Byline: TIM WILKIN Staff writer
One letter came into the basketball offices at Siena College Wednesday and its contents confirmed what Paul Hewitt already knew: Michael Buhrman, a 6-foot-8, 235-pound forward will play his college basketball in Loudonville.
It was hoped that another letter would come, but there was no fax from a 6-6 guard named Prosper Karangwa from Montreal. That letter could come today or the player might decide to play elsewhere.
Hewitt can't comment on a player he hasn't received a national letter-of-intent from. That period started Wednesday and ends on Nov. 18.
Buhrman is from Chambersburg High School in Pennsylvania. He gave a verbal commitment to Siena last month. He gave the commitment after his official visit to the school; Siena was the only place he visited.
``Michael is a big, strong kid,'' Hewitt said Wednesday night. ``He likes to play physical around the basket and that is the kind of player we are looking for. He also has an ability to shoot the ball and has pretty good range. He's a hard-working kid.''
Buhrman averaged 9.3 points and 6.4 rebounds for Chambersburg last season.
That leaves Hewitt with two scholarships to play with, and Karangwa could be a player that takes one, maybe as early as today. However, sources in Canada said the player cannot make up his mind where he wants to go -- either Siena or Radford University in Virginia.
Other players the Saints have looked at include Justin Wilson, a 6-foot guard, and Uka Agbai, a 6-7 forward. Both are from Archbishop Molloy in Queens and both visited the campus. Banged up: It wasn't a pretty sight at the Alumni Recreation Center Wednesday as Siena was losing players left and right to injury.
Sophomore guard Scott Knapp went down with an ankle injury, freshman forward James Clinton was on crutches after straining his right Achilles' heel, and junior forward Jim Cantamessa was sidelined with a sore back.
With the season set to start Saturday, Hewitt says he doesn't think Clinton will play but expects Knapp and Cantamessa to be in the lineup when the Saints play at Bethune-Cookman.
``I'm not worried about it,'' Hewitt said. ``The guys that are ready will step up and play. You can't use injuries as an excuse if you lose any time.'' Opener not easy: It would seem that Siena has nothing to worry about as it travels to Daytona Beach, Fla., to play Bethune-Cookman in its season opener Saturday. The Wildcats are coming off a 1-26 season. After winning its first game last year, Bethune-Cookman dropped the rest of its games. Going into this season, coach Horace Broadnax (yes, the same guy who played at Georgetown) has a team rated 310th out of 314 teams playing Division I basketball by the Sporting News. Siena is ranked as the 95th best team in the country.
``This is a dangerous game for us,'' Hewitt said.
Dangerous indeed. Last season is over. The Wildcats haven't lost any games this year and will be primed for a big effort in the opener.
At least one: The Saints figure to see one big name at Moore Gymnasium on Saturday. Former North Carolina Tar Heel Vince Carter, the fifth pick in this year's NBA draft (Toronto Raptors) lives in Daytona Beach. With the NBA lockout, Carter has a lot of time on his hands.
Before going to North Carolina, he was recruited a little bit by Hewitt, who was an assistant at Villanova.
``We weren't going to get him,'' Hewitt said. ``He eliminated us early. It was Carolina, Duke and Florida. But we've seen each other and we've talked. I talked to him and told him about our game. He said he was going to come. He doesn't have anything else to do.'' Holiday plans: Siena is spending part of the Christmas holiday season in California when the Saints play in the Pepperdine Tournament with Rhode Island and Eastern Michigan. Other MAAC schools going for a Christmas vacation include Canisius (at the Montana State tournament with Colorado and Boston University); Iona (at the ECAC Holiday Festival with Hofstra, Georgia Tech and Penn); Niagara (at the Capitol City Classic in Tallahasse, Fla., with Radford, Jacksonville and Florida A&M) and Rider (at the Dr. Pepper Classic in Tennessee with Tennessee-Chattanooga, Samford and Hampton).
