Basketball
DiMAURO: The (second most) improbable BC victory of all time?
It feels almost counterintuitive to suggest that another season of misery could have ever produced something so genuinely – and positively – historic. And maybe, because we’re all in a snit about this emerging as the 16th straight season with no NCAA men’s basketball tournament for Boston College, we simply can’t appreciate Saturday’s miracle at Conte Forum with the appropriate spirit.
But scoring 15 points in the last 58 seconds to upset Florida State was more than an oasis amid more desolation. It was very likely the second most improbable sports victory in BC’s history, behind only Flutie to Phelan. Not “improbable” as in the Eags pulled the upset, but “improbable” as in the way it transpired.
(No, this isn’t being typed after a three martini lunch. I really believe it.)
Know why? I wasn’t watching live. Full disclosure: The Dartmouth loss at home – a few days after BC beat Boise State and won three games in the Cayman Islands – finally broke me. In the “I just can’t take it anymore” sense. I haven’t watched a game live since. If something’s worth seeing, I’ll play it back on DVR. Otherwise, wake me up when there’s a new regime here that offers us hope.
And if you view that as whiny or negative, you may be correct. But I (we) have watched this for 16 straight years now. This is a program about which I care deeply. Hell, I emptied the bank account at the time in 1994 to fly on one day’s notice to Miami for the Elite Eight game. I just can’t devote any more emotional energy to something so perpetually aggravating when I also understand its potential.
But I digress.
I happened to view a text chain with all my BC guys just after the FSU game ended, coincidentally enough. It spelled out the miracle comeback with their usual pithy commentary. I checked my phone. BC 77, FSU 76. Final. Funny, too, how because it had just gone final, the win probability numbers hadn’t been updated. BC’s win probability was still in single digits.
So then I went to the DVR to watch the final five minutes. Here’s the miracle part: BC played so badly down the stretch at times, I honestly asked myself if my friends were part of a cosmic April Fools’ joke two months early.
I said more than once out loud to nobody in particular, “Wait. We actually WON this game?”
Even announcers Jon Meterparel and Eric Devendorf (who were very entertaining) shared some criticisms of the BC offensive structure, or lack thereof, as the Eags tried to rally their way back.
And so it’s 70-62 FSU with 58 seconds left. Again, I checked the phone again just to make sure of the final score. The idea that the Eagles, who aren’t exactly the ‘86 Celtics, were able to score 15 points in 58 seconds … 15 points in 58 seconds is a 600-point pace over a normal 40 minute game.
The best part turned out to be a video clip I saw on X of the last 10 seconds. BC’s social media/video team – second to none, by the way – offered the clip in slow motion. After Chas Kelley made the shot, Chad Venning’s reaction was priceless: He started to put both hands on his head, a mix of disbelief, shock and joy – but quickly lowered both his arms because he knew he had to go run back on defense.
The improbability of this particular team at that particular time pulling off such a stunner makes this a solid No. 2 for me behind Flutie to Phelan. That stays No. 1 because it has remained one of the most iconic plays in college football history, the game that changed BC’s future in myriad ways. Plus, the 1984 football team was actually good and finished fifth in the country. This basketball team might not finish 205th in the country.
Still, though, it was nice to be happy for a day or two. Watching Carolina/Duke and then Kentucky/Arkansas later Saturday and seeing the BC score across the bottom of the screen (with an explanation of the last 10 seconds) allowed us to actually join the fraternity for a day.
I hope one day soon, happier days are coming. But for now, much in the spirit that Rick and Ilsa would “always have Paris” in that classic scene in Casablanca, we’ll always have Chas Kelley and 15 points in 58 seconds. Hey, it’s something.
Mike DiMauro, a columnist in Connecticut, is a contributor to Eagles Daily and a member of BC’s Class of 1990. He may be reached at m.dimauro@theday.com or @BCGenius
Basketball
Boston College lands one of nation’s top rebounders in Brandon Benjamin, along with former Charleston forward Colby Duggan
Boston College received two more transfer commitments this weekend in Brandon Benjamin and Colby Duggan. Benjamin and Duggan join Money Williams, Ernest Shelton and JB Frankel as the fourth and fifth transfers to commit to Luke Murray and BC this offseason. The Eagles now have seven players on their roster, including international signing Zak Smrekar and Jack Bailey, the only BC player from last year not to enter the portal.
