Boston University's Season Ends With A Loss To Lafayette

By Gregory Hunt

The 2014-15 season came to an end for the Boston University men's basketball team after the Terriers lost 89-64 to Lafayette Thursday night in the quarterfinals of the Patriot League Tournament. In front of a crowd of 1,648 fans at Kirby Sports Center in Easton, Pennsylvania, the Leopards advanced to a semifinal game Sunday against No. 1-seeded Bucknell.

Although the Terriers and the Leopards split the season series and tied for fourth place in the Patriot League with identical 9-9 records, Lafayette earned the No. 4 seed and the privilege of hosting a quarterfinal game by virtue of a tie-breaking victory over Bucknell during the regular season. As the No. 5 seed, Boston University had hoped to become the lowest seed in the history of the Patriot League to win the tournament and advance to the NCAA Tournament. The Terriers finished the season with a 13-17 record.

The final score of the game belied the fact that the Terriers played well, committing only seven turnovers and having four players score in double figures, but the Leopards came into the game ranked as the 25th-best school in the nation in field goal percentage (47.8 percent), and they showed why Thursday night. Lafayette shot a blistering 63.2 percent from the field (36-for-57), including 55.2 percent from the three-point line (16-for-29). The hot shooting was too much to overcome, and the Leopards also outrebounded the Terriers 32-25.

Sophomore guard Cedric Hankerson led Boston University in both scoring with 14 points, and assists with three. Junior forward Justin Alston led the team in rebounding with seven, and he also added 12 points. Sophomore guard Eric Fanning also contributed 12 points, and junior forward Nathan Dieudonne chipped in 10. As a team, the Terriers shot 40 percent from the field (22-for-55), 36.4 from beyond the three-point arc (8-for-22) and 75 percent from the foul line (12-for-16).

There were no seniors on Boston University's roster this year, so barring any transfers, the entire team should return next season. Fourth-year head coach Joe Jones has signed only one recruit for next season — Kyle Foreman, a 6-1, 155-pound point guard from Bellevue High School in Bellevue, Washington. Foreman, who led his high school to a #2 state ranking in class 3A this season, committed to Boston University last autumn saying, "I felt (the coaches) were determined in developing all the players into the best players they could be.The players all seemed like they got along and I could see that they had great chemistry when I played open gym with them. I loved the city of Boston and the education along with the basketball was something I couldn't pass up."

In the other Patriot League quarterfinal games, No. 1 Bucknell avoided an upset by beating No. 8 Holy Cross 90-83, No. 2 Colgate defeated No. 7 Navy 72-62, and No. 6 American surprised No. 3 Lehigh 68-62. American will now travel to Hamilton, New York to face Colgate Sunday in the semifinals. The winner of that game will face the winner of the Bucknell/Lafayette game to determine the Patriot League Tournament champion. The championship game will be played Wednesday, March 11 on the home court of the highest remaining seed.

Gregory Hunt is a Boston native and a life-long fan of the Patriots, Red Sox, Bruins and Celtics. He's also particularly fond of lacrosse, IndyCar racing and women's college basketball. He currently works for Examiner.com where he serves as the Senior Manager of Content and Media Access. He also writes for Examiner.com as the New England Patriots Examiner. His work can be found on Examiner.com.