SAME FEDORA-NEW CROWN?

[PointGuard]

2nd Assistant Coach Chris Evans (recruiting)

May 2028:

Due to Phil Thompson declaring for the pro draft, we now have 3 scholarships to fill this year, although we can fill one of those 3 with a transfer player. We’re pretty deep on the interior, so we’ll look primarily look at guards and SF’s to see if one of the available transfer players can compete for a starting job after sitting out this season and also will be good for the chemistry of the team.

We decided to limit our purchasing for scouting reports to the basic reports for the Atlantic East Region and the National Report. We also will limit our camp attendance to the Indy Elite Camp and the Big Apple Showcase.

June 2028:

We initially tried to entice the top-rated player among the transfer players. He’s a true 5-star player. But it quickly became obvious that he was really focused on transferring to Kansas, so there was no use wasting more of our time and money when we had no real chance of persuading him to consider Boston College.

We shifted our focus and we signed a transfer player early during the transfer period. He’s SG Greg Robinson from Harper Woods, Michigan who played two seasons for Cincinnati. He’s 6’2” and played 16.4 mpg and scored 8.2 ppg last season. He’s excellent defensively and is a good shooter from outside. As a transfer he will sit out this season but will be a junior eligibility-wise when he can play for us the following year.

That leaves us with 2 scholarships to fill through recruiting this year. Ideally we’d like to land a PG and SF.

[PointGuard]

Greg Robinson, Transfer SG

I hadn’t really considered Boston College that much when I decided to transfer from Cincinnati. But my discussions with Coach Aura (I guess the guys call him Coach Fed) and Assistant Coach Evans got me excited about switching over to the Eagles. My high school coach at Trinity Catholic in Harper Woods, Michigan also was really high on Boston College. And my parents were happy I would be going to a Catholic university, although that didn’t really play into MY decision. The rapid improvement of BC’s basketball program has been nothing short of phenomenal. At Boston College I’m pretty sure I will be playing in the NCAA tournament during my junior and senior years of eligibility. Obviously BC wanted me because they’re good recruiters and could have gone after a top-flight recruit instead of offering me the transfer.

My two seasons at Cincinnati were a bit underwhelming. I got into almost every game both years, but only played a little over 6 mpg in my freshman year. While my playing time increased to about 16 mpg in my sophomore year, I never got to start. Heck, I was hitting over 40% of my FG’s and almost 40% of my 3’s. I averaged 3.5 ppg as a freshman and 8.2 ppg as a sophomore. Not bad for how little time I was on the court, and I scored 19 points in one game and was the Player of the Game five times. And I think I was one of Cincinnati’s best defenders. I, and most people I know, thought I should have been playing more. Cincinnati’s coaches wanted me to be more involved with my teammates there, but after practice I had better things to do. And I’m not a big rah-rah guy while sitting on the bench. I got the distinct impression that some of my teammates didn’t like that. Sort of gave me a cold shoulder, but that doesn’t bother me. I can make my own friends.

While Coach Aura didn’t promise me a starting job after I sit out my year for transferring, I’m optimistic. They have two freshman SG’s this season and one is pretty darned good. That means he could very well be a one-and-done, thereby opening things for me when I become eligible to play a year from now. Once the coaching staff gets to see both my offensive and defensive capabilities, I think they’ll agree. I’ve always been a really hard worker, so will give it my all even when I have to just practice (and not play) this coming season. That will help me improve plus give me a solid knowledge of Coach Aura’s sets and strategy. I already have a lot of experience with one of the offenses (Princeton) that BC uses. Coach Aura also said he’d get me hooked up with some great basketball camps this summer.

Time to get on my Play Station, so more later.

[PointGuard]

Coach Fred Aura

Pro Draft

We were sorry to lose Phil Thompson when he decided to declare for the pro draft. But his decision was probably the right one for him. He got selected in the 1st round. Even though he was the last player to be drafted in that round, it means he has a good chance of sticking with his team and not going into the Development League.

I called him immediately after he was selected to offer my congratulations and wish him the best. He was ecstatic, particularly since he will be on a very good team.

12 ACC players were selected in the first round, which shows how strong our conference is. Phil was selected just 2 picks behind Jamaal Lawson who gave us fits when we played Virginia.

