Hanlan makes 1st team ACC and other links

The ACC named Olivier Hanlan to their 1st team All Conference. Despite his strong showing, he only received one vote for the Player of the Year award.

The Women's Hockey team dropped the Hockey East Championship to BU. Aside from losing, the game wasn't that big of a setback. They are the No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament and take on Clarkson in the opener.

Florida State swept the baseball team over the weekend. BC had its chances. They blew a save Saturday night. Let's hope they rally for next week's series with Louisville.

Men's Hockey picked up a big commitment from goalie prospect Joseph Woll.

Women's Lacrosse beat Notre Dame 16-5. Next up: Louisville.

Steve Donahue is the leading candidate for the opening at Penn.

Why I don't want Tommy Amaker at BC

Even before the media started speculating, I knew Tommy Amaker was a leading candidate to replace Steve Donahue. That always gave me pause. Amaker may come to BC and do very well, but he's not who I want. I feel we know enough about Amaker to question if he would ever lead BC to an ACC Championship or Final Four.

Poison Ivy
The transition from the Ivy League to a major conference is very difficult. BC just learned that with Steve Donahue. Do we really want to replace him with another coach from the Ivy League? Everyone knows about the difference in recruiting at the two levels, but I also think the intensity of the league competition is much different, as is the expectation level. Aside from Donahue, other Ivy coaches who made the jump have either struggled or plateaued as perennial NIT teams (Carmody at Northwestern and Robinson at Oregon State).  The biggest Ivy successes are Fran Dunphy at Temple and John Thompson III at Georgetown. And neither of those situations are comparable to Amaker taking over BC (given Dunphy and Thompson's prior connection to their respective programs).

Michigan
I keep reading that Amaker had to rebuild Michigan. That's not really the case. He had a full scholarship allotment while with the Wolverines. The postseason bans he inherited didn't impact his first team (which was under .500) and probably kept his second team out of the NIT. That's it. The rest of the time, he had no sanctions or obstacles. Yet in his final four seasons in Ann Arbor, he never made the Tournament and never finished over .500 in Big Ten play. I know he's a different coach now and supposedly learned, but he couldn't win big at Michigan. That should be a big red flag. Michigan has so many things that BC does not (national following, highly appealing to recruits, the ability to recruit anyone) and the best Amaker could do was 8-8 in conference and NIT bids.

Recruiting
Amaker is a good recruiter and recruiting is how he is winning at Harvard. He just has better players than most of his competition. We need a good recruiter and we need an infusion of talent. But we also need someone who can develop the talent and out scheme the other teams. You can't just out recruit your opponents in the ACC. There is too much parity and elite talent throughout the conference.

I've been wrong about plenty of coaches before. (I was the one who thought Donahue had a tournament team this year.) Amaker may be great once he leaves Harvard. And I do think he will recruit well wherever he goes. But I think this time around BC can find a great recruiter who is also a great coach.

Steve Donahue fired

Now it is official.

Steve Donahue will not return as BC basketball coach. News conference scheduled for 4 p.m. Streamed live on http://t.co/vXGKkCp3IH
— BC Athletics (@BCSportsNews) March 18, 2014

I wish it had worked out differently for Donahue and BC, but this is the right move. When everyone knows things are not working out, holding out hope for a miracle turnaround just prolongs the inevitable. Now BC can give another coach a shot at rebuilding the basketball program and give the current basketball players a chance to win.

I will have more tonight after the press conference and when the first replacement names start getting floated.

Report: Donahue fired

Boston College has fired Steve Donahue, sources told ESPN. Story coming.
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanESPN) March 18, 2014

Obviously we've seen various reports over the past few days. Official word will have to come from BC. Goodman is Boston based and has a good track record, so I do believe it.

I thank Donahue for his service and wish him luck.

