Boston University Basketball

For John Holland, leading Boston University to its first NCAA Tournament berth in nearly a decade was just the beginning. He's now headed overseas where he will join former NBA player Ricky Davis to play for Chorale de Roanne in France. The soft-spoken star is determined to use his winning mentality and team-first attitude to find success on the professional level.

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Growing up in the basketball mecca that is New York City, John Holland was exposed to the game from an early age. As a teenager, he attended Fordham Preparatory Academy in the Bronx, excelling at both basketball and baseball. However, at the conclusion of his senior year, he found himself with no Division I scholarship offers and an uncertain future.

Nonetheless, Holland remained convinced of his ability to compete at the highest collegiate level and became determined to prove his worth on the court, using a post-graduate year at St. Benedict’s Prep in Newark, N.J., to hone his basketball skills. Holland’s tenacity and faith in his abilities paid great dividends, as he was recruited by several Division I programs during his PG year, ultimately deciding to attend Boston University.

“Choosing BU was really easy because I liked the academics along with the environment,” says Holland. “It just felt right.”

Little did Holland know just how right his experience on the BU basketball team would be. The 6'5" guard rapidly became the top player on his team, concluding his college career as the second leading scorer in Terriers history. This past season, he led the America East with 19.2 points and 1.4 steals per game, and was honored as the Conference Player of the Year and a 2011 Associated Press All-America Honorable Mention.

More importantly however, Holland single-handedly willed his team to its first NCAA Tournament berth in nine years, with 27 hard-fought points and two clutch free throws with just seconds left on the clock in the America East championship game.

“(Reaching the NCAA Tournament) was great, probably one of the best basketball experiences of my life,” says Holland. “It was unbelievable to be a part of that, something I’ll never forget. Just the intensity and how hard you really have to work to achieve that goal. Everybody put in the hours and the hard work and it all paid off.”

Although Holland and his team remained competitive with Kansas in the first half of their opening-round game, BU could not pull off the upset and eventually bowed out to the Jayhawks. Nonetheless, Holland maintained that playing against such a talented team helped him develop as a player and appreciate the difficulty of competing at the highest level.

Holland believes that his versatility and willingness to adapt to the needs of his team will make him an asset to any future squad. Along with a commitment to defense and a solid stroke from multiple spots on the floor, he describes himself as “the type of guy that is willing to do anything to win and get the team better, whether it’s in the locker room on the court.”

Even his Terriers coach Patrick Chambers, who is now the head coach at Penn State, highlights Holland’s humble and altruistic demeanor, both on and off the court.

“John has left a legacy that Terrier fans will remember for a long time,” says Chambers. “He became a leader, a great teammate, and a man of high character—attributes that our young guys looked up to and will try to emulate throughout their careers.”

Although Holland hopes to one day earn a spot on an NBA roster, for the time being he remains optimistic and simply desires the opportunity to continue his improvement as a player.

“I am going to try and play for as long as possible wherever I can,” he says. “I am basically there to do whatever the team needs, whether it’s defending or scoring, whatever the team needs for me to do I’m willing to do it.”

Holland’s humility and team-first attitude is painfully rare among his college peers, and hopefully an NBA team will one day give him the chance to once again prove he belongs on the same court with basketball’s elite.

Fresh off winning the America East Conference Championship, the Terriers of Boston University have qualified for the NCAA Men's Basketball Division I Tournament.

BU has been on quite the roll since the new year was rung in, losing only four of their last 19 contests on their way to adding another AEC Championship to their collection. Senior John Holland played a pivotal role in reaching this feat, with the New York native providing his own fourteen point run to bring the Terriers back from a 15 point deficit against Stony Brook University. Holland would prove to be the hero for BU in this contest, not only bringing his team back into the game, but coming through at the free throw line with just seconds remaining and sealing a Terrier victory.

Holland was Boston's MVP of the AEC Championship Game, but the Terriers also worked well as a team, going 24-29 at the free throw line collectively and providing few chances for the Seawolves to reach it to the line. Dom Morris also provided a key basket for the red and white with just under a minute remaining; he also contributed eight rebounds over the course of the match-up.

On the shoulders of players like Morris and Holland, Boston University's basketball program qualified for the NCAA tournament for the seventh time in their program's history, drawing the unlucky number 16 seed.

BU finds itself placed in the South West conference in a second round match-up against Division I powerhouse and South West's number one seeded Kansas. The Jayhawks come into this upcoming Friday's contest fresh off winning the Big 12 Championship and looking to avenge last season's tournament loss to Northern Iowa.