Jason Braxton, Athletic Director

Norton Award

Two of our players, Leonard Meliet and Corey Graham were nominated for the Norton Award. As a freshman last season, Meliet was a quarterfinalist. Graham is a freshman this year.

[PointGuard]

2nd Assistant Coach Chris Evans (recruiting)

We worked recruiting really hard throughout the summer and into the fall…and with good results since we filled both of our open scholarships with strong performers.

In mid-September we got a verbal acceptance of our scholarship offer from SF Maynard Gardner. Maynard’s a 6’7” high school senior from Tenafly, NJ. He’s an outstanding scorer who shoots well from both inside and outside. His rebounding skills are excellent and he’s very strong defensively with very strong stealing skills. He also has great passing skills. As a junior last season, he averaged 21.1 ppg, 3.0 apg, 6.1 rpg, 1.2 bpg, and 4.3 spg. Overall we rated him as an A+ and he’s ranked as the 30th best recruit in the country.

At the beginning of October PG Bobby Grannum gave us a verbal acceptance. Bobby is a 6’4” high school senior from Orlando, FL. Last season as a junior he averaged 20.0 ppg, 7.6 apg, 5.2 rpg, 0.5 bpg, and 3.6 spg. He’s a great scorer with a sweet shot from outside and very good interior shooting as well. He’s an excellent defender who gets a lot of steals. He’s a very good rebounder and has outstanding passing skills and is a good ball handler. He’s extremely athletic. His coach told us he’s got a tremendous work ethic but has had some attitude and discipline problems. So we’ll have to keep track of that and address the issue if it arises. On a positive note, he showed a lot of interest in discipline and Coach Aura can be strong in that area. We rate his as an A+ and he’s ranked as the 25th best recruit nationally. He was a top 10 player at the Indy Elite Camp and was the MVP at the Memphis Hoop Summit this summer.

So recruiting is finished for this season…well at least it is if they both get high enough SAT scores. Hopefully they do, because we blew through most all of our recruiting budget already.

[PointGuard]

1st Assistant Coach David Woodruff (practice)

We just finished a month of practice. That went well, no issues, some good competition for playing time when games begin.

We’ve nailed down starters for 4 of the 5 positions with one still up in the air. Like last season we have good starters. We also have a lot of depth, particularly on the interior, although not as much at the guard positions as we’d like.

We have a tough pre-conference schedule and then of course the ACC competition is always keen. AND…we have 5 freshmen and a transfer player. So 6 players who’ve never experienced competition for us yet. How will each of them do? We have an idea, but in reality it’s anyone’s guess. And then there are always injuries. Hopefully no major ones. So, it’s hard to say how we will do this season.

Starters:

PG-Leonard Meliet: He started at SF last season but will be playing his more natural PG position this year. As a freshman he averaged 15.7 ppg, 3.6 apg, and 4.1 rpg. For the second straight year he’s a Norton Award candidate.

SG-Corey Graham: He’s a freshman who is also a Norton Award candidate. He’s got a very good shot and isn’t afraid to put the ball up.

SF-This is where it could either be senior Michael Millford or sophomore Keith Kolder…or maybe even freshman Darius Hein. Michael has the most experience, but he and Keith are very similar players and it’s hard to say who will perform the best. Darius came to us as a PF, but with the depth we have at that position, he definitely will get playing time at SF as well as at PF and could possibly ultimately become our regular starter at SF.

PF-Freshman Danny Toliver: After sitting out a season due to transferring from Georgia Tech where he averaged 9.1 ppg and 6.5 rpg as a freshman, he’s going to be a very strong player for us this season.

C-Junior Courtland Reese: He’s been our “rock” in his first 2 seasons with us. Last season he averaged 14.6 ppg and 6.1 rpg which was very similar to what he did as a freshman. But he just keeps improving.

Subs:

PG-Freshman Rashon Thorn. He’s a good ball handler and passer and can put the ball in the hoop but needs some seasoning.

SG-Freshman Adrian Moss. He also needs experience to develop into what we expect will be a strong player in future years.

SF-Discussed above.

PF-Junior Winston Minahan averaged 2.9 ppg and 1.9 rpg, but is solid and will definitely be an able interior player coming off the bench. Freshman Mike Braxton will also get some time at PF but has some maturing to do before getting too many minutes on the court. We considered redshirting him, but figured he might be the type to transfer if redshirted.

