The highest point of all was the play of first year guard Al McClain. McClain led New Hampshire in scoring, minutes played, assists, oohs and ahs from the fans and just about every other department the guard could handle.  McClain is a Die Hard that loves to go to the hole and is not out of place in sticky situations.  It was midnight in Montgomery when this 6’2 kid was born and the question is how did he end up in Durham?  Did he think he going to be a Blue Devil? Well, apparently he saw the opportunity to play right away and knows he has a chance to be the best player ever to lace them up for New Hampshire.  Well, he might not have saved New Hampshire basketball but he sure made the most of the mess he was in and showed he does belong in D-1, though some might argue whether or not this program does indeed belong at this level.  He has a way to go on his jump shot to get to the elite but this fearless competitor will take on anyone at anytime and anywhere.  If Coach Friel had about five more of this spark plug the history of this program might improve in a hurry.  McClain is a go getter and the team rotates around him.  But alas one man cannot do everything on his own.

Junior Dave Pemberton gave the team consistency and solid minutes but not exactly spectacular play in the post.  He teamed with seniors Nick Mandravelis and Pete Smilikis up front for most of the year.  This trio split most of the minutes in the paint and to be honest they were overmatched almost every night.  Still, on a team looking for any help they can get in a storm, this group was not the wettest thing in New Hampshire.  Pemberton is not much of a scorer but he is a good board guy and at 6’5 is way too small for center play, even in the American East.  Smilikis is also 6’5 and Mandravelis the Magnificent (he does seem to pull rabbits out of his hat) is 6’4. This team could use some size down low but nobody else on the returning roster is above 6’8 and that trio of dudes barely got saw time on the varsity but did a couple of them played well on the JV team.  Junior Peter Laskaris started at the small forward and had a productive year.  Fellow Junior Wayne Morrison also had a productive year at the point albeit after losing his starting job to McClain.  He was still the best passer on the team and got plenty of minutes.  Morrison was second on the team in assists and Laskaris the same in rebounding though he almost beat out Pemberton.  They do have two more years of eligibility but with the upcoming freshman who showed promise and the expected change in coaching (though we have said this before about Freil and he seems to find a way to survive every year) they can expect a decrease in minutes.  Juniors Eric Feragne and Keith Dickson battled Morrison for the point position early on but by the end McLain was handling that responsibility as well.  These two split starts on the JV and can play and not strangely point guard is the deepest position on the roster.  These juniors are workaholic gym rats who love to play but McClain brings the kind of athleticism and quickness they dream to have. 

Sophomore guard Robin Dixon does bring some skills to the table and showed them more and more as the season progressed and he became more in favor of Coach Friel.  Dixon is a scorer who can drive or hit feathery jump shots.  He does have work to do on the defensive end but by the end of the year he was a double-digit scorer based primarily on his work and his ability to run the court.  He is not a great player by any means but he does bring it every night.  Dixon and McClain connected ala Samuel L DH 2 and would not be surprised to see this duo starting next to each other for the next 3 years in Durham. 

 Sophomore big man Dan Nolan gave New Hampshire some much needed beef inside if not exactly the kind of offensive weapons one is looking for in the post.  Nolan, who is huge for these parts at 6’7, does show some promise on the blocks at times and will push for a starting role this season   A group of Seniors were pushed out as Friel went with youth (how bad were these guys?) to get some energy and new faces early on.  Foremost of these was Jim Rich (at least he had the coolest name) who was once the leading scorer in Durham. This 6’3 kid is great at getting to the hole and drawing fouls but as you can see was nowhere big enough for D-1.  Phillip Blum is another 6’5 guy who never really developed here but showed signs.  He might have a shot at some clean-up minutes next year if he wants to hang around.  Billy Pappas was another senior pushed out as he was nowhere near big enough for the paint.  Juniors Brandon Van Deventer does have a chance at some real minutes after a solid year on the JV.  He has some size at 6’8 and improved dramatically from his freshman year.  Fellow junior Tom ‘Ed’ Cavanaugh and sophomore Dirk Koopman are the other two 6’8 guys but they need a lot more seasoning to be able to hang even in the AMEC. Greg Steele is another JV kid looking to move up.  He goes 6’7 but plays more of a wing but has a realistic chance of getting some real minutes.   

Another lackluster year haunted the team from New Hampshire.  Fans of Durham will repeat the longstanding plea of ‘wait til next year’ but as they all well know next year is not just around the corner for New Hampshire.  Coach Gerry Friel must have some pictures of the President of the University in some compromising positions because somehow he keeps his job even with all of the losing.  Of course, New Hampshire is not exactly a hotbed of college hoops and recruits are not exactly knocking down the doors to get here.  Still, things have to get better in Durham.  Don’t they?