Off The Boards by Jack Scheuer – November 18, 2015 Edition

The first week of the new season saw some interesting moments among the City 6 teams, and even though it is extremely early, there are some points worth mentioning, so here we go.

Villanova, ranked #11 in the nation, has shown it has even more depth than last year’s excellent team, and highly-touted freshman guard Jalen Brunson looks to be as good as advertised.  Arcidiacono and company should keep the Wildcats among the elite all season.  Temple hung tough with # 1 North Carolina, but were wore down in the second half.  Devin Coleman provided  offense, and the Owls got decent performances from freshmen Levan Shawn Alston, Jr., Trey Lowe and Ernie Aflakpui, but missed 6-9 Obi Enechionyia, out with an ankle injury.  St.Joe’s looks like it has an excellent prospect in freshman Checco Oliva, a 6-7 point forward from Italy, and will count on junior DeAndre’ Bembry to continue to show his talents in what looks to be his last season on Hawk Hill.  La Salle will again look to junior Jordan Price to carry the scoring load, with Johnnie Shuler and Cleon Roberts adding some offense.  The Explorers will miss bigs Steve Zack and Jerrell Wright, but hope newcomers Dusan Majstorovic and Yevgen Sakhniuk will contribute.  They’ll certainly fill up the box score.  Penn coach Steve Donahue has instituted a “threes or layups” offense which the players, especially Sam (Trey) Jones seem to like. The sophomore has hit on 10 of 21 from long range, and is averaging 22 points per game.  Drexel had a real setback when Damion Lee transferred to Louisville, but Tavon Allen is a real scoring threat, and freshman guard Terrell Allen (DeMatha) looks like an excellent prospect.  The Dragons showed their usual grit by scoring 8 points in the last 32 seconds in their one point loss to St.Joe’s.

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 Good Things happen to good people department:  Former Hawk Langston Galloway, who some thought would not make it in the NBA, is having a very productive season with the New York Knicks.  He’s leading the team in 3-point shooting and playing major minutes.  He’s also one of the classiest young men ever to have played in the Big 5.

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Trivia Time: Who holds the NCAA record for most consecutive games scoring in double figures? Answer at the end of the column.

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This and That: Nice boost for the A-10 when George Washington knocked off highly ranked Virginia on its home court….Chester’s Bo Ryan has had 15 straight winning seasons at Wisconsin.  The Big 10 record is 16 is held by Purdue….Lehigh’s 6-10 center Tim Kempton is the grandson of Vince, who played at St.Joe’s in the 60’s….It will be interesting to see how former LaSalle player Jeff Neubauer does as Fordham’s new coach….Sophomore Parker Jackson-Cartwright is the starting point guard at Arizona. He’s the younger brother of Penn’s Miles, now playing in Germany….Steve Vasturia, from St.Joe’s Prep, is a big factor in why Notre Dame is being ranked in the top 20….Best name in Division 1 could be 6-10 Maryland center Diamond Stone.

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 Answer to Trivia Time: La Salle great Lionel Simmons had 115 straight double figure games.