Sports of Boston » MikeBBonner

Eagles Snap Slump with Big First Half

MikeBBonner — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 20:01:38 +0000

Something had to give. Sure, Clemson came into Conte Forum as the 21st ranked team in the nation, but it also had lost its last two games. For Boston College, the drought was even worse, having lost five of its last seven. What gave was both teams. The Eagles dominated the first half, while the Tigers took the second by double digits. Luckily for the home team, their first half was superior than Clemson’s second, leading to a 75-69 win.

Rakim Sanders scored all of his 11 points in the first half propelling the Ealges to a 42-25 halftime lead. Clemson quickly jumped out to an 8-3 lead to begin the game. BC responded though, outscoring Clemon 39-17 the final 16 minutes of the first half. The Eagles shot better than 60 percent from the field and 40 percent from deep. They also cashed in from the charity stripe, nailing 12-of 16 (75 percent).

Eagles Take Advantage of Tigers Offensive Problems to Build Lead

All this was happening while the Tigers could not get anything rolling offensively. The Tiger shot below 38 percent from the field and didn’t make a single 3-pointer (0-of-8). They even struggled from the free throw line making just 3-of-8.

In the second half everything changed. Clemson was on fire and the Eagles cooled off. While the Eagles still shot over 50 percent from the field in the second half, the Tigers scorched the nets shooting 61.3 percent. After missing all eight attempts from deep in the first 20 minutes, Clemson nailed three in the second. BC cut its first half production in half, hitting only one. As the Tigers inched closer to the Eagles, Reggie Jackson kept Clemson at a safe distance. The guard scored 10 of his team high 18 after the break. Clemson’s Trevor Booker led all scorers with 19.

With the win the Eagles improve to 12-9 and 3-4 in the ACC. Boston College will host Florida State Saturday at Conte Forum.

Hero

Reggie Jackson: Off the bench, Jackson played like a starter finishing with 18 points, seven assists, and four rebounds.

Zero

Andre Young: Played all but one minute and managed seven points on 2-of-11 shooting.

Fat Lady Sings

:34: Reggie Jackson nails two free throws putting Boston College up six.

Big Number

55.8: Boston College shot better than 60 percent in the first half and followed that up shooting 50 percent in the second.

Loose Ball Layup Pushes Virginia Tech By BC

MikeBBonner — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 19:02:07 +0000

Boston College had trailed for most of the game, but had the lead when it mattered most. The Eagles battled back to a three point advantage with 29 seconds remaining. Unfortunately all the work only led to more heartbreak. The ensuing possession resulted in a Dallas Elmore foul led and two Virginia Tech free throws. The next time the Eagles touched the ball Biko Paris was pick-pocketed by the Hokies.

Virginia Tech nearly booted the Eagles gift way. Victor Davila lost the ball as he positioned himself under the basket, but Dorenzo Hudson cleaned up the mess and put it in to put the Hokies up by one with five ticks to go. Reggie Jackson did boot away the Eagles’ opportunity and no one was there to clean up his mess. Time expired and BC had lost its third straight, 63-62.

Eagles Trail Most of the Game, But Still in it at the End

Boston College trailed for all of the first half and by as many as nine in the second half. The Eagles didn’t capture their first lead until almost seven minutes into the second half. BC knew it would have a dog fight on its hands. The Hokies entered Saturday night’s game 9-0 at home and 14-3 overall.

The Eagles did have four players in finish in double figures with Reggie Jackson leading the way with 15. They also shot 55 percent from the field while holding the Hokies to under 39 percent. However, BC’s 19 turnovers outweighed its sharpshooting.

Hudson finished with a game high 18 including the most important two of the game in the final seconds giving Virginia Tech the win. Boston College is now 11-9 overall and 2-4 in the ACC. The Eagles have now lost five of its last seven. It won’t get any easier for BC. Tuesday night it will host a hungry Clemson squad coming off two straight losses, the most recent coming at home to Duke.

Hero

Dorenzo Hudson: Surprise. Surprise. Hudson had a game high 18 points including the game winning bucket with fives seconds remaining.

Zero

Biko Paris: Scored just two points and committed five turnovers, the last of which allowed Virginia Tech to have the ball with less than 30 seconds remaining.