C-Senior Jason Caldwell would be a strong starter if it weren’t for talented Courtland Reese. Jason is an extremely good interior player who averaged 6.1 ppg and 4.2 rpg last season. Senior Greg Kidd is also a strong player coming off the bench and he averaged 4.7 ppg and 3.3 rpg last year.

[PointGuard]

Nov. 15, 2028: #20 ranked Boston College Eagles (0-0) vs Seton Hall Pirates (0-0) at Prudential Center in South Orange, NJ

Coach Fred Aura

It’s sure good to have the new season beginning. Seton Hall always has a solid team and playing them on their court will be a challenge, particularly as a season opener. SF Quincy Abrams is their star player. As a freshman last season he averaged 15.3 ppg and 6.7 rpg.

I’m nervous to see how we do with so many brand new players on our team. You’ve heard who we’re starting…well except at SF…and for our first game we’ll go with experience and start Michael Millford at the 3 but expect Keith Koder and Darius Hein get their minutes as well. I wish I could put all 3 of them on the court at the same time to try to contain Quincy Abrams. With the inexperience we have throughout our lineup, I won’t be surprised if there are some major butterflies and we have a bunch of turnovers. But, here’s how the game went:

Tough start. We fell behind 5-0 and it took 2-1/2 minutes for us to finally score. Michael Millford hit a 3 at that point to put us on the board. Things got worse…we trailed 18-7 seven minutes into the game. By applying some solid defense, we chipped away at the Pirates’ lead, and with 5:13 to go, Danny Toliver was fouled on a 3 point attempt. He sunk all 3 free throws to tie the game at 26-26. 45 seconds later we got our first lead when Greg Kidd powered his way to the hoop and jammed down a bucket. PG Keith Bland was simply killing us so we changed our double-teaming from Abrams to Bland. He knocked down all 5 of his FG’s including four 3’s, and also was 7 for 7 from the line to score 21 points and lead Seton Hall to a 39-36 halftime edge. The Pirates were deadly from the free throw line, hitting 15 of 15. Our scoring was distributed throughout out lineup with Courtland Reese scoring 8 and grabbing 5 boards. Our new guys though, only hit 1 of 11 from the field in the half.

We had a 7-0 run in the first 70 seconds of the 2nd half. We held onto a small lead, but fouls were piling up on our guys. I was working the refs but had to not go all out since I got called for a technical in the first half. The Pirates were sticking with us mostly by getting to the free throw line. But we held on and came away with a 75-64 win in our opener.

We hit just 37% of our shots, but our defense held Seton Hall’s shooting to 32%. Our real forte though was that we totally dominated the boards (43-26). Because of that we outscored the Pirates 26-12 in the paint and 14-4 on 2nd chance points.

Courtland Reese had 14 points, 12 rebounds, a steal and 3 blocks. Michael Millford also scored 14 points and Corey Graham added 13. Leonard Meliet scored just 7 points but had 8 assists. For Seton Hall, Bland finished with 22 points and Abrams scored 21 points. Our six new guys only made 3 of 20 shots from the field, but this was their first game for us, so first game jitters. I’m confident they’ll be more effective in our future games.

[PointGuard]

Nov. 18, 2028: #17 ranked Purdue Boilermakers (1-0) vs #20 ranked Boston College Eagles (1-0) at Silvio O. Conte Forum, Chestnut Hill, MA

Eric Perry, 2nd Assistant (Scouting) Coach for the Providence Friars

Since we're hosting BC in a few weeks, I attended their game so I could do some in-person scouting.

The first half was close all the way with both teams sharing the lead. Purdue outshot the Eagles, but BC controlled the boards. Good ball movement by the Eagles. At the break the Eagles led 41-40. Courtland Reese scored 15 points and pulled down 8 rebounds in the half.

After missing all 6 of their 3PA’s in the first half, BC hit 4 of their first 5 3PA’s in the 2nd half as they cruised to a 58-48 lead with 13 minutes left in the game. The Eagles m-2-m and zone defenses controlled the Boilermakers and ensured that their lead held. BC dispatched the Boilermakers by a final score of 79-68. As in their first game, the Eagles controlled inside, pulling down 40 rebounds compared to Purdue’s 22 and holding a 24-8 edge on points in the paint and a 16-5 difference in 2nd chance points.

