By Jeff Fasoldt, @Jeff_Fasoldt
The Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens are 0-10 with a few tough three/four point losses on their résumé so far. They are desperate to get a ‘W’ on the board as they take on the St. Bonaventure University Bonnies at the Bob Carpenter Center Tuesday night at 7.
The St. Bonaventure Bonnies men’s basketball team will look to bounce back after a tough loss to Maryland-Eastern Shore a week ago at the Reilly Center that dropped the Bonnies record to 7-3 with losses coming to Siena, Pitt and Maryland-Eastern Shore so far.
A-10 play begins January third against UMass, so it’s important Bonnies head coach, Mark Schmidt, has all the kinks worked out of his young team as the battles begin.
Delaware is desperate and this could be a “trap game” for the brown and white with the big game against UMass right around the corner.
Here’s a full breakdown for the game Tuesday night:
The Coaches:
St. Bonaventure- Mark Schmidt. 114-112 as Bonnies head coach.
Delaware- Monté Ross. 115-141 as Blue Hens head coach
Key players for the Blue Hens:
Kyle Anderson- 6-3 senior guard. Has only played in three games for the Blue Hens this season but has been strong averaging 17.7 points per game and is shooting it well from beyond the arc at 33 percent. He ranked third in University of Delaware history in three pointers coming into the season with 215.
Cazmon Hayes- 6-4 sophomore guard. Has played all ten games for Delaware this season and has strong numbers at 13.9 points per game, 33 percent from three-point range and is averaging 3.4 rebounds per game. Hayes leads the Hens with 10 steals on the season.
Key to victory for the Blue Hens:
Control the tempo. Bonaventure is a team that likes to run and get up and down the court. They will trap you, go for steals, do pretty much anything to force you to turn the ball over or set their team up for a fast-break. The Blue Hens will have to slow it down, set up their offense and hit open shots, which they’ve done all season despite their record.
Keys to victory for Bonaventure:
Don’t overlook the Hens. This Delaware team is 0-10 but that doesn’t matter at all. They’ve been missing two of their best players in Marvin King-Davis and Kyle Anderson to start the year and they now have them back. They only lost their last game at Robert Morris by three and they are desperate for a win and out for blood. Remember, this is a team that won the Colonial Athletic Association last year and advanced to the NCAA tournament.
My prediction: Bonaventure’s size wins this one for Mark Schmidt in a battle that will be surprisingly close to a lot of people, 66-59.
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