WASHINGTON, DC – I know what you might be thinking: Saturday isn’t actually day one of the CAA Tournament. That’d be Friday, when the 13/12 play-in game kicks off our five days of chaos in the Capital.
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But there’s only one game on Friday. Saturday is when we really get underway. If you don’t believe me, maybe you’ll believe a CareFirst Arena concessions worker, who I overheard remarking that “[Friday] is just the test run… on [Saturday], these people are gonna really eat.”
So yeah, Saturday is day one. Maybe day one and a half, if we’re being generous. And, even though none of the big dogs play — all top four seeds don’t enter the competition until Sunday — Saturday was rife in intrigue, great basketball, and even a surprise or two along the way. Here’s what I saw:
Game One: (9) Campbell defeats (8) Stony Brook 96-89
A 15-2 first-half Campbell run turned a seven-point deficit into a six-point lead, and the Camels wouldn’t relinquish it again en route to a 96-89 victory. Instead of a few massive runs, Campbell just consistently outplayed the Seawolves and stayed alive via a death-by-a-thousand-cuts gameplan that worked to perfection.
Stony Brook trailed by as many as 16 in the second half before cutting it as close as four with just over four minutes to play. They’d run out of gas there, though, as the Camels went on an 8-2 spurt (mostly from the free throw line) to get the lead back to a comfortable margin. In the end, Stony were second-class citizens for most of the evening; Campbell had the better of the shot quality and maintained a grip on the game throughout. Some things:
Andrej Shoshkikj: Not long for Long Island
“You can’t walk off the island,” A’s shortstop Miguel Tejada said in Moneyball. The book, at least.
Well… Andrej Shoshkikj’s season-ending flurry might have him running off the Island. Long Island, that is. Shoshkikj, a freshman, was one of three players in the country to shoot 50/40/90 this season, and he took on a bigger role as the season went on. On Saturday, he finished with a flourish, scoring 35 points on 10-of-19 from the floor against Campbell while adding three assists and four steals. Shoshkikj displayed serious range, movement shooting ability, and knack for the game against the Camels, and hit a new level down the stretch as the Seawolves attempted a comeback.
“Andrej is one of the three freshmen [on the team], but he doesn’t tend to play like it very often,” Seawolves head coach Geno Ford said . “He’s one of the best shooters we’ve ever had. And he’s a tough kid, not afraid of the moment. I thought he stood out as the best player on the floor today.”
Humps Roll… their free throws off the rim
Campbell could’ve had this game wrapped up in time to grab an Italian hoagie (not a good one, unfortunately) from the media meal luncheon if they’d just made some free throws.
The Camels shot a whopping 56 free throws on Saturday (much to Geno Ford’s dismay, as he let everyone in the building know), but made just 37. Their miserable free throw shooting was a key reason why the Seawolves got back in the game down the stretch, with 13 misses coming in the second half alone. Outside of the charity stripe, Campbell was nearly perfect offensively; they shot 63% from the field and had four different players with 15 or more points. UNC Wilmington — tomorrow’s opponent — will not be as forgiving defensively, and if the Camels miss 19 free throws again, they’ll be back in Buies Creek before ESPN’s “Sunday Night Basketball” tips off.
“We got to keep getting better at finishing them out,” Campbell head coach John Andrzejek said . “I thought we could’ve been a little bit smoother finishing the game, but it’s March, man. It’s all about survive and advance.”
Game Two: (5) Drexel defeats (13) Northeastern 84-77
Drexel spent the majority of the first half looking like a five seed en route to burying the Huskies in a 39-22 deficit at the break. But, midway through the second, the Dragons’ offensive woes returned, allowing a plucky Northeastern team to make this one uncomfortably close and bring to mind visions of 13th-seeded Delaware’s run to the tournament finals last year.
But there would be no glass slipper this year. Drexel — mostly via senior guard Eli Beard’s free throw making — held off the Huskies as the Dragons move on to face Monmouth tomorrow. Some things:
Passive-aggressive: Drexel’s conflating identities
In the first half, the Dragons sprinted up and down the court, killing Northeastern in transition, in the paint, and from behind the three-point line.
In the second half, Drexel (somewhat understandably, given the nature of their lead) slowed it down. It worked for the first bit, but once the Huskies got going offensively, Drexel’s passivity resulted in a number of puzzling possessions. Kevon Vanderhorst and Josh Reed both passed up looks at the rim in transition to waste time; Shane Blakeney hesitated on a number of open shots, and the Dragons had some deer-in-headlights vibes when Northeastern made it close. Against a more experienced, or talented, team, that indecision might’ve cost the Dragons, and Monmouth could certainly take advantage tomorrow night.
Drexel, who’s operated as one of the slowest teams in the country all season, has to commit one way or another.
“We want to take the absolute best look we can,” head coach Zach Spiker said . “We had some 2-on-1s that I would’ve preferred us to attack and go. I do think we tried a couple of times. [Northeastern] was flying around… that can kind of get guys a little bit tight and anxious.”
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Northeastern wasn’t very good this year. We all know that.
