University of Delaware Athletics
Photo by: Ryan Griffith
Five Takeaways From Another Competitive Week In The CAA
2/23/2020 9:58:00 AM | Men's Basketball
The final home weekend of the regular season saw a split decision for Delaware men's basketball, as the Blue Hens picked up a dominant 70-48 win over Northeastern Thursday night before falling to league-leading Hofstra 78-62 Saturday afternoon. Here are five takeaways from another competitive weekend in the Colonial Athletic Association.
1. The Halifax Hen Only Needed Eight Minutes To Hit A Game-High Point Total Thursday Night
Redshirt junior guard Nate Darling came out guns blazing against Northeastern, knocking down his first five field goal attempts (four three-pointers and a long two) and all three of his free throw attempts, amassing 17 points in just over eight minutes. While he didn't score for the rest of the game, he was still the leading scorer in the contest, even over Northeastern's Jordan Roland, who entered the game at fifth in Division I in scoring.
One possession after Darling's last trey, junior guard Kevin Anderson fired a no-look pass to freshman guard Johnny McCoy along the baseline for an easy lay-up to put the Blue Hens up 29-6 and force a Northeastern timeout. The bucket capped a backbreaking 18-2 run for Delaware, which kept a double-digit lead for the remainder of the game.
2. Delaware Had A Stellar Defensive Performance Against Northeastern
While Darling was the spark for the offense, Delaware earned the series sweep over Northeastern and its 20th win of the season based on defense. The Blue Hens held the Huskies to just 37% shooting from the floor, their second-worst shooting effort of the season. Northeastern's 48 points were by far their lowest of the season.
Delaware's front line defense was especially strong. Redshirt junior forward Dylan Painter was active from the jump, pinning a Maxime Boursiquot lay-up attempt against the backboard, switching onto and forcing Tyson Walker (a CAA Rookie of the Year frontrunner) into a turnover, and athletically rejecting a Bolden Brace lay-up in transition, all within the opening four minutes.
"I mean, our defensive effort was fabulous," Ingelsby said after the win. "I thought we were locked in, really sharp on the defensive end to hold a Northeastern team that's talented like that, that's got some weapons, to 48 points."
Roland, the conference's leading scorer, was held to 16 points by the Delaware defense, only getting as many as he did by knocking down tough, contested jumpers.
"Kevin Anderson staying locked in, I thought he was really sharp and disciplined," Ingelsby noted of the effort to guard Roland. "We were good in our ball-screen defense, and you want to chase him off the three-point line. He was 2-of-8 from the three-point line, we did a great job guarding the arc."
3. Collin Goss And Jacob Cushing Made Big Contributions In Senior Day Starts
In their final regular season home game at the Bob Carpenter Center, seniors Collin Goss and Jacob Cushing started for the Blue Hens and got big buckets as Delaware opened the game on an 8-0 run.
Goss secured the game's first rebound and later was on the receiving end of a Kevin Anderson bounce pass for lay-up. A minute later, Goss set a handoff screen for junior guard Ryan Allen, who pump faked and fired a midair pass to Cushing, who was open on the baseline for an easy bucket that forced Hofstra to burn an early timeout.
"Those guys are great representatives of who we are, they've helped build a culture and establish this program to where it is now," Ingelsby said of his senior class. "Great representatives on and off the court, and ambassadors for our university, and they're fun guys to coach."
4. The Bob Was Electric Again Saturday Afternoon
Blue Hens fans sold out the Bob Carpenter Center for Senior Day, packing the arena with an attendance of 4,722. The crowd, especially the jam-packed student section, was loud, and the team fed off its energy.
"You felt that energy today," Ingelsby said. "I walked out there today and the student section was full. We're extremely thankful and grateful for the crowds we've had lately."
5. The Big Picture In The CAA
Saturday's loss was disappointing, but was a testament to how strong the conference is this season; Delaware previously beat Hofstra up in Hempstead on Jan. 23 on a last-second Kevin Anderson coast-to-coast bucket.
The CAA is the only conference in the country to have four players in the top 20 nationally in scoring, of which Nate Darling is one. Joining those four on the All-CAA First Team will likely be Hofstra guard Desure Buie, who had an impressive 27 points and nine assists against Delaware Saturday.
With so many talented players and teams, any team that avoids the first round of the CAA tournament has a realistic shot at winning the conference championship. The Blue Hens' win over Northeastern Thursday clinched that bye to the quarterfinals.
While Delaware and Hofstra, who have now played 93 times in their historic rivalry, split the series during the regular season, there could very well be a rubber match in Washington, D.C. during the conference tournament. If that happens, expect the Blue Hens to be locked in to avenge Saturday's loss.
"Any time a team beats you, you go into your next battle against them with a different kind of mindset," redshirt sophomore forward Justyn Mutts said after Saturday's loss. "You don't want to get swept by a team. So I'm pretty sure they came down here locked in on a mission, and they were able to get through today. We have the same mindset for the next time we see them."
