Bears face Wildcats in tourney UMaine must guard UNH 3-point threats

Back on Feb. 14, the University of Maine men’s basketball team got an unsavory Valentine’s Day present from New Hampshire as the Wildcats buried long-range shot after long-range shot.

UNH finished with a school-record 17 3-pointers on 23 tries and drubbed the Bears 87-69 at Alfond Arena.

On Saturday, the Black Bears get a rematch against the Wildcats in the quarterfinal round of the America East tournament. The game will begin at approximately 8:30 p.m. The tourney’s semifinal round is set for Sunday afternoon, while the championship game is March 9 on the home court of the highest remaining seed.

Maine coach John Giannini doesn’t expect the Wildcats to shoot that well this time around. But he’s still concerned about UNH’s perimeter prowess.

“The thing that’s become very difficult about UNH now is they like to put five players out there who can all shoot,” Giannini said.

That tactic constitutes a change from another style of play the Wildcats have implemented. That style, too, has worried Giannini in the past.

“In the past I’ve been concerned about their pressure, but since they’ve shortened up their rotation and they’re trying to play their three seniors as much as possible, that’s less of a factor in the game,” Giannini said.

The Wildcats are led by seniors Chris Brown and Austin Ganly of North Yarmouth, who played his high school ball at Greely of Cumberland Center, and sophomore guard Marcus Bullock.

Brown is only 6-foot-4, but he is the league’s top rebounder at 10.1 per game. He’s also scoring at a 13.7 ppg clip.

Giannini said those three Wildcats will get plenty of attention from his Black Bears.

“I think a lot of it comes down how Errick [Greene], Derrick [Jackson] and Rickey [White] defend Bullock, Ganly and Brown,” Giannini said. “It’s as simple as that. Those guys are very good players, but we have some good defenders to put on them.”

Jackson will guard Bullock, while Greene matches up against Brown and White will battle Ganly. White and Ganly played AAU ball together as high school stars.

When UMaine has the ball, they’ll likely have to find a way to get the ball inside against a pesky UNH zone.

In a midseason win at Durham, N.H., the Bears attacked that zone by tossing lobs to Greene at the foul line. The 6-3 swingman would then turn and either drive or dish the ball down low.

In Orono, that tactic didn’t work as well, and it proved costly.

“We have to do whatever we can to get the ball inside,” Giannini said. “I expect them to play a lot of zone like they did last time. We were trying to do some things a little bit differently to make sure we get the ball inside no matter what.”

If the Bears succeed in getting the ball inside, good things could result: 7-footer Justin Rowe, an all-conference, first-team pick, could have a big game, but perimeter players would benefit as well, Giannini said.

“The best 3-point shot is the one out of the kick-outs from the paint,” Giannini said. “No matter who you are, that’s the easiest one, because your feet are set, your shoulders are square, you’re looking at the basket, you catch the ball, you’re wide-open, you don’t have to dribble it.”

The problem: Maine’s best 3-point shooter – Bangor’s Joe Campbell – will miss the entire tourney with mononucleosis.

Giannini says the absence of Campbell and his 49.4-percent shooting accuracy from beyond the 3-point stripe will put the pressure on other Black Bears.

“Some of those other players, like Todd [Tibbetts] and Freddy [Petkus], who have also had good games, need to have good games right now. It’s as simple as that,” Giannini said.

Tibbetts, a senior from Windsor, is shooting 28 percent on 3-pointers, while Petkus is shooting 30 percent.