NCAA First Weekend Rant

So I am going to change the format for the Rant up a bit for this.  I decided to break the first weekend of March Madness into various categories and picking the team/teams that best fit that category.  If you want me to potentially add a different category for next week let me know.

BEST GAME: I think it's safe to say the best game of the weekend without a doubt was the Wichita State-Kentucky game.  When filling out my bracket, no game in the first weekend caused me to deliberate when picking a winner more than this game. My heart wanted me to pick Wichita State, but my head always said Kentucky.  Kentucky finished the season strong and came within one point of beating Florida in the SEC title game.  The Shockers on the other hand came in undefeated, but hadn't really been challenged in quite sometime.

Prior to the game I had such high expectations for the game, which usually means the game will end up being one sided, kind of like how the Super Bowl was this year.  This game however lived up to the hype for all 40 minutes.  It was continuously back and forth and the stars of both teams brought their "A" games.  Cleanthony Early played arguably the best game of his career for Wichita State, which I am sure caught the eyes of many NBA scouts, and the Harrison twins for Kentucky played probably their two best games of the season.  It's a shame one team had to lose, but it was fitting that Kentucky won by 2 points as it showed just how close the game really was.  I came into the tournament with skepticism regarding Wichita State's #1 seed and how far they would go in the tournament, and although they lost in the second round, they proved that they could indeed play with anybody in the country.  Kentucky on the other hand, whom many had as their pre-season #1 based on another extremely talented freshman class, failed to live up to their expectations for nearly the whole season, but now it looks like they have finally come together as a team, and are now a legitimate threat in the tournament and playing far better than a team that is seeded 8th in their region.

MOST SURPRISING TEAM: This was a toss up between Dayton and Stanford, but I decided to go with Dayton ever so slightly.  Coincidentally both these teams, whom I am sure nearly no one had advancing past the first weekend, will face each other int he Sweet 16 this week, meaning one of these teams seeded 11 and 10 respectively will be in the Elite 8.  Dayton had to beat both their in state foe Ohio State and the Syracuse, who was playing a near home game in Buffalo, to advance.  While I think Stanford's win over Kansas was the most impressive win between the two teams, regardless of Kansas not having Embiid play, I thought the body of work by Dayton over the two games was slightly better.

MOST IMPROVED TEAM FROM GAME 1 to GAME 2: This award will have to go to the Virginia Cavaliers.  Even though I am an ACC fan, being a BC alum, and knowing UVA won both the regular and ACC Tournament titles, I still had my doubts about them being a #1 seed.  Clearly they could win, but they have never been a team that was flashy.  If you know the Bennett family, you know that they emphasize defense, and Tony Bennett has had UVA play some incredible defense this year.  In the first game against Coastal Carolina UVA looked far from a #1 seed and struggled to pull away from the Chanticleers (I had to work in that mascot into the Rant somehow, one of the most unique in college sports) until the final 7 minutes or so of the game.  Against Memphis in round 2 however, UVA looked like a #1 seed, and a team that could give Michigan State, whom I have as one of the favorites to win it all, a hell of a fight in the Sweet 16.  The Cavaliers completely shut down the Memphis offense, and they were also able to knock down the 3 point shot with ease, which is the key to their offensive success. Between game 1 and game 2 UVA looked like a completely different team, and now one that wouldn't shock me if they end up in Dallas next weekend.

DARK HORSE TEAM TO ADVANCE TO THE FINAL 4:  For some reason I felt like I watched more Big 12 games this year than any other league.  It seemed anytime I turned ESPN on during the week, another Big 12 game was being played.  As a result there were two teams that I put int he category of  "they can beat any team, but at the same time they can lose to any team" and those two teams were Baylor and Oklahoma State.  On paper Baylor seems like they should be a force of a team.  They probably have 2 of the best big men in college basketball in Cory Jefferson and Isaiah Austin, they have a knock down three-point shooter in Brady Heslip and a skilled point guard in Kenny Chery.  The team the Bears put on the court in the first weekend, especially the one against Creighton, was a team that I feel like could compete with anyone in the tournament.  The Bears dominated down low and were hitting three pointers left and right, and when a team can dominate in those two categories it is almost impossible to defend.  While the Bears will face a tough opponent in Wisconsin in the Sweet 16, if they can play like they did in San Antonio then it really wouldn't shock me if they beat the Badgers and then move on to the next game with a chance to advance to the Final 4.

BEST SWEET 16 GAME:  I won't go too in depth here because anytime you mention Louisville-Kentucky, then you know it's a big basketball game.  While it's always a huge game when the two in-state rivals play each other in the regular season, it is even that much more magnified when the two meet in the NCAA Tournament.  The last time the Wildcats and Cardinals met in the tournament was in the 2012 Final 4 when Kentucky beat Louisville to advance to the title game in which they ended up winning.  While this game only a Sweet 16 game, I do believe the winner has the inside track in the region to advancing to the Final 4. For the sake of my bracket, I am going to have to root for the Cardinals in this one, but I am expecting a great game.  

