Men's Basketball Chosen As America East Favorite
November 6, 2007 | Men's Basketball
Nov. 6, 2007
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - Winner of a conference-best five America East championships, the Boston University men's basketball team is the preseason choice to win the league title in 2007-08. The Terriers received five of a possible eight first-place votes (coaches were not allowed to vote for their own team) and 61 points to out-distance back-to-back champion Albany, which had four first-place votes and 55 points.
Vermont was third with 50 points, followed by Binghamton (45), UMBC (33), Hartford (31), Stony Brook (19) and Maine and New Hampshire (tied - 15).
BU's red-shirt sophomore guard Tyler Morris (Indianapolis, Ind.) earned a spot on the preseason all-conference team. Morris, the 2007 America East Rookie of the Year, started all 30 games and was second on the team in scoring, averaging 13.4 points per game. He shot 46.9 percent from the 3-point line to lead the America East, and his 403 total points were the fifth-highest rookie total in Boston University history. Morris is joined on the preseason all-conference team by Albany's Brent Wilson, Binghamton's Mike Gordon, UMBC's Brian Hodges, and Vermont's Mike Trimboli.
The Terriers' crop of talented sophomores will be the core of the 2007-08 team. Morris, guard Corey Lowe (Newton, Mass.), guard Carlos Strong (Portland, Maine) and forward Scott Brittain (Oakville, Ont.) each saw significant minutes in their freshman seasons when BU went 12-18 overall and 8-8 in the conference. Lowe led the team in scoring with 14.1 ppg and a team-best 61 3-pointers. Strong was solid off the bench for Boston University, averaging 9.5 ppg while making 55 3-pointers and turning in the best performance by a reserve in BU history with a 30-point effort (including 8-for-10 from the 3-point line) against Binghamton on Feb. 8. Brittain is the Terriers' top returning big man with 7.0 ppg and 6.0 rpg. Sophomore forward Valdas Sirutis (Gargzdai, Lithuania) came on strong late for BU, and red-shirt junior Matt Wolff (Walpole, Mass.) has returned from a knee injury to provide help on the wing.
Boston University opens the 2008 season with a home contest against St. Bonaventure on Friday, Nov. 9 at 5 p.m. in Case Gymnasium.
2007-08 Preseason Poll
Rank Team (1st place votes) Total
1. Boston U. (5) 61
2. Albany (4) 55
3. Vermont 50
4. Binghamton 45
5. UMBC 33
6. Hartford 31
7. Stony Brook 19
8. Maine 15
New Hampshire 15