Ever to Complicate

Even after the Syracuse win, Brad Bates was actively seeking feedback on potential replacements for Steve Donahue. Bates thought Donahue underachieved last season, so this year’s disaster was even more disturbing. Since the Syracuse game names were even submitted to Bates. He was ready to make the move. BC lost to Georgia Tech in the ACC Tournament and no announcement came. Then Thamel broke the news that Donahue is returning. Given Thamel's relationship with Donahue, I assume Donahue is his source. Of course feedback was filled with shock and disappointment...and no official announcement from BC. So what's going on at the Heights?

Friday morning a source with access to Leahy adamantly told me that Leahy was not interfering and no decision had been made. This echoed what another person close to Bates said. Blauds also wrote the same thing. But that doesn't make any of this better. All the decision makers knew when the season was ending. All knew a decision had to be made. But here we are not only without an official announcement, but with BC not controlling the message! This is not that hard. There is no new information in play. The decisionmakers need decide if he is staying or going. Then you make an announcement and live with the repercussions.

There are only a few different explanations and none of them are good.

-- Explanation 1. Despite wanting him gone, Bates and/or Leahy either had a change of heart, decided to give Donahue one more year. Donahue -- or someone very close -- told Thamel. Thamel broke the news. BC didn't prepare a statement because they weren't ready or wanted to share it with important boosters first. This isn't a sound plan, but it is the most simple and most likely.

-- Explanation 2. BC's leadership really haven't come to a decision but someone jumped the gun in letting Thamel know. This is the party line coming from BC. Another guy swore to me that neither Bates nor Leahy are the source for Thamel story and were surprised by it. While this might give hope to the anti-Donahue crowd, none of us should be encouraged by BC not having a decision ready or a clear message.

-- Explanation 3. Donahue or someone close to him lied to Thamel. I don't want to believe this. I like Donahue and Thamel. However, the Thamel story without a quick, official follow up from BC is strange. But Vega's story from Wednesday still lingers. Vega is not the type to run a story without a good source. Most read it as anti-Donahue. Could the Thamel story be Donahue's camp making things difficult for BC? I would like to think not, but I've seen these things turn ugly.

This is what I know.

I've been wrong plenty of times, so take it for what it is worth. I know Bates wanted a change. Something or someone changed things. Maybe BC didn't expect this sort of blowback. I don't know. Most likely Donahue is staying. Thamel's story was pretty definite. If so, BC has mishandled this situation on multiple levels. Stay tuned. I will post more when I know more.

Tweets of the Week

Ever to whatever

— BC Interruption (@bcinterruption) March 14, 2014

@skipmccarty12 @RyanSwift2 @bcatleagle anybody that brings back Gambino after that disaster last season isn't going to fire anyone fast

— Brian Foley (@BFoley82) March 14, 2014

That sound you just heard was the 5 remaining season ticket holders throwing out their renewal notices.

— Dave Shook (@DShookCSL) March 14, 2014

@bcatleagle I am booking my BC tickets for the final four next year.

— Caerus (@Caerus) March 14, 2014

Surprised to see BC keep Donahue another year, would have been an attractive opening this offseason, may have landed a big name coach

— Chris Villani (@ChrisVillani44) March 14, 2014

Report: Donahue staying

SI's Pete Thamel -- who is pretty connected at BC -- reported that Donahue is staying one more year. Even if you don't fire your coach, Brad Bates will have to make some statement on Donahue and his future. It was that kind of season. He'll also have to explain the move to some angry boosters. I think this is the wrong move for many reasons. But ultimately the record says it all.

Once there is an official statement and I know more, I'll explain why this is a mistake.

Being honest about Steve Donahue

It is hard to hate Steve Donahue. It is hard to even dislike him. Polite and engaging to the casual fan and media. A proponent of a hyper-efficient offense to please the sports analytics crowd. A tireless worker who has his hand in all aspects of the program, that keeps his bosses and other Administration folks impressed. Armed with a deep and experienced roster and a elite guard entering his fourth season at the Heights, it was all supposed to come together now. But it didn’t. That’s why there is no joy in calling for his job. I decided to post this prior to the ACC Tournament, because this isn't totally about Donahue. It is also about what I want in a coach. College fans might have been the first to launch “firecoach.com”, but what does a blogger do when your ideal coach doesn’t work out? You move on and admit that all the things you wanted in a coach are unimportant.

