One-Bid Wonders

Ex-BU star Rashad Bell has been rattling rims all over the world.

Former Boston University star forward Rashad Bell and his Hungarian squad, Szolnoki, came up just short in their all-or-nothing quest for a Hungarian League title, losing 75-66 in the fifth and final game of the Championship.

But Bell did claim a consolation prize of sorts, in addition to the runner-up finish, in the form of a soul-stealing tomahawk slam over 6’10” 240-pound Hungarian skyscraper Akos Keller in the second game of the series. A week later, the basket support may well still be shaking from Bell’s head-at-the-rim thunder-dunk, which can be seen at the 38-second mark in the video below.

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A three-time America East champion at Vermont, Taylor Coppenrath is playing for his fourth Spanish title.

It’s been almost two months since America East season came to an end when the Albany Great Danes were bounced from The Big Dance by top-seed Duke and the Stony Brook Seawolves took a tumble in the second round of the NIT at Iowa. But several America East alums are still chasing titles in some of the best leagues in the world.

Former America East Champions Taylor Coppenrath and Rashad Bell will be playing for their league championships this week in Spain and Hungary, respectively, while former two-time America East champ Jason Siggers is in hot pursuit of the chip in France.

From 2001-2005 Coppenrath flat-out owned the America East as the most statistically dominant player in league history. Over his four-year career at Vermont, the 6’9” 250 pound Coppenrath amassed 2,442 career points, good for third in the league’s all-time record book. After winning the 2002 Rookie of the Year award, Coppenrath won three straight Player of the Year awards (joining late, great Reggie Lewis as the only players in league history to win the award three times), leading the Catamounts to the NCAA tournament each time. His 14 Player of the Week awards are tied with former-NBA player Vin Baker for the most in America East history.

Coppenrath scored a combined 80 points in the league title game over his last two seasons at Vermont, earning championship MVP honors both years. His 43 points in the 2004 Championship Game (despite missing the previous three weeks and playing the entire game in a brace because of a broken wrist) remain an America East Championship Game record. Coppenrath, of course, would lead the Catamounts to their historic first-round upset of Syracuse University in the 2005 NCAA Tournament as a senior.

After turning pro, Coppernath went to training camp with the Boston Celtics in 2005 and Indiana Pacers in 2006, coming that close to making the league (according to several NBA insiders, if not for persistent back injuries that have nagged him throughout his career, Coppenrath would have been all but guaranteed at least a cup of coffee in the league).

Even though he came up short of his NBA dreams, Coppenrath has followed up one of the greatest college careers in America East history with one of the most successful professional careers of any AE alumn. In his eight years as a pro, Coppernath has played in the Euroleague (a trans-national league made up of the best teams from across Europe), as well as the top league’s in Greece (A1), Italy (SerieA), Spain (ACB – regarded as the top domestic league in the world outside of the NBA) as well as the second-division in Spain (LEB Oro) – all regarded as top domestic leagues.

After winning three league titles in college, as a professional, all Coppenrath has done is win. The LEB Oro (or LEB Gold) may be the second division in Spain, but it is widely regarded as a top-five league in Europe and Coppernath has entrenched himself as one of the league’s best players, guiding three different teams to the championship and a spot in the ACB the following season (the regular season and post season champions of the second division move up to the first division and the bottom two first division teams drop down to the following year).

Now Coppenrath has a chance to do it a fourth time, leading Lucentum Alicante (a team he has previously guided to a championship) through the playoffs and into a best-of-five championship series. Coppenrath’s eighth season of pro ball may have been his best, as he has averaged a team-best 14 points per game while shooting a robust 58.5 percent from the floor to go along with 5.8 rebounds (good for second on his team).

Coppenrath’s quest for his seventh championship (and fourth as a pro) tips off Friday, May 24, in a best-of-five game series.

Rashad Bell won the 2002 America East Championship at Boston University, now he’s playing for the Hungarian title.

If his career hadn’t coincided with Coppenrath’s, Bell would likely have been regarded as the premier America East power forward of his era. (more…)

Boston University point guard Maurice Watson Jr. converts a tough lay-up in traffic in the Terriers 79-69 win. Watson posted his second career, and second straight, double-double with 11 points and 10 assists (Photo by Sam Perkins).

