By Mike Hogan, Staff Writer
The St. Bonaventure men’s basketball team is riding a seven-game win streak into its biggest game of the year. This will arguably be the team’s biggest home game at the Reilly Center in the last decade, against the 16th-ranked University of Rhode Island Rams.
A big reason why the stage has been set for Friday’s game is the recent play of Bonnies senior point guard, Jaylen Adams.
Over the course of this win streak, Adams has often found himself scorching hot. He’s had two 40-plus point performances in back-to-back games against Duquense University and St. Louis University, where he shot 14-18 from the field and 10-13 from three. He has scored a total of 168 points and 93 of those have come from beyond the arc.
While Adams has been on a tear himself, his backcourt counterpart, senior guard Matt Mobley hasn’t been too shabby either. Adams and Mobley are known by some as one of the best back court combinations in all of college basketball.
“Obviously we definitely feed off each other,” said Adams. “I think we complement each other on the court. Matt is unselfish and a relentless scorer. I think whenever he gets going, or I get going, we feed off of each other’s energy.”
Over the course of Adams’ four years in for the Brown and White, he has played a lot of great basketball, but even he has a hard time denying the fact he is in the midst of the best stretch of his career.
“I got hurt early and had to battle back; it’s been a long process this season,” said Adams. “I would say that this is the best basketball I have played. I understand that it is my senior year, and I am giving it all I’ve got.”
The Bonnies stumbled out of the gate in Atlantic 10 play. After a 2-4 start to conference play, the Bonnies needed answers, and the team needed to find a way to resurrect its NCAA tournament hopes. Over the last seven games, through the play of Adams and a few key defensive adjustments, the Bonnies have been able to string wins together and have renewed their image.
“I would say defense. It’s hard to win on the road when you’re not defending, and that is one of the biggest things we worked on after we lost to Davidson on the road,” said Adams. “We are just locked in, and we are tougher now and communicate better on defense. That’s been the biggest difference.”
With Rhode Island coming to town tonight, Adams’ focus turned to the big game ahead. The Rams are a very deep and physical team, according to Adams. The team will surely keep the Bonnies busy on Friday. Adams gave his input on what the Bonnies need to do to stop the Rams.
“Their depth is probably their best attribute,” said Adams. “We need to get their guys in foul trouble and just stay aggressive the whole game.”
As a ranked team comes to town, so does the hype. Adams is certainly no stranger to a big game in the RC, and he mentioned that some of his favorite moments during his career here at Bonaventure have come when the RC is electric.
“It’s going to be rocking. Students are going to be in full force,” said Adams. “Top-25 game, a white out, a sell-out crowd. The energy is going to be crazy. These moments have probably been the best part of my Bonaventure career.”
Adams certainly played a big role in the Bonnies mid-season surge, but he also made it clear that he isn’t the only reason for it either. With a tougher defense, a few huge games for Adams and teammates, such as Matt Mobley, Adams said he is able to feed off of, the Bonnies have turned it around.
