Extra Point: Freshmen important beyond year one
Jake Sonner
Issue date: 12/5/08 Section: Sports
Guard Michael Davenport and forward Andrew Nicholson remind me of two Bonnie freshmen who transferred out of the minds of Reilly Center fans after just one year in the brown and white.
Last season, guard Hillary Haley averaged 5.6 points per game and graced the starting lineup in 14 games. Forward Matt Morgan took the floor in 28 of the Bonnies' contests and averaged 3.8 points.
Those may not seem like striking numbers, but the players who scored more points than Haley and Morgan were all upperclassmen.
The pair could have been expected to be key players on this year's roster, maybe even consistent starters. But, in the offseason, Morgan left for an NCAA Tournament regular in Winthrop, and Haley transferred to Maryland-Eastern Shore.
In the young 2008-2009 season Davenport and Nicholson have played in all six games, and Nicholson has started three.
Nicholson averages 10.8 points per game, which ranks him third among the Bonnies. He has been named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week two weeks in a row and currently leads the team in rebounds (37) and blocks (15). He has 11 more blocks than the nearest Bonnie, Jonathan Hall with four.
Davenport has played fewer minutes, but he has tallied seven points and three blocks on the year.
Losing Morgan and Haley before the start of the current season left the Bonnies with one remaining sophomore, Malcolm Eleby, and almost eliminated half of an entire recruiting class.
Fortunately the team was able to bring in junior college transfers who have made immediate contributions. Juniors Hall and Chris Matthews lead the Bonnies in scoring, and Maurice Thomas and Ray Blackburn round out the top five behind Nicholson.
The Bonnies can't afford for Davenport and Nicholson to go the way of Morgan and Haley. If this year's juniors finish their college careers as Bonnies, two seasons from now Davenport and Nicholson will be two of a few Bonnies with a reasonable amount of Division I basketball games under their belts. Without them, the Bonnies will have a serious liability in a lack of experience.
Last season, guard Hillary Haley averaged 5.6 points per game and graced the starting lineup in 14 games. Forward Matt Morgan took the floor in 28 of the Bonnies' contests and averaged 3.8 points.
Those may not seem like striking numbers, but the players who scored more points than Haley and Morgan were all upperclassmen.
The pair could have been expected to be key players on this year's roster, maybe even consistent starters. But, in the offseason, Morgan left for an NCAA Tournament regular in Winthrop, and Haley transferred to Maryland-Eastern Shore.
In the young 2008-2009 season Davenport and Nicholson have played in all six games, and Nicholson has started three.
Nicholson averages 10.8 points per game, which ranks him third among the Bonnies. He has been named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week two weeks in a row and currently leads the team in rebounds (37) and blocks (15). He has 11 more blocks than the nearest Bonnie, Jonathan Hall with four.
Davenport has played fewer minutes, but he has tallied seven points and three blocks on the year.
Losing Morgan and Haley before the start of the current season left the Bonnies with one remaining sophomore, Malcolm Eleby, and almost eliminated half of an entire recruiting class.
Fortunately the team was able to bring in junior college transfers who have made immediate contributions. Juniors Hall and Chris Matthews lead the Bonnies in scoring, and Maurice Thomas and Ray Blackburn round out the top five behind Nicholson.
The Bonnies can't afford for Davenport and Nicholson to go the way of Morgan and Haley. If this year's juniors finish their college careers as Bonnies, two seasons from now Davenport and Nicholson will be two of a few Bonnies with a reasonable amount of Division I basketball games under their belts. Without them, the Bonnies will have a serious liability in a lack of experience.
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