BC Interruption

Boston College’s Troy Bell, a two-time Big East Player of the Year, was already tossed aside by the ...

2010-03-14T18:05:31Z

Boston College’s Troy Bell, a two-time Big East Player of the Year, was already tossed aside by the NBA by 2006. He literally fought his way back, becoming an amateur boxer to stay in shape. He won two bouts easily as a light-heavyweight but basketball was always his Plan A. Today he’s starting for Italy’s Vanoli Cremona in the country’s top division and averaging 14 points a night.

BC’s Troy Bell Dabbles In Boxing, Now In Italy (Lost Letterman)

Hockey Sweeps UMass Out Of Hockey East Playoffs, Onto Semifinals

2010-03-14T17:23:57Z

The Eagles made quick work of UMass, winning 5-2 last night to advance to the Hockey East semifinals. BC completed the rare 5 game season sweep of the 7th seeded Minutemen. BC broke a 2-2 tie by scoring three unanswered goals in the third period. Assistant captain Matt Lombardi netted the game-winner just 2:11 into the third period.

Barry Almeida led the way for the Eagles, registering two goals and an assist. Carl Sneep, Paul Carey and Matt Lombardi added goals in the victory.

John Muse got the start in net, stopping 16 shots in the win. Muse improves to 13-8-2 on the year.

I'm not sure how I feel about York's decision to put Muse in net. I understand wanting to give Parker Milner the night off, but I thought that the benefits of playing Milner in back-to-back games would have outweighed giving him some well-earned rest. Milner hasn't played in back-to-back games all season. If York is going to go with Milner throughout the playoffs, this seemed like the last good opportunity to get him some experience in back-to-back games before the team is playing single elimination hockey in the Hockey East semifinals and the NCAAs.

Then again, we learned not to question York in March or April. In hindsight, York's decision to play for the tie last weekend in Durham doesn't seem so foolish now. Hopefully, it all works out and we get quality goaltending from both Milner and Muse.

York's squad will be making their 6th consecutive trip to the Hockey East semifinals at the Garden, and their 8th appearance in their last 10 seasons.

The good news is that BC gets a night off while the rest of Hockey East plays in decisive game threes tonight. Vermont evened their quarterfinal series with No. 1 seeded New Hampshire, winning 1-0. Sixth seeded Merrimack shocked BU in overtime, 3-2, pushing their series to game 3. Finally, Maine beat UMass Lowell 2-0 behind a shutout from backup goalie Dave Wilson.

Hockey East Semifinal Opponent TBD.

BC's semifinals opponent won't be decided until the results come in from the rest of the Hockey East quarterfinal game threes. The Eagles can play any one of four Hockey East teams in the semis - Vermont, Boston University, Maine or UMass Lowell.

Here are the scenarios and BC's possible opponents in the Hockey East semifinal:

UNH vs. UVM	BU vs. MC	ME vs. UML	BC Opponent
#1 New Hampshire	#3 Boston University	#4 Maine	Boston University
#1 New Hampshire	#3 Boston University	#5 UMass Lowell	Boston University
#1 New Hampshire	#6 Merrimack	#4 Maine	Maine
#1 New Hampshire	#6 Merrimack	#5 UMass Lowell	UMass Lowell
#8 Vermont	#3 Boston University	#4 Maine	Vermont
#8 Vermont	#3 Boston University	#5 UMass Lowell	Vermont
#8 Vermont	#6 Merrimack	#4 Maine	Vermont
#8 Vermont	#6 Merrimack	#5 UMass Lowell	Vermont

Ticket Punched.

The Alabama-Huntsville Chargers became the first team to punch their ticket to the NCAA Tournament, defeating Niagara 3-2 in overtime. The Chargers went just 12-17-3 this season.

NCAA Tournament Field Update.

With UAH's surprising CHA Championship, the current NCAA Tournament field looks something like this:

1 seeds - Denver, Miami, Wisconsin, Boston College
2 seeds - North Dakota, St. Cloud State, Bemidji State, Yale
3 seeds - Ferris State, Cornell, New Hampshire, Northern Michigan
4 seeds - Alaska, Vermont, RIT (projected Atlantic Hockey champ), Alabama-Huntsville (CHA champ)

If the 1 seeds hold serve, I see no reason why BC wouldn't be placed in either the Northeast (Worcester) or the East Regional (Albany) and get to play close to home. I still disagree with Vermont getting in as the third Hockey East team, especially since they entered the Hockey East tournament as the 8 seed. However, last night's win over UNH keeps them at #14 in the PWR rankings, which right now is the final at-large spot in the field (barring any other surprises in the other conference tournaments).

Hockey Wins Wild One Over UMass, NCAA Tournament Bubble Shrinks

2010-03-13T14:58:10Z

Cam Atkinson wasted no time, scoring just 36 seconds into the game and finishing with a hat-trick at the No. 2 seeded Eagles won game 1 of their Hockey East quarterfinals series 6-5. The Eagles built up a 6-3 lead after two periods before UMass came roaring back to cut the lead to 1. The Minutemen scored twice in the third period's opening minute, but that would be all the scoring in this one as BC held on to take game 1.

BC continues to get outstanding play from their special teams unit. The Eagles went 3-for-4 on the man-advantage, including two of Atkinson's three goals and a goal from Joe Whitney. UMass finished the game 2-of-5 on the power play.

Atkinson finished the game with 4 points, while Joe Whitney added 3 helpers and younger brother Stephen Whitney registered a goal and an assist.

Parker Milner got the start in net, stopping 33 shots in the full 60 minutes to preserve the victory. Milner improves to 10-2-1. The Eagles were uncharacteristically outshot 38-32.

In other Hockey East action, top-seeded New Hampshire scored the game's final five goals to defeat Vermont 7-4. Boston University rallied past Merrimack 3-2, while Lowell got the victory over Maine 2-1.

Shrinking Bubble.

College Hockey America's Bemidji State - remember them? - were bounced from the CHA Tournament semifinals last night, losing to No. 4 seeded Niagara 5-4. The loss assures that in the league's last year of existence, the CHA will field two teams in the NCAA Tournament field of 16. BSU already has a at-large berth secured, so the winner of the CHA championship game between Niagara and Alabama-Huntsville will receive an auto-berth into the NCAAs. Niagara has a record of 12-19-4, while UAH has a record of 11-17-3.

That's bad news for the rest of college hockey's bubble teams. For Hockey East programs like UMass Lowell, Vermont, Massachusetts and Boston University, that's one less spot available in the field of 16. As it stands right now, Hockey East looks like they will only be sending two teams to the NCAAs - BC and New Hampshire - unless one of these teams can sneak in and capture the Hockey East tournament title. Lowell is in the best position to grab one of the final at-large spots in the tournament.

