Aaron Brown, Dimitri Batten Have Boston College Basketball Improving
By Joe Micik
Once a coaching change was made in both football and basketball, Boston College realized they could have players transfer into the program as opposed to just fleeing it. (Yes, I know there were inbound transfers; I was being ironic so save your e-mails.) Newcomers Aaron Brown and Dimitri Batten have proven crucial to the Eagles modest successes so far this season.
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Brown came to Boston College from Southern Mississippi, dropping the “Golden” and becoming just a plain old “Eagle.” The New Jersey native is on his third college basketball stop, but this may prove to be the best one. In his only season with Southern Miss, Aaron Brown averaged just shy of ten points per game. Years ago at Temple, he managed about five points per game.
So far in 2014-15 at Boston College, Brown averages 15.2 points per game and leads the team in threes made with 16.
As for Dimitri Batten, who came to the Heights from Old Dominion, he is third on the team with 8.4 points per game, teaming up with Aaron Brown for some big combined performances. Despite having only started four of those nine games so far, he has the third-most points scored on the team.
Batten does not shoot as much as Brown or Olivier Hanlan, but when he does, he is usually fine. He leads all game starters with a 49.1 percent percentage from the floor, as well as 37.5 percent from three.
Put aside their offensive contributions for a moment, which are key to this team’s success at present. What sets them apart from some of the Donahue players who moseyed through these parts over the last several seasons is that Aaron Brown and Dimitri Batten can actually play a little defense.
Furthermore, the two transfer students play with a level of confidence we have seldom seen in the past few seasons. They are not afraid to shoot, or put their hands up and guard on the other end.
Boston College basketball had many problems over the course of the Donahue era, prominently including but not limited to poor roster construction. Aaron Brown and Dimitri Batten have given the Eagles an infusion of energy that they lacked, and actually complement the rest of the team. The last thing this team needed was another set of choirboys that aimlessly chuck threes and don’t play defense.
Frankly, given the choice of Brown/Batten and Ryan Anderson/Joe Rahon, at this rate, Eagles fans will miss the latter less with each passing game. Aside from Hanlan and maybe Clifford, the sooner we chase out the old roster, the better.
Naturally, a lot is expected of them now, but Hanlan has some scoring help and the Eagles, while still lacking in the right pieces overall, have some semblance of an actual ACC team.