(Boston, MA) – With 10:15 remaining in the second half Wednesday night, Boston University freshman point guard Maurice Watson Jr. stood with the ball, motionless, on the right wing. In the blink of an eye, Watson put the ball on the floor and, in one zero-to-sixty step, was at full speed, driving the lane and the Albany Great Danes were backpedaling on their heels.

Just as quickly, Watson stopped on a dime and fired the ball to freshman gunner John Papale on the right wing, sending Albany scrambling in an air raid drill. In one swift motion, Papale caught Watson’s dish and swung it – like a hot potato – to junior point guard D.J. Irving, the second half of the Terriers lightening-fast dynamic ball handling duo, in the right corner.

Albany forward Jayson Gurrier, in an all out dive, managed to take out Irving’s legs, sending him sprawling to the hardwood, just as the junior let fly. It was no use: with the referee’s whistle echoing off the rear-wall of Case Gymnasium, Irving’s three settled, soft as silk, through the bottom of the cylinder, pushing the Terriers lead to 53-49.

On the ensuing possession, the Great Danes worked the ball to their own star point guard, Mike Black, who sprung loose on the left wing. Black let fly, but his shot fell flat, clanging off the back iron and caroming over the top of the backboard and out of bounds.

It was the night in the nutshell, as Boston University continued its personal vendetta against the America East; punishing every conference foe that gets in their way on their way out the door. On Wednesday night, it was Albany’s turn, with BU stepping on the gas to dust the Great Danes, 79-69, in a run-and-gun romp.

“You’re either going to give up lay-ups off to those two guys,” said Brown off the Terriers dual-point guards, “or they’re going to find [Papale] and he’s going to hit jumper after jumper.”

In their best offensive outing of the season, the Terriers shot 51.9 percent from the floor (28-of-54), 40 percent from downtown (10-of-25) and moved the ball magnificently, dishing out 17 assists to just four turnovers. Four players broke double-figures for BU, which has now won a season-best five straight games and ten of their last twelve. (more…)

Boston University point guard Maurice Watson Jr., pushed the ball in transition against New Hampshire Sunday afternoon. Watson posted his first career double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds, adding six assists and three steals in the Terriers 68-56 win (Photo by Sam Perkins).

(Boston, MA) – Following Boston University’s 68-56 win over visiting New Hampshire, BU freshman point guard Maurice Watson Jr. – listed at 5’10” on the Terriers’ official roster – was asked just how tall he would like to credit himself with being.

“Five-ten,” said Watson with a mischievous smile, “Five-ten and a half in my sneakers.”

Dwarfed by a surrounding scrum of 5’9” writers, it was immediately apparent that the Lansdowne, Pennsylvania native was taking some serious liberties in assessing his stature.

But Watson and equally diminutive back-court mate D.J. Irving played like seven-footers on Sunday, as the dynamic-duo dominated the game and destroyed the visiting Wildcats on the glass, 43-28. The pint-sized playmakers powered the Terriers, combining for 23 points, 19 rebounds, 12 assists and five steals.

“Those two kids can play – they can play basketball, doesn’t matter if they’re five-whatever or six-four, those two kids can play,” said New Hampshire head coach Bill Herrion of the tiny tandem.

A week after notching a career-high 13 assists, Watson posted his first career double-double, pulling down a game and career-high 10 rebounds to go with 13 points. The America East leader in assists at 5.2 per game, Watson dropped six dimes and swiped three steals.

Officially listed at 6’ but checking in much closer to 5’9”, Irving added nine rebounds and ten points, to go with six steals and two steals. After spending his first two years on Comm. Ave., as the Terriers starting point guard, the junior from Chester, Pennsylvania, moved off the ball this year to make room for Watson, but still ranks fifth in the America East in assists.

“Either one of those guys can initiate offense,” said Boston University head coach Joe Jones.

Junior forward Dom Morris continued his stellar junior season, scoring 13 points, shooting 5-of-9 from the floor and a perfect 3-of-3 from the line, to go with eight rebounds and three steals. Red-shirt sophomore forward Malik Thomas added 10 points and freshman sharp-shooter John Papale added nine points, with the duo combining to connect on four of the Terriers seven made three’s.