5 Overtime Hockey = Awesome.

Quinnipiac and Union College needed 5 overtimes and almost 6 hours to settle game one of their best-of-three ECAC Quarterfinals matchup. Quinnipiac won 3-2 on Greg Holt's goal at 10:22 of the fifth overtime. The game was the longest game in NCAA history. (What's up with longest game in NCAA history records falling in consecutive years? First BC-Texas in baseball and now Quinnipiac-Union in hockey.)

This really has no bearing on BC or the NCAA Tournament Field. It's just awesome.

Up Next.

The Eagles look to finish off the Minutemen tonight at Conte Forum, starting at 7 PM. With a win, BC advances to the next weekend's Hockey East semifinals at the TD Garden.

Has Skinner Lost This Team? and the Big Finish

2010-03-12T14:00:28Z

More photos » Gerry Broome - AP

Skinner performs his best futterwacken on Frabjous Day. BC = the Jabberwocky. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

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Brian: Alright Jeff. We’ve had a day to think about and sift through the flaming wreckage that was BC’s 68-62 first round exit in the ACC Tournament. The Eagles defense gave up easy buckets all day and they left Sammy Zeglinski virtually unguarded. Zeglinski made the Eagles pay, connecting on 5 of 10 3-point attempts and finishing with 21 points. Joe Trapani (2 points) and Tyler Roche (2 points) had terrible shooting nights, going a combined 1-for-13 from the floor. Reggie Jackson seemed to press the action for much of the game, and killed a couple of BC possessions by deciding to shoot the ball early in the possession instead of setting up BC's Flex offense.

The only bright spot of the game was that Rakim Sanders returned to form, scoring a team-high 22 points in the loss.

The game will largely be remembered for Skinner’s decision to bench Trapani for the game’s final 13 minutes. Sure, he was having an awful game shooting from the floor, but the move seemed a little extreme, no? Do you agree with Skinner’s decision to bench Trapani for the rest of the game, give the Eagles were still within striking distance and needed 3-point shooters on the floor?

Jeff: No reason to play your guy who played more and scored more than anyone else all season only 22 minutes in what turned out to be the final game of the season for the Eagles. Trapani needed to be in for the Eagles all season so I don't know why today was any different even though he did get off to an incredibly rough start. Unfortunately the season ends with just another head-scratcher in a season that has been full of them.

Brian: Allow me to state the obvious for a second here. There will be no postseason for BC. For the second time in three seasons, the Eagles finish the year below .500. The Eagles haven’t won an NCAA Tournament game now in 3 full seasons.

The Eagles return all five starters and only lose Tyler Roche. Any reason to think next year won’t be more of the same? More importantly, is it time for the school to part ways with Skinner?

Jeff: It is not time at all to part ways with Al Skinner. The program has gone into a rough patch since losing Jared Dudley but they are not so far from competing for an ACC Title that it is time to start over. Not to mention the old argument that Skinner is the winningest all-time basketball coach at BC and has brought unprecedented success to the Heights where only making the dance in one of two seasons is suddenly reason to talk about firing him.

As far as next year, it can't be worse for BC. BC isn't going to the postseason this year so the only way to go is up and all our starters return. With only losing Tyler Roche it is hard to imagine that BC won't get a little better while some other ACC schools will be losing a lot more talent to the NBA and graduation.

Big Finish

Jeff: SI’s Andy Staples names 6 ACC football programs that have a chance to win the 2010 conference title. BC, of course, is not among those teams. Your thoughts?

Brian: If you agree that the Coastal Division will be stronger next year, this isn't exactly going out on a limb. He named 2/3 of the Coastal Division.

Brian: Gobbler Country determined that it cost BC $3,881,613 per win in football and $632,101 per win in men’s basketball in 2009-2010. Your thoughts?

Jeff: The $3,881,613 was money well spent. Those wins in front of 3,000 fans at Conte are a little expensive.

Jeff: The Globe reports that Al Skinner was the highest paid BC employee in 2007-2008, bringing in a salary of $2.2 million. Your thoughts?

Brian: Probably not the most opportune time to report this news.

Brian: Clemson coach Dabo Swinney has an idea to liven up spring practices - he wants the Tigers to play the Georgia Bulldogs in a preseason exhibition game. Is this a good idea?

Jeff: No. Great for fans but not for schools and players.

Jeff: The 5-6 BC baseball team opens ACC play this weekend with a three-game series with No. 13 Miami. Any chance the Eagles can steal the series from the Canes?

Brian: Pat Dean (2-0, 3.86) could take game 1, but after that, or other two weekend starters have ERAs north of 9. Not very likely.

Brian: Fenway Sports Group extended its partnership with the BC ISP Sports Network through 2019. Good news?

Jeff: At least there's always a way to follow BC action online.

Jeff: Last one, Hockey East quarterfinals begin tonight with BC taking on UMass at Conte Forum. Who ya got? What’s the final score?

Brian: I've got the Eagles winning tonight 3-1.

The other thing is, when you look at our club and we only get nine assists for a game - that is not...

2010-03-11T23:50:53Z

The other thing is, when you look at our club and we only get nine assists for a game - that is not our club, we usually get that in a half. That means that the ball is not moving and we are not making good decisions on the offensive end.

Yeah. What he said.

Opening Round ACC Tournament Open Thread: Boston College vs. Virginia

2010-03-11T14:30:19Z

vs.

#8 Boston College Eagles (15-15, 6-10 ACC) vs. #9 Virginia Cavaliers (14-15, 5-11 ACC)

What: ACC Men's Basketball Tournament First-Round
Time: 12:00 EST
Date: Thursday, Mar. 11, 2010
Place: Greensboro Coliseum (cap. 23,500), Greensboro, N.C.
TV: Raycom

BC's ACC Men's Basketball Tournament History

SB Nation ACC Tournament Story Stream

The Line: BC -4.5

Last Time Out: N.C. State defeated BC 66-54 as the Eagles fell to 15-15, 6-10 ACC.

NCAA Basketball Stats

Series: Virginia leads the all-time series 6-4.
Last Meeting: Boston College 68, Virginia 55 (Mar. 3, 2010)
This is the first meeting between the Eagles and Cavaliers in the ACC Tournament.

Trends: After getting off to a fast start in conference play (3-0), Virginia has dropped 11 of 13 and goes into the ACC Tournament on a 9 game losing streak. BC is 5-4 all-time in the ACC Tournament.