Can you imagine any other ACC coach helping freshmen move into their dorms? And not their own bluechip recruits, but regular skinny, scared freshman. But there Steve Donahue was last fall, helping new BC students hang posters, grabbing the other end of that box with dad and telling mom the right spot for the family picture. And this wasn’t some move of a desperate coach trying to win over a few fans. Donahue was accessible and welcoming from Day 1. This is what we are all supposed to want, right? That’s why colleges are so quick to hire one of their own. They want someone who loves the school and community as much as they do. Yet as nice a gesture as it was, no one really cares beyond the few people that got the unexpected VIP service from Donahue. The empty student section is proof that your typical BC freshmen doesn’t have some blind loyalty to Donahue.

Analytics are everywhere in sports, but not many coaches still rattle them off during a casual interview. Donahue championed a 3-point shot dependent, highly efficient motion offense at Cornell. At BC -- with ACC caliber players -- it would take things to a new level. And it did in his first year…with Al Skinner’s players and future pro Reggie Jackson. As his own players came into the system the offense has remained one of the better ones in college basketball, however, the defense has been terrible. Using Kenpom’s Adjusted Defensive metrics, BC has the 300th defense in college basketball. You don’t need to been a Sloan Conference panelist to know that is bad.

Over analyzing things also painted Donahue into a corner with this season’s schedule. The numbers looked perfect. BC would play a RPI friendly and challenging schedule and earn points with the selection committee. No bubble for his veteran team. In hindsight, It looks like Wile E. Coyote must have crunched the schedule data. Instead of earning respect with the ADs and their selection metrics, BC got thumped early and often. They lost on the road. They lost at home. They lost to traditional powers and rising MAC teams. Whether the losing shattered their confidence or tuned them out on their coach (or they just weren’t that good to begin with), the players never recovered from the out of conference slate. The only carryover to ACC play was continued losing and bad defense. Upsetting Syracuse generated some positive attention but also reminded many how screwed up this season has been. Why hadn’t the group that beat the Orange been able to beat or even compete with so many lesser teams?

All of Donahue’s positives might earn him another year if things were just a little better. If there was hope that he could shape a defense to compliment his excellent offense. If just one elite recruit committed for next year, giving BC that missing piece to overcome the ACC’s best teams. If the team had just played better in the final month of the season, showing improvement or even just some resilience. But the Eagles sit at 8-23 and barring the miracle to end all miracles, the ACC Tournament will be over quickly. Improving his staff or finding an incredible last minute recruit won't do it either. Four years shows that this won't work at BC.

We say we want a smart, charming, humble, hardworking coach, but that’s a lie. Fans want a winner. That’s it. All the aspects of a coach’s personality are secondary. It’s only after he starts winning that his approach and personality become things we care about. And fans will embrace (or rationalize) anything as long as the wins come. Donahue is a great guy who tries real hard. Yet no one is rationalizing his losing...or at least rationalizing him staying,

There are lots of ways Brad Bates can go with Donahue’s replacement. He probably won’t find someone as perfect on paper. Hopefully he finds someone who will win on the court.

Not close

"Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades"
-- Gorilla Monsoon (among others)

I already wrote about how the close losses narrative bothers me. Bad luck comes into play in all sports, but in general, your close games will even out over time. If you look at the whole season, BC did lose eight games by four points or less. However, they won three games by four or less. That is a little unlucky, but not as dramatic as the announcers made it. Even if you completely flipped the luck and won eight of the 11 close games, BC would still stand at 13-17 with one game left. Would that change the decision on Donahue? Not in my opinion.

