Boston College is not one of the elite Atlantic Coast Conference teams these days, but it has evolved into the next best thing ? the Eagles have become a tough team to match up against.
BC coach Steve Donahue found late season success by employing three and sometimes four energized guards running the floor.
Donahue will start three freshmen and two sophomores today when the No. 8-seeded Eagles (15-16, 7-11) battle No. 9 Georgia Tech (16-14, 6-12) in the opening game of the ACC tournament in Greensboro, N.C.
?I think us and Georgia Tech has been playing their best basketball in the last 10 games,? said Donahue. ?I think we are developing and the kids are coming along. They have figured out how to compete and that?s a good sign.
?We are going into the tournament playing our best basketball.?
Freshman point guard Olivier Hanlan (14.6 average) will direct the offense with frosh Joe Rahon (10.1) and sophomore Patrick Heckman (7.7). All three are capable jump shooters who attack the rim.
Sophomore power forward Ryan Anderson (15.1) provides an inside scoring presence and averages 8.1 rebounds. Freshman wing Eddie Odio has high/low capabilities and is a solid defender and shot blocker.
Sophomore guard Lonnie Jackson (9.1) started 19-of-31 games and provides a deep threat from the perimeter. Jackson leads the team with 63 made 3-point field goals.
?First of all, everybody is a pretty good ball handler and everybody can penetrate,? said Hanlan, who was named ACC Freshman of the Year on Tuesday. ?We have some really good shooters, Joe can stroke it and Lonnie can shoot and pass and Eddie?s been hitting 3?s. It is hard for teams to guard us because you can?t know who is going to penetrate at what time. We always seem to get good looks at the basket.?
The Eagles were picked to finish in 12th place in the ACC so just qualifying for the tournament was a significant accomplishment for a young program. BC went 6-5 over the last 11 games that included a one-point home loss to Duke and a three-point road loss at Florida State.
BC closed the season with three straight wins, capping things with a 74-72 victory over Georgia Tech at Conte Forum.
?I felt down the stretch we did a better job on defense,? said Hanlan. ?We just got used to being in all these close games and then finding ways to win those close games. With eight or nine minutes left we learned to fight back and make a run at the end.?
The Eagles and Yellow Jackets make for an intriguing matchup because Georgia Tech coach Brian Gregory puts a similar young guard-oriented team on the floor.
Tech senior guard Mfon Udofia directs the flow with 8.3 points per game and 88 assists on the season. Freshmen Robert Carter Jr. (10.0) and Marcus Georges-Hunt (10.4) are the scoring threats while 6-11 center Daniel Miller averages 8.5 points and 6.7 rebounds.
BC coach Steve Donahue found late season success by employing three and sometimes four energized guards running the floor.
Donahue will start three freshmen and two sophomores today when the No. 8-seeded Eagles (15-16, 7-11) battle No. 9 Georgia Tech (16-14, 6-12) in the opening game of the ACC tournament in Greensboro, N.C.
?I think us and Georgia Tech has been playing their best basketball in the last 10 games,? said Donahue. ?I think we are developing and the kids are coming along. They have figured out how to compete and that?s a good sign.
?We are going into the tournament playing our best basketball.?
Freshman point guard Olivier Hanlan (14.6 average) will direct the offense with frosh Joe Rahon (10.1) and sophomore Patrick Heckman (7.7). All three are capable jump shooters who attack the rim.
Sophomore power forward Ryan Anderson (15.1) provides an inside scoring presence and averages 8.1 rebounds. Freshman wing Eddie Odio has high/low capabilities and is a solid defender and shot blocker.
Sophomore guard Lonnie Jackson (9.1) started 19-of-31 games and provides a deep threat from the perimeter. Jackson leads the team with 63 made 3-point field goals.
?First of all, everybody is a pretty good ball handler and everybody can penetrate,? said Hanlan, who was named ACC Freshman of the Year on Tuesday. ?We have some really good shooters, Joe can stroke it and Lonnie can shoot and pass and Eddie?s been hitting 3?s. It is hard for teams to guard us because you can?t know who is going to penetrate at what time. We always seem to get good looks at the basket.?
The Eagles were picked to finish in 12th place in the ACC so just qualifying for the tournament was a significant accomplishment for a young program. BC went 6-5 over the last 11 games that included a one-point home loss to Duke and a three-point road loss at Florida State.
BC closed the season with three straight wins, capping things with a 74-72 victory over Georgia Tech at Conte Forum.
?I felt down the stretch we did a better job on defense,? said Hanlan. ?We just got used to being in all these close games and then finding ways to win those close games. With eight or nine minutes left we learned to fight back and make a run at the end.?
The Eagles and Yellow Jackets make for an intriguing matchup because Georgia Tech coach Brian Gregory puts a similar young guard-oriented team on the floor.
Tech senior guard Mfon Udofia directs the flow with 8.3 points per game and 88 assists on the season. Freshmen Robert Carter Jr. (10.0) and Marcus Georges-Hunt (10.4) are the scoring threats while 6-11 center Daniel Miller averages 8.5 points and 6.7 rebounds.