History is not on the side of the Terriers, as no 16 seed has ever knocked off a one seed in the history of the tournament. Vegas odds have the Jayhawks as 22.5 point favorites heading into the game and with such a talented roster at the disposal of Kansas Head Coach Bill Self, there's little reason to argue with the oddsmakers.

When looking at the statistics, both teams are almost equal in terms of average allowed but there is a 17 points difference between average points scored in favor of Kansas. In fact, every other statistic other than points allowed is heavily in favor of the number one seed. BU has not favored well when put to the test against the big names in Division I this season either, being blown out on the road against Kentucky and Villanova.

Give credit to the Terriers and their Head Coach Patrick Chambers for putting together an impressive 2011 run and taking home their conference title, but it would be the greatest upset in the history of college basketball if Boston could somehow manage to edge out one of the top teams in the country. Expect the talented John Holland and his teammates to put together a valiant effort against the Jayhawks, but ultimately all signs point to Kansas taking the victory and advancing into the next round of tournament play.

Last college basketball season, I tried to do a series highlighting a few players to watch from each conference for the season. While I completed the first few conferences alphabetically, I started on the process too late into the season to actually finish. At a certain point, highlighting players to watch 20 games in to a 30 game season became pretty pointless.

Therefore, I have decided to restart the same series for the 2010 season, just quite a bit earlier.  Essentially, I give a few players from every conference to keep an eye on during the season.

With that said, let's start with the America East Conference.

Tommy Brenton, Stony Brook Seawolves

Tommy Brenton is entering his junior season with Stony Brook, and really can do it all on the basketball court.  Brenton is only 6'5" yet he led the America East in rebounding and in defensive rebounds last season, and also was second in total offensive rebounds in the conference.  

Brenton really is an all purpose guard (even playing forward occasionally) as he also finished top 10 in assists per game, and second in the conference in steals per game. Stony Brook held the best conference record in the America East, largely to Brenton's efforts, though lost in the conference tournament to Boston University.

Throughout the season, Brenton had seven double-doubles, and filled up his stat line nearly every game.  Though he never had an outstanding game in one stat, he consistently added rebounds, assists, steals, and even blocks.

Joe Zeglinski, Hartford Hawks

Joe Zeglinski enters his senior season, after red-shirting two years ago due to injury. Hartford was not a great team last year, however, Zeglinski was a bright spot, especially in the conference.

Zeglinski really can do it all for the Hawks, as he finished top 10 in points scored, top five in points per game, and top 10 in defensive rebounds per game in the America East.

Unlike Brenton, Zeglinski could put up prolific scoring numbers in some games.  He led Hartford with 23 points in a two point loss to Baylor, probably one of Hartford's best games all season.  Compiling two double-doubles throughout the season, Zeglinski also scored 20 or more points seven times in the season.

A streaky three point shooter, Zeglinski can really light up the scoreboard when he gets hot, like in a game against UMBC, in which he finished with 29 points.

Chris De La Rosa, UMBC Retrievers

Chris De La Rosa transferred to UMBC in 2008 from Siena and is entering his second season with the Retrievers. Though UMBC won only four games last season, De La Rosa was a huge boost for the team.

Both his defensive and offensive presence helped UMBC, as De La Rosa finished with the most assists in the America East, as well as being top 10 in steals.

De La Rosa is not much of a scorer (averaging just over 11 points per game), but did have five games where he exploded for more than 20 points. He clearly was a positive influence on the team, as two of those five games were wins.

John Holland, Boston University Terriers

John Holland has been one of the best America East players the past two seasons (and was a "player to watch" last season as well). He is an absolutely explosive scorer, but does even more on the court than that.

Holland was held to single digits only three times throughout all of last season, and put up 20 points on Kansas State, 21 on Indiana, 23 on Georgia Tech, and 23 on UConn.  He can clearly score against any team, but just does not have much of a supporting cast from the Terriers.

The top scorer in the America East last season, Holland also was top 10 in rebounds, top five in steals, and number one in minutes. He's an extremely durable player, who does not often find himself in foul trouble, as he never played less than 25 minutes in a game.

Scoring 20 or more points 19 times last season, Holland also put on a show in a win against Delaware scoring 43 points. Holland is an extremely exciting player, and certainly is the best scorer returning to the America East this season, perhaps for the second straight season.

Freshman To Watch: Travis Robinson, Boston University Terriers

If Travis Robinson can score as well as scouts say he can, a combination of Robinson and Holland could be a scary one for Boston University's America East opponents.

Touted as an excellent mid-range jump shooter, as well as slasher, Robinson should be a great addition to an already decent Boston University squad.