TEAMS THAT I THINK WILL WIN IT ALL: If you saw either of my two brackets you would know that I think the winner of my predicted Final 4 match-up between Florida and Michigan State will win it all, and as a result I am going to stick with those teams.  I believe both these teams not only have the most overall talent, but both have the greatest depth of any teams left.  While I think Florida without a doubt has the easiest route to get to the Final 4, I do think if UVA plays like they did against Memphis then they could give Michigan State a very tough time in the Sweet 16.  Arizona is also a team that has lived up their #1 seeding through the first weekend and looks like they have what it takes to cut down the nets in Dallas. 

BEST MOMENT OF THE FIRST WEEKEND:  If you love pageantry in college sports like I do, then you know one of the best parts of the March Madness is watching the bench players' reactions and the pep bands for each school.  It is for this reason why I am giving my moment of the first weekend award to the Stanford cow bell guy Alex Chang.  Hands down most enthusiastic cow beller I have ever seen.  Feel free to see him in his element below.

RANDOM THOUGHT: This random thought doesn't really have much to do with the NCAA Tournament per se, but watching Gonzaga get beat pretty handily by Arizona on Sunday made me think if Mark Few will now start to consider leaving Gonzaga.  Last year when the Zags were the #1 seed you could argue it was their best chance, with the exception of maybe the Adam Morrison years, to make it to the Final 4, and they lost in the Round of 32.  I thought for sure Mark Few may have made the jump to a power conference when his alma mater Oregon had a job opening in 2010, but he decided again to stay put in Spokane.  The one job I think he may now consider is Washington, which has a good chance of opening up if Lorenzo Romar has another sub par year next season.  Former Boise State football coach Chris Petersen, a guy whom many compared to Few, finally made the jump to Washington this year, and I am curious to see if the Husky job opens up if Few will follow in Petersen's footsteps.  

Puck Talk

With March Madness now in full swing and also occupying nearly all of my attention there are two teams that I have failed to Rant about being a Boston and BC sports fan, and those are the Bruins and the BC men's hockey team.

The Bruins are currently the hottest team in the NHL, having won 12 straight games and leading the Penguins  by 6 points in the Eastern Conference and tied with the St. Louis Blues with 103 points for top the team in all of the NHL.  The Olympic break to me couldn't have come at a worse time for the B's as they had won 7 of 9 heading into the break, and I was worried that the long layoff would cause the team to lose all of their momentum.  The B's returned from the break by losing their first two games, which caused me to believe that my previous concerns had become true, but since a 6-3 Sunday night beating of the New York Rangers at MSG on the night of the Oscars on March 1st, the Bruins have been in cruise control having not lost a game since.

When the NHL trade deadline hit on March 5, most Bruins fans thought the team didn't fully address the team's top need, which was getting a top 4 defenseman, having lost Dennis Seidenberg for the season due to injury.  The Bruins did get defensemen Andrej Meszaros and Corey Potter but neither of these guys really wowed the Bruins' fanbase.  What the Bruins did get at the beginning of March however, which has proven to be a major factor in the team's recent success, was a rejuvenated Jerome Iginla and a confident Carl Soderberg.

When the Bruins got Iginila in the off-season, Bruins fans were hoping for a second or third line player and for much of the beginning part of the season he seemed out of sorts.  Since the Olympic break however he has lit the ice on fire and has looked like the Jerome Iginla of old during his peak with the Calgary Flames.  In the team's 13 games in the month of March Iginla has 11 goals, 3 assists and a +/- of +10.  Soderberg on the other hand was a player that came to the Bruins with high expectations, and starting last year and through the beginning of this season he had failed to live up to those lofty expectations.  Similar to Iginla, Soderberg has been playing some great hockey in the month of March by scoring 4 goals and tallying 6 assists, many of which have been highlight reel passes. Many would argue the main reason why the Bruins have been so good over the past few seasons is because of how strong all four of their lines are.  Soderberg has been the anchor on the Bruins third line as of late and this past Saturday against the Coyotes in Phoenix the Bruins won on a goal from B's enforcer Shawn Thornton which is another example how even the 4th line, aka The Merlot line, is contributing to the team's recent success.

While the Bruins have been scorching hot this month, this week will be a strong test to see where the team stands heading into the playoffs.  Tonight the B's take on Montreal, a team until their most recent outing 2 weeks ago has had the Bruins number as of late, then they play last year's Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks at the Garden on Thursday night and then the team finishes the week with games at Washington and at Philadelphia.  Needless to say this team has been a treat to watch recently and I look forward to another long playoff run this spring.

As for the BC hockey team, the regular season did not end the way many fans thought it would.  The team ended the regular season losing to Notre Dame, and then lost 2-1 in the best of 3 series to the Irish in the Hockey East quarterfinals.  While this was tough to swallow after the team had a 17 game unbeaten stream and seemed unstoppable, I am hoping that a) Notre Dame just had the Eagles' number and b) the team learned from their mistakes and will correct them this weekend in the Northeast Regional of the NCAA Tournament in Worcester.