Virginia's 2008-2009 Record: 10-18 (4-12 ACC)

Probable Starters:

G - Sammy Zeglinski (So.) - 6'0", 180 lbs., Philadelphia, Pa. - 8.8 PPG, 3.8 RPG
G - Jeff Jones (Jr.) - 6'4", 190 lbs., Chester, Pa. - 6.8 PPG, 1.2 RPG
G - Mustapha Farrakhan (Jr.) - 6'4", 175 lbs., Harvey, Il. - 6.3 PPG, 1.6 RPG
F - Mike Scott (Jr.) - 6'8", 239 lbs., Chesapeake, Va. - 11.9 PPG, 6.8 RPG
F/C - Jerome Meyinsse (Sr.) - 6'9", 233 lbs., Baton Rouge, La. - 6.3 PPG, 4.1 RPG

It's time for the ACC men's basketball tournament. The Eagles and Cavaliers kick off the day's action at noon, playing for the right to move on to face #1 seeded Duke Blue Devils. Our full game preview is posted over at SB Nation under the story stream.

The rest of the schedule for today (all times approximate):

(5) Wake Forest vs. (12) Miami - 2:00 PM ET (Raycom)
(7) Georgia Tech vs. (10) North Carolina - 7:00 PM ET (ESPN2)
(6) Clemson vs. (11) N.C. State - 9:00 PM ET (Raycom)

Leave your thoughts on the BC game and the rest of the day's action below.

Go Eagles!

Toss Up: 2010 ACC Men's Basketball Tournament Edition

2010-03-11T13:26:06Z

More photos » Gerry Broome - AP

This is how you inbound the ball. Gotta fake 'em with your eyes. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

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To preview this weekend's ACC Men's Basketball Tournament, we play a game of Toss Up.

Toss Up - How Many ACC Tournament Wins Does BC Need for an NIT Berth - 1 or 2+?

Jeff: One win plus the RPI booster of playing Duke is plenty for BC to get into the NIT. Of course I haven't yet studied was exactly has happened throughout the land of mid-major conference tournaments because every time the regular season champ in one of those conferences fails to win their tournament and head to the NCAA tournament, it steals a spot from a team like Boston College in the NIT.

Brian: I'm going to have to go with two or more here. With an RPI currently in the 100s, while a second game against Duke will give BC a temporary boost, I don't think it will be enough to get the Eagles over the NIT bubble. The loss to N.C. State was really damning for BC because suddenly the Pack have won 3 of their last 4, won the only head-to-head meeting, have a better record overall and an RPI that's about even with ours. Based on the current ACC picture, our biggest competition will come from N.C. State, North Carolina, Miami and Virginia. UVA looks to be out but the other three - despite the head-to-head records against UNC and Miami - look to have a better shot at the NIT than we do right now. Two wins and we are a lock for the NIT. One and I think we are going to the CBI, being one of the first teams not selected by the NIT.

Toss Up - Better Chance of Pulling Off an ACC First Round Upset - #11 N.C. State or #12 Miami?

Brian: While Miami has lost 11 of their last 14, that's not to say that they haven't been competitive down the stretch. The Canes pushed a good Florida St. team to the limit in a 61-60 loss to end the season. The few wins they do have in the ACC have been to quality opponents, including Georgia Tech, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest (they're first round opponent). However, while Miami has played teams tough, there's one fact I just can't overlook - 0-8 away from the BankUnited Center in ACC play. I can't in my right mind now believe that a team that went winless in the ACC away from home is suddenly going to upset Wake Forest on a pro-state of North Carolina, "neutral" court. N.C. State always seems to overachieve in the ACC Tournament, and if the Pack can win the battle of big men (Tracy Smith vs. Trevor Booker), I like N.C. State's chances to pull off the first round upset.

Jeff: I'm going to go with Miami here. I think picking N.C. State would really be giving them too much credit for their win on Sunday over BC. N.C. State did not look impressive for much of that game but hung around and played well down the stretch. Now that they're playing in a game that means something, I think Clemson will make quick work of them. Miami, meanwhile, has a tough matchup against Wake Forest but the Canes have been playing many teams tough recently even though they've still lost 3 games in a row. Kenpom agrees with me though and gives Miami a much more realistic shot.

Toss Up - Event More Likely to Occur - Duke Wins ACC Title or ACC Team Makes Final Four?

Jeff: Duke has a far easier road to winning the ACC than getting to the Final Four. En route to an ACC Championship, the Blue Devils would play only one ranked team in Maryland. To get to a Final Four, the Devils would have to play at least two and one of those two would probably be a top ten team. Also, playing in Greensboro is a much friendlier place to play for the Blue Devils than whatever arenas they might end up playing in during the NCAA Tournament.

Brian: I think you'll see Duke end up in the West Region, which may prove to be the easiest of the four paths to the Final Four. That being said, winning 3 games closer to home in Greensboro is much easier than winning 4 games, only two of which are likely to be close to home before the Blue Devils go off to their Regional semifinals site. I'll agree with you here. The ACC Tournament Title is slightly more likely, but in a season where anyone seeded 2-8 could make a run at the ACC Title, I do have my doubts. Especially with the way BC played Duke close over 40 minutes of basketball (a shame that those 40 minutes spanned two separate games!).

Toss Up - Who's your Champion? An ACC Atlantic team or an ACC Coastal team?

Brian: Ahh, splitting basketball up into the ACC's two divisions that don't make any sense. I've got to go with the Coastal Division here just to take Duke. Of their closest challengers, I don't see Duke getting tripped up by Maryland a second time, especially with the beatdown they put on the Terps in their first matchup at Cameron Indoor. Then if you look at what Duke did to the rest of the ACC Atlantic contenders - a 90-70 win over Wake Forest, two wins over Clemson by margins of 21 and 13, and a 70-56 win over Florida St. - I don't think you can go wrong with picking the Blue Devils. While taking the Atlantic would be the logical choice from an odds perspective, I feel strongly that this tournament is Duke's to lose. That's of course bad news for BC.

Jeff: I'll take the Atlantic Division here because that way I have BC for starters but then I also have Maryland, Clemson, Wake Forest and Florida State. Despite Virginia Tech being the #4 seed I give them no chance of winning the tournament, so the Atlantic Division covers every team aside from Duke that I think has a chance to cut down the nets on Sunday. North Carolina, Miami, Virginia and Georgia Tech have no chance to win four games in four days.

Last one, Toss Up - More points in the ACC Tournament - Joe Trapani or Reggie Jackson?

Jeff: Our favorite debate. Trapani has really been far more efficient lately and clearly the offensive scoring leader of the team down the stretch. I think this will continue in the ACC Tournament but I would not say that Joe will be MVP even though he might be the leading scorer. I say this because Jackson has been doing well at the point and has been improving his assist totals.

