July 2, 2013

This summer, GoTerriers.com is counting down the top 12 achievements of Boston University teams and student-athletes in 2012-13. Check back each Tuesday and Friday as we reveal this year's Terrier Twelve.

Coming in at No. 12 in this year's Terrier Twelve is the Boston University men's basketball team overcoming multiple obstacles to reach its third postseason tournament in four years. The season had several other highlights, including a six-game win streak and four Terriers earning All-Conference honors.

Entering his second year at the helm, head coach Joe Jones faced multiple challenges, including the graduation of six seniors and an America East tournament ban due to the move to the Patriot League. Without a single three-year letterman, the Terriers quickly demonstrated their youthfulness, opening the year with a five-game losing streak that featured three defeats by a combined six points.

However, led by the three junior captains, the upperclassmen quickly gelled with a freshmen class ranked as one of the best at the mid-major level by ESPN. BU followed up by winning five of the next six games with the lone loss coming at the hands of a buzzer beater. Posting a 17-13 record, the Terriers would later finish second in the America East standings at 11-5 and claim a spot in the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament.

During the conference slate, BU earned a sweep against both America East championship finalists Vermont and Albany with the Great Danes becoming the first-ever squad to win the title without beating the Terriers at least once.

BU concluded the season atop the conference rankings in field goal shooting percentage (.449) for the first time since 1994 and in assists (13.6 per game) for the first time since 2004. On the defensive end, the Terriers held nine straight non-conference opponents below 70 points, a feat last seen over 50 years ago.

Following the graduation of 2012 America East Player of the Year Darryl Partin, junior D.J. Irving became the team's go-to scorer. He claimed his first All-Conference First Team award along with Mid-Major All-America honors after averaging personal bests in scoring (14.2 ppg), rebounding (3.3 rpg) and steals (1.4 spg). He tallied more than 20 points on seven occasions, including a career-high 27 points at Binghamton behind seven 3-pointers.

Shooting 36.4 percent in 3-point territory during the regular season, Irving drained five treys at Albany, including two in the final nine seconds of regulation to send the game to overtime, and finished with 20 points in the victory. Other highlights include a career-high 10 rebounds against Maine and 24-point performances at both Rutgers and Harvard.

Another three-year starter, forward Dom Morris made a big leap forward to earn All-Conference Third Team accolades, nearly doubling his scoring output (11.6 ppg) from his sophomore season while leading the team in rebounding (6.4 rpg) for the first time. His field goal shooting percentage skyrocketed from 49.4 percent to 57.4 percent, which marked the highest mark by a Terrier since 1997 and the fourth highest since 1980.

The highly-touted freshman class did not disappoint with rookie Maurice Watson Jr. averaging 11.2 ppg, a league-high 5.4 apg and 3.3 rpg. A 5-foot-10 point guard, he tallied the most assists by a Terrier since 1990 with 13 at Binghamton and later followed up a points-rebounds (13p, 10r) double-double with a points-assists (11p, 10a) double-double. Leading the league in assists, he became the first player since John Holland ('11) to earn both All-AE Third Team and All-Rookie honors in the same year. He also received Mid-Major Freshman All-America accolades.

Another member of the All-Rookie squad, John Papale started the last 14 games of the season and led the league in 3-point shooting (.419) to finish the year with 65 treys. Averaging 9.3 ppg, he hit a game-tying 3-pointer with 5.4s left against Quinnipiac en route to 16 points and tallied a season-high 19 points at Vermont.

The Terriers' successful season helped head coach Joe Jones continue to build on the foundation by landing two transfers, including a four-star recruit from Wagner in Eric Fanning and a top-20 center from SMU in Blaise Mbargorba. They will join BU this fall with incoming freshmen Dylan Haines and Cedric Hankerson, who turned down offers from higher profile programs.