The Terriers shot 45.5 percent from the floor (25-of-55), 43.8 percent from behind the arc (7-of-16) and 78.6 percent from the line (11-of-16). BU jumped all over New Hampshire in the opening stanza, leading 34-17 at the half and pushed their lead to 20 early in the second, before coasting to the win.

“I thought we played a great half of basketball – I was very pleased with our effort for the first 20 minutes,” said Jones. “In the second half, just like you knew they would, they played with great heart in the second half. For the majority of the second half I thought they outplayed us.”

The Wildcats continued their season-long trend of being unable to put the ball in the bucket, shooting a dismal 37.5 percent from the floor (21-of-56), while bombing their way to a horrifying 4-of-22 (18.2 percent) from downtown.

“In the first half we were just three happy again,” said Herrion with a snap of his fingers, “when we do that, we’re not good.” (more…)

(Lowell, Massachusetts) – Sometime soon – maybe in as little as a few hours, maybe as long as a couple of days – it will be officially announced that the University of Massachusetts Lowell is making the jump from Division II to Division I Athletics and will be joining the America East as a full conference member.

You hear that? It’s the sound of the deafening silence that has enveloped the America East ever since Northeastern ditched the league for the Colonial Athletic Association in 2005 being shattered by a solitary golf-clap.

In all seriousness, I’m happy to hear the news – dare I say, downright excited. (more…)

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6’6″ 250 pound Boston University forward Dom Morris (right) drives against 6’7″ 260-plus pound Maine center Alasdair Fraser (left) Tuesday night. Morris scored a career-high 20 points for the Terriers in a 79-72 win, while Fraser was held to 16 points in the loss (Photo by Sam Perkins).

(Boston, MA) – If the definition of insanity is repeating the same mistake over and over again and expecting different results, then the Boston University Terriers and the University of Maine Black Bears played one bat-something-crazy game Tuesday night.

Facing off for the 100th and final time as conference foes, both teams continued their season long trends of shooting themselves in the foot while doing their best to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

The Terriers pounded Maine’s porous perimeter defense, burying 11-of-22 3-pointers and rode a scorching hot first half to a 79-72 win, but not before nearly blowing a 22 point second half lead while displaying an inexcusable lack of effort.

“We played a great first half,” said BU head coach Joe Jones. “The first seven, eight minutes of the second half I was pleased with and then we lost our concentration: I thought we could have extended our lead – it was really poor on our part in terms of decision making on offense down the stretch.”

The league’s worst 3-point field goal percentage defense, the Black Bears once again employed their never-fails-to-fail 2-3 zone defense of doom in an attempt to combat a barrage from downtown – a defense as useful defending the 3 as a screen door is on a submarine.

“We missed a couple shots, they got a couple turnovers, they got in transition and they hit 3’s – it wasn’t 2’s,” said Maine head coach Ted Woodward.

Not to be out-done, after dropping four conference games – along with a near epic meltdown against an overmatched UMBC squad – by simply not playing hard until the final buzzer, the Terriers once again failed to show even the slightest sense of urgency while mailing it in down the stretch.

“When we don’t play with energy, we’re not very good,” said Jones. “If we’re not going to come out and go after people, we’re going to struggle.”

The Terriers shot 58.1 percent from the floor (18-of-31) and 57.1 percent from behind the arc (8-of-14) in the opening stanza, and 49.1 percent from the floor (28-of-57) and 50 percent from three (11-of-22) for the game. BU dished out 18 assists, forced 18 turnovers and won the rebounding battle against the bigger and stronger Black Bears 34-33.

But the Terriers committed 16 turnovers of their own – many of them by simply being lazy and careless with the ball – resulting in 24 Black Bears points, allowing Maine to make a game of it. The Black Bears also scored 38 points in the paint to the Terriers 20, but shot just 26.7 percent from 3 (4-of-15).

“There were some really positive things: we shot 58 percent in the first half, we were 11-for-22 [from three], we had 18 assists – which is huge,” said Jones. “But if we want to be a championship caliber team… We have to concentrate at a higher rate a lot more consistently.”