BC's draw in the tournament is somewhat favorable. The Eagles earned the Northeast Regional's #1 seed and the #2 overall seed in the tournament and will begin play Saturday afternoon by taking on a Denver team that has a mediocre record of 20-15-6 and who would not have made the tournament had they not won the NCHC Tournament this past weekend.  If BC were to win this game, which I expect they will, then they will take on the winner of UMass-Lowell and Minnesota State.  I expect the Hockey East Tournament winner Riverhawks to win this game, which would give us a Hockey East regional final with BC against UMass Lowell.  This is where things could get interesting.  Lowell is obviously a hot team right now, and has played BC tough this season, but I think this is where the power of Jerry York kicks in. In case you aren't aware BC's last 3 titles were in the years 2008, 2010 and 2012, so it only makes sense that 2014 is the next time the Eagles would raise another banner, which would give the school a total of six titles in men's hockey.  Also, in all those years BC made it to the Frozen Four via Worcester, so that is something else in BC's favor.

A few other side notes regarding the NCAA Tournament in respects to BC:  Eagles fans can breathe a little easier knowing the earliest the BC would have to play the thorn in the team's side, the Irish of Notre Dame, would be in the National Title game.  This would also be the earliest the Eagles would have to play Minnesota, who along with BC, were the clear top 2 teams throughout the entire college hockey season.  The one potential drawback for the Eagles is they'd have to play Union, who is the hottest team in the nation and currently ranked #1, in the semi-finals.

Well that's about it, and as usual Go Eagles this weekend, and remember In York We Trust.  As for those asking about a Rant in regards to the NCAA basketball tournament, I plan to have one up by Thursday.  I literally felt overwhelmed, albeit in a good way, with March Madness these past four days so I figured I'd give my brain a rest for at least a day and focus on hockey.

It's Time For BC To Bring Back Lacrosse

I am Not sure if any of you have been paying attention to the Boston College baseball team, but after spending nearly a month on the road, Birdball finally had a chance to play a home game this week.  Unfortunately the weather won't allow them to play on Pellagrini Diamond at Shea Field, as their game yesterday against Holy Cross was postponed and their games this weekend against Wake Forest have been moved to Northeastern and Bryant University respectively. Add in some really sub-par years recently for baseball, and I think it is now the perfect time for Athletic Director Brad Bates to finally start to think about dropping baseball and replacing it with lacrosse.

In my mind this is really a no brainer decision.  BC is in arguably the toughest conference in college baseball, and yet they have to play at such a disadvantage compared to most their fellow conference members.  The team is not only forced to practice in a bubble on a football field during the winter months, but they also have to play their first 15-20 games on the road.  Also, from a talent perspective BC clearly doesn't have the players compared to many of the other teams in the ACC.

Lacrosse on the other hand is a sport that has become very popular among kids both at the lower level and  high school ranks, and has become one of the top sports in Massachusetts over the last decade.  If BC were to add lacrosse, they would have a plethora of talent to recruit from right in their own backyard.  Also, a lot of kids that come to BC whether it be in Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Maryland or the Washington DC area, went to schools with strong lacrosse traditions.  I'm sure who is ever hired to lead the program would use those relationships with the schools to help entice potential players to BC. While there may be some growing pains to start off, I think the allure of playing in the ACC would make the Eagles an exciting option for recruits, and would help BC become the premier school in New England for division 1 collegiate lacrosse.  

Another reason why it would be smart for BC to switch to lacrosse is because of costs.  Travel expenses in particular would be significantly less than baseball.  Currently in the ACC only Duke, UNC, UVA, Syracuse and Notre Dame (this will be Maryland's final year) have division 1 lacrosse teams.  Also, BC could play the majority of their non-conference games in New England playing teams like Holy Cross, Harvard, UMass, Providence, Fairfield, BU and Bryant.  All these games would require a short bus ride and BC could play their home games on the all weather turf field on Newton Campus that the girl's lacrosse and both soccer teams currently play on.  Barring a blizzard, there should really be no reason why the lacrosse team would have to postpone or move a home game to a different venue like the baseball team has had to do this week.

I have no idea whether Brad Bates has even considered  switching out baseball for lacrosse, but I hope having seen the baseball team have to both postpone and switch venues for their home games this week, that the thought has at least crossed his mind.  The club team has had great success in recent years and is currently ranked 5th nationally in the club rankings and I am confident, as long as Bates hires the right coach, that the transition could be a smooth one.

Finally I couldn't post a BC lacrosse related Rant without paying homage to one of the great BC alums and former lacrosse player Welles Crowther (pictured above), who sacrificed his life to help save others on September 11th.  If you haven't seen the piece ESPN did on him it is posted below.

Update!