Fat Lady Sings

2.0: Reggie Jackson fumbles the ball ending any hope of a game winning buzzer beater for the Eagles.

Big Number

19: Number of turnovers committed by the Eagles compared to only nine by the Hokies.

Stat To Know

55%, 37.5%, 93%: The Eagles shot 55 percent from the field (16 points better than Virginia Tech), 37.5 percent from deep (more than 12 points better), and 93 percent from the charity stripe (almost 15 points better) and still lost to the Hokies.

Maryland Pounds Eagles into Last Place in ACC

MikeBBonner — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 05:47:07 +0000

It wasn’t over before it started, but it was soon there after.

For the entire 40 minutes of Saturday’s game, Maryland had the upper hand against Boston College. When the final buzzer sounded the Terrapins squashed the Eagles 73-57. The loss is the third straight conference game in which the Eagles have allowed their opponents to score in the 70s while BC has only managed to score in the 50s.

Eagles Drop to Bottom of ACC

What’s worse about the most recent defeat is this one came in Conte Forum in front of more than 8,000 faithful. The Eagles have now lost five of six, the one win coming against the New Jersey Institute of Technology (if that even counts). It’s even worse within the ACC. Yes Boston College dropped to 10-8 overall but it owns a league worst 1-3 record in the conference. The 10 wins are tied with Virginia for the lowest total in the conference, but the Cavaliers are a perfect 2-0 in the ACC.

Maryland opened an 18 point first half lead, but BC was able to cut it to 10 heading into the half. The Terrapins wouldn’t be denied of a dominant performance. Gary Williams’ bunch came out of the locker room jumping all over the Eagles with a 8-2 run.

With 3:21 remaining the lead ballooned to a game high 25.

Corey Raji led the way for BC with 14 but Maryland had an answer finishing with four players scoring at least 13 points. Greivis Vazquez finished with a game high 17 and nine assists.

The Eagles will have an opportunity to snap their three game losing streak Tuesday against Miami. BC has already beaten the Hurricanes this season.

Hero:

Greivis Vasquez: Topped all scorers with 17 and also had a game high nine assists.

Zero:

Biko Paris: For the second time this year, the captain failed to score a point and had more turnovers than assists for the third consecutive game.

Fat Lady Sings

3:21 : Adrian Bowie converts the three-point play by sinking his free throw which put Maryland up 25 and clinched the game for the Terrapins.

Big Number

21 : The number of points the Terrapins cashed in off of BC turnovers.

Stat To Know

Points in the Paint: BC scored a total of 10 points in the paint during Saturday’s contest against Maryland. The Eagles have now scored just 20 total points in the paint the last game and half after putting put 24 in the paint in the first half against Duke.

BC Can’t Continue Success In Paint, Falls to Duke

MikeBBonner — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 23:01:42 +0000

Tyler Roche had just stolen the ball from Nolan Smith, the game’s eventual leading scorer. Corey Raji leaked out of the congestion in Duke’s offensive zone and Roche spotted him in the open frontcourt. The Boston College forward lobbed the pass perfectly over the Duke defender landing just feet ahead Raji with only blue court standing between him and the basket.

As Raji attempted to corral the pass, he slipped and fell in the paint resulting in a traveling violation. It’s how the entire second half played out every time the Eagles stepped into the paint as the Blue Devils pummeled the Eagles 79-59.

Eagles Use Inside Game to Hang with Duke

At the opposite end of the court, in the first half, Boston College thrived in the paint netting 24 of its total 35 points. The Eagles tried to establish a presence down low before the game even started. Josh Southern, at 6-foot-10, took the place of Reggie Jackson, 6-foot-3, in the starting lineup. The move worked to perfection in the opening minutes as Southern scored seven points in the first 5:37. Unfortunately he would score zero points in the final 34:23.

The rest of the Eagles followed Southern’s performance especially in the second half. Boston College finished with 10 points in the paint after the break, eight of which came in the final three minutes when the Blue Devils held a lead of at least 20. Duke’s lead blossomed to 20 due to the dependency on outside shots the Eagles developed in the second half. While BC was chucking up shots and missing them, Duke was capitalizing. They opened the second half with a 14-2 run and the two points for the Eagles were a result of a technical foul called on Jon Scheyer for tipping the BC inbounds pass before the ball crossed the baseline.

