The Boston University men’s basketball team will look to bounce back from its second-worst loss of the season when the United States Military Academy visits Case Gym Tuesday night.
The Terriers (17-12, 10-6 Patriot League) saw their seven-game winning streak cracked this past weekend in an 80-59 loss to Bucknell University. The lopsided defeat dropped BU to third in the league standings, two games behind the first-place Bison (15-12, 12-4 Patriot League). With the regular season winding down, the Terriers will try and secure their Patriot League Tournament fate with a win against the Black Knights (17-11, 8-8 Patriot League).
Although BU beat Army 76-67 on Jan. 27, this game will have several different circumstances. The Terriers will likely be without senior forward Nathan Dieudonne, as the team’s leading rebounder has sat out the past three games with an ankle injury. Dieudonne totaled 17 points and 18 rebounds the last time these two sides met.
The Black Knights were without the services of senior Tanner Plomb — the Patriot League’s top scorer — in that same game. A Second Team All-Patriot League honoree a year ago, Plomb averages 20.3 points and 5.7 rebounds per game. His contributions have sparked Army to a four-game winning streak.
There is far more to Army than Plomb, though, as senior Kyle Wilson averages 16.5 points per game, fourth-most in the conference. Led by Plomb and Wilson, the Black Knights drain a conference-leading 9.3 3-pointers a game. Furthermore, center Kevin Ferguson averages 12.8 and 9.1 rebounds per game.
With the number of playmakers that Army possesses, BU head coach Joe Jones stressed the importance of playing a team game.
“They got a great team,” Jones said. “They were picked in the top half of the league in the preseason. They’re a terrific team and we definitely have our hands full, so it’s got to be a great team effort. It’s one of those teams where we are going to have to make shots and contest shots and hold down Ferguson inside. It’s a total team effort.”
With Ferguson’s presence down low, Army ranks first in the league in offensive boards per game. This could prove to be a problem area for the Terriers, especially with Dieudonne likely missing his fourth consecutive game.
“That’s a huge key to the game,” Jones said of how important rebounding will be against Army. “They’re the best offensive rebounding team in the league, and they put a lot of pressure on you at the rim. We’re going to have to really man up and get it done as a unit.”
To sweep the season series with Army, the Terriers will also need to rejuvenate their offensive game. In their last game against Bucknell, the Terriers shot a woeful 32.8 percent from the field and drained only 29.6 of their 3-pointers.
With lethal offensive weapons like Plomb and Wilson scoring for the Black Knights, the Terriers will need to return to fundamentals when on offense themselves. However, Jones said he is not worried about his team’s offense before it heads into an important conference matchup.
“You’re going to play enough games that you’re going to struggle to make shots,” Jones said. “That’s just the reality to the situation. We’ll be fine, I don’t worry about that as much.”
Nick is currently writing for the Boston Hockey Blog. In the past, he has served as associate sports editor, and has covered men's and women's cross-country, women's soccer, men's basketball, and men's lacrosse for the Daily Free Press. You can keep track of Nick's exciting life by following him on Twitter at @nikfraz14
