Boston College 2011-12 in Review, Part II: Men’s Basketball

The Eagles returned home and faced even more bad times, falling out of games with Boston University and Penn State which were much closer than the score indicated. BC appeared to get a bit of a spark, however, when Jordan Daniels entered the lineup against Providence. Once more, BC lost, but it was one of their more noble efforts of the season. That Providence near-miss gave them a little momentum, which they soon turned into their only three-game win streak of the season, taking down Stony Brook, Bryant, and Sacred Heart. Not exactly Kentucky, Indiana, and Syracuse, but they were wins for a team that definitely needed them.

Fun times were over once Harvard, the dreaded Cambridge team that had beaten BC three times in a row, made it four-straight wins over the Eagles. This loss was consequently followed by a crushing double-overtime loss at home to a very bad Rhode Island team.

Few expected that ACC play would turn out well for the Eagles after such a poor non-conference run, but for a little while, people were given hope. Sure, they lost as expected at Chapel Hill, but Boston College followed it up with home wins against Clemson and Virginia Tech in succession. Just like after the New Hampshire win, for a little while, at least, BC was above .500 in the conference. It wouldn’t last.

The Eagles “paid” for it, in a sense, with a six-game losing streak. A few of those games were closer than the score indicates, but BC would not break into the win column again until February 8 at home again when the Eagles broke through for what was by far their biggest win of the season. That night, BC took out #17 Florida State, 64-60, showing to Eagles fans for at least one night that the young Eagles were maturing into capable ACC players. Granted, Florida State played nothing near a good game, but BC was able to take advantage and perform well enough to win; in particular, Jordan Daniels stole the show with 21 points and a number of big shots made to preserve their fragile lead.

They paid for that, too, with a four-game losing streak. In particular, the very next game was disastrous as Boston College sought out its first road win of the season. They went to Blacksburg, Virginia, and blew a game they led most of the way against Virginia Tech in the closing seconds. What would have been that elusive 10th win of the season in the final tally went up in flames that night, and as it turns out, their last, best chance at a road win in 2011-12 vanished.

BC found one last win on Leap Day against Georgia Tech at home, but followed it up with a season-finale loss to Miami and an NCAA Tournament loss to NC State. The latter never felt competitive, and the fact that the Eagles were down 14-0 out of the gate might have something to do with it.