1 Will UMBC be able to make a run at a second straight America East title?
It won’t be easy. The Retrievers (8-10, 2-4) are seventh place and 2 1/2 games behind league-leading Binghamton (12-7, 5-2) entering today game at Albany (11-7, 3-2). The Retrievers’ run to the NCAA Tournament was one of the area’s biggest stories of the year, but this year’s team just may not be as good. The Retrievers have lost two straight and three of their past four and have failed to reach 50 points in two of their past four games. The team features just two players who average at least 10 points per game — senior forward Darryl Proctor (19) and senior guard Jay Greene (11.4). The team that flourished from beyond the three-point arc a year ago is hitting just 33.3 percent of attempts this season. The Retrievers have a chance to make up some ground this week, with visiting RAC Arena Wednesday, before UMBC visits last-place Stony Brook (9-9, 1-4) on Saturday.
2 Will any team stop Kevin Thompson?
The Morgan State redshirt freshman forward was named the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Rookie of the Week for the third time. The 6-foot-8, 235-pounder is averaging 9 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. He also leads the Bears (9-9, 4-1) with 18 blocks, and he had double-doubles in victories against Bethune-Cookman (16 points, 12 rebounds) and Maryland (10 points, 13 rebounds). Thompson was a standout at Walbrook, where he averaged 17.6 points and 11.2 rebounds per game before redshirting the 2007-08 season at Morgan. The Bears played Howard (3-14, 2-3) last night, and host Hampton (9-8, 3-1) Monday at Hill Field House at 7:30 p.m. before beginning a four-game road trip.
The Morgan State redshirt freshman forward was named the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Rookie of the Week for the third time. The 6-foot-8, 235-pounder is averaging 9 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. He also leads the Bears (9-9, 4-1) with 18 blocks, and he had double-doubles in victories against Bethune-Cookman (16 points, 12 rebounds) and Maryland (10 points, 13 rebounds). Thompson was a standout at Walbrook, where he averaged 17.6 points and 11.2 rebounds per game before redshirting the 2007-08 season at Morgan. The Bears played Howard (3-14, 2-3) last night, and host Hampton (9-8, 3-1) Monday at Hill Field House at 7:30 p.m. before beginning a four-game road trip.
3. Is Monday Tywain McKee’s night?
The Coppin State guard entered yesterday’s game against Hampton needing just 37 points to become the school’s all-time leading scorer. McKee scored 23 points against Bethune-Cookman to climb closer to the career mark of 1,939 points. McKee, who averages 18.6 points per game, is on pace to break the record on Monday night 7:30 against Howard (3-14, 2-3 MEAC) at Coppin Center. If McKee, who is on track to be the first player in school history to lead Coppin State (3-15, 1-4) in scoring four straight seasons, doesn’t beak the record on Monday, he’ll likely accomplish the feat on Saturday at Delaware State (4-15, 2-2).
