2023-24 Preview: Eagles Readying To Give 'Em The Boot

Head coach Earl Grant and guard Chas Kelley III at practice at the Hoag Basketball Pavilion

Photo by: Eddie Shabomardenly

2023-24 Preview: Eagles Readying To Give 'Em The Boot

October 31, 2023 | Men's Basketball, #ForBoston Files

Men's Basketball is back as BC readies for Game One against Fairfield

By: Dan Rubin, BCEagles.com contributor

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. -- Earl Grant stepped onto a basketball court this past summer hoping to share some valuable time with his son at the Boston College Father/Son camp. He understood the importance of sharing anything with his children at a time when the average teenager spends more time confined to a mobile device or electronic screen, and the purity of competing against his kids brought out the best in his family's dynamics. Whatever it would foment - a high-scoring, tough basketball game or the love of the sport or even a little bit of trash talk - was second to an irreplaceable memory for a family that's grown up around the game.

Yet all it took was one split second for Grant to face a second reality. "I loaded up to go for the rebound, but I never left the ground."

Pop. Achilles. Days away from a trip to Italy with his Boston College program, he looked forward to visiting a country shaped like a boot. He might've even thought about buying boots made from the rich, local leather, but he never expected to wear a different kind of boot on the flight and throughout the team's 10-day European trip.

Three months later, the sign of Grant's Achilles injury still exists in the form of a walking boot, but his transition and physical rehabilitation is serving his Eagles with a full circle identity to the shift within the program. Now less than a week from their season opener against Fairfield, the thought of Grant not standing in full defensive posture in the coach's area instead stamps the overarching differences for a program seeking the next level of its own hardwood development.

"I've had to make adjustments by default," he said with a smirk. "With the Achilles injury, what I've done is spend more time letting my staff talk about things that we necessarily need to get done in practice. I've actually taken a bird's eye view a little bit more, and what I discovered was that you can see more when nobody's standing behind you. You can see more from the sidelines. It's a cliche phrase, but now that I've had this situation, I'm seeing the game more."

It would make sense for BC to harbor heightened expectations in its third year under Grant's new program. The Eagles that finished 13th in his first year were an overtime basket away from advancing to the conference semifinals, and his second year saw not only an increase in the team's overall win total, but nine victories in ACC play - including three over nationally ranked opponents. If not for a plague of early season injuries and untimely losses, BC was a few missed opportunities in November from a shot at the National Invitation Tournament.

Four starters return from last year's roster, but translating the team's overall construction into the league's newfound parity didn't exactly translate to popular opinion. Even at a time when every team expects to turn over its roster against the transfer portal and the number of opportunities dotting the Division I landscape, BC found itself in the preseason poll as the 12th place team while the usual suspects - Duke, Miami, North Carolina, Virginia, Clemson, and others - all placed ahead of the overlooked squad in Chestnut Hill.

"I don't love it," Grant admitted. "I think we've got good players doing some good things, but I don't get to vote on that for myself. Every year, the poll has us pretty low, so we'll just keep working at it and focus on the non-conference to try to be as good as we can be with our time before that second season. We know it's a fight on every corner, so I'm also not going to really dwell on it."

There are good reasons for BC to harbor that bit of confidence entering the year. Quinten Post is the first preseason All-ACC honoree since Ky Bowman in 2018-19 team, and his numbers tallied unicorn-like totals for a seven-foot player with a scoring clip that included over 50 percent from the field, 42 percent from outside and 86 percent from the free throw line despite being limited by an injury throughout the first half of the season.

His return after flirting with the NBA Draft gives the Eagles a top-flight big man in a league known for its post presences and his positive health anchors a front court that allows forward Devin McGlockton to float back into a power forward position. Having him on the low block then places Prince Aligbe back at the small forward position, which in turn will enable the backcourt combination of Jaeden Zackery and Mason Madsen to rotate more freely with more handlers who can all move and play either the physical game at the rim or the step-back shot game.

"We have nine returning players, which is rare in the era of the transfer portal," Grant said. "Somebody told me at the ACC meetings that there are only two teams with that many returners, and Boston College is one of them. It's been pretty refreshing because there are times in practice that before I can teach a play or teach the scheme, the older guys might do it before I teach it. So there's a great understanding of what we're trying to do because of the continuity."

Maintaining an intact roster made it easier for Grant to tinker with the intangibles surrounding the team without upsetting the apple cart. He compensated for specific departure of Makai Ashton-Langford by recruiting transfer scorer Claudell Harris Jr. from Charleston Southern, as well as freshman Fred Payne - a tough, rugged guard out of Louisiana by way of the Texas high school circuit. Fresh-faced frontcourt recruits Jayden Hastings and Elijah Strong also expect to challenge for time on a daily basis on the practice court at the newly minted Hoag Basketball Pavilion.

"We've always been gritty and I think we still have to do that. Boston College, in general, is a gritty place. It's a tough man's place, it's a worker's place, and it's for a fighter," Grant said. "We can't lose that this is a fighter's place because you need to have a fighter's mentality in this league. I do think that this is one of the better offensive teams, so I hope we can stay gritty while we're building a high-powered offense."

Having that general understanding is why BC is already jelling in advance of its season opener, with Fairfield's season opener serving as a reminder of the importance of early season games. The losses to New Hampshire and Maine arguably cost the Eagles a postseason berth last year before the Tarleton State loss sent BC into a tournament consolation game against Wyoming in the U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam before the conference schedule ended one game short of a ninth-place finish. Flipping any two or three of those games would have given the team 18 or 19 wins, which in turn would have probably been good enough for a postseason run.

"Some of it are things that we can't control," Grant said. "We had a lot of guys out of those games - that was the first time I ever experienced having four really good, impact players out of one game. So with the good Lord's help, we will deal with that, but we're going to take those games one game at a time and not to take anybody for granted."

BC opens the 2023-24 campaign on November 6 against Fairfield at Conte Forum. Tipoff versus the Stags is set for 8 pm and is part of a season-opening doubleheader with the women's basketball team, which hosts Holy Cross at 5 p.m. Kids 12 and younger receive free admission to both contests and parking is free. Additionally, the first 500 students that arrive at the men's game will receive GRITTY hard hats. Hot dogs are $2 and concessions (alcohol excluded) prior to both games are half-price.

Full season ticket plans, mini-plans, group seating, and single-game tickets are now on sale. For more information, visit the Men's Basketball Ticket Central Page on BCEagles.com,

The game can also be seen on the ACC Network Extra via ESPN's online platform of streaming apps with radio coverage available via the BC Learfield IMG Sports Network, locally in Boston on WEEI 850 AM.