It’s always disappointing when your favorite team’s season ends earlier than it should, but for some reason, last night’s loss by Saint Joseph’s to George Washington - a loss that could very well keep the Hawks out of postseason play (the NIT could still very well come knocking) - can’t be seen as much of a surprise. For months, the Hawks have confused and frustrated their followers; the season may have come complete with a cardboard Foghorn Leghorn cutout declaring “I say, I say, you must be at least THIS tall to ride this ride). And last night’s game summarized everything about these Hawks that has infuriated me throughout the season. As a matter of fact, I came up with a game specifically designed for this team: let’s see how many ways you can complete the sentence “The problem with this team is…”

…shooting. You can’t go far if your entire team is full of streaky scorers. There are too many opportunities for them to all go into a funk. More to the point, there are too many players on this team who won’t shoot, particularly Rob Ferguson. He didn’t take a shot in the first half last night, and passed up open shots in the second half. For as talented a scorer as he is, this is unacceptable.

…fundamentals. I can count on one hand the number of players who followed through on their passes last night instead of throwing a wild, weak pass that more often than not wound up in the hands of a Colonial.

…leadership, in that there is none. Not every team can have a Jameer Nelson, but there has to be somebody who will take control of games, fire up his teammates, and score in bunches when he needs to. Against Temple Wednesday night, and in a few other situations, it was Jawan Carter. Once or twice, it was Pat Calathes. But there needs to be someone to do this consistently.

…chemistry. Phil Martelli’s teams have always been better in February than in December. Until this year. Needing to rely on four freshmen to basically run the team, there was no player with enough experience to teach the others.

It could go on an on like this. But there’s one thing that stands out. The problem with this team…

…is that they’re all back next year.

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