Game Notes: St. Bona | A-10 | Fordham
Fordham: Roster | Schedule & Results | Statistics
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In Brief
St. Bonaventure (14-10, 7-5) begins the final leg of the Atlantic 10 season, traveling to Fordham (9-16, 2-10) in the first of three road games over the final four contests of the year.
A-10 Player of the Year?
Senior All-America candidate Andrew Nicholson is in his final season with the Bonnies. After posting 14.9pts and 6.9rebs in the non-conference season Nicholson looks to be peaking down the stretch, averaging 19.7 and 9.7 in his last 10 games. The 6-9 forward is shooting 40 percent (6-15) from 3-point range and 62.8 percent from the field overall in Atlantic 10 games.
Last Time Out
Nicholson recorded his fifth double-double of the season with 32 points and 13 rebounds to pace St. Bonaventure to an 81-61 victory over Rhode Island in front of 5,480 fans at a sold-out Reilly Center. He tormented the Rams, totaling 20 points in the first half alone, while shooting 12-of-15 from the floor and blocking three shots on Senior Day. Classmate Da'Quan Cook knocked down seven of his eight free throws en route to nine points and five boards. The Bonnies built a lead as large as 21 before halftime and never looked back.
Where We Stand
In the ultra-competitive A-10, the Bonnies are deadlocked in a three-way tie for fifth. SBU is a half-game out of fourth place, but nine teams are within four games of first as the season comes to a head.
Next Up
Bona travels to Charlotte, where SBU is 0-3 all-time, in its second straight road game of the week.
With a Win …
A victory at Fordham would secure at least a .500 overall record for the Bonnies, regardless of the A-10 Championship or postseason play. A win would also guarantee SBU a .500 record at minimum (8-8) in conference play. Both feats (.500+ overall, .500+ A-10) have not happened in consecutive seasons since 2000-01 and 2001-02.
Fordham: Last Time Out
Cody Ellis scored 20 points and Saint Louis won its sixth in a row, beating Fordham 66-46 at Chaifetz Arena on Saturday. Ellis was 5 for 8 from 3-point range and contributed six rebounds for the Billikens (22-5, 10-3). Kwamain Mitchell scored 16 points, Mike McCall Jr. added 11 points and Rob Loe grabbed 11 rebounds for Saint Louis, winner of nine of its last 10. The Billikens built a 26-16 lead and led by as many as 26 points. Chris Gaston had 14 points and Kervin Bristol had 14 rebounds for Fordham. The Rams (9-16, 2-10) have dropped five straight.
When Last They Met
St. Bonaventure cruised to its largest-ever win over a conference opponent, securing a 95-51 victory against Fordham (8-10, 1-4) at the Reilly Center. The 44-point win was the largest ever for the Bonnies over an Atlantic 10 opponent and marked just the second time SBU won by 40+ in conference play. The margin of victory was the biggest for a Bona team since matching that difference in a 92-48 drubbing of Prairie View A&M Dec. 8, 1992. Nicholson booked 19 points and nine rebounds in 24 minutes to lead the way.
Co-Player of the Week ... Again
Nicholson earned A-10 weekly honors for the second straight week and the third time this season on Monday. The Mississauga, Ontario native averaged 25.5 points and 9.0 rebounds, while shooting 4-of-4 from 3-point range and 60 percent from the floor overall (20-30) in a split week for the Bonnies.
Nearing 2,000
Andrew Nicholson sits just 93 points shy of 2,000 for his career and can reach the milestone if he averages 23.25 points per game over his final four regular-season games. If he is able to break 2,000, the Bonnies would become the 17th school nationally and third in the Atlantic 10 (La Salle 6, Xavier 5) with at least five 2,000-point scorers as Bona legends Greg Sanders (2,238 points), Earl Belcher (2,077), Bob Lanier (2,067) and Tom Stith (2,052) have accomplished the feat.
More on 2,000
Duke boasts nine 2,000-point scorers, the most in the country. Boston College (7) is second, with Georgia Tech, La Salle, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Syracuse, Tennessee and Villanova claiming six apiece. Indiana, Michigan, Murray State, Oklahoma, Virgina, Wake Forest and Xavier have five each.
Rarified Air
With his 32-point, 13-rebound double-double, Nicholson passed Essie Hollis (1,905 points) and moved into fifth on the Bona career scoring list (1,907).
Cleaning the Glass
Bona owns a +4.8 edge on the glass this season, best in the A-10 and 43rd nationally. The Bonnies have outrebounded seven of their last eight opponents and are 11-3 when grabbing more rebounds than the opposition.
Block Party
The Bonnies have blocked at least three shots in seven of the last eight games, and in 19 of 24 contests overall. SBU rejected a season-high nine shots against Fordham (Jan. 21) and blocked seven in the Cleveland State, George Washington and Dayton games.
Finding Road Wins
Roads wins have been tough to find for the Bonnies, who are 1-8 in their last nine conference away games. SBU has not won back-to-back to away games in A-10 play since Jan. 22 (Fordham) and 29 (GW) last season.
Changing of the Guards
Head coach Mark Schmidt swapped Jordan Gathers in for Matthew Wright at the 2-guard spot versus Rhode Island, adjusting the starting lineup for the first time in 12 games. It marked Gathers' first career start and was the fifth different cast deployed by the Bonnies this season. Wright came off the bench for the first time in 18 games and responded by knocking down his first two 3s and passing out eight assists with no turnovers.