BC wastes good effort from Hanlan, Heckmann in loss to Pitt

BC's reliance on 3s and converting at the free throw line isn't always going to work. It didn't in tonight's loss against Pitt, but that wasn't the real problem. Only having three guys show up for the game was the big issue...and terrible defense again. 

I am glad Patrick Heckmann is coming into his own as the season comes to a close. But his success and the terrible game from Rahon and Jackson highlight a less discussed Donahue issue -- our rotations. Because we lack a traditional lineup or a balanced roster, we have too many players competing for minutes and all bringing similar skills to the table. So players cannot get into a consistent groove or once one guy gets hot, another player becomes a non factor. The roster doesn't compliment each other. Hanlan had a great game. That should be enough, but if we don't have four more guys playing halfway decent, we cannot win. 

Wake is up next. Anyone want to take a guess on who will get hot next at the expense of Heckmann's minutes?

Miller commits

2015 basketball recruit Jeremy Miller committed to BC Thursday. Miller is a Top 100 prospect and the biggest name to commit under Donahue. Coming on the heels of the Syracuse win, this is good news for the embattled coach. But this doesn't change the prognosis that Donahue will be fired. Miller is a nice get, but we need at least three more elite verbals if the coach plans on staying.

Upset!

This was the season to forget...until tonight. BC pulled off the upset of the season in the Carrier Dome by beating No. 1 Syracuse 62-59. There's a lot to digest with regards to what this means and the emotion attached with Dick Kelley, but the focus first should be on the game.

A couple of thoughts...

-- Heckmann played the game of his BC career. He didn't light up the scoreboard, but he played smart and focused. There wasn't one boneheaded move and his defense was very good.

-- Hanlan was the best player on the court. Syracuse boasts the Conference Player of the Year and a handful of McDonald's guys, but Hanlan made some huge clutch shots, and more importantly, could get his shot off against all of them.

-- Syracuse's pace helped us. It wasn't just the 2-3. Their methodical half court offense allowed us to play better defense than we've played all year. We didn't have many blown switches and they really didn't exploit their size advantage.

DK

Dick Kelley was mentioned on the broadcast and practically trended on Twitter. It was the best thing about the finish. I wish Dick had been alive to see the game. He would have been proud of his guys.

Donahue

We are past saving the season or saving his job. If anything, I think you can view this game as an indictment of the season. Why haven't we had shorter rotations all year? If playing slower led to better D, why didn't we do that earlier? After the game Donahue said, he told the team to stop trying to win a certain way. "Win ugly" is what he implored. Coach, where do you think they got the idea that every possession had to be a certain way? It is all too little, too late. I think this shows how much the team has underachieved and how a new voice and new vision for next year can make a big difference. 

What non-BC fans are saying

I think BC bloggers were so quick to attack the Donahue excuse narrative because we feared BC would face criticism at the end of the season when they would presumably fire Donahue. The continued losing -- especially to undermanned teams like Georgia Tech and Notre Dame -- is ending any need to combat a media narrative. If Twitter is any indication, the media expect Donahue to be fired. Take a look at some of these comments over the last few days.

If he’s not, someone at Boston College is asleep? RT @thrillis4: @lebrownlow Donahue on the hot seat?
— Lauren Brownlow (@lebrownlow) February 17, 2014

So who will be BC's coach next season?
— Andrew Jones (@AJonesACC) February 17, 2014

Wondering if Steve Donahue will survive a 6-19 record and bottom of the ACC with this being his 4th year at BC.
— Julian Council (@JulianCouncil) February 17, 2014

Now that is just a small sample of ACC folks following another loss. It is not going to influence Bates. But it does show that some others expect more from us. I know our fans do. I just wish the Boston media would share the same perspective.

Weekend Roundup: Hockey good, basketball bad Part 184

The Hockey team swept Vermont this weekend. Of course that wrapped up the Hockey East regular season title, but what else do you expect come "Trophy Time"?

Not to be outdone, the BC Women won their Hockey East title too.