Well BC basketball fans can breathe a little easier today knowing that Steve Donahue will not be back as the head coach of the Eagle basketball team.  It appears SI.com's Pete Thamel may have some explaining to do after he wrote Thursday night that Donahue would be back.  Without any announcement on Friday or over the weekend from Boston College athletic director Brad Bates regarding Donahue's status, rumblings started to swirl that maybe Donahue's job was not safe, and today at a 4 PM press conference Bates made it official that Donahue had been fired.

As mentioned in my previous blogs about Donahue, Donahue is a great man, but in his 4 years at BC, he showed that he could not coach at an ACC level.  With Bruce Pearl going to Auburn today, everyone can officially put the Pearl to BC rumors to sleep.  As much as I wished he would be BC's next head coach, I knew the chances of him coming to Chestnut Hill were very slim.  So where does Bates go from here?  For starters the top priority for Bates should be to find a coach who has a track record of recruiting ACC level talent.  Donahue may have been a great x's and o's guy but one thing he was not good at was recruiting.  As mentioned two Rants ago, one guy I would love to see them look at is Manhattan's head coach Steve Masiello.  Masiello is an up and coming young and energetic coach, who has the Jaspers in the NCAA Tournament this year, and who spent his previous years coaching under Rick Pitino and was one of Pitino's top recruiters.

Other names being thrown out as possible candidates are Harvard's Tommy Amaker and Syracuse's top assistant and coach in waiting Mike Hopkins.  As for Amaker, it really wouldn't shock me if Bates has him high on his radar.  Amaker's Crimson has dominated BC in basketball as of late and he has Harvard in the Dance for the third straight year.  All of these are nice stats, but when Amaker was the head coach at both Seton Hall and Michigan, he did very little to show that he could run a successful program at an elite level.  In his 10 years at Michigan and Seton Hall he only made it to the NCAA tournament once.  Also, for all we know, maybe Amaker wouldn't be interested.  Some coaches realize where they have the best chance to succeed, and maybe Amaker is now self aware that he is suited best for the Ivy League.  Another reason why this hire wouldn't totally excite me is Donahue was an Ivy League coach at Cornell prior to coming to BC, so what makes one think that Amaker would fare any better?

As for Mike Hopkins, he does seem intriguing.  He has definitely paid his dues working under Jim Boeheim, and many writers say he is ready.  Hopkins was a candidate for the USC job last year, a sign that Syracuse's coach in waiting was at least willing to interview for other jobs.  We all know through following college football recently that the coach in waiting tag really means nothing if the current head coach doesn't leave within a year or two of announcing the coach in waiting i.e. James Franklin at Maryland and Will Muschamp at Texas.  If Hopkins were  to come to BC and Boeheim all of a sudden retires within the next few years, what would make you think he wouldn't bolt for Syracuse?  If BC is willing to look at Mike Hopkins however, it wouldn't shock me if they also interview long time Duke assistant Steve Wojciechowski as well.  I thought Duke assistants would never leave Durham, but with Johnny Dawkins going to Stanford and Chris Collins to Northwestern in recent years, I have begun to think otherwise.

Other names that wouldn't shock me to be seen considered for the job are Creighton's Greg McDermott (although curious to see how good he is without Doug on his team), Providence head coach and former BC assistant Ed Cooley (I think he is very comfortable coaching in his hometown however) and former UCLA and Pitt head coach Ben Howland.  Of all these candidates Howland is the one I am most interested in because he has shown he can win at an elite level, however I think he will save himself for a job on the west coast.

Regardless of who is the next coach, I am more than relieved to see Brad Bates decided that the basketball program needs to go in a different direction.  I have faith in his evaluation process, as I have been impressed thus far with his first major hire in Steve Addazio, and I hope within the near future that we will actually be able to watch a BC hoops game during this time of year again.

Why?!?!?!?!?!

The reaction by BC head basketball coach Steve Donahue pictured above, was the exact same reaction I had last night when I read Pete Thamel's article on SI.com which reported that Donahue would remain at BC next year.  This is the same Steve Donahue who just completed his 4th season as the Boston College head coach with a far from stellar 8-24 record and finished in 14th place in the ACC.

I do want to make one disclaimer before I start to get into my Rant, and that is this is a Rant about Steve Donahue the coach and NOT Steve Donahue the man.  Donahue has shown since day one of being hired that he is a first class guy, whom I have the utmost respect for, and who is a tremendous ambassador to Boston College. His relentless support for former Sports Information Director Dick Kelley during his battle with ALS was well documented, and he has personified everything that you would want in a head coach.  With all that being said, during his 4 years as head coach of the Eagles he has shown that he cannot coach and recruit in the ACC.  I actually think Donahue is a good basketball coach, but he is best suited for a mid major team, not a team that is in arguably the best conference in college basketball.  Now with all that out of the way I will begin my Rant....

