Blue Devil Blues

Losing to Duke 75-61 is never a pleasant way to spend a Sunday afternoon, but last night's game shed a lot of light onto Boston College's season at hand:

Al Skinner must manage his timeouts more effectively. I understand that Al likes to let players recover on their own, but BC's bench is no deeper than the kiddie pool. Fatigue must be an issue- BC allows oppponents to close out the first half on a run almost every contest. At halftime against Duke, it should never have been more than a two possession game. Instead, the buzzer sounded with the Eagles down eight, a margin that proved to be insurmountable in the second half.

I was pleasantly surprised by Tyrelle Blair tonight. He played on both ends of the court, and he contributed with blocks, rebounds, and some tough points. If Blair can continue to play like he did against the Blue Devils, I will rescind all of my negative comments and praise him for his efforts. The most noticable difference in his game was his confidence- though I am surprised that he found it at the always intimidating Cameron Indoor. I cannot fault a guy that is trying.

John Oates, however, is another story. After the way Blair played in the first half, what was Skinner thinking keeping him on the pine for the first twelve minutes of the second half. John played another game of awful defense and inefficient offense. His indifference on the court seems to drain energy from surrounding players. Oates has the raw skills to contribute, but he does not work nearly as hard as his fellow Eagles. Oates needs to step up.

If BC is going to beat deserving opponants, the team needs to finish their shots. BC's positioning underneath the basket afforded numerous putback opportunities, many of which were squandered by poor shooting. As a team, the Eagles only shot 35% from the field (compared to Duke's 50%).

Sean Marshall and Tyrese Rice have both shown flashes of brilliance this year. Unfortunately, they will need to bring their A games more consistantly if BC hopes to compete with the ACC elite. Marshall shot only 2-11 tonight. Sean is a very streaky shooter, therefore he needs to drive and create easy buckets before he starts lining it up from the outside.

Despite the loss, I am excited to get the Blue Devils at home in a few weeks. I think the team proved that the season is far from over. The Eagles shot poorly and had a number of mental mistakes, yet the team stayed competitive in one of college basketball's most hostile environments.

We should be able to gather some momentum on Wednesday against Hartford before Virginia Tech comes to town. I would like to see Al implement some new looks both offensively and defensively in the game. The Eagles need to refine their full court pressure. Also, the game may be an opportunity to get Roche and Kaba some valuable minutes. If Oates is not willing to answer the call of duty, perhaps one of these freshman will...