Eagles Have No Answer for Duke Run

Head coach Al Skinner attempted to stop the run by calling two timeouts before the under 16 media timeout, but his team continued to focus its offensive gameplan everywhere but inside. As a result Duke’s 14-2 run evolved into a 24-7 run, putting the Blue Devils up 20. Leading the way for the Devils in their second half charge was Smith who tied a career high 24, Scheyer finishing with 12, and Kyle Singler who had 15. The trio combined to score 18 of the 24 points during Duke’s run.

As Duke’s stars flourished, Boston College’s were nonexistent. Joe Trapani and Rakim Sanders combined for 11 points. The only player who shined for the Eagles was the same player that was removed for the starting lineup, Reggie Jackson. The sophomore lead his team with 20 points, but his effort wasn’t enough. After pushing the margin to 20, the Eagles never cut the lead under 18. And when the Eagles finally started looking into the post the Blue Devils cushion was up to 25.

The Eagles drop to 1-2 in the conference and 10-7 overall. The game against Duke ended a two game conference road trip that resulted in two losses. Boston College can bounce back Saturday against ACC foe Maryland in Conte Forum.

Hero

Nolan Smith – Tied a career high with 24 points, scoring 14 in the second half.

Zero

Rakim Sanders – This moniker is becoming a trend for Sanders in BC’s losses. He finished with three points in 31 minutes of play.

Fat Lady Sings

11:17 – Brian Zoubeck puts in a Jon Scheyer miss putting the Blue Devils up 20, a lead from that point on would shrink never less than 18.

Big Number

2 – After hanging with the Blue Devils in the first half due to scoring 24 points in the paint, BC managed just two in the first 17 minutes of the second half.

Stat To Know

0-5 - Boston College’s record in Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Clemson Hands BC First Conference Loss

MikeBBonner — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 03:50:52 +0000

Boston College faced its most difficult test of the season in Clemson, South Carolina and could not come up with a passing grade. The No. 21 Tigers trounced the Eagles 72-56. With the loss the Eagles now fall to 1-1 in the ACC.

At halftime, Clemson had a 12 point cushion and it only grew in the second. Tanner Smith nailed a three-pointer just eight seconds into the second half pushing the lead to 15. At its closest, Boston Collge could only managed to slice two points off that margin. The 13-point deficit lasted for 20 seconds and the Eagles didn’t respond, going scoreless for nearly six minutes.

Second Half Problems Irrelevant

When BC’s next basket occurred the game was even further out of reach at 69-50 with 2:52 remaining. BC trailed for all but 2:02 of the game. Its only lead of the contest came when Joe Trapani’s layup gave the Eagles a 2-0 lead.

It won’t get any easier for the Eagles. Their southern road trip continues Wednesday in Durham, North Carolina to take on Duke. The Blue Devils are 13-2 and ranked fifth in both polls.

Hero

Trevor Booker: Lead all scorers finishing with 19. He also finished with five rebounds, four blocks, two assists, and two steals.

Zero

Rakim Sanders: Took 14 shots in 32 minutes of play, but managed just nine points and four turnovers.

Fat Lady Sings

5:03: Andre Young hit both of his free throws to give the Tigers a 20 point lead.

Big Number

2: The number of three-pointers the Eagles made all game. BC saw two of its 16 three-point attempts fall.

Stat to Know

The loss to Clemson was the first suffered by BC to the hands of an opponent belonging to a major conference.

FINALLY! BC Takes Care of Mid-Major NJIT

MikeBBonner — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 01:38:44 +0000

What’s the best way to forget struggles against mid-major opponents? The New Jersey Institute of Technology. The former Division II program visited Conte Forum, but Boston College must have not receieved the memo NJIT is now Divison I. The Eagles acted as if the Highlanders didn’t belong on the same court, winning 89-32.

For the first four minutes of the game, Boston College routed back to its bad habits against inferior teams. At the 16:02 mark in the first half, BC actually trailed 10-7 before erupting on a 38-4 run to close out the half. The Highlanders failed to convert on a field goal attempt the final 11 minutes of the half.