Brian: If things go well for the Eagles, this won't be a contest. Jackson will run the offense, rack up a ridiculous amount of assists, and get the ball to Trapani, Sanders and Raji. I'll say the leading scorers for BC go 1) Trapani 2) Sanders 3) Jackson, with Raji a close fourth. However, this prediction assumes that BC will get more than one game in the Tournament. With both Sylven Landesberg and Calvin Baker out of the lineup for UVA, the Cavs will have a guy typically coming off the bench guarding Jackson. I expect Reggie to be able to do some damage against the 'Hoos given their lack of depth at the guard spots.

Hockey East Tournament Preview: Eagles Set Out To Reclaim Title

2010-03-10T22:49:55Z

Here's a look at what to the eight team field for this year's Hockey East Tournament. The tournament kicks this weekend with the best-of-three quarterfinals in Durham, Chestnut Hill, Boston and Orono. All quarterfinal games will be played on Friday-Sunday, March 12-14. All games start at 7 PM ET except for Friday night's game between BU and Merrimack, which starts at 7:30.

Participants

New Hampshire Wildcats
Seed: 1
Record: 16-11-7, 15-6-6 Hockey East
Head Coach: Dick Umile
Leading Scorers: Sr. Bobby Butler (25-22-47), Jr. Paul Thompson (16-18-34), So. Blake Kessel (8-25-33)
Leading Goaltender: Sr. Brian Foster (15-11-7, 3.06 GAA, .906 SV%)
Hockey East Titles: 2 (last 2003)

Regular Season Record against Vermont: 2-0-1

Boston College Eagles
Seed: 2
Record: 21-10-3, 16-8-3 Hockey East
Head Coach: Jerry York
Leading Scorers: Jr. Brian Gibbons (15-27-42), So. Cam Atkinson (21-20-41), Jr. Joe Whitney (13-18-31)
Leading Goaltender: Fr. Parker Milner (9-2-1, 2.10 GAA, .914 SV%)
Hockey East Titles: 8 (last 2008)

Regular Season Record against Massachusetts: 3-0-0

Boston University Terriers
Seed: 3
Record: 16-15-3, 13-12-2 Hockey East
Head Coach: Jack Parker
Leading Scorers: Jr. Nick Bonino (10-22-32), Jr. Colby Cohen (14-16-30), So. Chris Connolly (9-21-30)
Leading Goaltender: So. Kieran Miller (14-14-0, 3.28 GAA, .883 SV%)
Hockey East Titles: 7 (last 2009)

Regular Season Record against Merrimack: 2-1-0

Maine Black Bears
Seed: 4
Record: 16-15-3, 13-12-2 Hockey East
Head Coach: Tim Whitehead
Leading Scorers: So. Gustav Nyquist (18-38-56), So. Brian Flynn (18-23-41), Jr. Tanner House (14-19-33)
Leading Goaltender: Fr. Shawn Sirman (1-6-0, 5.19 GAA, .832 SV%)
Hockey East Titles: 5 (last 2004)

Regular Season Record against UMass Lowell: 2-1-0

UMass Lowell River Hawks
Seed: 5
Record: 18-14-4, 12-11-4 Hockey East
Head Coach: Blaise MacDonald
Leading Scorers: Sr. Kory Falite (18-15-33), Jr. Scott Campbell (15-17-32), So. David Vallorani (9-17-26)
Leading Goaltender: Sr. Carter Hutton (12-10-2, 2.06 GAA, .928 SV%)
Hockey East Titles: None

Regular Season Record against Maine: 1-2-0

Merrimack Warriors
Seed: 6
Record: 15-17-2, 12-13-2 Hockey East
Head Coach: Mark Dennehy
Leading Scorers: Fr. Stephane Da Costa (15-29-44), Jr. Chris Barton (19-17-36), Jr. Joe Cucci (7-15-22)
Leading Goaltender: So. Joe Cannata (9-11-1, 3.10 GAA, .899 SV%)
Hockey East Titles: None

Regular Season Record against Boston University: 1-2-0

Massachusetts Minutemen
Seed: 7
Record: 18-16-0, 13-14-0 Hockey East
Head Coach: Don Cahoon
Leading Scorers: Jr. James Marcou (10-36-46), So. Casey Wellman (20-21-41), Sr. Justin Braun (7-21-28)
Leading Goaltender: Jr. Paul Dainton (12-11-0, 2.93 GAA, .906 SV%)
Hockey East Titles: None

Regular Season Record against Boston College: 0-3-0

Vermont Catamounts
Seed: 8
Record: 15-12-7, 9-11-7 Hockey East
Head Coach: Kevin Sneddon
Leading Scorers: Sr. Brayden Irwin (15-19-34), Sr. Colin Vock (11-17-28), Sr. Brian Roloff (8-17-25)
Leading Goaltender: So. Rob Madore (11-10-7, 2.70 GAA, .907 SV%)
Hockey East Titles: None

Regular Season Record against New Hampshire: 0-2-1

Previews and Predictions

In the No. 1 vs. No. 8 matchup, I like New Hampshire to survive and advance in three games. Both programs feature outstanding goaltenders in Brian Foster (UNH) and Rob Madore (UVM). The Wildcat's Bobby Butler is second in the nation in goals with 25. I get the sense that these two programs don't like each other very much, and I'm sure New Hampshire wasn't exactly thrilled that they drew Vermont in the quarterfinals. Ultimately, I think UNH's home ice will be the difference in this series as the Wildcats are a perfect 9-0-2 at home at the Whittemore Center this year.

For the Eagles series with the Minutemen, although BC has outscored UMass 12-3 this season, I don't think the Eagles will run away with this series. Instead, the games in this series will probably resemble the last meeting between BC and UMass, a 2-1 overtime victory by BC. That being said, these two teams are ones that are going in opposite directions. After going winless in the Denver Cup over break, BC has gone 11-5-1 to finish the season. UMass, on the other hand, has won just 3 games in their last 11, a streak that includes a six game losing streak bookended by losses to BC. The Eagles have the better offense, goaltending and special teams. No reason to think that BC won't wrap up this series on Saturday night, although, like I said, I don't expect either game to be a blowout.

BU used a very strong second half to propel themselves all the way to the No. 3 seed in the Hockey East tournament. It's been a season of streaks for the Terriers, going 5-9-4 in 2009, 9-3-0 to start the new year, 1-3-0 down the stretch, and then finishing off Northeastern last weekend to capture the 3 seed. In one of the closest Hockey East races I can remember, Merrimack picked up 3 points to secure a spot in this year's tournament. Both program's goaltending has left something to be desired. BU's Kieran Millan has only shown flashes of his 2009 title run brilliance, while Merrimacks two goalies have been equally unimpressive. The player to what is Merrimack freshman Stephane Da Costa, who has been outstanding for the Warriors this season - 15 goals, 29 assists. Merrimack is just 3-10-1 away from Hockey East play away from home. As a result, I think MC can steal one from BU on the road, but I expect BU to win in three games.