Luckily, even if Holland still must bear most of the scoring load for the Terriers, Robinson is also a highly touted defender and rebounder.  He truly is a "do-it-all" player, and could lead Boston University to a conference championship this season.

Within two days, six players were released from the Binghamton basketball program.

Thursday, senior Emanuel Mayben, who averaged 11.5 points per game and led the Bearcats in assists and three-point shooting in 2008-09, was arrested for cocaine distribution and was immediately kicked off the team.

Seniors D.J. Rivera, Malik Alvin, and David Fine, and transfers Paul Crosby and Corey Chandler were released a day later because, as coach Kevin Broadus stated, when "young men in our program don't respect the decisions that have been made or the rules we have in place, then they need to move on with their lives."

Crosby and Chandler would have been required to sit out the 2009-10 season due to transfer regulations, but Rivera, who led the Bearcats with 20 points per game, Mayben, and Alvin were set to lead Binghamton back to the NCAA Tournament.

After losing four to graduation in May and four eligible contributors now, the Bearcats return an extremely meager 13.5 points per game and will be forced to rely on the likes of Chretien Lukusa, Moussa Camarra, four incoming freshmen, and at least two walk-ons.

To sum up, the Bearcats, who were slated to compete with Boston University for the America East crown, will be lucky if they don't finish in last place.

With Binghamton incapable of thwarting them, the Boston University Terriers should have a much easier path to the Big Dance.

The Terriers only lost 5.8 points per game from last season and have established America East stars John Holland and Corey Lowe and budding star Jake O'Brien to lead the team. Holland and Lowe should each appear on the preseason First Team All-Conference.

Marques Blakely and Vermont could threaten BU, but the Catamounts lost two key players to graduation last season.

Photo by BU Athletics

Boston University and Vermont have dominated the America East Conference for much of the past decade, but the two haven't fought each other for a league title since 2005.

In 2010, that will change.

The Terriers return their top six scorers after finishing third last season with an 11-5 record in the league. The Catamounts don't bring back as much talent in 2010, but it's still enough to fight the Terriers for the championship.

Vermont has one of the league's best player, Marqus Blakely, and the conference's best recruiting class. That combination makes the Catamounts, who finished 13-3 last year, a favorite and a better bet to win the league than reigning champion, Binghamton.

But that doesn't mean the Bearcats are slouches.

The conference's most dominant player, DJ Rivera, calls Binghamton home. But the surrounding cast this year is a bit thin, as second-leading scorer Dwayne Jackson is gone, as well as several key role players.

While Boston and Vermont have the most complete teams, Binghamton has enough star power to be considered a serious contender. The Bearcats did win three of four meetings with Vermont and Boston last season.

The rest of the league will be as a whole be better than last year. Hartford, Stony Brook, and Albany will be taking steps forward. The Danes will have the best shot to challenging the top three, as they have two potential All-League players in point guard Tim Ambrose and small forward Will Harris.

New Hampshire and Maine won't be too far behind the middle-tier teams in the league, while Maryland-Baltimore County should be headed for the conference dungeon.

Team by team capsules, projections, and all-league teams after the jump.

1. Boston University

The Terriers have one of the best trios of any mid-major in the country.

Small forward John Holland is an explosive scorer who can change the scoreboard from any spot on the floor. Point guard Corey Lowe does the same in addition to being a reliable distributor. Boston's future lies with sophomore big man Jake O'Brien who, averaged almost 13 points per game as a freshman. As a whole, the trio scored 47 points per game.

Boston also returns its next three leading scorers from last year. On top of all the talent, the Terriers also have one of the best incoming freshmen in the league. Point guard BJ Bailey will allow Lowe to slide over to the two-guard position, as Lowe is a deadly scorer.

2. Vermont

The Catamounts have the reigning Conference Player of the Year, as power forward Marqus Blakely can dominate both ends of the floor. Blakely is a double-double waiting to happen each night, as the senior averaged 16 points and nine boards a game last season. Blakely also is one of only a few players that averaged at least two blocks and two steals per game last season.

Blakely's supporting cast isn't as strong as what Holland and Lowe have at BU, but the Catamounts have some nice players returning. Vermont will need Michigan State transfer Maurice Joesph to step up and take on a more prominent role in the offense.

Vermont also has two of the highest-rated freshmen in the conference, and Luke Apfeld and Brendan Bald will have an immediate impact. Apfeld's versatility to guard multiple positions will make Vermont an even better defensive team after the squad led the conference in defensive efficiency last season.

3. Binghamton

The only reason Binghamton's best player, DJ Rivera, didn't win the league's Player of the Year award last season was because America East coaches weren't happy with the kind of players coach Kevin Broadus brought in from other schools. He's easily the most explosive talent in the conference, but wasn't awarded for it with any accolades.