But, with Loughnane (who had an exceptional two tournament games that culminated in a 29-point, six-assist performance on Saturday), star LA Pratt (who can return due to an injury redshirt), one of the CAA’s top shooters in William Kermoury, an All-Rookie in Xavier Abreu, and a 50/40/90 guy in Ryan Williams all still holding eligibility, the Huskies have a sneaky-intriguing backcourt taking shape next year, if they all (or even most of them) stick around. There’s a path back to relevancy here.
Game Three: (7) Towson defeats (10) Hofstra 74-68
Reigning CAA Player of the Year Tyler Tejada returned to form in a big way as his 35 points led the Tigers to a wire-to-wire victory over the gritty, but offensively-challenged, Hampton Pirates. Dylan Williamson had 20 to help the effort, and Hampton just didn’t have enough to respond even as Michael Eley poured in 23 second-half points. In a season where Tejada and Williamson have both struggled off-and-on, the duo came alive at the same time to carry the Tigers over the Pirates. Some things:
Skerry’s sketchy late-game
Towson had this game wrapped up with a bow on top at the 5:02 mark of the second half, leading by 20.
Then, over the last five minutes, the Tigers fell apart. Turnovers, missed boxouts, blown defensive coverages and whatever else you can dream of bit Coach Pat Skerry’s bunch. Somehow, Hampton made this a five-point ballgame inside a minute remaining, forcing Towson to regroup and close out a much tighter ballgame than they would’ve expected. Tejada was ultimately able to ice the game at the line, but if the Tigers started to crack with a 10 point lead instead of 20? This could’ve been a very different story.
“I thought the feds might be coming to see Jack Doumbia after a couple of those passes,” Skerry said. “I hope [CAA commissioner Joe D’Antonio] isn’t here to tell me Doumbia is being brought up on point shaving allegations.”
Maybe that gives you some idea of the Tigers’ execution. It wasn’t just Doumbia, either.
Top-heavy Towson
It isn’t exactly groundbreaking that Towson is incredibly reliant on Tejada and Williamson to be great every night. But, in the CAA tournament, against the best of the best, can they be relied upon to be perfect for four consecutive games? They did just that on Friday, no doubt. Tejada in particular had his best game in some time, and Williamson was there to make shots. But, up close, it’s painfully obvious how much better those two are than anyone else on the roster, and there aren’t any great third options. Doumbia looked invisible in this one (outside of the potential gambling scandal), and the ball movement wasn’t really any better than it had been.
“I like the 55 [combined points between Tejada and Williamson] a lot,” Skerry said. “Doumbia needs to respond tomorrow night. [Caleb] Embeya needs to respond tomorrow night, and I told them that in the locker room.”
Question: can you qualify as a David if your team entered the year as heavy preseason favorites? Skerry said his Tigers would “wind up their slingshot and give it the old college try” in tomorrow’s game against Charleston. I don’t know. I’m not convinced. A David with Tejada and Williamson would be like taking his slingshot and giving him a machine gun. I don’t see it, Pat.
Game Four: (6) William & Mary defeats (11) Elon 72-62
This game was like getting to an all-you-can-eat sushi bar just to discover someone’s already eaten all of the spicy tuna rolls. And the sashimi.
William & Mary’s high-powered offense and Elon’s — well, not high-powered defense — seemed like a match made in heaven for high-scoring, run-and-gun madness. Instead, it was a weirdly physical, oft-interrupted game that was intense, but not particularly pretty. The Tribe had control the entire time, even as the Phoenix attempted a late-game rally, and a largely pro-W&M crowd got what they came for as their side advanced.
Tunde’s Swede shooting night
I don’t care what the stat sheet says; Tunde Vahlberg Fasasi didn’t have 25 points on 5-of-7 from three. It didn’t feel like it, at least. Sitting in the front row, it felt like the Swedish Vahlberg Fasasi had about 50. That could’ve been the drunk, official-berating Tribe fan behind me, but I don’t think that was all of it.
In classic William & Mary fashion, it was an unassuming player who broke out in this one. Tunde came in averaging just over 11 a game, so nothing to sneeze at, but he outpaced his 32% 3-point clip, cashing in on what felt like every look he took. He picked up the slack on a night where Chase Lowe, Kyle Pulliam and Killian Brockhoff struggled, carrying his Tribe to a win.
“We owed [Elon] one,” Vahlberg Fasasi said. (Elon beat William & Mary twice in the regular season.) “We went out there and showed them who we are, I think.”
Where are we now?
Five games have been played. Five teams are out. Eight remain.
Saturday is another full slate, with the games as follows:
(9) Campbell vs. (1) UNCW
(5) Drexel vs. (4) Monmouth
(7) Towson vs. (2) Charleston
(6) William & Mary vs. (3) Hofstra
Superlatives
Player of the Day: Tyler Tejada (TOW)
Game of the Day: Campbell vs. Stony Brook
Coach of the Day: Brian Earl, William & Mary
Quote of the Day: Ivan Thomas (HAMP): “[If this tournament was a best dressed contest]? You know I’d win that every time.”
Back at it Saturday.