Men’s Basketball: Terriers to Take on UMBC Tournament in Baltimore
Featured image by Elyse Paugh
By Austin Rayamajhi
Boston University Men’s Basketball (1-4, 0-0 PL) will travel to Baltimore, Maryland for a weekend double header to take on the University of Maryland, Baltimore County Retrievers (3-3, 0-0 AE) and the Howard Bison (3-2, 0-0 MEAC).
BU has struggled to open up their season. After landing their first win against Dartmouth in blowout fashion, the Terriers struggled to keep the momentum going, losing to Wagner in a game they were favored to win.
BU and UMBC have some history as both teams were in the America East conference from 2003 to 2013. The Terriers dominated the battle of the dogs historically, winning 18 of the 25 matchups between the two teams. The two teams have not played each other since 2013, where BU was able to claim their final victory against the Retrievers prior to leaving the American East.
UMBC is led by dynamic senior backcourt duo Bryce Johnson and Marcus Banks Jr. Both players were transfer students who arrived at UMBC last season as Johnson came over to the Retrievers after two years at Chicago State and Banks Jr. spent one year at Western Carolina.
The duo have combined to average nearly 30 a game, with Johnson leading the team in scoring and Banks Jr. leading the team in rebounding.
The Terriers are much more unfamiliar with their other opponent this weekend, Howard. The two teams have played just twice, with each team splitting a victory. Their last matchup was more recent than BU and UMBC, however, as the two teams played a game last season in Washington D.C. that saw the Bison come away with a victory on their home floor.
Howard is led by a stellar trio of guards with senior Marcus Dockery, freshman Blake Harper, and senior Bryce Harris. The three guards lead the team in scoring with Dockery leading the team in steals, Harper leading the team in assists–and being second in rebounding–while Harris leads the team in rebounds.
The Terriers are hopeful they can bounce back and play consistent basketball together. The leading scorer for BU is sophomore guard Kyrone Alexander who struggled in the Terriers last game against Wagner, shooting 4-13 from the field. However, Alexander has still stepped up his play this season, improving to 12.2 points per game after averaging 9.3 points per game last season. Alexander is also second on the team in rebounding, behind senior forward Malcolm Chimezie.
BU will also look to graduate guard Miles Brewster to turn his season around. Brewster was the Terriers second leading scorer last season, averaging 10.8 points per game. However, Brewster has struggled early on this season, averaging just 8.4 points per game. Getting him going this weekend will be a priority for the Terriers.
The Terriers will face the Retrievers on Nov. 23 at 12 p.m. at The Peake, and Howard on Nov. 24 at 12 p.m. Both will be available to stream on ESPN+.