February 25, 2009 | AP Press

NEW YORK, NY – Kevin Anderson scored 18 points and David Gonzalvez added 17 to lead Richmond to a 78-68 victory over Fordham on Wednesday night, the Rams’ seventh straight loss.

Justin Harper had 14 points for the Spiders (15-13, 7-6 Atlantic 10).

Mike Moore was 7-of-11 from the field, 9-for-9 from the free throw line and had 25 points for the Rams (3-22, 1-12), while freshman Jio Fontan added 18 points.

Richmond went on 12-4 run to take a 24-15 lead with 9:46 left it half and the Spiders extended the lead to 42-27 on a jumper by Harper with 1:09 to play. Richmond led 42-31 at halftime.

A layup by Gonzalvez gave Richmond its biggest lead of the game, 47-31. Fordham got within nine points six times, the last on a three-point play by Fontan that made it 72-63 with 5:04 to go.

February 22, 2009

John Lamb| A10CollegeHoops

PHILADELPHIA – It was Dionte Christmas Bobblehead Doll day at the Liacouras Center on Sunday afternoon but Lavoy Allen ended up being the star of the show en route to a 70-56 victory over the visiting Saint Bonaventure Bonnies.

Allen put up 20 points and grabbed 18 a career-high rebounds. He was so dominant early on that he picked up his 10th double-double just eight minutes into the game.

To put his performance in perspective, Allen grabbed 14 rebounds through the first 20 minutes of play; the Bonnies (13-13, 4-9 A10), as a team, had 13.

Allen said Coach Fran Dunphy has been challenging him in practice to become a more prominent part of what the Owls (17-9, 9-3) are trying to do on the court.

“[Coach Dunphy] tells me that he wants me to be more aggressive, take more shots and stop passing the ball so much,” joked Allen, who still dished out two assists.

Most of the 6-9 sophomore forward’s points came from put-backs and uncontested dunks. Temple’s guards were able to penetrate the lane at will and hit Allen with simple dump passes after the defense rotated.

Dionte Christmas pointed out after the game that while his production may be down over the past few weeks the contributions of players like Allen and Ryan Brooks have been more than enough to keep the Owls winning.

“The last couple of weeks I haven’t had to score 25 or 30 points for our team to be successful,” said Christmas, who has not registered a 20 point game since he scored 27 against Rhode Island on January 28. “We are a balanced team. For me to be out there scoring 30 or 40 points a game there is no need. But if we need it and the team needs me to do anything then I’ll do it. If I score 5 and we win that is all I care about.”

Dunphy acknowledged in his post game press conference that Christmas is a good leader for the team but that there are a lot of outside pressures that he has been faced with in recent weeks such as his quest to become the first three-time leading scorer in A-10 history and his candidacy for Player of the Year in both the conference and Big 5.

“Dionte is a good leader, he is a good human being and I think that is the nicest compliment anybody can have given to them,” said Dunphy, who also stated that they do not talk to Christmas about the NBA. “He cares about his team, he cares about his family and that is a nice way to be. He is not overly concerned by himself about himself but at the same time there are a lot of outside pressures acting on his person at this time and I think he is handling it the best he can.”

Temple received a big time contribution from Ryan Brooks. The junior guard scored 12 important points for the Owls as he continued to add to his reputation of being Temple’s most clutch shooter. His three-pointer with 11:36 left in the game stopped a mini-run by the Bonnies and extended Temple’s lead to double digits at 51-40.

Brooks also took a charge from Malcom Eleby on a play that looked liked it was going to be an easy layup for the visitors.

“I think the charge take was big, we were fortunate to get that charge call,” said Dunphy. “The biggest shot he made and maybe the biggest shot of the game was they were hanging at eight and he stepped  up right in front of our bench and hit a big, big three to bump it out to eleven. He’s been doing that four a couple of years now. I don’t think there is any question that he is our best clutch performer.”

The ever-persistent Bonnies were able to cut the Owls’ lead to seven midway through the second half thanks to an extended  14-3 run. Their run fell apart after the team was whistled for two technical fouls in the span on two minutes – one on Jonathan Hall and the other on coach Mark Schmidt.

