Expectations were virtually nonexistent.
With four freshmen thrust into starting roles at the start of the 2006-2007 season, the Boston University men’s basketball team had everything to play for and nothing to lose. Forced to integrate a new corps of talented players, BU adopted a “let’s see what we can do” attitude that catapulted the team to its first conference tournament quarterfinal victory in three years.
When the Terriers open the season against St. Bonaventure University tonight at 5:00 p.m., they’ll take the court as the favorites to win the America East Conference.
“I think it’s better to be thought of that way than not,” said BU coach Dennis Wolff. “If you looked at how many times we were picked near the top in my 14 years here, I think there’s usually a pretty close parallel.”
For a team that hasn’t won a season-opener in six years, the Bonnies are a welcome adversary after losing to George Washington University last season and No. 1 Duke University in 2005 to kick off the schedule.
St. Bonaventure, under the direction of first-year coach Mark Schmidt, who spent the past six seasons at Robert Morris University, is in a rebuilding phase. The Bonnies trudged through a 7-22 campaign last year in which the players knew former coach Anthony Solomon was on his way out.
“It’s been a slow process. Taking baby steps is our philosophy,” Schmidt said.
The first of those steps is embracing SBU’s returning trio of seniors – forward Michael Lee, guard Zarryon Fereti and guard Tyler Relph.
“Those three guys are going to lead our team,” Schmidt said. “As they go, we go. They’ve got to be able to score the ball.”
The 6-foot-9 Lee was St. Bonaventure’s leading scorer (12.8 points per game) and rebounder (6.2 rebounds per game) last year. In BU’s 74-46 blowout victory over the Bonnies on Dec. 2, 2006, Lee dropped a team-high 17 points and pulled down three boards. Fereti was the team’s third-leading scorer (12.1 ppg) in 2006-07, and Relph averaged 9.8 points a game.
While the Bonnies’ premier trio enters the game healthy, the Terriers will be without sophomore co-captain Tyler Morris, a crucial member of their three-guard attack. The AE Rookie of the Year is out indefinitely with tibial stress syndrome. His ailment is the culmination of a disjointed preseason for the Terriers that’s seen multiple players hampered by injuries.
“That’s a tough injury,” Schmidt said of Morris. “You never want to lose somebody of his caliber, but usually when that happens, someone else steps up.”
Sophomore guard Carlos Strong will start in Morris’s place. Redshirt junior co-captain Matt Wolff, junior Max Gotzler – who sat out last season after transferring from the Oregon Institute of Technology — and sophomores Scott Brittain and Corey Lowe round out BU’s starting lineup.
“He’s someone that can shoot the ball from 3 and take you off the dribble,” Schmidt said of Lowe, BU’s lead returning scorer with 14.1 ppg. “When he’s shooting the ball, he’s very hard to guard. We’ve got our hands full.”
Matt Wolff will suit up for the first time in two years. The coach’s son used his extended time off to completely rework his shot and build muscle.
“He’s a way better player than he’s been at any time in his life,” coach Wolff said. “He’s stronger, more active and shooting better.”
Gotzler averaged 7.0 ppg and 4.0 rpg with the Hustlin’ Owls two seasons ago. Despite the fact that he’s only starting because of Morris’s injury, the 6-foot-7 forward has impressed Wolff during the preseason.
“Max does all the little things,” Wolff said. “He’s sound fundamentally and defensively. He rebounds and knows how to set screens. The last two weeks he’s taken a step forward and he played well in the scrimmage [against Merrimack College] Saturday, so we’re going to give him a chance.”
On defense, Wolff embraces the man-to-man philosophy, but because of an incongruent preseason, will implement a zone.
“I’m not feeling it right now,” Wolff said of the defense. “We’re going to change defenses a little bit more, so we’ll play a zone.”
Due to the current lack of depth, Wolff believes giving the Bonnies different looks on ‘D’ will disrupt their offense.
Tonight’s game is the first of three straight contests against Atlantic 10 Conference opponents for BU, who plays George Washington University on Wednesday and Saint Joseph’s University next Saturday.
“I think these kids are all pumped to get going,” Wolff said. “I think we have a better chance than we’ve had the past two years.”