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Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Bucknell visits its old East Coast Conference rival Towson in the marquee matchup on a three-game night. Also on tap: Navy hosts Robert Morris and Lehigh is at home against St. Peter's.
SCOUTING TOWSON: The good news for Bucknell, Gary Neal is gone. Granted Neal didn't do much against the Bison in last year's BracketBusters meeting, at least not when it mattered, but he was a dangerous scoring machine, capable of going off at moment's notice.
The bad news for the Bison, one of the new faces in Towson's lineup might be even scarier, if his performance in the Tigers' 83-69 spanking of a pretty fair Loyola club is any indication.
The name Bucknell fans hope they won't remember after tonight is Junior Hairston, a 6-8 junior forward who sat out last season after transferring from the College of Charleston. In his first game in a Towson uniform, Hairston went off for 26 points and 21 rebounds. Included in those boards were 11 on the offensive glass. For good measure, Hairston, who by the way has three-point range on his jumper, also blocked three shots.
Also in double figures for Towson in the opener were 6-4 swingman Rodney Spruill (12 points and 5 assists) and 6-3 junior guard Rocky Coleman (15 points). Senior guard C.C. Williams, who scored 12 against Bucknell last season, dished off 7 assists against Loyola. Coleman started in place of junior Vernon Carr, who missed the Loyola game with a shoulder injury. Carr was expected to be the starter at the point, allowing Williams to move to the wing. Carr is listed as questionable for tonight's game. Williams played despite a back injury.
The returning starter at center, 6-8 Tommy Breaux, missed last year's game at Bucknell due to an illness and will miss this year's as well. Breaux, a wide receiver on Towson's football team, suffered a foot injury in the Tigers' third gridiron game of the season against UMass and is still rehabbing.
This appears to be a deeper Towson team. Two guys who used to be starters are now coming off the bench. In addition to Breaux, the team's active career leader in blocks who missed last year's meeting with Bucknell due to illness, 6-0 senior Jonathan Reese, the Tigers active career leader in rebounds and made field goals, and 6-1 junior Tim Crossin, their active career three-pointers leader, are all reserves these days.
The game marks a return to what have been happy hunting grounds over the years for the Bison, who have not played in the Towson Center since the Charlie Woollum era (1991), but back in the old East Coast Conference Days, the Towson Center was like a home away from home for Bucknell, which has a large alumni base in the Baltimore area. The Bison earned their first two trips to the NCAA Tournament with wins there (1987 over Towson and 1989 over Lafayette in ECC finals). Over the years, Bucknell is 8-6 against the Tigers there.
BONUS LINKS:
Towson game notes
Williams plays through pain (Towerlight)
SCOUTING ROBERT MORRIS: Opened with 72-66 win over Kevin (son of HC coach Ralph) Willard's Iona team. Picked second in the Northeast Conference behind Sacred Heart. Guard Jeremy Chappell, a starter last year. came off the bench to lead RMU with 20 points. RMU's first-year coach, former Pitt assistant Mike Rice says Chappell might move back into the starting lineup, though he likes the offensive spark Chappell brings off the bench.
Chappell is one of four returning starters from last season's 17-11 team. Tony Lee, a 6-0 senior guard, is the top returning scorer. A 1,000-point career scorer, Lee averaged 16.9 ppg last year, earning second team All-NEC honors. Lee had 7 points, 11 rebounds, 7 assists and 4 steals in the opener.
Lee and A.J. Jackson, a 6-6 senior forward, were both preseason all-conference picks. Jackson, who had 16 points against Iona, needs 11 to reach 1,000 for his career.
Freddie Harris, a 6-9 senior, returns at center for the Colonials.
One place RMU is inexperienced is at the point. Starter Jimmy Langhurst played in only 4 conference games as a freshman, tallying a total of 11 minutes of action. Langhurst, who is not a true point guard, is supposedly the best shooter on the team, though he was 0 for 5 (0-4 from the arc) against Iona.
Rice's biggest concern entering the season was defense, something not emphasized by his predecessor. Against Iona, the Colonials had 12 steals and held the Gaels to 24 for 59 (40.7) from the field. But they did not defend the arc very well. Iona was 10 for 19 there.
BONUS LINKS:
RMU game notes
Pittsburgh Tribune Review matchup
Post-Gazette game preview
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review RMU story archive
RRMU embraces lofty expectationse (Pitt. Post-Gazette)
Robert Morris hopes Langhurst is ready to guide the offense (Pitt. Post-Gazette)
Colonials getting defensive in basketball practice
SCOUTING ST. PETER'S: The lowly Peacocks are picked to finish dead last in the 10-team MAAC. Opened season by blowing a 12-point lead in an 81-78 loss at UMBC.
The Peacocks are a guard-oriented team. Only one guy on the roster, 6-8 freshman center Ryan Bacon (a starter) is taller than 6-7. Three of the four guys who scored in double figures against UMBC were guards. Raul Orta, a 6-5 senior, led the scoring with 19. Darrell Lampley, a 5-0 freshman, came off the bench for 15, including three treys and 5-11 redshirt freshman Nick Leon added 11. Another freshman, 6-2 Wesley Jackson, hit a trio of three-pointers off the bench.
St. Peter's top returnee is 6-7 senior forward Todd Sowell. Sowell, a preseason third team all-league pick, averaged 13 points and 8.5 boards last season. Sowell had 11 points and 8 rebounds against UMBC.
