Men’s basketball looking to rediscover themselves after 77-56 loss to Colgate

By: Liam O’Brien

Two weeks ago, the Boston University men’s basketball team was riding high after knocking off two-time defending Patriot League champion Bucknell on its home floor.

Fast-forward 14 days and the scene is much different. The Terriers (9-10, 2-4 PL) looked like a shell of themselves on Saturday afternoon in a 77-56 loss to Colgate. They couldn’t make a shot, Colgate had open looks all day and BU’s energy was lacking.

“Too often, we played like individuals,” BU head coach Joe Jones said. “We were not connected at all on the court. I have to really think about how we are going to go about trying to get them more invested.”

This is far from what we witnessed when the Terriers took down the Bison 87-80 in the second game of conference play. In that game, BU beat its opponent to every loose ball and found their best scoring options in juicy positions for open buckets.

Against the Raiders (11-8, 3-3 PL), Terrier junior forward Max Mahoney and sophomore guard Javante McCoy combined for 11 points on 3-of-13 shooting after contributing 44 points on 17-of-31 shooting in the win over Bucknell.

“We’ve got to get back to being that type of program, that type of team,” Jones said. “That’s what we were earlier in the year. It happens.”

Coming off a 31-point performance in Wednesday’s loss to Loyola-Maryland, Mahoney is undoubtedly the Terriers most reliable threat to score.

For him to only get five shot attempts in 30 minutes is a reflection of the absence of ball movement in BU’s offense on Saturday. The Terriers were stagnant and aside from a few sharp assists to freshman forward Jordan Guest (nine points) on cuts inside the lane, good passing was a nonexistent sight.

“You watch NBA games, this is what happens in the NBA,” Jones said. “Teams play like crap. Then they got to get back. You see it all the time. We’re no different.”

Ninth place in the conference is not where I thought BU would find itself six games into January. If the Terriers want to turn it around, they are going to avoid showings like this where they turn the ball over 13 times and assist on just 11 baskets.

“We’ve got to be able to depend on each other,” Jones said. “We’ve got to rely on each other. That’s what a team does.”