drilled a three to key the 16-4 burst. Wynn hit another three to keep BU within striking distance, 51-48, but GW tore off a 7-0 run thanks to five quick points by Maureece Rice and a monstrous dunk by Danilo Pinnock to jump back ahead by 10, 58-48. The Terriers would get as close as seven but could not catch the Colonials who beat BU for the seventh straight time.
Wynn finished the game 6-9 from the field, including 6-8 from downtown. He was 5-6 from beyond the arc in the second half. BU got a stellar performance from redshirt freshman Ibrahim Konate, who had a career-high 13 points and was 6-7 from the floor. Kevin Gardner added 13 points as well and hauled down a team-high six rebounds. Due to suspensions and injuries, BU had just eight players see action and only six played more than nine minutes. Rice led GW with 17 points, while Mike Hall had 16 points and 10 rebounds.
GEORGE WASHINGTON NOTABLE:
- BU lost its second game to a top-25 opponent this season, also falling to top-ranked Duke on Nov. 14. The last time the Terriers played two ranked foes this early in the season was in 2001-02, when they lost to no. 8 Iowa and no. 17 Boston College.
- Dating back to last year, BU has now lost eight straight games. Its the longest losing streak since the 1999-2000 crew lost nine straight.
- At 0-5, BU is off to its slowest start since 1999-2000, when the team also started 0-5. The 1975-76 Terriers lost eight straight to begin the season, and the 1921-22 squad dropped its first nine contests.
- Senior Shaun Wynn hit a career-best six three-pointers against the Colonials, going 6-8 from beyond the arc. His performance was one shy of the school-record seven, held by Matt Turner (2001). Wynn had been shooting just 14% from three-point land and 16.1% overall prior to his outburst.
- The 18 points were WynnâÂÂ?TMs most in 28 games, since scoring 19 against Harvard on 12/7/04.
- The Terriers hit 10 three-pointers for the second time this season (10-23). They also had 10 treys against Rider. Last year BU did not have any games where it made at least 10 three-pointers, although it did so three times in 2003-04. The Terriers are now shooting 30% from downtown, an impressive turnaround after starting the year just 1-11 (9.2%) at Duke.
- Ibrahim Konate set a career-high with 13 points and was 6-7 from the field. After averaging just 4.7 ppg and shooting 47% from the field in his first three games, Konate is averaging 10.5 ppg and shooting 75% in his last two outings.
- The Terriers shot 55.8% from the field (24-43), a season-best and a dramatic turnaround from recent struggles. BU was shooting just 32.5% in its previous three games (58-178), including a 28% performance (14-50) against Rhode Island on Nov. 29. The hot shooting against GW was the TerriersâÂÂ?TM best since connecting at a 58% clip against New Hampshire on Jan. 26, 2005.
- BU is now 1-13 all-time against George Washington. The Colonials have won seven straight in the series.
- After having shot just 13 free throws in its first three games, the Terriers are 12-21 from the line in the last two contests. Opponents still hold a 94-34 advantage in free-throw attempts on the year and a 63-20 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 22 assists in five games, including a game-high six at Duke (the same amount as the entire Blue Devil team) and seven against Michigan. Last season, Wynn was fifth in the America East with 100 assists (3.4 apg) and he now has 234 for his career. Jeff Timberlake âÂÂ?~89 holds the school record with 772 dishes, but Wynn could climb into the top-10 with a solid year; Jim Schwartz âÂÂ?~97 currently is 10th all-time at BU with 332 assists.
HASSAN THE ASSASSIN: Just five 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 10 three-pointers, and in fact just nine of his 48 shots on the season have not come from behind the arc. 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 is second on the team with 7.6 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. Mark Daly 22 1988-89
9. Brian Holden 21 1990-91
10. Barry Huckeby 19 1991-92
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. 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, Dennis' daughter and Matt's 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.
IN THE POLLS: BU has not received any votes in the USA Today/ESPN Coaches top-25 poll. The Terriers have scheduled four opponents who appear in the rankings: Number-one Duke (BUâÂÂ?TMs opponent on 11/14) and no. 22 George Washington (12/2) are ranked. Michigan (11/22) received enough votes to unofficially be ranked 43rd, while Bucknell (12/28) received one vote, unofficially checking in at no. 51.
COUNTDOWN TO 200: Dennis Wolff is just eight wins shy of his 200th win at BU. Wolff is 192-138 in 12 seasons on the Terrier bench and is already the schoolâÂÂ?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 42-18 since Wolff won his 150th game.
Dennis Wolff: DEAN OF AMERICA EAST: With the retirement of VermontâÂÂ?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. WolffâÂÂ?TMs 192 wins at BU are more than the coaches at the other eight schools in the America East combined (174). In terms of total years coached among league mentors, WolffâÂÂ?TMs 13 total years of experience trails New HampshireâÂÂ?TMs Bill Herrion (18), BinghamtonâÂÂ?TMs Al Walker (17) and UMBC's Randy Monroe (14).
BU ON TV: The Terriers will make a minimum of seven 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), Massachusetts (CN8), 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 WolffâÂÂ?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 OâÂÂ?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 CoachesâÂÂ?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 coachesâÂÂ?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 Coaches' 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 programâÂÂ?TMs 103-year history. BU went 20-9 in 2004-05, the Terriers' 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 BUâÂÂ?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 WolffâÂÂ?TMs 12 seasons. Macon comes to BU from Miami Dade College, where he averaged 10.1 ppg and 7.1 apg for a SharksâÂÂ?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 The Roof. The games at Agganis Arena feature some of the heavyweights on BU's 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 womenâÂÂ?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 menâÂÂ?TMs hockey and the facility will host the early rounds of the 2007 America East Men's 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 league's 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 WolffâÂÂ?TMs 12 years. The 1999-2000 Terriers combined for just 231 career games played heading into the season.
WYNN IN THE RECORD BOOKS: After WynnâÂÂ?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 130 career steals, just two shy of cracking the top-10 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 1.92, the fifth-best in school annals. Jeff Timberlake ('89) is tops on the list at 2.24.
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 teammate's 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 Wolff's 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. JosephâÂÂ?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.