In the final quarterfinal, No. 4 seeded Maine faces No. 5 UMass Lowell. Maine is led by Hobey Baker candidate Gustav Nyquist who leads the nation in scoring (56 points), assists (38) and points per game (1.65). However, the Black Bears tournament title hopes were dealt a serious blow when coach Tim Whitehead suspended starting goaltender Scott Darling indefinitely for a violation of team rules. The Black Bears will turn to a pair of untested backups to try to get past Lowell and onto the semifinals. Despite how brilliant Nyquist has been on offense, I can't imagine UML won't be able to match Nyquist and Maine on the scoreboard, especially against a backup in net. UML wins in 2.

In the first of the two semifinals, I like No. 1 New Hampshire to eke past No. 5 Lowell 3-2. In the second semifinal between No. 2 BC and No. 3 BU, my unabashed homer pick is Eagles win 3-1. Finally, in the championship game, I've got BC beating UNH 4-2 to capture their 9th Hockey East tournament title and third in their last four years.

Thoughts? Hockey East tournament predictions? What say you?

Also, here is your SB Nation ACC Tournament story stream. Be sure to check back periodically for...

2010-03-10T14:59:43Z

Also, here is your SB Nation ACC Tournament story stream. Be sure to check back periodically for news and posts on the tournament. This year, we'll be contributing to the story stream so you have even more reason to check it out.

Alternative to Tournament Expansion: The Division I Split

2010-03-09T16:06:01Z

Last week, I took a look at what this year's tournament might look like with an expanded 96-team field. Here's a different take on the idea of tournament expansion.

Sure, some may say that Bob Huggins has had a tumultuous career as a head basketball coach. But when it comes to the notion of NCAA Tournament expansion, have truer words ever been spoken by the West Virginia head coach?

"We ought to do what football does and go to a Division I-A and I-AA ...

That's what they have to do in football. You have to make a commitment to have a football program. It's attendance and facilities and so forth. If we did that, instead of having 347 teams, we'd maybe have 110 or 150. It makes it so much more manageable, but you could still play those people like football does, but they just can't be in your tournament."

Now here is an idea I can get behind.

This idea seems to solve any number of issues facing the NCAA in their proposed tournament expansion. For one, it keeps more of the money in the hands of the programs that, well, earned that money. Second, if you leave the tournament the way it is at 65 teams (or even better yet, scale it back down to 64 teams - it's purest form), this immediately strengthens the competitiveness of even the first round, #1 vs. #16 and #2 vs. #15 games. In addition, you can effectively kill off the NIT, CBI, CIT and other meaningless tournaments by hosting two, 64-team NCAA Tournaments, one for each level. We'll call them Division I-A and I-AA. In the recent wave of "everyone deserves a trophy" mentality, you also end up with one more program that can claim that year's National Championship in Division I-AA.

The only question now is what conferences and programs make the cut. I would propose that Division I-A consist of the following conferences: the Big 12, Atlantic Coast, Big East, Big Ten, Southeastern, Pac 10, Atlantic 10, Mountain West, Missouri Valley, Conference USA, Western Athletic, West Coast, Horizon, MAC and Colonial, for a total of 169 teams. That leaves Division I-AA with 178. There is a bit of a problem with leaving the Sun Belt behind, given that they are a Division I-A football conference, but they really haven't proven to be competitive in hoops.

Here is a version of bracketology that includes only the 169 teams from our new Division I-A. Let's take a look at how this year's tournament might look under the Huggins Plan:

MIDWEST REGION

(1) Kansas vs. (16) Kent State
(8) California vs. (9) UTEP

(5) Xavier vs. (12) Mississippi
(4) Wisconsin vs. (13) Connecticut

(6) Clemson vs. (11) St. Mary's
(3) Texas vs. (14) Mississippi State

(7) Vanderbilt vs. (10) Georgia Tech
(2) West Virginia vs. (15) Rhode Island

SOUTH REGION

(1) Syracuse vs. (16) Virginia Commonwealth
(8) Virginia Tech vs. (9) Utah State

(5) Missouri vs. (12) Washington
(4) Ohio State vs. (13) San Diego St.

(6) Temple vs. (11) Florida
(3) Maryland vs. (14) UAB

(7) Michigan State vs. (10) Richmond
(2) Kansas State vs. (15) Cincinnati

EAST REGION

(1) Kentucky vs. (16) St. John's
(8) Gonzaga vs. (9) Oklahoma State

(5) Pittsburgh vs. (12) Arizona State
(4) Texas A&M vs. (13) Memphis

(6) New Mexico vs. (11) Old Dominion
(3) Baylor vs. (14) Minnesota

(7) Marquette vs. (10) Wake Forest
(2) Purdue vs. (15) North Carolina

WEST REGION

(1) Duke vs. (16) South Florida
(8) Louisville vs. (9) Northern Iowa

(5) Tennessee vs. (12) Seton Hall
(4) Georgetown vs. (13) Dayton

(6) Florida State vs. (11) Notre Dame
(3) BYU vs. (14) Illinois

(7) Butler vs. (10) UNLV
(2) Villanova vs. (15) Wichita State

Last four in: South Florida, VCU, St. John's, Kent State
Last four out: Marshall, BOSTON COLLEGE, Miami Fla., Tulsa
Next four out: Texas Tech, Alabama, N.C. State, Portland

By Conference: Big East (13), Atlantic Coast (8), Big 12 (7), Big Ten (6), SEC (6), Atlantic 10 (5), Mountain West (4), Conference USA (3), Pac 10 (3), Colonial (2), Missouri Valley (2), West Coast (2), Horizon (1), MAC (1)

Again, this looks must more promising. For one thing, we've done away with the meaningless play-in game that makes the 64th and 65th best teams feel good for saying they've made the NCAA Tournament but ultimately has no bearing on the competitive outcome of the tournament. We've also suddenly boosted the competitiveness of even the most boring of tournament games in the current format.

Syracuse can't exactly be happy to have drawn VCU in the first round in the #1 vs. #16 matchup. An otherwise dull #2 vs. #15 matchup suddenly becomes must-watch basketball with matchups like Villanova-Wichita State, West Virginia-URI, Kansas State-Cincinnati and Purdue-North Carolina.

Under this proposal, I think you'd find the opening round games more entertaining and see many more upsets that we currently get. A #1 would undoubtedly fall to a #16 at some point under this format.