For the game the Bonnies committed 27 personal fouls to Temple’s 14 and saw three of their starts foul out. Maurice Thomas, Andrew Nicholson and Hall all saw their days cut short thanks to too many fouls.

Temple’s 18 made free-throws nearly doubled the total amount of foul shots that Saint Bonaventure took (10).

Nicholson, the Bonnies freshman phenom, played an especially disappointing game. The 6-9 forward out of Canada scored just 6 points, 7 under his season average, in only 15 minutes.

The freshman also came into the game ranked fifth nationally and second in the A-10 with an average of 3.1 blocks per game. He did collect any on Sunday.

Chris Matthews and Eleby were the leading scorers for Saint Bonaventure with 15 and 14 points respectively.

Eleby, a Philadelphia native and Franklin Learning Center product, also led the Bonnies with six assists and six steals.

Dunphy was clearly impressed with the way Saint Bonaventure, a team that has been down for several years, played.

“Saint Bonaventure has a plan,” said Dunphy. “How about how scary they are going to be in a couple of years? They have a lot of really good young players. [Mark Schmidt] has built a nice program. They’re going to get better and they may make some great noise in the Atlantic 10 tournament as well.”

Temple now owns a 49-6 all-time record against the Bonnies, including a perfect 25-0 in Philadelphia.

Saint Bonaventure will host Saint Louis on Wednesday night and the Owls will be visited by La Salle on Thursday night.

POST GAME AUDIO: (right click and save as.. if you have trouble opening)
Dionte Christmas and Lavoy Allen post game audio
Fran Dunphy Post Game Press Conference

February 22, 2009 | AP Press

PHILADELPHIA — Chris Lowe hit two free throws with two seconds remaining, and Tony Gaffney had 17 points and 10 rebounds, as Massachusetts nipped Saint Joseph’s 70-69 on Sunday.

Lowe scored 13 points and added seven assists to become the school’s all-time leader with 640, passing Carl Smith. Ricky Harris contributed 11 points for the Minutemen (10-15, 5-7 Atlantic 10), who snapped a two-game losing streak.

Tasheed Carr connected on a pair of free throws to give the Hawks a 69-68 lead with 6.4 seconds left.

Lowe took control of the ball at halfcourt, drove to the basket and was fouled by Ahmad Nivins.

Nivins had 21 points and 11 rebounds, his 18th double-double, Idris Hilliard added 12 points and 11 rebounds, Carr contributed 12 points and Garrett Williamson had 10 for Saint Joseph’s (14-12, 7-5).

The Hawks have dropped four in a row for the first time since the 2004-05 season.

Saint Joseph’s was 0-for-7 from 3-point territory, snapping a streak of 495 consecutive games with at least one 3-pointer made. The streak began at the start of the 1993-94 season.

The last time the Hawks went without a 3-pointer came in a 56-34 loss at Southwest Missouri State in the first round of the NIT Tournament on March 18, 1993.

February 22, 2009 | AP Press

PHILADELPHIA, PA – Aaron Jackson scored 17 of his 25 points in the first half to lead Duquesne to a 79-68 win over La Salle Sunday.

Damian Saunders added 22 points, matching his career high, for the Dukes (16-9, 7-5 Atlantic 10), who had lost three of their last four.

Rodney Green had 14 points to lead four players in double figures for the Explorers (14-12, 5-7), who dropped their second straight.

The victory guarantees Duquesne its second straight winning season, marking the first time since the 1979-80 and 1980-81 seasons they will finish above .500 in two straight campaigns.

Jackson got Duquesne off to a strong start, making seven of his first nine shots to finish with 17 points in the first half and help the Dukes to a 44-41 lead at the break. Vernon Goodridge’s layup 13 seconds into the second half brought La Salle within 44-43. But the Dukes scored the next six points and the Explorers never got closer than three the rest of the way.