The runs continued in the second half as the Eagles came out of the gate on a 10-1 run, extending their lead to 55-15. Rakim Sanders led the way for the Eagles in their 57 point win with 21. Joe Trapani wasn’t far behind with 18.

The game against NJIT finishes off BC’s weaker opponents as conference play continues Saturday when the Eagles go on the road to face Clemson. Boston College will make a pit stop in Durham, North Carolina to take on Duke January 13.

Hero

Joe Trapani: The forward finished with 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting. He also grabbed eight boards, had two assists and two blocks in 21 minutes of play.

Zero

The Entire Highlander Team: Thirty-two points the entire game. They took 51 shots and saw only 12 fall throw the net.

Fat Lady Sings

Halftime: The Eagles have blown some second half leads, but none that were 55-15.

Big Number

12 : The Highlanders made only 12 shots the entire game, a record low in Conte Forum.

Stat To Know

6:30: With 6:30 remaining in the first half, Reggie Jackson nailed one of his three three-pointers to give the Eagles a 35-13 lead. Boston College didn’t need another bucket from this point on.

New Year, Same Bad Habits as BC Loses to Another Mid-Major

MikeBBonner — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 23:46:45 +0000

A new year for the Eagles just brought the same problems of 2009: embarrassing loses to mediocre mid-major teams. In its worst performance of the season, Boston College lost at home to Maine 52-51. The loss to the America East foe is the fifth BC has suffered this season from a team not associated with a major conference. The Eagles are now 5-5 against mid-major conferences with struggles resulting from a lack of focus.

Against the power conferences, BC is 4-0 with wins against the Big East’s Providence, the Big Ten’s Michigan, in the ACC against Miami, and most recently handling the SEC’s South Carolina easily. In each of those games Boston College lost focus as well. The Eagles jumped out of the gate creating a double digit cushion in the second half. In all four contests though second half leads of at least 15 slipped into single digits down the stretch.

Eagles Losing to Low Mid-Major Teams

Against mid-major the Eagles never seem ready to play. They are not only losing to lesser conferences, but to teams that are not even supposed to be good. Rhode Island and St. Joseph’s were picked to finish 8th and 10th respectively in the Atlantic 10. In the Ivy League, Harvard was selected to finish fourth. Only Northern Iowa out of the Missouri Valley Conference was picked to finish in the top three of their league. The Panthers recieved 38 of 39 first place preseason votes to win the Missouri Valley.

Saturday’s loss to Maine is the worst on BC’s resume. The Black Bears entered the game with a 6-5 record and was picked to finish EIGHTH in its conference by the America East coaches. Maine had played two power conference teams, Syracuse and Connecticut, and lost by a combined 63 points.

Leads Continue to Vanish on the Eagles

Boston College took a 32-27 lead into the half. The Eagles seemed like they were about to put the game away early in the second after Joe Trapani, who had a game high17, nailed a three to put BC up eight. Maine would close out the last 15 minutes of play on a 19-10 run, finally recapturing the lead with 1:10 remaining in the game. Neither team scored the rest of the game.

Rakim Sanders had two opportunites down the stretch to get the win, but missed both shots. With four seconds to go Troy Barnies swatted away Sanders attempt at a layup. The win for Maine was its first since the 1924-25 season against Boston College.

The Eagles would seem to have a very good chance to rebound January 5 against New Jersey Institute of Technology. But the way BC has performed thus far against mid-majors, nothing is certain.

Hero

Sean McNally – Lead the Black Bears with 15 points and seven rebounds. He also drilled both free throws with 1:10 remaining to give Maine the win.

Zero

Rakim Sanders – Scored one point in the second half and missed both opportunites down the stretch to win it for the Eagles.

Fat Lady Sings

00:04 - Troy Barnies blocks Rakim Sanders’ attempt to win it for Boston College.

Big Number

85 – The years since the Eagles last lost to Maine.

Stat To Know

5-5 – Boston College is .500 against mid-majors this season.

