Following a two-game road trip, the Boston University men’s basketball team narrowly defeated the United States Naval Academy 62-59 at Agganis Arena Wednesday evening.
The Terriers (9-13, 5-6 Patriot League) are now a perfect 6-0 all-time against Navy (8-15, 4-7 Patriot League).
BU played especially well in the first half, and even when the tempo increased in the second half, the Terriers held on and went toe-to-toe with the tough Midshipmen squad, said BU coach Joe Jones.
“They [Navy] do a great job executing, so you knew they were going to stay in it,” Jones said. “We did a great job defending in the first half, and then in the second half, no matter what, we couldn’t seem to generate stops, but I was happy that our guys were able to pull out the win.”
One of the keys to the game for BU was the continued strong play of sophomore guard Eric Fanning, who finished with 20 points, including seven from the charity stripe. The 6-foot-5 shooter out of New Jersey has been on a tear as of late, and his emergence is important for the Terriers, taking some of the scoring burden away from sophomore guard Cedric Hankerson.
“I’m just kind of getting my feel back for the game,” Fanning said of his recent success. “My teammates are finding me. They’re always telling me to be confident in my shot, and now I’m getting a little more comfortable finding my spots.”
In his third straight 20-point game, Fanning hit some clutch free throws and drained a key 3-pointer. He is currently second on the team in scoring and is averaging 22 points per game and five boards over the past two contests.
“Eric has transitioned really well,” Jones said. “He’s done a nice job, but it has not been easy for him, and he’s struggled at times. He’s just a tough guy to guard, and he’s capable of making big shots.”
The first half was a back-and-forth affair as both teams went on brief runs through the first 20 minutes of play. BU started off cold, missing its first seven shots from the field, but came storming back to tie the game at 10 apiece with 11:25 to play in the opening half.
BU went on a 9-1 run later in the first frame and at one point held the Midshipmen scoreless for a six-minute stretch. BU entered the half with a 24-19 lead despite a last second layup from Navy guard Tilman Dunbar.
As is customary with these Terriers, who live and die by the 3-point shot, they released a flurry of shots from long range in the first half. BU is second in the Patriot League in 3-point field goals made per game, averaging eight per contest, but is still only shooting 37.1 percent from distance. They finished the game 7-for-19 from deep.
After surrendering an average of 84 points in their last three games, the Terriers put on a strong defensive display on Wednesday evening. They were able to hold Navy to 25 percent shooting from the field and from beyond the 3-point line through the first 20 minutes.
In addition, BU forced eight first-half turnovers, including two steals from Hankerson, who ranks second in the Patriot League in steals per game.
The Terriers picked up where they left off to start the second half and began the period shooting a scorching hot 6-of-6 from the field. However, the Midshipmen would not go away.
Navy started really hitting its stride in the second half, starting off 9-of-12 from the field, mixing in nine points from long range.
“I try and tell them if you play 10 percent harder, you’d be that much better.” Jones said. “Last year’s team was more able to coast, but this team needs to be more of a blue-collar team.”
However, with the score tied and under a minute to play, BU was able to outlast Navy. The star of the game, Fanning, hit a clutch 3-pointer in the final seconds to secure the Terriers’ victory. Junior forward Nathan Dieudonne and Fanning made a key stop on the other end as time expired.
Jones said close victories like these are crucial for a developing group like the Terriers, both for this season and in terms of development moving forward, but also said the Terriers are still a work in progress.
“The team is coming together for the most part on the offensive end,” he said. “It’s just all about our defense.”
Nick Neville is a junior in COM studying journalism and the Sports Editor of the Daily Free Press. When he's not making a paper on Beacon Street, you can catch him working as a Sports Correspondent for the Boston Globe or helping to produce BU's only professional sports talk show, Offsides. Follow him on Twitter: @n_nebs95