Eric Evans also reached double figures for Duquesne with 11 points, while Saunders set a career high with 14 rebounds. Kimmani Barrett and Paul Johnson had 12 points apiece for La Salle, and Goodridge finished with 11.

AP Photo

February 22, 2009 | AP Press

CINCINNATI, OH – C.J. Anderson didn’t even take a shot in the first half, when Xavier’s perimeter game was more than enough. After halftime, he went back to threading his way through defenders and scoring.

Anderson scored 14 points in the second half, leading five players in double figures, and the Musketeers (No. 17 ESPN/USA Today, No. 16 AP) rolled to a 71-53 victory Sunday that moved them back into first place in the Atlantic 10.

“That was an important game for this team,” Anderson said. “Coach [Sean] Miller wanted us as seniors to play better and set the tone. I didn’t play well in the first half, but I came back and played better in the second half.”

The Musketeers (22-5, 10-3) steadied themselves after yet another road loss and moved a half-game ahead of Dayton (No. 25 AP) for the conference lead. Ranked for the first time this season, the Flyers lost at Saint Louis 57-49 on Saturday night.

There were more immediate concerns for the Musketeers, who had lost three of their last four games, all on the road. They needed to rebuild confidence fast. George Washington (8-16, 2-10) was the perfect matchup.

Damian Hollis scored 15 points for the Colonials, who fell behind 26-8 and trailed by as many as 25 points. George Washington shot 38.6 percent from the field and had 17 turnovers.

“We wanted to get back to the basics, and we did a good job,” said B.J. Raymond, who had 12 points. “We played about 30 minutes of good defense. That’s a step in the right direction.”

Xavier plays at Saint Joseph’s on Thursday, then has a week off to prepare for its home-court rematch with Dayton, which has lost its last 23 games in Cincinnati. Xavier has won the last two regular-season titles.

The Musketeers’ recent struggles have underscored their need for a dependable point guard. Terrell Holloway has regressed lately, playing like the true freshman he is. Holloway has passed up open shots on the perimeter and repeatedly gotten shots swatted away on drives to the basket, contributing little to Xavier’s halfcourt offense.

The slump prompted Miller to make a switch at the position, moving shooting guard Dante Jackson into the role. In the last three games, Holloway had come off the bench and gone 1-for-14 from the field with two points, two assists and three turnovers.

With 7-foot reserve center Kenny Frease also limited by a sprained ankle, Xavier’s offense has taken a hit.

It didn’t much matter against George Washington, which was so focused on limiting Xavier’s bigger front line that it let the conference’s best 3-point shooters get open behind the arc. Xavier made six 3s while taking a 26-8 lead, the last one by Holloway from the right corner. Holloway finished with three points on 1-of-4 shooting and two assists.

Colonials coach Karl Hobbs stayed in his crouch, staring blankly at the opposite end of the court, while his players gathered behind him during a timeout with 10:25 left in the first half. At that point, what’s left for a coach to say? Xavier’s versatility was too much.

“They’re always going to have four guys on the court who are capable of scoring 18 to 20 points on any given night,” Hobbs said. “The thing I like about them is they all have their roles and they know what they are.”

George Washington was coming off its biggest win of the season, 90-62 over St. Bonaventure. Rob Diggs scored a season-high 26 points in that one. Playing a ranked team for the first time this season, the Colonials fell apart. Diggs went 1-for-5 with two points and four fouls.

AP Photo

February 21, 2009 | AP Press

ST. LOUIS, MO – Kevin Lisch had 16 points and six rebounds to lead Saint Louis to a 57-49 victory over No. 25 Dayton on Saturday night.

Tommie Liddell added 10 points and five assists for the Billikens (17-10, 8-5 Atlantic 10), which has won six of seven.

Chris Wright led the Flyers (23-4, 9-3) with 11 points points. and Charles Little and Marcus Johnson added 10 points apiece. The loss was Dayton’s second in its last 11 games.

Dayton trailed 28-24 at the half, but scored the first five points after the break to take its first lead. The game see-sawed after that with neither team leading by more than three until Kwamain Mitchell converted a three-point play that gave Saint Louis a 47-42 lead with 3:25 left.

