Men's Basketball vs. Hartford (2/28/08)

by Ryan Matsuura

With no seniors to celebrate their last home game of the year, the Boston University Terriers’ party should have been dedicated to freshman John Holland. Holland scored the Terriers’ first ten points, en route to a career-high 38 and walked off the court to “WE WANT HOLLAND” chants, with the crowd hoping he would net one more bucket, to reach 40 on the evening.

With Holland taking the lead, the Terriers (13-15, 9-6 America East) thrashed the Hartford Hawks (15-15, 9-6 AE) 97-66, keeping their hopes of finishing in second pace in America East alive.

“I was feeling it real early and happened to get the first ten points. It went off from there,” said Holland. “But everybody had a good game today.”

In the final ten minutes of the first half the Terriers outscored Hartford 26-13 and never looked back. They lead by as many as 37 points, outrebounded the Hawks 47-26, and tallied 22 assists on 32 field goals. With their eighth win in nine games, the Terriers are playing their best basketball of the year heading into March.

“John has grown up, we’ve been able to get sophomore Corey [Lowe] healthy, and we’ve set into a rotation,” said Wolff. “We’re fortunate to be playing well at the time of year you like to play well.”

Besides the ten-point onslaught right out of the gate, Holland grabbed 11 rebounds and aggressively stepped into the passing lanes for a couple of breakaway dunks. Arguably, his most impressive bucket came late in the second half when he went between-the-legs with the dribble followed by a quick spin move to split two Hawks defenders and yielded off another to bank in the fadeaway while being fouled in the process. The talented Holland had never scored 40 points in his basketball career, but that milestone seemed low on the priority list.

“It’s really all about winning the game,” he said. “With every game your confidence grows, you start doing better and better, and you start expecting to do well.”

Without redshirt sophomore Tyler Morris, who watched from the sidelines with a mild concussion, three other sophomores picked up the slack to support Holland. Lowe, despite struggling from the field, added 21 points, including 4 threes. Forward Scott Brittain was efficient inside for BU, going 4-5 from the field and 6-7 from the free throw line for 14 points. Carlos Strong, who has been fighting through a torn meniscus in his knee, nailed four threes in six attempts and finished with 16 points in 18 minutes.

“He just went through a rough time with injuries,” said Lowe about Strong, who has settled nicely into a sixth man role. “He’s getting healthy now and getting back in the flow. He’s really talented offensively and he’s going to help us even more.”

Hartford forward Morgan Sabia, Holland’s main competition for the Rookie of the Year award in America East, was limited to 19 minutes due to foul trouble. He finished with five points, all of which came when the game was essentially over.

The Terriers next game will be on Sunday, as they travel to Albany to take on the Great Danes at 2 o’clock. The next WTBU broadcast of Terriers basketball will be at the America East Tournament. Make sure to check out wtburadio.org, and click on the calendar link to find out game dates and times, as they become available.

Terriers Notes:

-The 38 points scored by John Holland are the most points ever scored by a Terrier in a single game at the Roof. Holland broke the record of 37, which was previously held by Kerry Walker (2/7/73 vs. Connecticut) and Steve Wright (12/11/79 vs. Upsala).

Incidentally, the February 7, 1973 game also has the distinction of Connecticut's Al Weston scoring 43 points, the most ever by an opposing player at the Roof.