1. The Halifax Hen Only Needed Eight Minutes To Hit A Game-High Point Total Thursday Night
Redshirt junior guard Nate Darling came out guns blazing against Northeastern, knocking down his first five field goal attempts (four three-pointers and a long two) and all three of his free throw attempts, amassing 17 points in just over eight minutes. While he didn't score for the rest of the game, he was still the leading scorer in the contest, even over Northeastern's Jordan Roland, who entered the game at fifth in Division I in scoring.
One possession after Darling's last trey, junior guard Kevin Anderson fired a no-look pass to freshman guard Johnny McCoy along the baseline for an easy lay-up to put the Blue Hens up 29-6 and force a Northeastern timeout. The bucket capped a backbreaking 18-2 run for Delaware, which kept a double-digit lead for the remainder of the game.
. @keva1_ finds @jwmccoy13 for the layup and the #BlueHens are up 23! pic.twitter.com/4z9QvPlSkE
— Delaware Men's Basketball (@DelawareMBB) February 21, 2020
2. Delaware Had A Stellar Defensive Performance Against Northeastern
While Darling was the spark for the offense, Delaware earned the series sweep over Northeastern and its 20th win of the season based on defense. The Blue Hens held the Huskies to just 37% shooting from the floor, their second-worst shooting effort of the season. Northeastern's 48 points were by far their lowest of the season.
Delaware's front line defense was especially strong. Redshirt junior forward Dylan Painter was active from the jump, pinning a Maxime Boursiquot lay-up attempt against the backboard, switching onto and forcing Tyson Walker (a CAA Rookie of the Year frontrunner) into a turnover, and athletically rejecting a Bolden Brace lay-up in transition, all within the opening four minutes.
. @dpaint4234 skies for the block!#BlueHens pic.twitter.com/KBlJEi7ob7
— Delaware Men's Basketball (@DelawareMBB) February 21, 2020
"I mean, our defensive effort was fabulous," Ingelsby said after the win. "I thought we were locked in, really sharp on the defensive end to hold a Northeastern team that's talented like that, that's got some weapons, to 48 points."
Roland, the conference's leading scorer, was held to 16 points by the Delaware defense, only getting as many as he did by knocking down tough, contested jumpers.
"Kevin Anderson staying locked in, I thought he was really sharp and disciplined," Ingelsby noted of the effort to guard Roland. "We were good in our ball-screen defense, and you want to chase him off the three-point line. He was 2-of-8 from the three-point line, we did a great job guarding the arc."
3. Collin Goss And Jacob Cushing Made Big Contributions In Senior Day Starts
In their final regular season home game at the Bob Carpenter Center, seniors Collin Goss and Jacob Cushing started for the Blue Hens and got big buckets as Delaware opened the game on an 8-0 run.
Thank you @goss_isBoss, @jacob_cushing22!
— Delaware Men's Basketball (@DelawareMBB) February 23, 2020
We're not done yet... pic.twitter.com/XdUPgQqgrc
Goss secured the game's first rebound and later was on the receiving end of a Kevin Anderson bounce pass for lay-up. A minute later, Goss set a handoff screen for junior guard Ryan Allen, who pump faked and fired a midair pass to Cushing, who was open on the baseline for an easy bucket that forced Hofstra to burn an early timeout.
"Those guys are great representatives of who we are, they've helped build a culture and establish this program to where it is now," Ingelsby said of his senior class. "Great representatives on and off the court, and ambassadors for our university, and they're fun guys to coach."
4. The Bob Was Electric Again Saturday Afternoon
Blue Hens fans sold out the Bob Carpenter Center for Senior Day, packing the arena with an attendance of 4,722. The crowd, especially the jam-packed student section, was loud, and the team fed off its energy.
"You felt that energy today," Ingelsby said. "I walked out there today and the student section was full. We're extremely thankful and grateful for the crowds we've had lately."
5. The Big Picture In The CAA
Saturday's loss was disappointing, but was a testament to how strong the conference is this season; Delaware previously beat Hofstra up in Hempstead on Jan. 23 on a last-second Kevin Anderson coast-to-coast bucket.
The CAA is the only conference in the country to have four players in the top 20 nationally in scoring, of which Nate Darling is one. Joining those four on the All-CAA First Team will likely be Hofstra guard Desure Buie, who had an impressive 27 points and nine assists against Delaware Saturday.
With so many talented players and teams, any team that avoids the first round of the CAA tournament has a realistic shot at winning the conference championship. The Blue Hens' win over Northeastern Thursday clinched that bye to the quarterfinals.
While Delaware and Hofstra, who have now played 93 times in their historic rivalry, split the series during the regular season, there could very well be a rubber match in Washington, D.C. during the conference tournament. If that happens, expect the Blue Hens to be locked in to avenge Saturday's loss.
"Any time a team beats you, you go into your next battle against them with a different kind of mindset," redshirt sophomore forward Justyn Mutts said after Saturday's loss. "You don't want to get swept by a team. So I'm pretty sure they came down here locked in on a mission, and they were able to get through today. We have the same mindset for the next time we see them."
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