Headin' west

The Bonnies leave for New Mexico today where the team will take part in the Basketball Travelers Invitational this weekend. First up is Loyola Marymount with tip off scheduled for 5:00 tomorrow afternoon. I've got to predict victory for the Brown and White here as the Lions are picked to finish last in the West Coast Conference this year. LMU is already off to an 0-2 start, 0-3 counting exhibition. Their schedule includes losses to powerhouse programs like Cal State Dominguez Hills, UC Irvine and Arkansas-Little Rock, who beat the Lions by 31 on Monday night. They appear to be a team looking for contributors-- no one on the Lions roster played over 23 minutes in Monday's loss. SBU will have to use its speed from guys like Fereti, Haley, Lee and Eleby to combat LMU's big lineup- they have five guys 6'9'' or taller, including 7'0'' center Max Craig.

Next up is New Mexico and to predict a win for the Bonnies here might be a bit ambitious. The Lobos, picked third in the pre-season Mountain West rankings (a league growing in strength each season), are enjoying the honeymoon period with their own new coach, Steve Alford. By the way, it looks like New Mexico updated their logo this year. How ugly is this thing? The Pit is a tough place to play, so it would be nice just to see SBU keep it close.

A matchup against Presbyterian follows on Sunday in what is another very winnable game for the new look Bonnies. I'm not an expert on Presbyterian's program, but I've got to say the nickname "Blue Hose" doesn't strike fear in my heart. The Hose are 0-2on the year following a loss to Radford (picked last in the Big South which has Winthrop and....not much else) Wednesday at home.

Three of our own staffers will be making the trip to New Mexico to keep you posted on the Bonnies efforts. Two wins from this trip would be really nice and set a strong tone for the non-conference schedule.

-Scott Eddy, BV Online Director