C Courtland Reese had a big game, scoring 21, grabbing 17 rebounds, and blocking 4 shots. PG Leonard Meliet had 17 points and 6 assists. SG Corey Graham put in 12 points and SF Michael Millford contributed 10 points.

OK, sure I have a lot of notes on the Eagles and their players. But you think I’m gonna show you those? Ya think I’m dumb? No way I want you to know what I think the strengths and weaknesses of Boston College are. That’s just for the coaching staff and players for Providence so we can whip BC’s butt when we host them next month.

Oh yeah, and Coach Aura’s son Omari? He’s fighting to start at SF for us and preparing to play the best game of his short collegiate career against his papa’s team.

[PointGuard]

Nov. 22, 2028: Colorado Buffaloes (1-1) vs #15 ranked Boston College Eagles (2-0) at Silvio O. Conte Forum, Chestnut Hill, MA

Baldwin the Eagle

This gig as BC’s mascot is fantastic. How else can you get all the girls wanting to hug you? Plus it’s just a lot of fun. Last year I was the backup as mascot so only got to be Baldwin for a few games. But now I’m the primary Baldwin and will do most all the games. I’m loving the attention even though it is mighty hot inside the costume.

Colorado’s loss this season was in a tournament to top-ranked Kansas, and the Buffaloes gave the Jayhawks a good battle. They were 31-6 last season, ranked #11 in the polls, and got to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament. So tonight’s game could be a real struggle. Their leading scorer thus far this season is SG Rahim Collins. He was the team’s top scorer last year as well and was named to the Pac 12 All-Conference 1st Team. SF Travis Garner was the Pac 12’s Defensive Player of the Year last season. C David Morgan has been on the Pac 12’s All-Conference 1st Team both season’s he’s been at Colorado and is also a defensive stalwart.

After falling behind 5-2, the Eagles scored the next 15 points. With 6-1/2 minutes left in the half, we had opened a 20 point lead. BC finished the half with a 46-24 lead, primarily due to the fact the Eagles had just 1 turnover compared to 15 by the Buffaloes. PG Leon Meliet led the scoring with 12 points.

Colorado wasn’t ever able to challenge in the 2nd half and the Eagles came away with an easy 84-58 stomping of the Buffaloes.

Guards Leon Meliet and Corey Graham scored 22 and 20 points respectively with PF Danny Toliver picking up a double-double (14 points and 10 boards).

[PointGuard]

Nov. 25, 2028: #9-ranked Marquette Golden Eagles (2-1) vs #15 ranked Boston College Eagles (3-0) at Silvio O. Conte Forum, Chestnut Hill, MA

JJ Conroy, BeanTownSports Blog

OK, kudos to the Boston College Eagles for a great year last season. They outdid everyone’s expectations.

But, while I think this season they’ll do pretty well, I would bet my 2nd born kid that they won’t be as good as last year. Sure they won their first 3 games, and sure they will have a decent overall record and be up toward the top of the ACC standings, and make it to the NCAA Tournament. But, Eagles fans, don’t get expect another miracle season. And don’t start hyperventilating about me being a Boston College hater. I’m not, I’m just a realist.

The Eagles starting guards (Meliet and Graham) definitely are very good. But since they’ve had to move Meliet from SF (where he played last season) to PG, that has made the “3” position much weaker. Inside they have very good depth but not better than last year. And overall, I think the Eagles bench strength is not as strong as what they had last season.

As I’m writing this, they’re about ready to go up against Marquette, a team that is ranked #9 in the polls…a gross over-rating, if I’ve ever seen one. Marquette is good inside, but is atrocious at the guard positions. And the Golden Eagles have only beaten two push-overs and lost at home to Ohio State. Not an exemplary record at all. BC has home court advantage so they should romp…but that’s no indication as to whether the Eagles are a good team or not.