Based on Twitter reactions last night and reading other BC related blogs today, it appears there is not one person who is in favor of this decision.  Like any job, whether it be in sports, business or whatever field one works in, there are expectations and when those expectations aren't met, then usually there are consequences.  In the field of coaching the easiest way to judge one's performance is by wins and losses.  In Steve Donahue's 4 years at BC he is 54-76 overall and 24-44 in ACC play, with 9 of those ACC wins coming in his first year when Reggie Jackson and other Al Skinner players were the main reasons for the team's success.  In the last 3 years, playing with mainly players Donahue has recruited, the team has not finished above 8th place in the ACC.

 I am all for giving a coach time and allowing him to recruit his own players, but Donahue has shown he has not been able to recruit ACC caliber players.  Olivier Hanlan is the only player in my mind who would start on another ACC team.  Ryan Anderson is a good player, but would most likely be coming off the bench for most other teams.  Besides that , BC is made up of players, who although have shown glimmers of promise, have yet to play consistently enough to show me that they are worthy of playing in the ACC.

This past season, which just ended, was Donahue's 4th season in Chestnut Hill, which is usually the make or break your for a struggling coach.  This season had all the makings of one where BC would finish in the top half of the ACC and finally return to the NCAA Tournament after a 5 year absence, since all their players were returning, including last year's ACC Rookie of the Year in Hanlan.  The season however took a quick nose dive when the team began the year 1-5, and their only win was a 3 point win over Florida Atlantic, who in case you were wondering finished 10-22 this season.  Everyone knew that BC's gauntlet of a non-conference schedule was either going to really help them, or really hurt them, and we all pretty much realized by week 2 of the young season that the schedule would really hurt them.  The Eagles were never able to gain the confidence they needed to go on a run this season, as was evidenced by the fact that the team only had a win streak of 2 or more games once this season, and that was when they beat Washington and Sacred Heart in back to back games in November.  I, like a few others I'm sure, thought after BC beat undefeated and then #1 Syracuse that it would boost the team's confidence and help them finish the season strong. Unfortunately that wasn't the case as BC lost their next game after Syracuse by 27 to a mediocre Miami team and were only able to win 1 of their final 5 games.

There are many reasons why BC was not successful.  If you watched any games on TV this season you would know a favorite talking point among analysts was that center Dennis Clifford was out for the season and it was because of this that the Eagles lost so many games.  I am sorry but when a team loses a player for the season due to injury, a good coach will find a way for his team to adapt  as the season goes on.  This year's team was completely inept on defense, inconsistent on offense and almost always was out rebounded.  Physically many of BC's players weren't big enough both in strength and height to  bang on the boards with the the rest of their ACC brethren.  This all goes back to recruiting. It's as if Donahue thinks he is still in Ithaca recruiting for Cornell, and even given that BC has not been able to beat crosstown rival Harvard in his 4 years as head coach.  As a college coach, one has to have an eye for talent and the ability to recruit talent that will be able to compete in the league they are in, and so far Donahue hasn't shown he has that eye for talent that can compete in the ACC.

Rumors were swirling last night that the decision to keep Donahue wasn't BC Athletic Director Brad Bates' decision but rather one of a higher ranking official.  I won't comment on this because we do not know this for sure, but I really hope Bates has a strong explanation for this decision because he has a very disgruntled fan base right now.  In the nearly 2 years Bates has been at BC, I have been very impressed with the work he has done, especially with his hiring of football coach Steve Addazio, but this decision to keep Donahue is a real head scratcher for me.

Nearly every alum and BC basketball fan thought it was a foregone conclusion that Donahue would be gone after this season. For me, it wasn't a question of if, but rather when.  I figured by this weekend Bates would have already announced Donahue wouldn't be back and that the search had begun for the next head coach.  Instead I keep asking myself WHY!?!?!?!

Maybe Bates did reach out to BC alum Bruce Pearl about his interest in the position and he flat out told him that he wasn't interested.  That is a strong possibility given the fact that the Auburn job just opened up, and he is probably more comfortable coaching in the SEC than ACC.  Regardless if Pearl said no, a change to me had to have taken place.  In the last 4 years there has been no sign of light at the end of the dark, dark tunnel, that the basketball program has been traveling in since the departure of Al Skinner.

Maybe there isn't a big name coach out there that Bates thought he could get to takeover the program, although if you read my previous Rant I think Manhattan head coach Steve Masiello would have been a great option.  Maybe Bates thought the best he could have done was replace Steve Donahue with another Steve Donahue.  A coach from the low to mid level ranks who has coached for a while but has no elite level head coaching experience.  That is another possibility.  Also, maybe Bates and the administration were scared by the Michael Vega article on Wednesday that mentioned Olivier Hanlan was considering leaving for the pros and Ryan Anderson and Joe Rahon were considering transferring to schools on the West Coast.  Maybe they thought if Donahue was retained that this would be the best way to make sure Hanlan, Rahon and Anderson all stayed for one more year.  All of these are all very strong possibilities and reasons for keeping Donahue, but to me a change was a must.