In the opener, St. Peter's shot 51.5 percent (29-56) from the field, including 10 of 21 threes. They held UMBC to a 40-percent night (24-66) from the field, 6 for 13 at the arc. But they committed 28 fouls, sending the Peacocks to the line 37 times, where they made 27 to pull out the win.
SCOUTING TOWSON: The good news for Bucknell, Gary Neal is gone. Granted Neal didn't do much against the Bison in last year's BracketBusters meeting, at least not when it mattered, but he was a dangerous scoring machine, capable of going off at moment's notice.
The bad news for the Bison, one of the new faces in Towson's lineup might be even scarier, if his performance in the Tigers' 83-69 spanking of a pretty fair Loyola club is any indication.
The name Bucknell fans hope they won't remember after tonight is Junior Hairston, a 6-8 junior forward who sat out last season after transferring from the College of Charleston. In his first game in a Towson uniform, Hairston went off for 26 points and 21 rebounds. Included in those boards were 11 on the offensive glass. For good measure, Hairston, who by the way has three-point range on his jumper, also blocked three shots.
Also in double figures for Towson in the opener were 6-4 swingman Rodney Spruill (12 points and 5 assists) and 6-3 junior guard Rocky Coleman (15 points). Senior guard C.C. Williams, who scored 12 against Bucknell last season, dished off 7 assists against Loyola. Coleman started in place of junior Vernon Carr, who missed the Loyola game with a shoulder injury. Carr was expected to be the starter at the point, allowing Williams to move to the wing. Carr is listed as questionable for tonight's game. Williams played despite a back injury.
The returning starter at center, 6-8 Tommy Breaux, missed last year's game at Bucknell due to an illness and will miss this year's as well. Breaux, a wide receiver on Towson's football team, suffered a foot injury in the Tigers' third gridiron game of the season against UMass and is still rehabbing.
This appears to be a deeper Towson team. Two guys who used to be starters are now coming off the bench. In addition to Breaux, the team's active career leader in blocks who missed last year's meeting with Bucknell due to illness, 6-0 senior Jonathan Reese, the Tigers active career leader in rebounds and made field goals, and 6-1 junior Tim Crossin, their active career three-pointers leader, are all reserves these days.
The game marks a return to what have been happy hunting grounds over the years for the Bison, who have not played in the Towson Center since the Charlie Woollum era (1991), but back in the old East Coast Conference Days, the Towson Center was like a home away from home for Bucknell, which has a large alumni base in the Baltimore area. The Bison earned their first two trips to the NCAA Tournament with wins there (1987 over Towson and 1989 over Lafayette in ECC finals). Over the years, Bucknell is 8-6 against the Tigers there.
BONUS LINKS:
SCOUTING ROBERT MORRIS: Opened with 72-66 win over Kevin (son of HC coach Ralph) Willard's Iona team. Picked second in the Northeast Conference behind Sacred Heart. Guard Jeremy Chappell, a starter last year. came off the bench to lead RMU with 20 points. RMU's first-year coach, former Pitt assistant Mike Rice says Chappell might move back into the starting lineup, though he likes the offensive spark Chappell brings off the bench.
Chappell is one of four returning starters from last season's 17-11 team. Tony Lee, a 6-0 senior guard, is the top returning scorer. A 1,000-point career scorer, Lee averaged 16.9 ppg last year, earning second team All-NEC honors. Lee had 7 points, 11 rebounds, 7 assists and 4 steals in the opener.
Lee and A.J. Jackson, a 6-6 senior forward, were both preseason all-conference picks. Jackson, who had 16 points against Iona, needs 11 to reach 1,000 for his career.
Freddie Harris, a 6-9 senior, returns at center for the Colonials.
One place RMU is inexperienced is at the point. Starter Jimmy Langhurst played in only 4 conference games as a freshman, tallying a total of 11 minutes of action. Langhurst, who is not a true point guard, is supposedly the best shooter on the team, though he was 0 for 5 (0-4 from the arc) against Iona.
Rice's biggest concern entering the season was defense, something not emphasized by his predecessor. Against Iona, the Colonials had 12 steals and held the Gaels to 24 for 59 (40.7) from the field. But they did not defend the arc very well. Iona was 10 for 19 there.
BONUS LINKS:
SCOUTING ST. PETER'S: The lowly Peacocks are picked to finish dead last in the 10-team MAAC. Opened season by blowing a 12-point lead in an 81-78 loss at UMBC.
The Peacocks are a guard-oriented team. Only one guy on the roster, 6-8 freshman center Ryan Bacon (a starter) is taller than 6-7. Three of the four guys who scored in double figures against UMBC were guards. Raul Orta, a 6-5 senior, led the scoring with 19. Darrell Lampley, a 5-0 freshman, came off the bench for 15, including three treys and 5-11 redshirt freshman Nick Leon added 11. Another freshman, 6-2 Wesley Jackson, hit a trio of three-pointers off the bench.
St. Peter's top returnee is 6-7 senior forward Todd Sowell. Sowell, a preseason third team all-league pick, averaged 13 points and 8.5 boards last season. Sowell had 11 points and 8 rebounds against UMBC.
In the opener, St. Peter's shot 51.5 percent (29-56) from the field, including 10 of 21 threes. They held UMBC to a 40-percent night (24-66) from the field, 6 for 13 at the arc. But they committed 28 fouls, sending the Peacocks to the line 37 times, where they made 27 to pull out the win.
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