The Flyers pulled to 49-47 on Wright’s three free throws, but Eberhardt hit a 3-pointer from the right corner with 1:12 left to push the lead to 52-49. Lisch made two free throws to gave Saint Louis a 54-47 lead with 38.9 seconds left, and hit three more from the line down the stretch to seal the win.

Playing before the first packed house at Chaifetz Arena (10,603), Saint Louis scored first and stretched the lead to 22-12 when Mitchell drove to the basket and hit a runner with 8:43 left in the first half.

The Flyers began to chip away after that. Dayton scored the last four points of the half on a drive by Mickey Perry and a baseline jumper by Paul Williams with 1:13 left that made it 28-24.

February 21, 2009 by Patrick Gill | A10CollegeHoops

RICHMOND, VA — The Richmond Spiders rode Kevin Anderson’s 15 second half points and stifling defense to a  victory over the Charlotte 49ERS on Saturday night at the Robins Center. Following a mediocre first half Richmond (6-6 A-10, 14-13) dominated Charlotte in the second half to continue their recent surge.

For the first twenty minutes of the contest it seemed Charlotte had solved their season long quandary of playing away from home. Despite their 2-10 mark away from the friendly confines of Halton Arena the 49ERS were clicking on all cylinders going into intermission. Their best player Lamont Mack seemed unstoppable, they were 6-11 from beyond the arc, and possessed a four point advantage.

However, in the second half the road demons that have possessed Charlotte all season returned. The Spiders active match-up zone flustered the 49ers from the outset of the period. Following a Charlie Coley dunk that gave Charlotte a 41-38 lead the 49ers would only score two points the next seven minutes.  “They have good size overall in their zone. They do good job of getting to shooters,” Charlotte head man Bobby Lutz said of the Spiders.

During the pivotal stretch the home team used two Anderson steals, a gravity defying block by Cedric Francis Martel and Ryan Butler’s lockdown defense to stake their claim to a 49-43 advantage with 8:14 remaining. Butler had 4 second half blocks but Richmond Head Coach Chris Mooney believed his diving steal with 12:57 remaining was the turning point in the contest. “The play of the game was when Ryan Butler dove on ground at half court and threw it ahead to Kevin Anderson.”

The Spiders would never trail again but needed several big plays by Anderson to repel the resilient 49ERs. With Richmond clinging to a two point lead with 3:34 remaining the sophomore point guard hit a three from the top of the key and then connected on four straight foul shots to put Charlotte out of their misery.

Richmond has responded from a midseason slump by winning 3 of their last 4 games with the only blemish being a close loss at Dayton. Ryan Butler believes the combination of a favorable schedule and a young team hitting their stride bode well for the Spiders as they approach the stretch run. “Hopefully we can win out and get a good seed in the A-10 tournament. We just want to continue to get chances to show teams we can play.”

February 21, 2009 | AP Press

NEW YORK, NY – Jimmy Baron scored 19 of his 29 points in the first half and Rhode Island handed Fordham its sixth straight loss, 77-58 on Saturday.

Kahiem Seawright added 19 points for Rhode Island (20-8, 9-4 Atlantic 10) in the matchup of teams nicknamed Rams, while Delroy James had 11 points and nine rebounds.

Mike Moore had 19 of his 28 points in the second half for Fordham (3-21, 1-11), which has lost 14 of its last 15. Freshman Jio Fontan had 19 points for Fordham.

Baron had two of his six 3-pointers in a 10-0 run that have Rhode Island a 16-6 lead with 14:50 left in the first half. Rhode Island’s biggest lead of the half was 39-21 on two free throws by Ben Eaves with 3:44 to go. Rhode Island led 47-23 at halftime.

Baron was 10-for-12 from the field including 6-for-8 on 3s while Rhode Island finished 9-for-17 (52.9 percent) beyond the arc.

February 20, 2009 by Ryan Pohle | A10CollegeHoops

Updated Weekly Every Thursday

Based on Games Played Through Wednesday, February 18th.

