Tag: Will Brady

Age is Just a Number: Tufts Men’s Basketball Preview 2019-2020

Tufts University Jumbos

2018-2019 Record: 12-14 (4-6 NESCAC), lost in semifinals of NESCAC Tournament

2019-2020 Projected Record: 17-9 (5-5 NESCAC)

Key Losses: None

Projected Starting Lineup:

G: Carson Cohen ’22 (7.9 PPG, 2.1 REB/G, 3.1 AST/G)

Cohen broke onto the NESCAC scene last year with a very fine season for a freshman. He posted solid numbers and displayed some truly impressive quickness and court vision, making him the Jumbos de facto point guard. Cohen has a very high basketball IQ and did a nice job minimizing turnovers last year, but there is definitely room to grow…literally. There were times last season when Cohen looked a bit undersized, making it difficult for him to matchup with bigger guards and making it difficult for him to be physical inside. It appears as though Cohen addressed this problem in the offseason because he looks noticeably more filled out this year and even grew an inch (according to the roster). Tufts might need to start looking out for those notorious random drug tests that the NESCAC is so well known for…

G: Tyler Aronson ’22 (10.1 PPG, 3.2 REB/G, 2.8 AST/G)

This guy is the X-Factor for Tufts this year, no doubt about it. Aronson is one of the most sneaky-athletic players in the league and it’ll really surprise you when he throws down a dunk in the lane despite being only 6’2”. He can also shoot the lights out, but didn’t really display that in his freshman campaign. This season Aronson is off to a blazing hot start, shooting nearly 50% from 3-point land and averaging almost 13 points per game. He has the potential to be one of the most talented guards in the NESCAC if he can harness his athleticism and stay under control because he does have a tendency to get a little ahead of himself and try to rush things. If Aronson can play within the system and stay under control he will be very difficult to stop given all the other weapons that the Jumbos have.

G: Eric Savage ’20 (16.0 PPG, 6.4 REB/G, 3.5 AST/G)

Aside from having the best last name in the league, Savage brings a lot to the table. He has been a leader for the Jumbos from the first day he set foot on campus and now he finds himself as the leading scorer and captain of this team. At this point there isn’t much left to ask of Savage besides putting up star-caliber numbers and that’s no small task. His numbers have steadily improved over the course of his career, but so far this year it seems like he has reached a plateau. As I said before it’s very challenging for a player of Savage’s stature to improve in any particular area, but that’s what Tufts is going to need him to do if they’re going to get to the next level. The Jumbos took a step back last year and seemed to descend into relative mediocrity, so the lone senior on the roster will have to get his back ready for one last chance to carry this team to the top.

F: Brennan Morris ’21 (13.9 PPG, 4.6 REB/G, 44.2% 3PT)

Here’s a guy you really have to watch out for. Morris is a physical, 6’6” wing who is an absolute sniper. His 44.2% clip from downtown last season was good for 2nd in the league and this season he’s picking up right where he left off. Morris plays a unique role on this team because he’s really their only true wing so he has to spend a lot of time defending the NESCAC’s premier 3’s and 4’s. This can really take a toll on guys, so it’s essential that Morris gets enough rest to be able to play the most important minutes every game. He has also proven that he is someone who needs to be on the floor in crucial moments, as evidenced by his game winner with seconds remaining to take down the first place Middlebury Panthers a year ago. Morris may not be the flashiest or most explosive player on the team, but without him the Jumbos would be in a very different place.

C: Luke Rogers ’21 (14.0 PPG, 9.1 REB/G, 55.6% FG)

Rogers is one of the few centers in this league that has an enormous impact on every game he plays in. He’s a double double machine, with 15 in his career and 4 already this season – in fact he’s averaging 14 points and 12 rebounds per game through 9 games this year. Throw in his career 55.8% from the field and you can start to see how much of a threat he really is. This type of production will be very hard to sustain, but Rogers’ career arc seems to indicate that he’s up for the challenge. One thing I find very interesting is that Tufts lists each player’s major on their online roster and I couldn’t help but notice that Rogers majors in History and Entrepreneurship. I’m not sure if that’s the name of one joint major or if Rogers is a double major, but I certainly hope it’s the former. I’ve never been a particular fan of the Jumbos, but entrepreneurship as a legit major?? Come on, guys. If nothing else we’ll just have to watch and see how Rogers’ entrepreneurial skills manifest themselves in his on-court performance.