Of course, this plan isn't without its drawbacks. Given the current projected NCAA tournament field, this format doesn't include Siena, Cornell and Murray State, all teams that may have made a 64-team field as an at-large. But would we ultimately miss these teams? Or would programs like Siena, Cornell and Murray State be better served playing their way through a Division I-AA field of 64 and winning a National Championship, a la the success that Appalachian State has had in college football's second division. I'll leave that to you.

If you doubt that the Fenway Bowl is far behind, you underestimate the network’s hunger for easy b...

2010-03-09T16:39:47Z

If you doubt that the Fenway Bowl is far behind, you underestimate the network’s hunger for easy bowl games and their desire to put a bowl game in the first week of December to extend the lucrative college football season. It will be the best bowl game evaaaaahhh, and there will be no denying this.

The Pinstripe Bowl: Soon To Be The Most Overpriced Bowl Game (SBN)

Notre Dame Schedules Maryland in 2011; BC Still Waiting for the Irish to Call

2010-03-09T14:07:21Z

Brian: Yesterday came word that Notre Dame and Maryland have agreed to play at FedEx Field in 2011. Somehow, Notre Dame is listed as the home team for this game. It will be the first time that Maryland has played in its closest NFL stadium and only the second time that the Irish and Terrapins have faced one another.

With the game, the Irish continue their 7-4-1 trend of seven home games, four road games and one neutral site game at an NFL stadium. This 7-4-1 trend is quickly becoming a 7-3-2 trend, as next season, the Irish will play two neutral games - vs. Navy at the New Meadowlands Stadium and vs. Army at Yankee Stadium. Over the next few years, Notre Dame will play neutral site games in Foxboro, the Meadowlands, Dublin, the Superdome, and the New Cowboys Stadium.

In addition to Maryland in 2011, Notre Dame also has a home game scheduled with Wake Forest in 2012. Admit it. The fact that Notre Dame has scheduled two other ACC teams while BC and ND continue to dance around renewing their rivalry gets under your skin, right?

Jeff: I know you are surprised but this does not bother me at all. I think the Notre Dame-Maryland series is probably a win-win for both schools. Maryland wants the exposure of playing Notre Dame and can only get it by agreeing to a deal like this. Meanwhile, Notre Dame is looking to play a game a year at a neutral site in front of a large, split crowd. Then you mention Notre Dame playing Wake in 2012 but once again this is not a series set up but just a one year deal so that is also nothing I am jealous of.

Do I think Notre Dame has found a great scheduling model that will ultimately give them a recruiting edge over other schools? No! So that's exactly why I don't care. If anything I think their recent scheduling practice of soft opponents and neutral site games will ultimately be a detriment to the long term health of the program. This is exactly why I'm not the slightest bit jealous of Notre Dame continuing to schedule in this way. Navy, Army, and Maryland are going to bring quite a few fans to these games themselves but they will not sell out the Arizona State game in Arlington, as this past season's game in San Antonio gave us a glimpse of what's to come for Notre Dame football - empty seats.

I think BC and ND will eventually renew their rivalry will an alternative home and away format but we knew it wasn't going to happen in 2011, 2012 or probably even in the time frame that next year's recruiting class would see. Right now, at least we play in a conference and have USC scheduled a few years from now.

The Boston College Chapter of Club Trillion

2010-03-09T12:00:24Z

Ohio State hoop's Mark Titus has achieved relative internet fame with his blog Club Trillion, Life Views from the End of the Bench. Titus blogs about his unique experiences watching college basketball from the Buckeye bench. At first glance, his blog name seems to not have much deeper meaning, but you would be mistaken, my friend.

In Titus' words:

We named ourselves "Club Trillion" because as athletically limited white folk, we found ourselves riding the bench for the Buckeyes. When the time came for us to get in, there would usually only be 1 minute remaining in the game and after sitting down for 39 minutes, we really had no interest in trying to be all that productive. So we devised the plan of trying to get the "trillion" which occurs when we play 1 minute and do absolutely nothing that would appear in the box score, thus making our stat line say 1 minute played followed by a bunch of zeroes.

How these guys came up with something as genius as this, I'll never know. Titus played in likely his final collegiate game on March 2 against Illinois, recording one more trillion for good measure. Not to be outdone, however, was Iowa's Devan Bawinkel. Just one day after Titus' final trillion, the Hawkeye senior registered 12 trillion - 12 minutes without recording a single statistic. Impressive, or have we taken a good thing and simply gone too far?

College basketball is obviously full of trillionaires. This is hardly a rare occurrence, occurring quite frequently in the last minute of play when coaches clear the bench.

But this got me thinking. Who's the president of the BC chapter of Club Trillion? It turns out it's not exactly who you'd think it is. Of course, you initial gut reaction is that either BC bench players Nick Mosakowski or Peter Rehnquist are our team's trillionaires. However, you would be mistaken.

This year, no BC player has recorded a trillion. But the Eagles weren't without their close calls. Nick Mosakowski just missed achieving the feat in the home finale against Virginia (how dare he attempt a field goal!). Peter Rehnquist also had his brush with infamy in the season opener against Dartmouth (2 minutes, 1 personal foul). Cortney Dunn failed to reach a trillion in the strangest of ways against Harvard, playing 8 minutes and only cracking the scoring sheet with 2 blocks.

Evan Ravenel nearly achieved the feat on four separate occasions this season - vs. South Carolina (3 minutes, 1 personal foul), vs. Clemson (2 minutes, 2 personal fouls), at Virginia Tech (7 minutes, 1 FGA) and at Michigan (1 minute, 1 rebound). Oh, what could have been!

No, the president of the BC chapter of Club Trillion is none other than Tyler Roche. Throughout his career, Roche has amassed a whopping 9 trillion. Roche became a trillionaire in only his fourth game on the Heights, a 86-68 win over URI where he earned 1 trillion. Later in his freshman campaign, Roche backed up that performance with 2 trillion vs. Fairfield and 1 trillion vs. Miami Fla. Adding to his "wealth," he later posted a trillion in back-to-back ACC games against Miami and Georgia Tech in 2008, and 3 trillion in a game last season at Virginia Tech.

However, Roche's mark of 9 trillion isn't without its challengers. The current record of futility in a single game belongs to Biko Paris, who had a whopping 6 trillion in the road game at Blacksburg last season. Biko still has another full season to eclipse Roche's mark. Dallas Elmore and Cortney Dunn each have recorded 3 trillion in two separate games, so there's time yet for them to also overtake Roche's career mark.

So there you have it. Mark, please send Roche a Club Tril t-shirt.

It's just too bad that guys like Roche or the bench players that came before him didn't think of this first. Imagine the internet fame that they could have had by creating a meaningless stat for bench-warmers and blogging about their experiences on Al Skinner's bench.

He’ll probably be out of practice for a couple of days, but I think he’ll be ready to go by Thu...