Junior forward Dom Morris scored a career-high 20 points shooting a stellar 9-of-13 from the floor, to go with seven rebounds, two steals and a block to pace the Terriers.Freshman point guard Maurice Watson Jr., scored 14 points, dished out eight assists and swiped three steals. Freshman gunner John Papale scored 16 points on 6-of-12 shooting and junior wing Travis Robinson added nine; The duo combined to shoot 7-of-13 from behind the arc. Junior guard D.J. Irving struggled through a tough night on offense, shooting just 1-of-5 from the floor and committing six turnovers, but the diminutive 5’10” guard found a way to contribute, pulling down a game-high 10 rebounds. (more…)

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Hartford forward Oren Faulk sends Boston University guard D.J. Irving’s shot packing in the first half Saturday night. Faulk rejected two shots and the Hawks scored a resounding 66-58 win (Photo by Sam Perkins).

(West Hartford, CT) – America East team’s that don’t double Hartford forward Mark Nwakamma do so at their own peril, and any player forced to cover the 6’6” sophomore one-on-one should be afraid – very afraid.

Nwakamma shrugged off a foul-plagued first half to play a herculean second, pouring in 22 points while ripping down 12 rebounds to lead Hartford to a 66-58 win and season sweep over visiting Boston University. A one-man wrecking crew, Nwakamma single-handedly demolished the Terriers’ front line, hitting 9-of-15 shots in his second career double-double. The Leander, Texas, native added three assists, two steals and two monster rejections, while committing just two turnovers.

“He was terrific in the second half,” said Boston University head coach Joe Jones of Nwkamma, “he brought them home at the end.”

“Coach has confidence in me and I have confidence in myself: when I’m single covered to go right at them,” said Nwakamma.

Hartford shot 51.1 percent from the floor (23-of-45) and 43.8 percent from behind the arc (7-of-16), and held the Terriers to just 37.5 percent from the field (21-of-56) and 34.6 percent from three (9-of-26).

“We got great ball reversals, great post touches, I think 16 three’s is the perfect number of three’s for us to be taking,” said Hartford head coach John Gallagher. “I think we established physicality early. We are slowly becoming a physical team, which is exciting – very physical.”

Hartford won the rebounding battle 36-27, and in a heated and physical game that saw tempers flair and the benches empty after the final buzzer, thoroughly out-worked, out-fought and out-toughed the Terriers all night.

“They completely outplayed us in every facet of the game,” said Jones. “They executed at a higher level, they played harder, longer – they chased down loose balls.”

“I thought our guys, coming off an excruciating loss up eight the other night, we just showed our character,” said Gallagher, referencing Wednesday night’s home loss to Vermont, in which Hartford coughed up an eight point second half lead.

After spending their previous five games allergic to the low-blocks – bombing away bricks from behind the arc – Hartford outscored BU 30-24 in the paint. The Hawks also smothered the Terriers dribble-penetration – the lifeblood of their offense – turning Boston University into a jump shooting team.

Guard Wes Cole scored 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting in 15 minutes off the bench, reserve forward John Peterson added nine and guard Yolonzo Moore II chipped in eight for the Hawks, who had 10 different players log four or more minutes, with eight contributing in the scoring column. Reserve forward Oren Faulk added two blocks.

The Terriers were led by junior guard D.J. Irving, who scored 14 points but required 13 shots to do it, to go with eight rebounds and three assists. Travis Robinson added 11 points off the bench, shooting 4-of-6 from the floor and 3-of-5 from behind the arc. Freshman point guard Maurice Watson scored 10 points while dishing out four assists and freshman forward Nate Diuedonne added eight points and six rebounds off the bench. (more…)

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Boston University point guard Maurice Watson Jr., corrals a second-half pass with UMBC point guard Quinton Jones in hot pursuit (Photo by Sam Perkins).

(Boston, MA) – Offense was at a premium and defense hard to find on Saturday as the Boston University Terriers out-dueled the University of Maryland-Baltimore County Retrievers 81-75 in an all-out shootout between two run-and-gun offenses.

“We came out with no energy right from the start,” said BU head coach Joe Jones. “The silver lining is that we won the game and we made the plays that it took down the stretch to win the game.”

“Bottom line, we give up 50 points in the second half and that’s pretty much the tale of the game,” said UMBC interim head coach Aki Thomas.

Dom Morris led six Terriers in double figures, scoring a career-high 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting while pulling down a team-high eight rebounds. Point guard Maurice Watson Jr. scored 10 points and dished out six assists to just one turnover, forward Malik Thomas scored 10 points to go with eight rebounds, freshman forward Nate Dieudonne scored 11 points on 5-of-6 shooting, guard D.J. Irving added 13 points and guard John Papale chipped in 11.