Benjamin, a 6-foot-8 forward from Newark, N.J., played his only collegiate season last year at Fairfield University. The rising sophomore was named to the 2025-26 MAAC All-Rookie Team and All-MAAC Second Team after averaging 14.2 points, 10.2 rebounds and 1.6 blocks while shooting 56.5% from the field. Benjamin ranked first in the MAAC and eighth in the country in rebounds per game and second in the country in offensive rebounds per game (4.25).
“What made me pick BC first was the coaching staff,” Benjamin told ZAGSBLOG on Sunday. “It really felt like family. I will bring my high motor, plus rebounding, finishing around the rim and taking guys off the dribble. [I also bring] my catch-and-shooting, pick-and-pop, my winning impact and my versatility with guarding 1-5 with the ability to block shots.”
Duggan, a 6-foot-7 forward from Monson, Mass., averaged 9.3 points, 2.4 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 19 games for Charleston last season after missing the first part of the year with an injury. He spent the previous two seasons at Campbell University and averaged 15.7 points and 3.3 rebounds on 34% shooting from 3-point range during the 2024-25 season.
“He competes on both ends of the court at all times,” former Charleston head coach and current USF head coach Chris Mack said. “He’s a warrior. He’s a winner. Defensively, Colby doesn’t back down. He guards well in the post and on the perimeter. Offensively, he led the conference in scoring and is just scratching the surface of what he can be as a mismatch.”
Benjamin should slot into the starting lineup as the power forward or a small-ball big thanks to his impressive rebounding ability, while Duggan comes to BC as a depth piece off the bench.
Basketball
Former Merrimack sharpshooter Ernest Shelton commits to Boston College
Guard Ernest Shelton announced his commitment to Boston College early Thursday night. The former Merrimack Warrior became the fourth transfer to commit to head coach Luke Murray and the Eagles, joining Zak Smrekar, Money Williams and JB Frankel. Shelton was named to the 2025-26 All-MAAC first team while helping lead the Warriors to a MAAC regular-season championship.
Shelton played two seasons at Gannon University in Erie, Pennsylvania, on the opposite side of the state from his hometown of Philadelphia, before transferring to Merrimack last offseason. The 6-foot-5 guard averaged 15.9 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.2 steals while shooting 34.6% from behind the 3-point line.
“[Shelton]’s a shooter,” Merrimack head coach Joe Gallo said. “Every time it comes out of his hand, you think it’s going in.”
Shelton knocked down 99 3-pointers for Merrimack last season and was among the top 40 in the country in 3-pointers made per game (2.9). He set a career high last season with nine 3-pointers in a game against Boston University and made five or more 3-pointers in six games.
The sharpshooter is a breath of fresh air for a Boston College program that finished last in the ACC in 3-point percentage last season.
Basketball
Boston College lands Zak Smrekar, Money Williams, and JB Frankel, first three transfer commitments of Luke Murray era
Boston College received its first three transfer commitments of the 2026 transfer portal cycle on Thursday in Zak Smrekar, Money Williams, and JB Frankel. Smrekar, Williams, and Frankel are the first three players to commit to BC since Luke Murray was named head coach on March 26 and join Jack Bailey as the only three players currently on the Eagles’ roster.
Smrekar is a 19-year-old, 6-foot-7 guard from Slovenia and was the first to commit to Murray. He played for the club Krka Novo Mesto in the Slovenian ABA for three seasons and averaged 9.8 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 15 games in the 2025-26 season. Smrekar also played for Slovenia in the 2025 FIBA U19 World Cup and averaged 16.1 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists in seven games.
Williams is a 20-year-old, 6-foot-4 guard who played the last three seasons for Montana. The Oakland, California, native was named to the 2025-26 All-Big Sky First Team after averaging 20.6 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game on 49.8% shooting from the field. Williams scored a career-high 40 points against Northern Colorado in the Big Sky Tournament, along with tallying six other 30-point games last season.
“I can’t come up with enough words to praise Money Williams properly,” Montana head coach Travis DeCuire said in October 2025. “When you talk about the young man that he is off the court, the young man he is when you bring him in the office, and you have real conversations with him and look him in the eye and talk about things that are hard to talk about.”
Frankel is a 21-year-old, 6-foot-3 guard who is not moving far, as he played the last three years at Northeastern. He started 13 of 30 games for the Huskies last season and averaged 5.9 points, 2 rebounds, and 1.9 assists. The New York City native scored a season-high 13 points in a road win against Harvard.
Coach Murray will have to continue to build up the Eagles roster, but with three guards being picked up, look for the Eagles to hone in on finding their starting forwards and big men.
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