2010-03-09T01:02:06Z

He’ll probably be out of practice for a couple of days, but I think he’ll be ready to go by Thursday.

Skinner on Corey Raji, who sounds like a go for Thursday

Boston College junior Joe Trapani captured All-ACC third-team honors, according to an announcement...

2010-03-08T21:22:42Z

Boston College junior Joe Trapani captured All-ACC third-team honors, according to an announcement made by the Associated Press in conjunction with the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association. Trapani averaged 13.3 points and 5.8 rebounds in 15 conference contests this season. The Madison, Conn., resident ranked among league leaders in both scoring (12th) and rebounding (15th).

Trapani earns All-ACC Third-Team Honors

Headlines: A Day Late and a Point Short

2010-03-08T20:00:24Z

3/5/2010 - Boston College 3, New Hampshire 3 (OT) - 20-10-3, 15-8-3 Hockey East
3/6/2010 - Boston College 3, New Hampshire 2 - 21-10-3, 16-8-3 Hockey East

With a chance to win the Hockey East regular season title, the Eagles fell flat on Friday night. BC took a 3-0 lead into the third period only to let New Hampshire score 3 unanswered goals to force a 3-3 tie, ending any hope that the Eagles had of winning their first Hockey East regular season title since 2004-2005.

In the game on Friday, the Eagles got in the scoring column in the first period after a great play from Jimmy Hayes, Ben Smith and Chris Kreider in transition. It was Kreider's 12 goal of the season and his 9th in his last 12 games. Matt Lombardi made it 2-0 after he blasted a puck past UNH goaltender Brian Foster on a 3-on-2 odd man break. Tommy Cross widened the lead to 3-0 at 5:50 of the second period when Smith fed Cross for a one-time wrist shot.

New Hampshire responded early in the third period when John Henrion wristed a shot past Milner after UNH won the faceoff in the Eagles zone. It was only Henrion's third goal of the season. Then, at 8:35 of the third, Kevin McCarey knocked home a bad rebound off Milner to make it 3-2.

Then, at 14:38 of the third, Joe Whitney was sent off for a very questionable tripping call on UNH's Peter LeBlanc. LeBlanc almost seemed to be flop down on the ice without much provocation from Whitney. UNH capitalized though, as the Wildcats scored what proved to be the game-tying goal with just :33 left on the man-advantage.

For his part, Parker Milner played well, including making two outstanding saves in overtime to preserve the tie. Milner finished with 26 saves and moved to 9-2-1 on the year.

The announcers railed on York for his decision not to pull Milner with a little over 30 seconds left in the overtime period and play for the win, saying that BC lacked a sense of "awareness of the situation." Given Maine loss on Friday night, they argued that BC didn't have anything to lose since they were locked into the 2 seed. The argument was that when you are talking about playing for a championship, you go for it.

I completely disagree. A tie against UNH goes much further towards building BC's tournament resume than a loss, and the Eagles are fighting for the final #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. The decision not to pull Milner was absolutely the right decision on the part of York.

Even though the game ended in a tie, it certainly felt more like a loss, considering that a Hockey East regular season title was on the line and New Hampshire battled back from a 3-0 deficit. The third period has been a house of horrors for the Eagles against UNH, as the Wildcats have scored 3 unanswered in the third period twice against BC.

As an aside, what is up with the UNH fans throwing a fish on the ice? Is that really necessary? The Wildcat crowd member almost hit Parker Milner with a fish after Henrion's first goal of the game. I mean, a fish thrown on the ice for the first goal of every game? This isn't Detroit. UNH hockey certainly doesn't have the same postseason track record as the Red Wings, and even they don't even throw an octopus on the ice for every game.

In a game that had little meaning other than jockeying for NCAA Tournament position, on the following night, the Eagles won 3-2 on senior night. Paul Carey notched the game winner at 2:44 of the third period. Muse had 16 saves in the win, improving to 12-8-2 on the year.

Next up for the Eagles is the Hockey East quarterfinals against Massachusetts. BC won the regular season series vs. the Minutemen 3-0-0.

Headlines: Wolfpack 66, Eagles 54

2010-03-08T13:00:23Z

More photos » Ethan Hyman - AP

C.J. Williams blocks the shot of Rakim Sanders as N.C. State pulls away from BC 66-54. (AP Photo/The News & Observer, Ethan Hyman)

Browse more photos »

Jeff: Not sure there's not much you can take away from a BC loss where absolutely nothing was directly at stake for either team. Both N.C. State and Boston College had their ACC Tournament seed locked in before the game yesterday. You would still imagine all competitors on the floor still wanted to win the game, but there likely wasn’t the same intensity from all players and coaches involved as we'll see this week in Greensboro. What did you see from the loss yesterday? Your thoughts?

Brian: Like you said, this game meant little to both teams. That aside, I was still very disappointed with the Eagles’ performance. Maybe even more disappointed than BC’s losses to Maine, Harvard, Saint Joseph’s and Rhode Island. A win over N.C. State yesterday would have boosted BC's postseason resume tremendously. Now, the Eagles will likely be left trying to string together ACC Tournament wins to get a shot at making the NIT or CBI field.

It was a fitting end to the regular season as we let another mediocre team run away with the game late in the second half. After getting stitched up, N.C. State senior Dennis Horner scored 11 points down the stretch as the Wolfpack used a 20-5 run down the stretch to sink the Eagles 66-54 (in a game that was much closer, yet much uglier than the final score would indicate).

There aren’t many positives to take away from this game. I guess you can point to the fact that the Eagles only shot 3-of-16 from 3 and only lost by 12 as a positive. Similarly, Reggie Jackson was limited in the first half after sitting with two – in my opinion very questionable – offensive fouls called against him.

On to the negatives. The N.C. State forwards thoroughly dominated the Eagles all afternoon. The Wolfpack’s Tracy Smith led the way with 19 points, 7 rebounds, while C.J. Williams and Dennis Horner each chipped in 14 points. Contrast that with Josh Southern’s final stat line: 16 minutes, 0 points, 2 rebounds, 4 personal fouls. Every time Southern went up with the ball in the post it was an embarrassing effort in futility.

The Eagles managed only 2 offensive rebounds in the game, with both rebounds picked up by Tyler Roche. I’m fairly sure one of those offensive rebounds was Tyler Roche collecting his own rebound off a long 3 point attempt. You aren’t going to win many games when you don’t get second chance opportunities.

Like I said, I was very disappointed with the Eagles performance and am unsure whether BC will bother to show up in their ACC Tournament first-round game against Virginia.