There is very good chance BC will be better next year.  Most likely they will schedule a soft non-conference slate and there is a chance that some of the last minute losses they had this year will go their way, but what will the end result be? I don't see BC getting to the 20 win mark which would put them in the discussion for an NCAA bid.  I see them getting somewhere between 15-18 wins, and a potential NIT invite, which would make it six years since BC was last in the NCAA Tournament.  If BC does not make the tournament next year, which as I just mentioned is a very slim possibility, then without a doubt Donahue will be gone. So why would Bates and the BC administration delay the inevitable?

I am sure as you have read this Rant that you can tell I am not happy.  This was the first year I did not attend a BC basketball game in a long, long time, and by retaining Donahue I am not sure the product on the court will be worthy of mine, and I am sure many other disgruntled BC fans investments, come next season.  Boston College basketball needs a change, and needs it bad, but it looks like we will all have to wait another year.  Ugh!

Steve Masiello

As BC basketball plays in the first round of the ACC Tournament tonight, which will most likely be their final game of the dreadful 2013-14 season, it is time for us BC fans to start looking towards the future.  While I, along with other BC bloggers, have already speculated about potential candidates to replace current Head Coach Steve Donahue, one name I have not seen yet, but I think should receive strong consideration is current Manhattan Head Coach Steve Masiello.  While I think Bruce Pearl appears to be the favorite among BC fans to be Donahue's replacement, we all know a) Pearl comes at a high risk and b) there is a good chance he may not be interested in the job.  With that being said I still think Brad Bates should definitely make a run at Pearl, a BC alum and Sharon, MA native, but if things between BC and Pearl don't work out, Masiello is the guy I'd call next.

While Masiello is only 36, and only has 3 years of head coaching experience, I think he would be a perfect candidate for the job.  In just his 3rd year at Manhattan he has the Jaspers going to the Big Dance, and in 2 out of his 3 years there his team has had 20+ wins.  In his second year the Jaspers went 14-18, but this year he showed he could rebound from a bad season by going 25-7 and winning the MAAC.  Another reason, and maybe the most important reason why Maisello maybe a great option, is that he is a Rick Pitino disciple and was Pitino's strongest recruiter at Louisville who recruited many of the players that were on last year's National Championship team.

If Bates uses the same criteria in hiring the next basketball coach that he used to hire current BC football coach Steve Addazio, then he will immediately be attracted to Masiello's energy.  Although I haven't really researched him until the past few days, you can tell in the videos that I have watched (one of which I have posted at the end of my Rant) that he is very similar to Addazio.  Masiello has passion for the game and coaching and because of that you can tell why he has been such a strong recruiter.

I am not saying Masiello is going to be the next Billy Donovan, but they do share a lot of similarities.  Both are from New York, and both played for Pitino in college, granted Masiello was merely a bench player at Kentucky.  After college both Donovan and Masiello become Pitino assistants and then both became head coaches at a young age.  Donovan became the head coach at Marshall when he was 28, and took over the high profile Florida program just two seasons later.   Masiello may not win back to back National Championships at Boston College like Donovan has done at Florida, but I think he is a guy that definitely deserves a strong look by Brad Bates.

While I do think Masiello's stock has risen this season given Manhattan's success, I still think he is low profile enough where he wouldn't blow off the BC job if offered to him.  This would be the perfect opportunity for Brad Bates to strike the iron while it is hot, and I am confident if the Eagles hired Masiello that he will be able to turn around the program.

NBA Needs To Change Their Noche Latina Uniforms

If you have watched an NBA game recently, you may have noticed various teams wearing uniforms similar to the one Bulls' center Joakim Noah is wearing above.  While my Rants are never supposed to be political in nature, this issue with the NBA and their Noche Latina nights, where they honor the Latin race and culture, has irked me over the past couple seasons. I am all for honoring the Latin race or any race or culture for that matter, however  my big pet peeve is that the NBA is going about it wrong.  Adding a Los or El in front of the the team's name on their jersey to me is almost mocking the Spanish language.  If the NBA really wanted to honor the Latin race make the jersey say Los Toros (Spanish word for bulls) instead of Los Bulls.  If anything by adding the actual Spanish word for the team name it could be somewhat educational to the fans as they may learn a Spanish word they never knew before.

My other big issue with the NBA and its uniforms is this short sleeve jersey phenomenon.  I am all for changes in a uniform if it can improve a player's performance, but personally I think these jerseys look ridiculous.  What angers me the most is that the Celtics are going to wear the short sleeve jersey ,pictured above, on St. Patrick's Day which also happens to be my 30th birthday.  As a lifelong Celtics fan that is almost a slap in my face.  Being the traditional franchise that the Celtics are, I thought they'd be above all this uniform change nonsense, but I guess not.  This past Friday night the Celtics players on the bench were wearing Los Celtics t-shirts and now this coming week they will don the short sleeve jersey.  If there is one positive it is that after a game against Spurs last week, the current face of the NBA Lebron James spoke out against the wearing of short sleeved jerseys.  Finally, as huge fan of March Madness I am not looking forward to seeing the Adidas sponsored schools such as Baylor (pictured below) wearing these heinous looking uniforms in their conference tournaments this week and in the NCAA Tournament in the coming weeks.  Needless to say I hope this is a fashion trend that comes to an abrupt end.

