Conference Preview: Patriot League

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PATRIOT LEAGUE

Heading into last year’s Patriot League Tournament, Holy Cross was 10-19 overall.  The Crusaders’ 5-13 conference record was worse than every team other than Lafayette, giving them the #9 seed in the tourney.  Oh, and on top of that, the Patriot League plays its tournament games at the home court of the higher seeded teams.  In other words, Holy Cross’s season pretty much looked to be done and over.  They went to #8 seed Loyola and won by 5.  Then they went to top seed Bucknell and pulled off an incredible double overtime 77-72 win.  Next up was a trip to West Point and 4 seed Army, a team the Crusaders demolished by 22 points.  Finally, 2 seed Lehigh was the fourth victim of this run, 59-56, giving Holy Cross one of the most improbably NCAA Tournament bids we have ever seen.  They weren’t even done, as the Crusaders proceeded to defeat Southern in a First Four 16 vs 16 game before Oregon finally ended their season.

This year, Holy Cross is one of four teams that should be contending for the regular season title.  They will be likely joined by Lehigh, Boston University and Bucknell.  Boston U (CIT) and Bucknell (NIT) both played in the postseason last year.  However, it is Lehigh, with four starters returning including two time Patriot League Player of the Year Tim Kempton, that is our pick to take the crown.  One team that advanced to the postseason last year but does not figure to be in the mix at all is Army.  The Cadets had arguably their best season since Bobby Knight was head coach, and played in the CIT.  Almost everyone from last year’s roster is gone, including coach Zach Spiker, and we expect a major step backwards this year.

Predicted Order of Finish

1. Lehigh – Big man Tim Kempton has won two Patriot League Player of the Year awards and could make it three this season.  He had a very good collection of players around him too, including guards Austin Price, Kahron Ross and Kyle Leufroy.

2. Boston University – The Terriers are a deep and experienced team that gets Cedric Hankerson back after he missed last season with an injury.  Hankerson will be a huge addition, given that he averaged almost 16 points per game two years ago.  The pieces are certainly here to challenge for the title.

3. Bucknell – Even without star Chris Hass, the Bison could contend with a strong frontcourt pair of Nana Foulland and Zach Thomas, plus Stephen Brown at the point.

4. Holy Cross – Five of the Crusaders’ top six players from last year’s Cinderella team are back.  They also added an interesting piece on the bench as head coach Bill Carmody has brought in former Denver head coach Joe Scott as an assistant.

5. Colgate – Replacing Austin Tillotson’s 15.1 points per game will be tough, but almost everyone else is back.  Without any key seniors on the roster, the Red Raiders should be good this year and may be even better next.

6. American – Jesse Reed is gone, but Patriot League Rookie of the Year Delante Jones is back and should have an even bigger year this year than he did last one.  He will need to find some help from the rest of his team if the Eagles want to move up in the standings.

7. Loyola – With the combination of Andre Walker outside and Jarred Jones inside, the Greyhounds should be better than last year’s 21 loss team.

8. Lafayette – The Leopards return three double-digit scorers, but need to fix some serious defensive problems if they want to improve on last season’s last place finish and 6-24 overall record.

9. Navy – Shawn Anderson’s 13.2 points per game is back, but the majority of the other key players from last season are gone. This could be a tough season in Annapolis.

10. Army West Point – All five starters are gone.  Head coach Zach Spiker took the Drexel job.  The Black Knights may have had their best season in decades last year, but a return to the cellar is the most likely projection this one.