Eagles Slip By Gamecocks As 23 Point Lead Disappears

MikeBBonner — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 21:24:22 +0000

When the clock read triple zero and fans filed out of Conte Forum, Boston College had beaten South Carolina by a margin of nine points, 85-76. As it entered the locker room at halftime, the margin was more than double at 21. Just 100 seconds earlier the Eagles’ cushion stood at 23. Whatever was said in the locker room though did not motivate BC to extend that lead.

Trend of Second Half Problems Continues

The Eagles opened the second half by committing seven turnovers in the first 6:30 in contrast to the four first half turnovers. The turnovers were caused by the Gamecocks unleashing a full court press. The lethargic play led to a 15-2 South Carolina run slicing BC’s lead to 10. The sloppy play continued for Boston College and South Carolina continued to capitalize. During the next 3:15 the Gamecocks ballooned its 15-2 run to a 28-8 run.

Surprisingly the game’s leading scorer, Devan Downey, only contributed four of his 29 points to the run. Most of his 19 second half points came after the run in attempts to keep the margin in single digits. Boston College finally responded once its lead was cut to three with just under seven minutes remaining. Led by a team propelled 15-4 run, the Eagles pulled ahead by 14 with under minutes left in the game.

Tyler Roach contributed the most to the run by dropping four points. Rakim Sanders, who finished with a team high 22, chipped in three points. Josh Southern matched Sanders’ three, while Biko Paris and Dallas Elmore took care of the rest.

The Eagles are now off until Saturday when the host the Black Bears of Maine.

Fat Lady Sings

2:48 – Rakim Sanders converts a three-point play extending BC’s lead to 11.

Hero

Rakim Sanders – Led the Eagles with 22 and also grabbed seven boards.

Zero

Ramon Galloway – In 28 minutes of play, shot 2-of-8 from the field and 0-of-3 from deep finishing with six points.

Big Number

7 – Nearly half of the Eagles 15 turnovers were committed within the first six and half minutes of the second half.

Stat To Know

4 – In four of Boston College’s last six wins it has had a second half cushion larger than 16 only to see it shrink to below five.

Raji, Trapani Second Half Surge Leads BC Over UMass

MikeBBonner — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 13:21:15 +0000

After totaling two points in the first half, Corey Raji and Joe Trapani combined for 34 points in the second half. The second half surge allowed Boston College to cruise to a 79-67 win over UMass. The two-headed second half monster was far from a terror in the first half. Trapani missed seven of his first eight shots, heading into the locker room with two points. Raji was even worse: the junior forward missed all five of his shots in the first 20 minutes of play.

Eagles Lead at Halftime Despite Troubles

Even with the two struggling, BC still took a 26-25 lead into halftime. Out of the locker room, the duo of Raji and Trapani wasted to time making up for their poor play. They scored 27 of the Eagles first 31 points. The scoring barrage increased what was a one point lead at halftime to a game high 12 point lead with 7:18 remaining. Trapani and Raji each finished with a team high 18 points.

RakimSanders was not far behind with 15. In his third consecutive game back after injuring his ankle, Sanders finished with a career high eight assists, five coming in the first eight minutes of the second half to either Raji or Trapani.

Gurley Shines for UMass Despite Loss

For the Minutemen, guard Anthony Gurley had game highs 23 points and 10 rebounds. Gurley nailed a three-pointer with 14:35 remaining in the game to tie the game at 40. The Eagles responded via jumpers from Raji and Trapani. Trapani answered Gurley’s three with a long range jumper of his own. Raji then hit back-to-back buckets, followed up by a layup by, who else, Trapani. It capped off a 9-2 run. From that point on UMass could not cut the lead to fewer than six.

Boston College gets a week off and will play South Carolina Wednesday, December 30.

Hero(es)

Joe Trapani/Corey Raji - The two combined to score 34 points in the second half. The duo began the half scoring 27 of the Eagles first 31.

Zero

Terrell Vinson – Scored two points and grabbed two boards in 23 minutes. He did manage to account for four fouls though.

Fat Lady Sings

1:18 – Reggie Jackson hit a jumper to put BC up nine.

Big Number

6 – The number of turnovers committed by the Eagles the ENTIRE game.

