Corey Lowe is gone. Vanished into thin air.
OK, that’s hyperbole, but he’s not on the Boston University men’s basketball team anymore. That much is certain. The news hit Monday night, and it hit like a ton of bricks. Somehow the Terriers managed to keep it together.
After the Terriers’ 91-89 overtime win over Morehead State University, the story capturing everyone’s interest wasn’t BU’s second consecutive postseason victory, an America East first. It was the sudden, unexpected departure of a star player.
Ignoring the unknown circumstances influencing Lowe’s decision to leave the team, the emergence of an off-court storyline seems fitting. A BU basketball season extending beyond the end of hockey season is a rare sight indeed. With hockey out of the spotlight for once, the Terriers had a chance to shine.
Think about it. The CBI is not the NCAA Tournament or even the NIT &- what type of legitimate postseason tournament is televised on HDNet? &- but the games are still an appropriate challenge for a team of BU’s caliber. The opponents for the first two rounds were both above average. Oregon State University and Morehead State are, at worst, two of the five best wins on BU’s resume.
Yet even with BU’s usual attention-grabbers done for the season, the basketball team can’t get a typically disinterested public to focus on its play. And that play has been worthy of praise.
If I may channel BU coach Patrick Chambers for a moment, BU’s nine seniors &- make it eight seniors now &- have something to be proud of with these wins. The Terriers could have lost by 50 to Virginia Commonwealth University last night, and it wouldn’t have diminished the team’s previous accomplishments.
Despite falling just short of the NCAA Tournament, the Terrier seniors have managed to deliver postseason success of some sort. That’s something noteworthy. With Lowe turning heads, there’s been relatively little talk directed toward BU’s on-court success. That success is setting the table for future campaigns.
Chambers arrived in Boston with two sets of publicly discussed goals, one short-term, one long-term. The short-term goals are the ones we can evaluate
Most of the goals that can be designated as short-term were met this season. BU broke the 20-win barrier for the first time since 2005. That mark was reached despite playing one of the harder non-conference schedules you’ll see for an AE team &- eight of BU’s 13 elective opponents can be found in the RPI top-100.
Beyond that, Chambers found success through player development. BU’s senior class had major contributors, to be sure, but the improvement made by junior forward John Holland, sophomore forward Jake O’Brien and sophomore forward Jeff Pelage was noticeable and bodes well for next year’s team.
If there’s one area where Chambers fell short, it’s attendance &- but is that really his fault? BU’s home crowds actually shrunk this season from 1156 to 968. However, attendance during conference games actually rose slightly, from 943 to 989.
If anything, it’s reassuring that fan support didn’t fall off a cliff after the initial hype generated by Chambers’ arrival wore off. It will probably take a few more winning seasons before BU can expect attendance to rise, but at this point Chambers’ effect on attendance has been neither positive nor negative.
Looking farther down the road, BU appears to be in good shape. Next year’s team might take a small step back on the court &- Holland and O’Brien, while probable first team all-conference selections, can’t do it all themselves &- but transfers Darryl Partin, Patrick Hazell and Matt Griffin should help supplement the core. Dominic Morris and the rest of a promising freshman class won’t have to carry the load alone from day one.
But the results of this year’s team reflect on more than just Chambers. A class defined by its failures finally reversed a trend.
In case expectations surrounding the Class of 2010 weren’t high enough upon arrival, the 2006-07 season saw four freshmen finish among BU’s top-five scorers and carry an extremely young team to a third-place finish. Dreams of future triumphs began in earnest, only to be shattered by two injury-riddled, disappointing years.
For a senior-laden squad, this was the last best chance to win something. Multiple CBI wins are the tangible result BU’s graduating class needed in order to redefine its legacy. At last, there’s something to remember other than a failure to meet expectations.
Sure, this year’s successes aren’t a guarantee of future improvement.
Maybe next year’s roster additions won’t be enough to complement returning stars and BU slips down the standings. Maybe BU remains competitive in future years but never gets over the NCAA Tournament hump. Maybe attendance never improves enough to justify completing the move from The Roof to Agganis.
But with the one-year anniversary of Chambers’ arrival rapidly approaching, a foundation has been established. After two seasons with disappointing endings, this year has brought signs of progress.
And if current trends continue, future years are likely to support only one conclusion: BU’s back.