To get back on track, the Raiders have undoubtedly the worst record in the Patriot League. At 1-14 overall, and 0-2 in the League, it's a bit of an understatement to say that Colgate's had a challenging season. Likely most painful for the Raiders are the near record-setting blowout losses to Duke, Syracuse, and Maryland on the road, with the average margin of defeat just shy of 55 ppg. In conference play, Colgate opened by falling to Army and Lafayette, which is not an encouraging sign for them when AU is about to come calling.
That's because we are 18-4 all-time against the Raiders, although we split the series last year. I would still argue that our loss, which came at Colgate in double overtime 75-74, was due to the lack of cameras and replays and the inability of anyone to verify a last-second shot by Vlad, which I maintain was good. However, the most noteworthy play on our end was the shot that even got us into overtime, a buzzer-beating three from Joe "The Mountain" Hill that left our liveblog, well, speechless.
Last season's heroes for the Raiders, Ben Jonson and Kyle Roemer, were lost to graduation. Months ago, I would have speculated that Virginia transfer John Brandenburg, hailed as one of the best transfers in League history primarily due to a ridiculously high ranking coming out of high school, would have given us Muscala-esque fits in the post. However, Brandenburg has largely flamed out this season, averaging 3.6 ppg and 2.7 rpg - poor numbers for a big man listed as 7'0" at Virginia (downgraded to a still-imposing 6'11" by Coach Emmett Davis' staff), and weighing in at 263 lbs. Assuming Vlad plays (more on this in a bit), and even if Lumpkins has to shoulder a lot of the load, we should have no problems in the post, or having our way with inside-outside sets.
That isn't to say that Colgate doesn't have its share of quality players this year. Yaw Gyawu is as fierce as ever, averaging 12.5 ppg, with senior guard Joe Hoban contributing a solid 9.3 ppg as well. Even with the production from Gyawu and Hoban, the Raiders are giving up an average of 75.8 ppg while scoring only 59.5 ppg of their own. Of course, these numbers are skewed a bit from the huge road blowouts, the other 80% of their games haven't been particularly close either.
Needless to say, this should be an opportunity for us to rebuild our spirits after Bucknell. We are still a top team in the League, and have the opportunity to upset the Bison in Lewisburg later on and bring the Patriot League Tournament home to Bender.
One thing we will be watching out for, however, is whether or not Vlad plays. He took a pretty terrible face plant while trying to avoid diving into a camera during the Bucknell game, and while he stood up after a few moments and seemed to be annoyed most by a bloody arm, we don't know if there was any hidden damage. He already sat out one game this season (Columbia) with a mild concussion, and at the very least I can imagine he missed at least one practice just to be safe. While I am hoping he's able to get out there today, I also hope he isn't overextending himself, as while he's an important cog on the team his long-term health is far more important. Regardless, even if Vlad does sit out, we should be able to defeat Colgate, which may be an even better confidence booster.
We'll let you know if we can get a liveblog up prior to the 2:00 PM EST tip. If not, you can follow live stats of the game here.
Before I leave you this morning, I'd like to share something I saw yesterday during AU's incredible counter-protest sparked by the Westboro Baptist Church's unfortunate visit yesterday afternoon:
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| Nothing breaks the awkwardness of the Westboro Baptist Church like exerting dominance on the basketball court* |
*For those unfamiliar with the Westboro Baptist Church, that sign is mocking the infamous ones they produce that say such terrible things as "Thank God For (insert natural disaster or national tragedy here)", and it's not trying to be offensive in its own right.
Pro Deo Et Patria and GO EAGLES!
Josh