Bo And Beilein Are Up To Their Usual Tricks

I alluded to it briefly in my blog about the Big 10 last week, but as a college basketball fan one has to marvel at the work both John Beilein has done at Michigan and Bo Ryan has done at Wisconsin this year.  While their teams' records seem to shock some people, (the Badgers are currently ranked #9 and the Wolverines #12 in the most recent rankings) as college basketball fans we should at this point not be surprised by how well either of their teams perform.  Both these coaches over the last decade have proven to be two of the most consistent coaches in all of college basketball.

When Beilein grew West Virginia into a force in college basketball in the early 2000's, it definitely caught me by surprise. For starters, Beilein has always looked more like a professor, with his rolled up sleeves, than a basketball coach.  Secondly, none of the WVU players individually were that special. As a team however they seemed to work perfectly together.  The Mountaineers grew into a power in what I perceived was a perfect mixture of talent and system. WVU was a team that was deadly from 3 point land, as all of us BC fans know from the second round of the Big East Tournament in 2005, and as a result few teams were able to keep up with them from behind the arc.  While Beilein had great success at WVU, taking the Mountaineers all the way to the Elite 8 in 2005, I was skeptical when Michigan hired him in 2007.

At West Virginia he could get a way with playing his system with marginally recruited players, but at Michigan the bar is set higher, and there is even bigger pressure in Ann Arbor given the basketball success of their instate rivals from East Lansing.  While Beilein has been able to continue to recruit players that fit his system i.e. Nick Stauskas, who should be this year's Big 10 player of the year, he has also been able to lure high profile recruits, like Trey Burke and Glenn Robinson III.  Having a mixture of players that fit his system, as well as great all around players, has allowed Michigan to not only become a Big 10 power, but a national power as well.  Losing Trey Burke and Tim Hardaway Jr. to the NBA from last year's National Title game team, along with center Mitch McGary due to injury, this would have been an acceptable year for Beilein to be given a pass for a poor record.  Instead Beilein has his team playing great basketball going into March, having recently won the Big 10 Regular Season Title, and will be sure to have the Wolverines be tough out in both the Big 10 and NCAA tournaments. Also,  having swept Michigan State this year, the Wolverines have shown that there are now two legitimate basketball powers within the state.

If there is one team who should be penciled into the Sweet 16 every year, regardless of who they lost and who they recruited, it is Wisconsin.  While the Badgers haven't been able to make the leap to the Final Four under Bo Ryan, they have proven to be one of the most consistent programs over the past decade and this year is no different as Wisconsin is 25-5 overall and #2 in the Big 10 standings. Bo Ryan, like Beilein, has developed a system that has proven it can work.  While the Badgers are known to be one of the most boring teams in college basketball, given their clock draining offensive possessions, they have also become to be known as the thorn in the sides of the rest of the Big 10.  Like Beilein's West Virginia teams, Wisconsin has never had a player, with the exception of Devin Harris, who has been or will ever be a star in the NBA.  This however maybe one of the reasons why Wisconsin has been so good. Wisconsin's players stay all four years, and most of the players tend to red shirt their freshman year so that they can learn Bo Ryan's system.  Unlike most teams who garner high profile recruits, only to have them leave after a year or two for the pros, Ryan believes in player development and because of that he has never had to truly endure a rebuilding year.

As a BC fan I was hoping Steve Donahue would be the next Bo Ryan or John Beilein.  He developed a system at Cornell, similar to Beilein's, and I was hoping that would translate into success at both BC and in the ACC.  Unfortunately this hasn't been the case.  As a result of BC's lack of success and more importantly both Michigan's and Wisconsin's recent successes, it has made me appreciate and respect both Bo Ryan and John Beilein that much more.  Just when I think either of their teams is going to have a down year, they usually always prove me wrong and I am sure this year, like nearly every other year, they will have their teams playing deep into March.

Carolina Blue Rising; Syracuse Orange Falling

Even though my dog in the fight in Boston College basketball has been a non factor in ACC play this year, I still do my best to keep tabs on the conference, and it is clear there are two teams currently going in different directions.  While Virginia has been on a steady incline all year as can be seen by them winning the ACC regular season title, both Syracuse and North Carolina appear to be going opposite ways as we begin March basketball.

Earlier in the season UNC was one of the tough teams to get a read on, because they were so inconsistent. The Tar Heels were able to beat Michigan State on the road and Louisville, but then lost to Belmont at home and University of Alabama-Birmingham on the road.  Now that we are in the later stages of the regular season, UNC has now run off 12 straight victories and seems primed to make a deep run in both the ACC and NCAA Tournaments.  The main argument for their inconsistencies was their youth.  Majority of the players who receive minutes for UNC are sophomores and James Michael McAdoo (junior) and Leslie McDonald (senior) are the only two upperclassmen who play.   While experience throughout a season always makes a team better, the one dramatic difference I have noticed for the Heels is the play of point guard Marcus Paige.

