Perhaps December will be kinder to the Boston University men’s basketball team.
Because November was pretty hard on the eyes.
After being picked to finish first in America East, BU has stumbled to a 1-5 record after a disjointed preseason, injuries to several players (including redshirt sophomore Tyler Morris) and the two-game absence of leading scorer Corey Lowe (personal reasons).
On their most recent road trip-during which the Terriers lost to Marshall University and the University of Pittsburgh by a combined 50 points-BU couldn’t establish rhythm due to the aforementioned factors.
Saturday, BU will have a chance to halt its five-game losing streak against Manhattan College at Case Gymnasium at 4 p.m.
Lowe rejoins a Terrier team that will dress every player except the injured Morris (shin splints). The news on the BU co-captain is encouraging, as Morris has started shooting for the first time since early November and is projected to play in BU’s fourth game of the month (Dec. 22 against the University of Delaware).
As for Lowe, Wolff welcomes the return of his most prolific scorer.
“He hasn’t been gone that long,” Wolff said. “He will play, and we’re gonna need him to hopefully put ourselves in a position to win with him.”
Last season, Lowe broke out against the Jaspers, netting a career-high 28 points (which he equaled against St. Bonaventure University to open this season). The Newton native connected on a career-high seven 3-pointers in last November’s contest, and 3-point shooting figures to be a factor in Saturday’s bout once again.
The Jaspers (3-3), who are converting 3s at a 31.5 percent clip, are led by junior Devon Austin, who has drained 16-of-47 attempts (34 percent) from downtown. The 6-foot-6 forward also ranks second on the team in rebounding with 34 boards.
“They’ve got good athletes and they guard very well. They lost a tough game [Wednesday] night to Fordham [University],” Wolff said. “We’re going to try to keep them out of the lane when they’re in our zone and rebound the ball, because they’re aggressive.”
In terms of size, Manhattan doesn’t present the same problems as BU’s other opponents this season. Only one player on the Jaspers’ roster is taller than 6-foot-8 – freshman Laurence Jolicoeur, who averages just 4.0 minutes per game.
The size mismatch bodes well for sophomore Scott Brittain, who joins junior co-captain Matt Wolff as the only Terrier to start every game. A 6-foot-9 Ontario native, Brittain has scored double digits in four of BU’s six games and leads the team with 5.2 rebounds per game.
In the backcourt, sophomore Carlos Strong broke out of a season-long slump with a 24-point performance Tuesday against Pittsburgh. With Lowe back, Strong should have more room to create scoring opportunities than he did on the road trip.
“We’ve got to get everybody more involved,” Wolff said. “By doing that, we put ourselves in a good position to win.”
Aside from a lack of involvement and poor execution, turnovers have plagued the Terriers over the past five games.
“It has been a little obscure in the last two games, one, because Marshall pressed us, and two, because we were very careless with the ball,” Wolff said. “Against Pitt, their size and their strength caused us to lose our concentration. A lot of this has to do with us taking care of ourselves.”