Mosley Heating Up
Eric Mosley scored in double-figures in back-to-back games versus Duquesne and Temple, the first time he'd done so since the end of December. The junior point guard drained a career-high four 3s to notch a personal-best 18 points against Temple.
Home Sweet Home
SBU had its eight-game home winstreak snapped with the loss to Temple, just its third loss in the last 17 home, regular-season A-10 games (14-3) since Feb. 27, 2010 vs. Rhode Island. In their 10 home victories overall (10-2), the Bonnies have posted a double-digit win in all but one (Dayton, +8), including a 44-point victory over Fordham Jan. 21.
Crashing the Boards
While Andrew Nicholson hauled in 23 boards overall against Duquesne, the senior got eight on the offensive end for a career high and combined with Demitrius Conger (seven offensive) to dominate the backboard. The Bonnies totaled a season-high 21 offensive rebounds, the most since 24 against Canisius 11/29/08. It marked the seventh time under Mark Schmidt that the Bonnies snared 20+ offensive caroms.
Johnson Ranks 2nd in FT%
Chris Johnson is 52-58 from the charity stripe, good for an 89.7 percent clip, which currently ranks second all-time at SBU. He fails to qualify for the NCAAs free throw (2.5 makes/gm – 60) minimum but met for the school's single-season standard (50 attempts) in the loss at UMass.
Something's Not Wright
Sophomore shooter Matthew Wright has endured a tough stretch since a 4-for-7 outing from beyond the arc Dec. 23. Since then, Wright is 8-of-42 (19 percent) from deep including: 1-6 (Niagara); 1-7 (Duquesne); 0-5 (UMass).
Keys to Victory
Coach Mark Schmidt has stressed three keys to the Bonnies' success on the hardwood throughout the season: Rebound; Defend; Take Care of the Ball. To that end, SBU is 11-4 when outrebounding opponents, 8-1 when holding the opposition under 40 percent from the field and 9-1 when posting fewer turnovers.
Start Me Up
Andrew Nicholson and Demitrius Conger have been staples of the Bona starting five over the past three seasons. Nicholson has started in 67 straight since missing the Dayton game as a sophomore, while Conger has started 55 straight since the beginning of his second season.
Fine From the Line
The Bonnies rank 6th nationally in free throw percentage at 76.7 percent (384-505), and are one of three A-10 teams inside the nation's top 20. SBU has shot more free throws that its opponent in 12 of its 14 wins this season.
Against the Grain
Three Bona players scored 10 or more points in the win over Duquesne, the 13th time this season that three or more players have cracked double digits for SBU. The Bonnies are 12-1 in those games, with the only loss being the Saint Louis game.
Closing it Out
The Bonnies got off to a tough 3-4 start to the season, and let late leads slip away in three of those four losses (Cleveland State, Arkansas State, Illinois). Following the Canisius game, however, St. Bonaventure has closed the door on the opposition - winning its last ten games when holding a lead with 4:00 minutes to play (14-3).
Blowing the Doors Off
The Bonnies' 44-point margin of victory vs. Fordham is the biggest ever in conference play for SBU and just the second time with a 40+ point victory within the A-10. The other two biggest margins of victory have both come against Rhode Island: 1/29/00 (40, 84-44); 1/21/01 (36, 91-55).
He's a Hunter, That Gathers
Freshman guard Jordan Gathers had a breakout performance against Fordham, posting 12 points on 5-of-7 FGs (2-4 from 3) while grabbing seven rebounds and dishing out three assists in 20 minutes. The Los Angeles, Calif. native booked career highs in each of those categories and stepped out of a 1-for-14 shooting funk to start his career.
Andrew's Explosion
Andrew Nicholson's 30-point, 13-rebound, six-block effort against Dayton was just the third 30+/10+/5+ game in the nation over the last two seasons, according to ESPN Stats & Information Senior Researcher Jason McCallum. He's the first Atlantic 10 player to do it since Ahmad Nivins in 2008. The last "Power 6" conference player with a 30-10-5 game? Kevin Durant. It marked his sixth career 30-point game (first this season), seventh career game with five or more blocks (first since 5 @UMass 1/20/10), and 20th career double-double (third this season).
Canadians Lead the U.S.
St. Bona boasts three Canadian players on its roster in Andrew Nicholson (Mississauga, Ontario), Matthew Wright (Toronto) and Chris Johnson (North Preston, Nova Scotia). The trio have combined for 43.7 percent of SBU's points (655-1,498) – the largest percentage of a team's points by Canadian players in the nation.
Let Me Upgrade Ya
There's no debating that the Bonnies (RPI: 109) have significantly upgraded the schedule - and the program - during Mark Schmidt 's tenure. By comparison, SBU ended the 2006-07 season (prior to the Schmidt era) ranked 278th in the RPI.
House of Toupane
St. Bonaventure announced the signing of Jean Yves Toupane (Jawn two-PAIN) to a National Letter of Intent Nov. 16. The 6-foot-7 small forward from Senegal joins Lee Academy (Maine) teammate, freshman Youssou Ndoye.