OK, the games starting so here’s my observations:

A sloppy start by both teams. BC then took advantage of miscues by Marquette to go on a 7-0 run. Then bad news for the Eagles, C Courtland Reese picked up his 2nd foul just 4-1/2 minutes into the game. Marquette scored just 2 points in the first 6-1/2 minutes, but that was due to poor play (including 6 turnovers) by the Golden Eagles rather than stellar defense by BC. Even though BC sported a 40-24 halftime advantage, they only hit 42% of their shots and were fortunate that the Golden Eagles fouled so much that BC was able to score 15 points from the free throw line, shot even worse (35%) than BC, and made 9 turnovers to 2 for the Eagles. SG Corey Graham and PF Danny Toliver carried the Eagles offensively by scoring 12 and 10 points, respectively.

Marquette had 2 turnovers, a missed shot, and a blocked shot in their first 4 possessions of the 2nd half. By then they trailed by 22 points. Although the Golden Eagles scored a few points on free throws, it took them over 6 minutes to make their first field goal of the 2nd half. Midway through the half, the Eagles were up by 32 points and the game was a lock. To Coach Aura’s credit, he played the far end of his bench most of the rest of the way to take a little of the sting away from the drubbing his team inflicted on the Golden Eagles. Final score: Boston College-76, Marquette-54.

Scoring in double figures for the Eagles were: SG Corey Graham with 19 points and PF Danny Tolliver, C Courtland Reese, and PF Winston Minahan with 10 points apiece. PG Leon Meliet finished with 8 points, 8 rebounds, and 12 assists.

As I figured, this game didn’t really tell us anything about the strength of the Eagles. It did help those oh-so-smart pollsters move BC up to #10 in Media Poll, though. ACC teams, Duke and Notre Dame are #2 and #3.

[PointGuard]

Nov. 29, 2028: Minnesota Gophers (2-2) vs #10 ranked Boston College Eagles (4-0) at Silvio O. Conte Forum, Chestnut Hill, MA

RyReys Blog, Ryan Reynolds

The Eagles flew high last season. From what I’ve seen so far, I think they will do the same this season.

Inside both starters, Courtland Reese and Danny Tolliver, have shown they can score, rebound and play defense. Reese is averaging 13.3 ppg and 9.8 rpg and had a 21 pt, 17 reb game. Tolliver has averaged 8.8 ppg and 5.3 rpg with a 14 pt, 10 reb game. And Jason Caldwell, Winston Minaham, and Greg Kidd all have shown the ability to produce when them come in off the bench.

Starting guards, Leonard Meliet and Corey Graham, are great outside. Meliet is averaging 13.5 ppg, 7.5 apg and 3.0 rpg and has scored 22 points in one game and had 12 assists and 8 rebounds in another. Freshman Graham leads the team in scoring with 16.0 ppg plus has averaged 2.8 rpg and 2.3 apg and has scored 20 and 19 points in his last 2 games. Freshmen Rashon Thorn and Adrian Moss are getting valuable experience coming in off the bench.

The starter at the SF position has not yet been set, but Michael Millford appears to have the edge, averaging 7.8 ppg. Keith Kolder and Darius Hein haven’t been as productive scoring but appear to be better rebounders.

The team has averaged 78.5 ppg while giving up just 61.0 ppg and has shown the ability to dominate the boards.

While Boston College is just one of seven ACC teams ranked in the polls, their primary competition thus far appears to be Duke and Notre Dame.

The Eagles needed to use this home game against Minnesota as a tune up for two upcoming road games against ranked opponents, Arkansas and Providence.

The Eagles came out firing on all cylinders and opened a 14-2 lead after 3 minutes of play, increased their lead to 15 points just 5 minutes into the game and continued to pull away with C Courtland Reese nearly unstoppable. BC totally dominated the boards in the first half (28-14) and outshot the Golden Gophers 50% to 23%. The half ended with the Eagles holding a commanding 49-22 lead. Reese had 15 points and 8 rebounds.

The Eagles’ bench got a lot of playing time in the 2nd half which allowed Minnesota to trim the lead. But BC was never seriously challenged. The game ended with Boston College winning by a score of 76-63.

Courtland Reese scored 19 and pulled down 9 boards. SG Corey Graham had 14 points, SF Michael Millford scored 13 points, PF Danny Tolliver scored 11 plus had 7 rebounds, PG Leonard Meliet had 7 points and 8 assists, and reserve C Jason Caldwell scored 7 and grabbed 7 rebounds.