Stat To Know

10 of 11 - With the win, the Eagles have now won 10 of their last 11 against UMass. BC leads the overall series 25-18.

Report: Trade for Gonzalez Could Happen Within 10 days

MikeBBonner — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 23:09:20 +0000

Construction for that “bridge” to 2012 Theo Esptein and Co. reiterated throughout this offseason is on hold. With the signings of Mike Cameron and John Lackey, the Red Sox seem to be gearing up for 2010. Foxsports.com is reporting that the “bridge” might be built, but the destination would be San Diego to help Adrian Gonzalez get to Boston.

According to Fox’s sources, the Red Sox are working hard to acquire the power hitting first baseman for the Padres. ESPN’s Jorge Arangure posted on his Twitter that sources close to Gonzalez said he believes he will be traded to Boston within the next 10 days. Then again, the Herald’s Michael Silverman says his sources said a deal between the Sox and Paders is “remote”.

If Arangure’s sources are right, the Sox will have undergone a dramatic face lift acquiring Cameron, Lackey and Gonzalez in a matter of a week and half.

There is a lot of smoke, but nothing close to fire. San Diego would be tempted to accept a deal including BOTH Jacoby Ellsbury and Clay Buchholz, but sources in the report said the Sox are very reluctant do include both in a deal. Rumors also have floated around that a deal would have to include both Buchholz and prized prospect Casey Kelly.

Ellsbury and Buchholz may have been untouchable at some points in their respective careers, but the recent signings (Lackey and Cameron) and perhaps future signings could make them expendable for the likes of a Gonzalez.

Is Buchholz Expendable?

With the addition of John Lackey, the Sox now have a rotation of Josh Beckett, Jon Lester, Lackey, Daisuke Matsuzaka and Tim Wakefield. Don’t forget about the arms still on the farm like Junichi Tazawa and Kelly. The Sox are also in a very good position to sign Aroldis Chapman, a Cuban lefty who can throw 100 mph.

The Red Sox have already offered Champan a $15 million deal. The Sox also signed fellow Cuban defector Jose Iglesias, which may help the team hook Chapman, because the two played together in Cuba and are friends.

Bottom line: Buchholz is expendable, especially if Boston can sign Chapman.

How About Ellsbury?

On to Ellsbury, and the line of expendable/untouchable becomes blurry.

Jacoby-of-all Trades

Right now, even as Ellsbury has room to improve, he is one of the best players in the major leagues at what he does. Few teams have a better leadoff man. There are not five better defensive center fielders in the game, either. Also, on the base paths, he is as feared as anyone.

Why Trade Him? Who Would Play CF?

Mike Cameron gives the Red Sox this flexibility. He can play center field at an above average caliber at the very worst, as he won the Gold Glove playing the position in 2003 and 2006.

As for Ellsbury’s offensive abilities, there might be another bridge until 2011. Carl Crawford will likely be a free agent and if the Sox could swoop in an sign the Tampa Bay outfielder, his numbers could come remarkably close to Ellsbury’s.

Here’s how both players stacked up in 2009:

	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	AVG	OBP
Ellsbury	624	94	188	27	10	8	60	70	49	.301	.350
Crawford	606	96	185	28	8	15	68	60	51	.305	.364

Crawford is only two years older than Ellsbury and perhaps most important to note, his agent is not named Scott Boras (unlike Ellsbury). Also, don’t rule out the fact that Jason Bay still remains unsigned, and could return leaving the Sox outfield as Bay, Cameron, and J.D. Drew.

Yo, Adrian?

The other reason the Sox could possibly be inclined to include Ellsbury in the deal is they would be getting Adrian Gonzalez in return. Gonzalez hit 40 home runs and drove in 100 runs…on the worst offensive team in baseball. It wouldn’t be expecting too much from the first basemen to slug 50 HRs in Fenway Park, on a much better team. He led the majors last year in home runs per at bat on the road, slugging a home run just about every 10 at bats.

Gonzalez would also fit right into the Red Sox defensive philosophy. The past two years, he has taken home the Gold Glove at first base.

Finally, the 27-year-old slugger is also one of baseball’s best bargains. He signed for $4.75 million next season with a $5.5 million club option for 2011. What’s not to like?