Boston 2010 CBI Tournament Preview

Boston Terriers - America East Conference (19-13, 11-5)

Big Wins: 11/25 Northeastern (69-64), 2/27 Maine (76-56), 3/7 vs Stony Brook (70-63)

Bad Losses: 11/17 George Washington (59-69), 1/2 Stony Brook (75-84), 1/27 at Maine (54-56)

Coach: Patrick Chambers

Probable Boston Starters:

• Tyler Morris, Senior, Guard, 9.5 ppg, 3.6 apg, 1.6 spg

• Carlos Strong, Senior, Guard, 10.1 ppg, 1.6 apg, 4.6 rpg

• John Holland, Junior, Forward, 19.0 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 1.5 spg

• Jake O’Brien, Sophomore, Forward, 13.5 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 1.2 bpg

• Jeff Pelage, Sophomore, Center, 3.0 ppg, 5.3 rpg

Key Boston Roleplayers:

• Corey Lowe, Senior, Guard, 15.1 ppg, 4.1 apg, 4.5 rpg

• Valdas Sirutis, Senior, Forward, 2.0 ppg, 2.3 rpg

• Brendan Sullivan, Senior, Forward, 0.6 ppg, 1.2 rpg

Why The Terriers Can Surprise:
No team in the America East Conference has as many offensive weapons as Boston University. Five players average at least 9.5 points per game. Wing John Holland is the best of the bunch, averaging a smooth 19.0 points. Holland, a 6-5 junior, can score in every possible way. He is a capable outside shooter, but will use his size to attack the basket. Much of the time that results in a trip to the free-throw line where he shoots an impressive 84.2 percent. Corey Lowe has been relegated to the bench late in the season, but he is still a superb scorer. He is the Terriers most prolific outside shooter and his ability to come in off the bench and consistently knock down three’s provides a big boost to the offense.

Carlos Strong and Tyler Morris are a couple more guards who are equally dangerous shooting the ball from outside or attacking the basket. Morris, along with Lowe, do a majority of the ball handling, but Lowe’s knack for turning the ball over has increased Morris’ workload. Jake O’Brien is the forward who is a threat to score, but this is a team that relies on its outside shooting and O’Brien provides plenty of that. He is not a great outside shooter and can mix it up in the paint, but his ability to stretch out the defense is quite helpful.

Why The Terriers Can Disappoint:
With all those shooters, rebounding is obviously a concern. Boston U often gets beat on the boards despite the best efforts from Holland and O’Brien. Even Lowe and Strong average over four rebounds per game, but they also play at least 30 minutes per game. That leads to the lack of depth concern. After the big five scorers, there is not much else on this team and Coach Patrick Chambers has little choice but to play small. Valdas Sirutis can steal some minutes off the bench, but the 6-7 Lithuanian spends a lot of time on the perimeter and is not very strong on the glass.

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Who To Watch for Boston:
The one player who stays under the basket is Jeff Pelage. The 6-9, 240 pound center is not a scorer, but he is needed in the starting lineup. While he only plays 17.2 minutes per game and is often in foul trouble, Pelage is key to the success of Boston University in the postseason. He is the big body who can be intimidating on the defensive end of the floor and he is a great rebounder considering how little he is actually on the floor.

Boston By the Numbers:

Scoring Offense: 70.8 (126th in nation, 1st in conference)

Scoring Defense: 66.4 (127, 5)

Field-Goal Percentage: 40.5 (295, 7)

Field-Goal Defense: 40.3 (48, 3)

Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 8.3 (17, 1)

Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 35.6 (98, 1)

Free-Throw Percentage: 73.0 (44, 1)

Rebound Margin: -0.7 (213, 7)

Assists Per Game: 11.1 (289, 6)

Turnovers Per Game: 13.7 (170, 5)