Binghamton had five players average double-digit points last year, and three return this season. Gone are guards Malik Alvin and Dwayne Jackson, but returning is one of the league's most valuable players: Emanuel Mayben.

Binghamton's biggest weakness is actually being too small. The Bearcats only have one contributor over 6'5'', and the tallest member of their starting lineup from last year graduated. Coach Broadus's team was killed on the glass last year, and that trend should continue this season.

4. Albany

The only tandem in the league better than Tim Ambrose and Will Harris is Boston's John Holland and Corey Lowe. Like Lowe and Holland, Ambrose and Harris are a point guard-small forward duo.

The supporting cast just isn't there for the Great Danes. One other starter returns and a few reserves, but no real impact players.

The Great Danes do have an above-average class for an America East team, which will help build coach Will Brown's team for the future since point guard Ambrose will only be a junior this season.

5. Stony Brook

The league's second-best defensive team returns the majority of its core players from that finished .500 in the league.

There is the potential for the Seawolves to finish much higher than fifth with a roster as complete and experienced as theirs, but Stony Brook struggled significantly at times on offense.

6. New Hampshire

The Wildcats somehow finished .500 last year, despite being well below the league average in both offensive and defensive efficiency.

The Wildcats return the majority of their roster, but New Hampshire lacks a star player capable of taking over a game.

7. Hartford

The Hawks were anemic offensively last season, ranking 317th in offensive efficiency in the country.

Star player Joe Zeglinski returns after missing most of last season. As a sophomore, Zeglinski was named to the All-League team after averaging over 16 points per game.

8. Maine

The Black Bears' leading scorer is gone, but now-sophomore Gerald McLemore was second on the team in scoring as a freshman.

If Maine is going to make a noise in the league, it will be behind McLemore. He's the only bright spot for the Black Bears, as the defense last year was abysmal and there aren't any banner recruits coming in.

9. Maryland-Baltimore County

Only two role players remain from UM-BC's 2008 championship winning team, but those two players are going to be thrust into major roles, as just three real contributors return from last year's sixth place team. 

There is hope for the future, as the Retrievers bring in several solid recruits and transfers from Marshall and Siena.

All-America East Team

Boston point guard Corey Lowe

Albany point guard Tim Ambrose

Boston forward John Holland

Binghamton forward DJ Rivera

Vermont forward Marqus Blakely

America East Player of the Year

DJ Rivera

America East Coach of the Year

Patrick Chambers

America East Freshman of the Year

Vermont forward Luke Apfeld

Conference Previews:

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For more on college basketball, follow Jameson on twitter.

There has been a whole lot of speculation on who will take over the Boston University basketball team.

Head coach Dennis Wolff has been fired after 15 years.

Wolff won the most games in program history, 247, and had four seasons remaining on a ten-year contract. His buyout is rumored to be over $1 million. 

The team finished in third place and will return four starters—including America East first-team players Corey Lowe and John Holland. They also return Freshman of the Year Jake O'Brien. 

Considering these factors, Athletic Director Mike Lynch must have some top candidates in mind, because Wolff was coming off a winning season and a third-place finish in the America East despite season-ending injuries to two impact players this year.

The cupboard is also not bare, given the aforementioned players' return. With Lowe, Holland, and O'Brien returning the incoming coach will have an impressive roster that will be able to contend immediately in the America East. This hopefully will attract better candidates than if waited to fire Wolff.

AD Mike Lynch decided to hire Parker Executive Search at a price of $75,000 to search for the new coach. The company is well-respected and has been used in searches for Notre Dame's Athletic Director, Nebraska's head football coach, the Big 12 commissioner, and basketball coaches for the likes of LSU, Arkansas, Kentucky, Iowa, Minnesota, and Oregon State.

Lynch obviously is not looking to fill the position prematurely, but rather will deliberate over many qualified candidates. Now onto the possible candidates.

Within a day of the firing, The Boston Globe reported a list that led with Richard Pitino, Rick Pitino's son. Pitino is an assistant at Louisville for his father. He previously was an assistant for St. Andrew's High School in Rhode Island, the College of Charleston, Northeastern, and Duquesne. Pitino has spent the last two years assisting his father.

When asked about his interest in the BU job Pitino responded, "I would be very interested." Although there is immediate name recognition with the Pitino hiring, he has only been an assistant at the Division-I level for five years. He does have Boston roots, as he went to St. Sebastian's, but he is very young.

