Off The Boards

Off The Boards

By Jack Scheuer

March 13, 2019 Edition

We’ll lead off this week’s column with a true All-American team because all of the players have to be 6-2 or under : Leading off is Markus Howard, Marquette’s 5-11 junior, he is at 25 points per game and makes 90% of his foul shots; Cassius Winston , Michigan State’s 6-1 junior leader who puts up 19 ppg, and hands out 7.6 assists; Chris Clemons, the 5-9  senior dynamo from Campbell, not very big, but leads the country in scoring at 30 points a game; Carsen Edwards, Purdue’s 6-1 junior, who averages 23.4 ppg, and 84.2 on free throws; and finally, Justin Wright-Foreman, a 6-2 senior from Hofstra, and who is the 2nd leading scorer in the nation. He puts up 27 per game, including 51% from the floor, and 43.6% from 3-point land. If you’re a guard fan, as I am, that’s a very impressive group of back- court players.

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The final salute to a star of the past goes to Drexel’s Michael Anderson. The 5-11 guard from Engineering and Science, a 1989 grad, averaged 19.2 during his career, which included six triple doubles. In 1986, he led the Dragons to their first ever appearance in the NCAA tournament, a game lost to eventual champion Louisville.  As a senior, when he averaged 23.9, Anderson was the ECC’s Player of the Year, and an honorable mention All-American. He was the team’s MVP in each of his four seasons, and is the Dragons all- time leader in points, assists and steals. In 2001, he was inducted into Drexel’s Athletic Hall of Fame.

Through the years, Philadelphia has been known for producing outstanding guards. Michael Anderson is definitely on that list.

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Trivia Time: Who holds the Division 1 record for most consecutive double-doubles? Answer at the end of the column.

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Tip of the hat has go to Bradley of the Missouri Valley Conference. Down by 18 with 17 minutes left in the league’s championship game against Northern Iowa, the Braves rallied to win 57-54, and earn a trip to the NCAA’s for the first time since 2006. It was just four years ago that they had a 5-win season.

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This and That: In addition to his excellent play this year, Shizz Alston also led the AAC in minutes played….Those Jones boys, Tre (Duke, and Tyrus, T-Wolves), who look like twins, must have had some great back-yard basketball  tussles…. Little Wofford, with a great shooter in Fletcher Magee, could cause somebody a problem in the NCAA’s…. Not very many better backcourts than Virginia’s Ty Jerome and Kyle Guy. Efficient and effective, and both are just juniors….How about that Ryan Arcidiacono playing in 67 games, averaging 24 minutes, and 6.1 ppg  for the Chicago Bulls….Michigan State coach Tom Izzo seems like a guy you’d like to share a beverage with while watching hoops….Upcoming, tournament games to get into THE tournament: Tomorrow, Villanova meets the Butler-Providence winner, Saint Joe’s plays Duquesne, and La Salle takes on Rhode Island.  Friday, it’s Temple vs. the Wichita State – ECU winner, and Saturday Penn battles. Harvard.

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Answer to Trivia Time: During one stretch in1953-55, the great Tom Gola had 48 straight double-doubles.

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