Everything Else:

Last year was a bit of a wakeup call for Tufts as they were faced with the loss of an enormous group of seniors who were all important contributors to their national powerhouse teams from years prior. In fact, they didn’t have a single senior on their roster last season and Eric Savage ’20 is the only senior this season, so it appears that the Jumbos are on an upward trend once again. That said, it’s hard to judge exactly where they’re at right now. They’re off to a solid 7-2 start including an impressive win over MIT, but for the most part it’s the same cast of characters that finished 12-14 last year.

Coach Sheldon is building a classic NESCAC basketball team in Medford, anchoring a true center in Luke Rogers ’21 in the paint and surrounding him with playmaking guards who can shoot you out of the gym. Will Brady ’21, for example, is a guy who frankly doesn’t offer much except for the fact that he’s lethal from downtown. At 6’1”, 190lbs he lacks the foot speed to keep up with guards and the size to matchup with wings. This means that they pretty much have to stick him in the corner and tell him to shoot when he catches the ball. Another guy like this is Justin Kouyoumdjian ’21 who takes care of the ball, but really doesn’t do anything besides hit a shot once in a while and give the starters some rest. Coach Sheldon also brought in Casey McLaren ’23 and Dylan Thoerner ’23, two freshman wings that he hopes will play a similar to Brennan Morris ’21, while bringing some much-needed size to their backcourt (and maybe bringing back some faint memories of Vinny Pace). The Jumbos also employ big Max Oppenheim ’21 off the bench who is essentially a slower Luke Rogers ’21 with a less refined skillset – he’ll basically only set foot on the court when Rogers needs a break.

Tufts is still a very young team that has a long way to go, but it’ll be interesting to see how competitive they are this year now that they’ve got a few years of experience under their belts. An interesting note about their schedule is that they have a brutal stretch of four road games at the end of the year in the final two NESCAC weekends – at Trinity, at Conn College, at Middlebury, and at Williams. This will be a very intriguing stretch for the Tufts because at that point in the season they could be going in any direction. If they get hot at the right time and gain momentum heading into the conference tournament, this will be a very dangerous team come postseason play. If they hit a few bumps in the road and decide to roll over, the end of the season will not be very kind to the Jumbos.

Stock Report: Championship Weekend

Stock Up:

Can Gilmour bring it home on his own court for the Conts this weekend?

Hamilton’s Chances at a Title

Last week the Continentals were able to take care of business on their home court against the 7-seeded Colby Mules. While this may not seem that surprising, as the Continentals were heavy favorites, it was only a few weeks ago when the Mules stormed into Hamilton territory and stole a game right out from under their noses. The Mules were able to keep it close, but lightning did not strike twice for them. Hamilton played a clean, team game in which all 5 starters were able to amass double digit scoring. Kena Gilmour lead the way for the Continentals, putting up 19 points which includes a perfect 5/5 from downtown. Overall this team played as a cohesive unit, which should allow them to make an even bigger playoff push. Another advantage that Hamilton now possesses is that they now have home court advantage for the remainder of the playoffs. While other teams have to take the long ride to upstate New York, Hamilton can sit back and relax and wait for the competition to come to them.

Everybody loves an upset.

UMBC… I mean Tufts

After sneaking their way into the playoffs over Bowdoin, the Tufts Jumbos are here to stay. Obviously the story of the weekend was #1 Midd going down on their homecourt to a team they had no business losing to. The Panthers did not look like their usual selves all game, but this section isn’t about bashing Midd, it is about celebrating the underdog. Everyone loves an underdog, and Tufts usually doesn’t get to feel that love. See the reason is that Tufts is never the underdog is because they have more than twice as many students as the rest of the NESCACs. When you have that many enrollment spots, it can be much easier to compete. This year though, their basketball program is flipping that narrative on its head. It’s underdog Tufts taking on all the big bad schools like Hamilton, Amherst and Williams. With the #1 seed out of the way who says they can’t make a run?