One of the best ACC games this year, that was not Duke-Syracuse, was the UNC-NC State game last week.  Not only was this an in-state rivalry game, but it featured amazing performances by two of the ACC's top players in TJ Warren and Marcus Paige.  Warren finished the game scoring 36 points and Paige 35 points, including a layup with 0.9 seconds in overtime to give UNC the 85-84 victory.  Paige showed me in this game that he could single handily take over a game and as a team enters both their conference and NCAA tournament, one of the most important ingredients for success is point guard play.  You don't have to look too far into the past to see a a great example of this when Kemba Walker literally won both the Big East and NCAA tournament for UConn by himself .  The one thing UNC also has working in their favor is other players such as J.P. Tokoto, whom I think is the most athletic player in college basketball as can be seen by his dunks, and James Michael McAdoo are both playing their best ball of the year.

Syracuse on the other hand appears to be in a complete free fall. As a BC fan it hurts to know that the Eagles' victory over the then #1 ranked and undefeated Orange, which has been lone bright spot on this dreadful season, maybe tainted as Syracuse has gone 1-4 over their last five games, and their one victory was only by two points.  If you look at the scores of these games it is clear that the Orange offense is really struggling.  In their last nine games Syracuse has only scored more than 60 points twice and their point totals in those two games were 60 and 62.  I know Jerami Grant has been out recently with a sore back, but to me the glaring difference in Syracuse's  play has been their inability to rebound, especially on the offensive glass.  Watching their loss against Georgia Tech last night made that apparent again as the Yellow Jackets appeared to grab every loose ball.  Even BC, who has been dominated on the glass this year in large part due to the lack of a true center, out rebounded the Orange in their victory at the Carrier Dome.

Up until last night's loss it appeared that despite Syracuse's recent struggles that they would still be a #1 seed.  Now that the Orange have lost to their second weak ACC opponent in a matter of weeks, their #1 seed status has become a huge question mark, especially with Kansas nipping at their heels.  Being a #1 seed would be a huge advantage for the Orange in that they would most likely never have to leave the state of New York until the Final Four.  They would play their first two games in Buffalo and the East Regional is at Madison Square Garden, a building that they are very comfortable in playing in.  If the Orange plan on reclaiming a firm hold of the #1 seed they definitely must win their regular season finale at Florida State, a team that will definitely be hungry given their tournament bubble status, and make a deep run in the ACC Tournament, which as we all know is not an easy task.

In closing I want to leave you all with a stat that was mentioned on last night's BC-Florida State telecast.  The stat was Syracuse is only the second team in the last 20 years to lose 4+ games in a season in which they started the season with 20+ wins a row.  In case you were wondering BC fans, the other team to have this happen to them was the 2004-05 Eagles squad who got blown out in the first round of the Big East Tournament to the Kevin Pittsnogle led West Virginia Mountaineers, and got bounced in the second round of the NCAA Tournament by the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee coached by Bruce Pearl.

Bizarre Day In Boston College Sports

Well needless to say it was a bizarre day in Boston College sports Saturday with hockey losing at home and basketball winning on the road.  While no loss is ever good, hockey's 2-1 overtime loss to Notre Dame didn't irk me too much.  Although it would have been nice to continue the win streak, especially with it being senior night at Kelley Rink, the game was for the most part meaningless for the Eagles. BC had already clinched the top seed in the Hockey East Tournament and due to the stronghold both BC and Minnesota have on the top two rankings of college hockey, BC will still be a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament playing in the Worcester Regional.  Also, it wasn't like BC played bad.  It was nice to see Johnny Gaudreau extend his point streak to 29 games with another highlight reel goal, and Thatcher Demko did play well enough to deserve the win.  Hopefully this loss was one final wake-up call to remind the Eagles that they aren't invincible as they begin their postseason run next week.

As for basketball's 80-72 win over Wake Forest, I can't really comment too much on the game since I was at the hockey game while it was being played.  Although Wake Forest is almost equally as bad as BC, anytime the team can get a road win in ACC play it should be considered an accomplishment.  Also, with the win BC guaranteed that they will not finish dead last in the ACC, given the fact that even if they lose their next two games and Virginia Tech wins their, the Eagles still own the tiebreaker given their two victories over the Hokies this season.  The Eagles will try to potentially move up in the league standings this week when they take on Florida State at Conte Forum Tuesday night.

One final note about BC athletics, props to the football staff and athletic department for the "Be A Dude, Leave A Man" video that was released this weekend.  If you are a BC football fan and alum you will absolutely love this video.  It is clear that 2nd year head coach Steve Addazio is doing whatever he can to continue to promote not only the program but university as a whole.  If you haven't seen the video I have posted it below.  It is well worth the 2 minute viewing and will make you yearn for August 30th when the football season begins.