The other Louisville assistants who are in the running are Steve Masiello and former Celtic Walter McCarty. McCarty played for Pitino at Kentucky and on the Celtics. He has only been coaching for a couple years, so he is inexperienced. McCarty would immediately bring name recognition and he has expressed interest, but he is considered a long shot.

Steve Masiello on the other hand is the most experienced of the three Louisville assistants. Masiello has been assisting Pitino for four years. Prior to that he was an assistant to Bobby Gonzalez at Manhattan College for four years, two of which Manhattan made it to the tournament.

It has been reported by the Louisville Courier-Journal that Masiello is not interested in the job and is waiting for a bigger opening, MAC/A-10/C-USA type.

It will be interesting how Rick Pitino plays into. If he is pushing for one of his coaches over the others it would probably be his son Richard. Also does Pitino have enough juice left to even get the coach he wants the job at BU. He is not the only coach recommending his assistant.

Before UConn's opening game against Chattanooga Jim Calhoun said, "I called Mike Lynch and talked to him about Andre (LaFleur). I think there was some interest." LaFleur was one of the top scorers for Calhoun at Northeastern. LaFleur then played and coached overseas for 11 years. He has been part of the UCONN staff for the last eight years. 

Other top assistants mentioned have included Pat Duquette for BC, Pittsburgh assistant Tom Herrion, and Providence assistant Pat Skerry.

Duquette has spent the last 12 years on the BC staff. BC has been incredibly successful during his time with post-season berths in seven of the last eight seasons. Duquette has stated he would not leave for just any job, but this does not seem to be any job because he has expressed his interest.

Herrion has been the associate head coach for Pitt the last two years. Before that he was the head coach for the College of Charleston and led the team to an 80-38 record under him including an NIT appearance and a top-25 ranking.

Herrion has also been the assistant at the University of Virginia for two years and Providence College for four years. In total he has 18 years of experience at the college level. Herrion was a graduate of Division II Merrimack College and grew up in Oxford.

Pat Skerry spent this past season assisting Keno Davis at Providence College. Prior to that he was an assistant at Rhode Island for three years, spent two years assisting Tom Herrion, another possible candidate, at College of Charleston, and three years at William & Mary. Skerry has spent 17 years at the collegiate level, 12 of which have been in New England.

Other names mentioned include former Providence and Iona head coach Tom Welsh, former Celtic Ed Pinckney, former Harvard head coach Frank Sullivan.

Tim Welsh is the only coach with experience at a high level school in Division I who is under consideration. Welsh has expressed interest in the job. He coached the Iona Gaels to three straight MAAC championships and post-season births. His teams made the NIT twice and NCAA once.

Welsh then moved onto Providence where he was unable to match the success at Iona, but finished with five post-season births in ten years. None of his teams ever won a NCAA tournament game. His overall record is 215-148. Welsh also was an assistant at Florida State, Syracuse, and Iona before becoming the head coach of the Gaels.

Pinckney has been an assistant for the Minnesota Timberwolves for two years and previously spent the prior four years as an assistant for his alma mater, the Villanova Wildcats. Pinckney played in the NBA for twelve years for multiple teams including the Celtics. Pinckney starred for Villanova in their run to the National Championship in 1985.

Sullivan has expressed interest in the position. He spent 33 years coaching at the collegiate level including his last 16 as head coach of Harvard. Sullivan also assisted at recognizable schools like Villanova and Seton Hall. Sullivan also was a very successful head coach at Bentley for seven years. He has spent the past two seasons as the America East coordinator of officials. Sullivan is a native of Lexington and went to Westfield State.

AD Mike Lynch seems to want a new face for the program, so I doubt Tim Welsh, the most qualified, or Frank Sullivan are in the running even though both have expressed their interest. If any of the Louisville assistants are going to get this job it will be Richard Pitino, because the name still resonates at BU and also on a national stage. Masiello does not seem to have interest in it removing one of Richard's biggest competitors for the position.

The Pitino coaching tree has already produced numerous successful coaches, including Billy Donovan, Tubby Smith, Ralph Willard, Reggie Theus, Herb Sendek, and Travis Ford, to name a few. Pat Duquette is a formidable competition for the job. He knows the area so well and has much more experience than Pitino. LeFleur will be getting a head coaching shot soon, but it does not look like this year will be his.

Watch out for the dark horse Tom Herrion in all this.

Favorites: Richard Pitino, Louisville assistant; Andre LeFleur, UConn assistant; Pat Duquette, BC assistant.

Dark Horses: Tom Herrion, Pitt assistant.

Longshots: Walter McCarty, Louisville assistant; Ed Pinckney, Timberwolves assistant.