Basketball lost to Notre Dame. I will write more about the loss on Monday, but the big issue was BC's inability to slow them and we couldn't cover our issues with 3-point shooting.

The Women's Basketball team lost to Syracuse.

Here is another article about Dick Kelley by a writer who knew him for 30 years.

Don't look now, but Baseball has won three in a row.

Addazio knows that with the departure of his seniors, there is a drop off in talent among the returning players.

Overthinking to another loss

BC lost another heartbreaker to Georgia Tech Thursday. There were a dozen turning points that led to the loss, but the overriding issue (for me) is Steve Donahue's micromanaging of the game. We were up five with three minutes left. Statistically the game is in BC's favor at that point. Get a few more points, play conservative D and you win. But that's not what happened. Instead we worked the clock to our own detriment. We forced shots over and over again as time was running out. Why is this happening with a veteran team? Why is this happening when we have a player like Hanlan who can score on nearly anyone in the ACC? How did we go up with seconds left? We put the ball in the hands of our best player and let him do his thing. Sometimes it is that simple. ...And if you are going to call a timeout with seconds left, be sure to put in a solid defensive plan.

This is all over anyway. Donahue is just making it easier for Bates to fire him. There will be little backlash. How can there be? We have a terrible record and the worst defense in the conference. I feel for Donahue. With Spaz, I felt he never believed in the team or did what it took to win. Donahue works his ass off every game. That's why it is so frustrating. He is surprised every time his moves don't work. Fool me once...

Friday I will start the profiles of our potential new coaches.

If you can't say anything nice...

When things are falling apart, there is not much a coach can say to the media and fans to make it better. The less said the better. The biggest problem with explaining what's going wrong is that the most loyal fans either already know or have already heard it. With Duke in town, I am sure the post game media mix had some new faces and some national guys. It led Donahue to say this:

"We have the No. 1 hardest schedule in the country and I don’t think it’s even close, and it may have been a little bit too much to bite off for this group,’’ Donahue said. ‘‘That being said, the next three weeks is critical. We've got to play and play well. We've got to have fight and can’t have those moments we had tonight. The next three weeks we've got to play and got to have some success, and I feel confident this group will."

It is nice that Donahue owns up that the team had moments they shouldn't have against Duke. I hope the next three weeks are great. But stop talking about the schedule. Like the Clifford issue, it is over. The team didn't respond, but that doesn't excuse the ACC play.

This quotes reminds me of other BC situations that have gone bad. I don't think many BC fans think ill of Donahue now. And I don't think sentiment will dramatically turn if we end the season with a whimper. However, I do think he will lose some good will if he keeps talking about what went wrong. It may not be intentional but is sounds like excuse making. Instead I hope he focuses on fighting hard and trying to win over the next three weeks.

(HT to the EO boards for pointing out the quote first.)

Duke dominates second half

The only thing more predictable than the loss was BC fans' mood during the game. On the message boards and social media, there was a sense of detachment over the first half. BC played well and hung with the Dukies, but everyone was just waiting for things to fall apart. And they did. Duke made a run to start the second half and never looked back. 

Since I've moved into "next year" mode, I do think there were some positives from this game. Hanlan showed that he can score on any team. Duke is much more talented and he was able to get space and drive throughout the game. When we think of selling points to a new coach, taking over a team led by Olivier Hanlan is a clear plus. Conte was also full and into the game for long stretches (more so than those of us watching on TV). BC's Basketball account tweeted out that this was only the second sellout of the season. In my opinion, I think this just shows how starved BC fans are for any game with some juice. This was Duke on a Saturday night. If we had a competitive team, attendance would be much better for all games. 

When we talk about what's wrong this year and why we lost Saturday, ultimately we don't have the same level of talent or coaching as Duke. We should be better than we are, but we weren't going to be upper echelon this year. However, we can catch a good team off guard this year. The clock is ticking. I don't think it will save Donahue, but it would help the players and fans going into next year. 

