Men’s Basketball: BU Looks to Rebound Against Army

By: Dave Souza

Reeling from a 20-point loss at the hands of the Bucknell Bison, the Boston University Men’s Basketball team will look to bounce back when they travel to Army West Point Wednesday night at 7 p.m.

Before dropping their senior night contest to league-leading Bucknell, the Terriers had won four straight. BU (16-12, 11-5 PL) currently sits in second place in the Patriot League with two conference tilts remaining in the regular season.

The two teams squared off less than a month ago at Case Gym, where the Terriers escaped in an overtime thriller. A pair of missed foul shots by the Black Knights sealed the victory for the scarlet and white, who won in front of a packed house, 69-68.

Now, seeking revenge for the close loss, Army (11-17, 5-11) will look to win on senior night and potentially deny BU of the two seed in the Patriot League Tournament.

Since that loss, the Black Knights are 3-4, however their last two games have been narrow victories over conference opponents. Army sank Holy Cross last Wednesday before setting their sights on rival Navy. Showing their true mettle, the Black Knights rallied from a 25-point deficit to upend the Midshipmen by three on Saturday.

Tommy Funk led the charge for Army last time they squared off with the Terriers. The freshman guard posted 16 points and grabbed three rebounds – all on the defensive end. The Black Knights however did not have their young star all game, as Funk was one of two players to foul out for Army. He still managed to lead the team with 38 minutes on the floor.

Jordan Fox, Army’s leading scorer, was one of three Black Knights to score 14 against the Terriers in January. Averaging 12.2 points per game, Fox is shooting 43.5 percent from the field and just under 39 percent from beyond the arc.

Eric Fanning lifted the Terriers to their one-point victory over Army by netting 32 points and grabbing nine boards. In BU’s past four victories, Fanning has posted double digit points in three of the contests, including a 23-point performance against Loyola Maryland on February 11. On the season, the senior is averaging 14 points per game as well as six rebounds per game, both team highs.

Nipping on his heels is Justin Alston, who has been one of the driving forces behind the Terriers’ success this reason. A big bodied forward who can grab rebounds on both sides of the ball, Alston gathered five boards against the Black Knights last time out. On the season Alston is trailing Fanning in rebounds by one-tenth of a point, at 5.9 boards per game.

BU is in the driver’s seat for the two seed in the Patriot League with two games remaining in the regular season. Despite seeing their hopes of a conference title fade at the hands of Bucknell, the Terriers can still do damage in the Patriot League Tournament. Before they get there however, BU will look to finish off their season with solid play and wins in six of their final seven games. In order to do so, they’ll have to finish off the Black Knights.