Feb. 29, 2008

Game Notes | Gametracker | Listen Live

BOSTON - The Boston University men's basketball team closes out the regular season on the road at Albany on Sunday, March 2 at 2 p.m. The Terriers (13-15, 9-6 America East) are currently tied for second place in the league with Hartford and the Great Danes (14-14, 9-6 AE). If BU wins on Sunday and UMBC defeats Hartford, BU will be sole possession of second place.

The Terriers lead the all-time series, 8-6, but Albany comes into the game having won the last six straight. BU won the first eight games by an average of 11 points, including a 28-point victory on Feb. 5, 2003 (78-50). The Great Danes swept all three contests last season, including the meeting in the America East conference semifinals.

In the teams' first meeting this season, the Great Danes earned a 70-63 win in Boston on Jan. 16. Sophomore Corey Lowe (Newton, Mass.) led the Terriers with 20 points, and freshman John Holland (Bronx, N.Y.) turned in a then-career-high 19 points on 6-for-14 shooting. BU fell into an early hole, missing its first five shots. The Terriers played catch-up for most of the first half but gathered momentum at the end of the frame. BU hung tough with UA and won the second-period battle but ultimately fell short.

Albany has been alternating between two wins and one or two losses throughout the conference season. Most recently, a 74-62 win over Binghamton stopped a two-game skid after the Great Danes lost to UMBC and Canisius. UA uses its size to its advantage, out-rebounding opponents by +7.6. Senior forward Brian Lillis leads the Great Danes with 16.1 ppg and 6.2 rpg. Junior forward Brian Connelly is the other UA player averaging double figures with 10.1 ppg.

Lowe and Holland have each stepped up for BU as the conference season winds down. Lowe leads the team with 18.3 ppg. He is ranked ninth in the nation in made 3-pointers per game (3.8) and leads BU in assists. Holland, a five-time America East Rookie of the Week, averages 11.6 ppg and has a team-best 42 steals. Sophomore guard Carlos Strong (Portland, Maine) averages 10.8 ppg, and sophomore forward Scott Brittain (Oakville, Ont.) is the fourth Terrier in double figures with 10.3 ppg and a team-best 6.2 rpg.

Holland dominated in the Terriers' 97-66 win over Hartford this past Thursday. He finished with a career-high 38 points and 11 rebounds for his third double-double of the year. The first half was all Holland as he scored 19 of the Terriers' 49 first-half points. BU went into the locker room up by 20 points and came out firing in the second, starting the frame on a 17-5 run. The Terriers scored above 90 points and defeated an opponent by more than 30 points for the first time in four years.

Next up, BU heads to Binghamton for the 2008 America East conference tournament from March 7-9.