Note to Media covering BC: Stop using Dennis Clifford

This topic is starting to get a dead horse vibe, but after last night's broadcast I felt like Ellis' points shouldn't go unchallenged. Is this team better with Clifford? Yes. Would he have made a difference this year? Yes. But BC's inability to protect the rim or have in inside presence is on Steve Donahue and his staff.

Dennis Clifford's injury issues go back to November 2012. He was a seven footer in a boot and doing water workouts in December 2012. I am not a doctor, but even a casual basketball fan can rattle off the big men who were slow to recover from lower body injuries. And with each injury, Dennis Clifford's recoveries took longer. That should have been a huge red flag to Donahue and his staff. They never should have counted on Dennis Clifford to ever be 100% again. Did they recruit a big man during the 2012-13 cycle? Only very late in the process when they picked up Will Magarity. I was thrilled about Magarity. I knew his game was different from Clifford's but I thought he would at least give us size on D. Yet he hasn't played significant minutes. Is is because he's not good defensively? Is it because the offense is less efficient with him? I don't know. But the failure to use him or have him serviceable is on the coaching staff.

Now if Dennis Clifford were truly the missing piece to this team, then you would expect that the staff would be turning over every rock they could to find another serviceable big man. We have at least one scholarship this year. Yet we are not in play with anyone of note. That is failure. The whole team is coming back next year. If Donahue really believes it is all about having a defensive big man, then why hasn't he locked one up?

BC gives away game in South Bend

I could load up on the snark or rant about all the team's flaws. But I think it is best to stick with the facts. BC had the game in hand. Hanlan committed a dumb foul that sent the game to OT. BC's issues during the game -- poor defensive rotations and not enough size to bang inside with the Irish bigs nor enough athleticism to deal with the suddenly hot Eric Atkins -- were magnified in OT. They lost on a 3-pointer when the D was late. The team is now 6-15.

As Hoffses pointed out the tough schedule was supposed to ready this team for just this sort of situation. They were on the road against a flawed, desperate team and had the lead. Yet they couldn't hold on, mostly due to defense.

Brian and I went back and forth the other day on twitter about this team's talent. I don't think they are the Fab 5, but the talent is much better than the record indicates. I think this is the sort of game that proved it. They have enough talent to beat this Notre Dame team, but they are not playing well on D. I think so much emphasis is put on offense (execution and rotations) that everything else suffers. Would I rather watch an offense where Hanlan just drove and chucked it all game? I would if that meant we could be better on D and survive with playing better defensive players and/or bigs (Owens, Magarity, even Caudill). But none of it matters. We are just playing for pride or playing out the string depending on your point of view.

We will be back for more frustration against UVA.

No narrative needed

Thursday Brian took apart  Vega's article on Donahue's scheduling. I understand his stance. There is a narrative being shaped to defend Donahue's tenure in an effort to give him one more year at BC. But unlike past narratives, I don't think this has BC's fingerprints on it. If anything, I think it was just a case of Vega serving up a softball to a coach he likes. Other writers and bloggers (including me) have done the same with coaches they like or wanted to defend. But despite Vega's work or a few tweets from BC Basketball's account, I don't think anyone who matters is out trying to shape a defense of Donahue. In fact, I would say it is just the opposite. Everyone I gossip with either says nothing or says he's a goner. Notice there were no quotes from Bates about Donahue and he also avoided the topic at the Town Hall. As I've said all along, barring some miracle finish, Donahue will not be BC's coach next year.

As for the narrative, it is only natural. It happens in all walks of media reporting. But it is never really needed in sports. We have wins and losses to clear through the subjective. When Donahue is fired, it won't be because of the schedule or the injuries or the rule changes. It will be because of his record. All those issue might have been factors in his record, but every coaching situation has its issues. It is how you overcome those issues that really matters. That's the beauty of sports. It can be brutal and rarely fair, but there is a clear shared measurement. There is no narrative needed.