Jeff: Looking forward to the ACC Tournament, what can we expect from BC this week? Here's what we know:

BC went 4-1 against the four teams seeded below them this season. In ACC play, for the most part they won the games they should have. BC also had a tough schedule in conference. BC played four of the top five seeds twice this season. BC played all of the top 7 seeds on the road except Maryland. BC was 0-6 on the road against those top 7 seeds and 2-2 at home.

Does BC really have a chance to make a run in the ACC Tournament?

Brian: If you would have asked me before yesterday’s game, I would have told you BC has a puncher’s chance at pulling off the improbable and winning 4 games in 4 days. Now, after the loss to N.C. State, I’m not even sure I’ll give them that. A lot of BC’s hopes rest on Corey Raji’s sore shoulder. While not BC’s #1 scoring threat, Raji has quietly averaged his fair share of points over the last few games, and we’ll need Roche to step in and contribute if Raji can’t go on Thursday.

I know that Sylven Landesberg won’t be playing for Virginia but I am concerned about the Eagles’ chances if Raji is not able to go. We've already seen one lineup change very late in the season (something Skinner is usually reticent to do), and I'm unsure what effect another lineup change will have on the Eagles going into the ACC Tournament.

Jeff: Are these neutral site games going to be more like home games or away games? I think that will be the key to BC's success. Typically, every non-Duke fan cheers against them which will give BC the advantage of the crowd on Friday. Will that be enough? Even if it is, on Saturday BC will be playing the early game against Virginia Tech or Florida State which will not be a matchup to get the casual fan to show up in time for tipoff. Will the crowd be a factor early and will BC be the underdog that everyone cheers for? I doubt BC will really be considered a lovable underdog amongst ACC fans when they're not playing against North Carolina or Duke. So can BC beat a Florida State or Virginia Tech team without the crowd on its side?

Brian: Neutral site games will feel like away games, for sure. That’s bad news for BC, as we haven’t exactly set the world on fire on the road this season. BC finishes the ACC schedule with an ugly 1-7 record on the road. In addition, they went 1-2 in their only appearances on a neutral court (the USVI Island Jam). Nothing from this past season’s results leads me to believe that the Eagles will be any good on a neutral court.

Will the Greensboro crowd be a factor? It will be enough of a factor for the game between BC and Duke, if the Eagles manage to get past Virginia. This is only the second ACC Tournament in Greensboro since the ACC added us as the twelfth team (and first in 4 years), and with Durham a short two hour drive away, the early session should be packed with Blue Devils fans. I’m expecting the BC fan contingent to be light as best, given that we’ll be playing at Friday at noon. This team hasn’t exactly inspired the Eagles faithful to show up for this game, and the BC contingent will likely be little more than those alumni living in the Carolinas and Atlanta. Finally, since it is the first game on Friday, BC can’t exactly count on the other school’s fans to show up and root against Duke.

BC Baseball Drops Weekend Series to Florida Atlantic

2010-03-08T04:50:51Z

BC Baseball Drops Weekend Series to Florida Atlantic

It could be a long season for the Eagles if someone other than Pat Dean doesn't step up in the starting pitching rotation ...

Dean pitched 7 solid innings in BC's lone win on Friday (5-2). He improves to 2-0 on the year. On Saturday, Mike Dennhart gave up 8 earned runs in just 2 innings as the Owls pounded BC 15-6. In the rubber match, Kevin Moran gave up 7 earned in 4 1/3 as the Eagles fell 11-7.

The Eagles are now 4-5 on the year. BC next faces FIU on Tuesday and Wednesday before traveling to Coral Gables to face #11 Miami in a three-game weekend series.

ACC Men's Basketball Tournament Field Set

2010-03-08T03:12:31Z

Wake Forest's 70-65 win over Clemson this evening concluded the 2009-2010 ACC regular season. With the loss, the Tigers fall all the way from a 3 seed to a 6 seed and miss out on a first-round bye. However, none of today's results affected BC's tournament draw, as BC (8), Virginia (9), Duke (1) and Virginia Tech (4) were all locked into their respective seeds.

The only real outcome from today's action was that we know have the possibility of facing Wake Forest instead of Florida State in a semifinal. But let's not get ahead of ourselves just yet.

Here is the ACC Tournament schedule, beginning Thursday at noon with the Eagles and Cavaliers in the 8 vs. 9 game:

First Round

(8) Boston College vs. (9) Virginia
(5) Wake Forest vs. (12) Miami
(7) Georgia Tech vs. (10) North Carolina
(6) Clemson vs. (11) N.C. State

Quarterfinals

(1) Duke vs. BC/Virginia Winner
(4) Virginia Tech vs. Wake Forest/Miami Winner
(2) Maryland vs. Georgia Tech/North Carolina Winner
(3) Florida State vs. Clemson/N.C. State Winner

We'll have more thoughts on the ACC Tournament throughout the week. Go Eagles!

2009-2010 Boston College Men's Basketball: N.C. State Game Thread

2010-03-07T15:15:12Z

vs.

Boston College Eagles (15-14, 6-9 ACC) at N.C. State Wolfpack (16-14, 4-11 ACC)

Time: 2:00 EST
Date: Sunday, Mar. 7, 2010
Place: RBC Center (cap. 19,722), Raleigh, N.C.
TV: Raycom

The Line: N.C. State -2

Last Time Out: The Eagles defeated Virginia 68-55 to move to 15-14 (6-9 ACC).

NCAA Basketball

Series: Boston College leads the all-time series 7-2.
Last Meeting at RBC Center: N.C. State 74, Boston College 69 (Mar. 4, 2009)

Trends: BC is 1-6 on the road in the ACC this season. N.C. State has lost their regular season finale in each of the last 5 seasons. The Wolfpack is just 5-10 in their last 15 games.

N.C. State's 2008-2009 Record: 16-14 (6-10 ACC)

Probable Starters:

G - Javier Gonzalez (Jr.) - 5'11", 175 lbs., Carolina, Puerto Rico - 10.2 PPG, 3.3 RPG
G - Farnold Degand (Sr.) - 6'4", 170 lbs., Boston, Ma. - 5.9 PPG, 2.5 RPG
G/F - Scott Wood (Fr.) - 6'7", 170 lbs., Marion, In. - 7.9 PPG, 3.0 RPG
F - Dennis Horner (Sr.) - 6'9", 226 lbs., Linwood, N.J. - 11.7 PPG, 4.9 RPG
F - Tracy Smith (Jr.) - 6'8", 247 lbs., Detroit, Mi. - 17.0 PPG, 7.8 RPG

Finally, after a roller coaster season, we've reached the end of the line - BC and NC State in the regular season finale. This game is for little more than bragging rights and momentum going into the ACC Tournament, as both the Eagles and the Wolfpack are locked into the number 8 and 11 seeds, respectively.

Leave your pre-, in- or post-game thoughts below.