Stock Down:

The State of Connecticut

After Wesleyan and Trinity exit the tourney in the first round with losses to Amherst and Williams, respectively, all 3 of the Connecticut NESCACs have been eliminated. The first Connecticut elimination was the earliest in all the NESCAC when Conn finished their season still searching for a conference win. It was a tough season all year long for the Camels but they have another year of rebuilding to look forwards to next year. Trinity proved themselves to be a playoff-quality team as the season progresses but they were still not able to finish the job against a very well organized Williams team. Joe Bell had a great performance for the Bantams off the bench, leading Trinity with 17 points, but the skill gap between the two teams was still too much to overcome. Connecticut’s best chance had to be Wesleyan. They had been ranked at multiple points throughout the season and really looked as if they could bang with the big dogs when push comes to shove. They dropped down to the 6-seed entering postseason play and were not able to top 3-seed Amherst. It was a disappointing year overall for the Connecticut NESCACs but now they can sit back, relax and join their buddies up in Maine as they watch Massachusetts and New York bang it out for a championship.

CACs in the NCAAs

The chances for five NCAA berths are gone, but will the NESCAC get four?

At one point or another this season it seemed as if it were possible to have up to 5 NESCACs make the tournament. As the playoff picture winds down, that number is getting smaller and smaller. First with the givens: from day 1 of the season it was pretty clear that Hamilton and Williams will be in the tournament no matter what. They were slated very high in the top-25 to start the season and while they are not as highly ranked as they have been at the moment, even without a championship I would be in disbelief if these two are not at-large selections. Amherst lies just behind Williams and Hamilton in stature. They were first able to break the top-25 mark in just week 2 of the season. Since that they have bounced in and out of the top-25 but find themselves all the way up at #11, right behind Hamilton, in the latest poll. It wasn’t as obvious throughout the season that this squad would be able to hang with the the Continentals and Ephs but they have more than proven themselves at this point as a lock for NCAAs. Next we come to Midd who is very much “on the bubble” of making the tournament. They had everything going for them. They jumped into the top-25 right at the end of the season after taking the CAC by storm, earning them a 1-seed in the NESCAC tourney. If Midd had made it even to the semis and lost to a ranked team, I believe that they would’ve had great chances to crack into the NCAA tourney. Unfortunately this is not what happened. Midd blew it to the 8-seed on their home court for what must have been quite the embarrassing upset. I do, however, still believe that the odds favor the Panthers to sneak in to the tournament as the twitter account “D3bubble,” researching D3 bracketology, named the Panthers as a “definite lock” entering the NESCAC tournament.

Tufts University Jumbos 2019 Basketball Season Preview

Tufts University Jumbos

2017-2018 Record: 17-8 (6-4 NESCAC), lost in NESCAC Quarterfinals 

2018-2019 Projected Record: 16-8 (5-5 NESCAC)

Key Losses:

G Thomas Lapham ’18 (7.0PPG, 2.3AST, 1.0STL/G)

G Everett Dayton ’18 (8.3PPG, 4.3REB/G, 44.9% FG)

G KJ Garrett ’18 (9.9PPG, 5.3REB/G, 1.2STL/G, 46.7% FG)

G/F Vincent Pace ’18 (18.3PPG, 8.3REB/G, 2.5AST/G)

Projected Starting Lineup:

G: Tyler Aronson ’22

Aronson found his way into the starting lineup right out of the gate in his freshman campaign. Listed at just 6’2” and 185lbs, Aronson makes his living as a scorer despite not being the biggest guy out there. He has a terrific jump shot and his high release allows him to get into the paint to score from mid-range rather than just live behind the three-point line. His outstanding athleticism makes him a very tough matchup on both ends of the court, and I honestly wouldn’t be surprised to see him near the league lead in steals by the end of the season. Watch out for Aronson this year because he’s already in position to lead the next wave of elite NESCAC guards.

G: Carson Cohen ’22

The second of Tufts’ dynamic duo of freshman is Carson Cohen, who has served as a bit of a workhorse through his first four contests. Cohen is averaging 16 points, 3 rebounds, and 5 assists while playing 34 minutes each game thus far. These are some great numbers, and that includes two close victories and an overtime loss against #11 nationally ranked MIT. Playing a similar style to Aronson, Cohen has great handles and will surprise you with how quickly he can get to the basket. As his 5 assists per game would indicate, he has tremendous court vision and is serving as the facilitator the Jumbos need. He is also looking like an early rookie of the year candidate with his performance so far.