Chase Plummer scored 19 points on 8-of-13 shooting, pulling down a game-high 11 rebounds and was generally the best player on the floor. Guard Ryan Cook scored 15 points, shooting 6-of-9 from the floor and 3-of-3 from behind the arc, and added six rebounds and three assists to just one turnover. Senior guard Brian Neller scored 12 points, on 4-of-9 shooting from downtown and forward Adrian Satchell added 11 points and six rebounds.

The game was played at a run-and-gun break-neck pace, with both team’s shooting better than 50 percent from the floor and posting a positive assist to turnover ratio. The game featured 10 ties and seven lead changes. (more…)

Special to One-Bid Wonders
By Zach Bye

When it comes to the America East matchup between UAlbany and Boston University, it seems the improbable becomes probable and the unlikely becomes certain.

With roughly 12 seconds remaining in the contest Wednesday night, hometown fans began to put on their jackets and prepare themselves for the sub-zero temperatures that awaited them outside the SEFCU arena in Albany. I remember the phrase I used on the air during my radio broadcast of the game after Mike Black’s two free throws gave Albany a seemingly comfortable six point cushion: “All signs here point toward a Great Danes victory that would give the club a 17-4 overall record and remain atop of the America East standings.”

I should have known better.

Boston’s junior guard DJ Irving would somehow jam six points into ten seconds to force overtime and eventually knock off a Danes team that had come into the contest a league best 7-1 at home.

Think about that for a brief second: Six points, ten seconds.

I found out after the fact that Boston’s play by play man and I both made the on-air analogy comparing Irving’s last second heroics to that of Reggie Miller against the Knicks in Madison Square Garden. It was the same scenario with the same result, except no Spike Lee on the sidelines, and Irving didn’t put his hands over his throat symbolizing ‘the choke’. My expression of disbelief must have matched that of the season high crowd of 3,685 judging by their gasp I could hear through my headset.

If this was the first time that UAlbany was on the wrong end of an absurd finish against Boston University I’m pretty sure Danes fans would tell you this single instance would fill their quota, but that’s not the case. Albany has now lost to Boston eight consecutive times dating back to 2009, and more specifically, four straight at home. Between then and now the matchup between the two has been nothing short of storybook. (more…)

Binghamton guard Mike Horn (left) and forward Jordan Reed (right) chase after Boston University guard D.J. Irving Saturday afternoon. Irving scored 16 points and BU blew out Binghamton 83-59 (photo by Sam Perkins)

(Boston, MA) – The reports of the Boston University Terriers’ demise are greatly exaggerated.

Through their first two games of the America East conference schedule, the Terriers were listless and lifeless: Holding eight-point second half leads on the road against Maine and at home against Hartford, the Terriers went softly into that good night and flat-lined down the stretch in back-to-back losses. Fast forward two games and the Terriers are alive and kicking.

They’re running, too.

After gassing America East heavyweight Vermont down the stretch in a gut-check win on Tuesday, Boston University turned on the jets and left visiting Binghamton in the rear-view mirror on Saturday in an 83-59 win.

“I was proud of the way they responded,” said Terriers head coach Joe Jones. “In the Vermont game: that was unbelievable effort. And to come back and get the job done [today]: that was big.”

The Terriers played a near perfect game, attacking the hoop off the dribble, making the extra pass to the open man, burying open three’s, pounding the ball into the post and finishing with authority above the rim. And as the game wore on, they only played harder, crisper and with more resolve.

The Terriers shot 54.5 percent from the floor (30-of-55) and 44.4 percent from downtown (12-of-27) while tying a while tying a season-high with 12 made three’s. BU dished out 19 assists, held the Bearcats to just 30.9 percent shooting from the floor (21-of-68) and won the rebounding battle 41-35.

“If we get stops and rebound and run; I don’t think there are many teams in the league that can stop us,” said Terriers’ junior guard D.J. Irving.

Irving paced four Terriers who scored in double figures with 16 points on 5-of-9 shooting to go along with a game-high seven assists. Freshman deadeye guard John Papale scored 14 points on 5-of-9 shooting and just missed his first career double-double with a game and career-high nine rebounds. (more…)