Boston College Eagles
2013-2014 Overall Rank: #88
Conference Rank: #10 ACC
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Considering how young Boston College was last season, it was a big accomplishment, and an even bigger surprise, that they finished 7-11 in conference play and 16-17overall. Outside of a forgettable January, the Eagles played pretty well. There were some bad loses, both in opposition and score, but there were some quality wins and some quality losses too. A year older and a year wiser will make this group more consistent. Ryan Anderson, a 6-9 forward, is the star of the team. As a sophomore he averaged 14.9 points and 8.0 rebounds. He is an effective scorer anywhere inside the arc and is easily the most effective rebounder on BC.
2012-13 Record: 16-17, 7-11
2012-13 Postseason: None
Coach: Steve Donahue
Coach Record: 46-52 at Boston College, 192-190 overall
Who’s Out:
Andrew Van Nest worked his way into the regular rotation after transferring in from Harvard for his final year of eligibility. Against ACC competition he struggled to find clean looks, but he did give the team some good minutes off of the bench and he did provide another big body that could stretch the defense with the threat of an outside shot.
Who’s In:
Alex Dragicevich sat out last season following two years with Notre Dame. As a sophomore with the Irish the 6-8 forward started ten games and averaged 6.6 points and 1.8 rebounds. He is a good shooter that will stretch the defense and has had some big offensive outings against tough competition. If Dragicevich turns into a dependable scorer and steps up for big games against the likes of Duke and North Carolina, he will add something Boston College lacked a year ago. The backcourt will add depth with Sam Donahue and wings Darryl Hicks and Garland Owens. Hicks is a nice pickup for the Eagles and he has the scoring punch and athleticism to be a great player sooner or later.
Who to Watch:
Olivier Hanlan and Joe Rahon had amazing freshmen campaigns. They lived up to the hype and then some. Hanlan, a tough and scrappy guard, led the Eagles with 15.4 points and connected on nearly 40 percent of his attempts from beyond the arc. He is also not afraid to use his strength and finish around the bucket. Rahon is a superb drive and dish guard, however he proved to be a more than capable scorer too. Lonnie Jackson is yet another capable shooter. Whether he comes in off of the bench or is inserted back into the starting lineup, Jackson will provide a nice spark to the offense. Patrick Heckmann was terribly inconsistent two years ago and he did better in that regard as a sophomore. There is still plenty of room to improve. Heckmann will have some great games and then disappear for games at a time. When he does show up, the opposing defense will not be able to stop him.
Final Projection:
The Eagles have trouble on the glass and the frontcourt must get more production from Eddie Odio and Dennis Clifford. Odio is still toughening up and as soon as that happens he will make a larger impact. Odio averaged nearly 15 minutes per contest and he will need to contribute just as much this time around and it would be beneficial if those minutes resulted in a bit more scoring and rebounding. Clifford is the big body in the paint. At 7-1 and 250 pounds, the junior takes up a lot of space. After a freshman year in which he averaged 8.9 points per contest, Clifford’s scoring dropped significantly last season. He is a tough defender and with better effort on the glass, Boston College does not need him to score like he did as a freshman. This is a team that should be better than last year with just about everybody returning, but the talent level is simply not there yet to compete with the top teams in the ACC.
Projected Postseason Tournament: NIT
Projected Starting Five:
Joe Rahon, Sophomore, Guard, 10.1 points per game
Lonnie Jackson, Junior, Guard, 8.7 points per game
Olivier Hanlan, Sophomore, Guard, 15.4 points per game
Ryan Anderson, Junior, Forward, 14.9 points per game
Dennis Clifford, Junior, Center, 2.8 points per game
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 67.1 (179th in nation, 8th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 68.1 (208, 7)
Field-Goal Percentage: 44.1 (123, 7)
Field-Goal Defense: 45.1 (276, 11)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 7.1 (81, 3)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 35.3 (98, 6)
Free-Throw Percentage: 71.2 (110, 3)
Rebound Margin: -1.1 (216, 8)
Assists Per Game: 12.2 (209, 7)
Turnovers Per Game: 11.4 (38, 4)
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