G: Justin Kouyoumdjian ’21 (4.7PPG, 2.4REB/G)

Kouyoumdjian is finding a nice role as the 3rdor 4thscoring option in the starting lineup. His shooting numbers are modest and certainly have room for improvement given his nice shooting stroke, but he’ll contribute a few buckets when the Jumbos need it. He’ll also grab a few rebounds and dish out a few assists, acting as a sort of glue for this team. In the early going he has turned the ball over at a bit too high of a rate (4 per game) so that’s something to focus on as the season progresses. For now, the southpaw serves as a complementary scoring option who will help keep everything running smoothly on the court.

G/F: Brennan Morris ’21 (1.8PPG, 0.4AST/G, 53.9% 3PT)

Morris brings a bit of height to the starting lineup and he plays as a true sharpshooter with about as pure of a jump shot as you can find. Like the smaller guards in the lineup, he can score in a multitude of ways and helps spread the floor on offense. He is a key part of the lineup as he has the size and length to matchup with some of the bigger forwards in the league, which will be especially important against teams like Williams and Hamilton who are loaded with 6’4”-6’7” wings. Morris is a great piece to have in this lineup, and it’ll be a big year for him given that he saw very little action in his freshman season.

C: Luke Rogers ’21 (5.2PPG, 4.8REB/G, 60.5% FG, 39.5% FT)

The Massachusetts native is about as true a center as they come. Rogers is a skilled post player who is capable of having huge games (as evidenced by his 32-point outburst in the second game of the season). He’s going to be a rebound machine this year, especially since Tufts will often go with a relatively small lineup. He was in the rotation last season, but didn’t play a ton of minutes so keep an eye on his durability given that his 6’8” frame is lugging 230lbs up and down the court every night. He is really going to have to work on free throws because he shot an abysmal 39.5% from the line last year, and he’s at 41.7% through four games this year. Teams are going to take notice, so he better be staying late shooting foul shots after practice or else hack-a-Rogers could be in full effect.

Everything Else

Tufts lost a larger portion of their lineup from last season than any team in the league. Not only did they graduate 4 players who played key roles, but they also saw the departure of Vincent Pace ’18 who was a true NESCAC stud. This left them with a ton of minutes up for grabs, and only one senior on the roster. This year the Jumbos have an entirely different core filled with talented underclassmen – the only question is whether or not they can survive with so much inexperience against teams with much older lineups. Well, they’ve already begun to answer that question, plugging two freshmen into the starting five and seeing guys step up who were used in much smaller doses last year.

Patrick Racy ’20 has mostly been used off the bench in the first three games, although he started nearly every game in his sophomore season. He helps bring length to the court with his 6’6” frame, and he has already upped his rebounding totals from 3.8 per game last season to 5 per game through their first four. Eric DeBrine ’22 is another guy with size who can help the Jumbos matchup with some of the bigger teams, and he has been used as such in his first four career games. Given that Tufts starts 3 guys who are 6’2” or below, they’ll look to mix in these guys who can completely change the dynamic of the lineup with different sizes and skill sets. They also finished the 2017-2018 season tied for last in the league in blocked shots per game, so hopefully these bigger guys can get their hands on a few more shots.

Tufts will look to Will Brady to fill in important minutes off the bench

One issue that the Jumbos will look to fix from last season was their scoring inefficiency. They ended the year 3rdin the NESCAC with 78.7 points per game, but second to last in field goal percentage (42.6%) and third to last in 3-point field goal percentage (33.1%). What this really means is that they can be scoring A LOT of points. They’ve already improved their shooting numbers early into this season, and they’ve added some guys to their lineup who can really shoot. I talked about the four guards in their starting lineup that can knock down shots, but Will Brady ’21 is another who plays a similar role and shoots a very high percentage from beyond the arc. He will help bring some firepower to an already talented offense that is seeking to increase their efficiency, especially since their defense really isn’t anything special.

Eric Savage is serving as the team captain this year, so the Jumbos are eager to get him back as soon as possible

A big hole in the early going for the Jumbos is the loss of Eric Savage ’20. He has been out thus far with a concussion but yet his Jumbos squad is a team that has looked pretty good so far given how much they lost from last year. When he is healthy again, slot him into the starting lineup and make this Tufts team much tougher to face than they are currently. Tufts is already off to a good start, and that’s a very scary sight for teams that expected a down year with all the youth in Medford.