CHESTNUT HILL - It's go time. Boston College opens the 2011-12 season with a home game against the New Hampshire Wildcats tonight at 7 p.m. EDT (Radio: 93.7 FM/850 AM WEEI).
Boston College hasn't traditionally had problems with UNH, owning a 22-6 advantage in the all-time series. BC has won the last 11 games dating back to 1987 against UNH in a series that dates back to 1906. The Wildcats have been especially fruitless at Conte Forum, losing 17 in a row at the home of the Eagles. The last meeting between the two teams was in 2007 and the last time the Wildcats won was in 1986 when they beat the Eagles, 51-49.
BC opens the year with a lot of questions surrounding it, mostly due to the fact that it is only returning four players from a season ago and features a roster with nine freshman on it. The Eagles will likely feature a starting lineup composed of freshmen Ryan Anderson, Dennis Clifford and Patrick Heckmann to go along with Matt Humphrey and John Cahill.
UNH has already played one game this season, beating Suffolk, 85-64. Alvin Abreu led the WIldcats in scoring with 19points and Brian Benson had a monster game with 17 points and 16 rebounds. Chandler Rhoads added 18 points for UNH, which made 33-of-62 shots from the floor (46.3 percent) and 6-of-13 threes (46.2 percent).
With a young team like BC, it's hard to predict the outcome of this game, seeing as the majority of the roster is playing in a college game for the first time ever. With that being said, one would think BC would be able to take care of a lesser team like the Wildcats. Look for Clifford, Humphrey and Heckmann to carry most of the scoring load.
Prediction: Boston College 62, New Hampshire 54.
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