1 Seeds

UNC, Pittsburgh, UConn, Memphis

2 Seeds

Oklahoma, Duke, Louisville, Wake Forest

3 Seeds

Michigan St., Arizona St., UCLA, Missouri

4 Seeds

Villanova, Clemson, Marquette, Kansas

5 Seeds

Gonzaga, Xavier, Purdue, Washington

6 Seeds

Illinois, West Virginia, Syracuse, LSU

7 Seeds

Texas, BYU, California, Utah

8 Seeds

Butler, Utah St., Arizona, Florida St.

9 Seeds

Ohio St., Kentucky, Florida, Wisconsin

10 Seeds

Tennessee, Davidson, San Diego St., Dayton

11 Seeds

Georgetown, Miami Fl., South Carolina, UAB

12 Seeds

Minnesota, Temple, Oklahoma St., Creighton

13 Seeds

North Dakota St., Miami Oh., Niagra, George Mason

14 Seeds

Vermont, American, Stephen F. Austin, Western Kentucky

15 Seeds

Pacific, Cornell, Portland St., Robert Morris

16 Seeds

Jacksonville, Murray St., Liberty Play-in Game: Morgan St. vs. Alabama St.

Last Four In:

UAB, Minnesota, Temple, Oklahoma St.

First Four Out:

USC, Boston College, Virginia Tech, UNLV

Multiple Conference Bids

Big East – 8,  ACC – 6, Big Ten – 6, Big 12 – 5, Pac 10 – 5, SEC – 5, A10 – 3, Mountain West – 3, Conference USA – 2.

Thoughts

Xavier – Xavier can probably improve its stock to a 3 seed if they were to win every game including in the tourney here on out.  They have a couple of fairly tough tests left in the regular season so a five seed seems like the most likely spot for them.

Dayton – Dayton deserves a higher seed as of right now, but looking at their schedule the rest of the way, it seems pretty certain that they will finish 2-3 here on out.  That’s why I have them lower than most do.

Temple – I’ve been the only one with Temple in my bracket for quite awhile now, and after picking up nice road victories last week over St. Joe’s and Duquesne, the Owls are starting to get some interest from other bracketologists.

Oklahoma St. – Oklahoma St. pops back into my bracket after reeling off a couple of victories.  Although they might not deserve to be in right now, they are going to be favored in their next four games.  They are going to start to play themselves into a lot of brackets in the next couple of weeks.

Oklahoma – I’m the only one in the bracket project without Oklahoma as a #1 seed.  Why, you ask?  They have some tough games coming up: @ Texas, vs. Kansas, and @ Missouri.  I have them losing two regular season games and one of those other teams winning the Big 12 tourney because I just don’t feel the Sooners, who have had a pretty soft schedule thus far, are as good as everyone thinks.  That leaves Memphis as my last #1 seed.

Boston College – I don’t have Boston College in which is pretty uncommon.  The Eagles look to only go 2-2 here on out, and that soft non con schedule will get no love from the committee.  They also have the RPI numbers going against them.  They have some good wins, but some ugly losses as well.  They surely aren’t a for sure bid like many are projecting.

February 19, 2009 | AP Press

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rob Diggs scored 26 points, and was one of five George Washington players in double figures in a 90-62 rout of St. Bonaventure on Thursday night.

Joseph Katuka added 13 points, Travis King and Damian Hollis had 12 apiece and Wynton Witherspoon chipped in with 10 for the Colonials (8-15, 2-9 Atlantic 10 Conference).

Michael Davenport led the Bonnies (13-12, 4-8) with 16 points and Malcolm Eleby added 11.

The Colonials opened the game on a 25-7 run, cruising to a 47-28 halftime lead. They put it away in the second, outscoring the Bonnies 43-34.

GW hit 10 of 12 from beyond the arc and 14 of 16 from the foul line in the win. The Bonnies were just 5 of 20 from 3-point range, while going 5-for-10 on free throws.

The Colonials have won two of their last four games after dropping 11 straight before this current streak.