The Ewing Theory? With Logan Aronhalt hurt, Great Danes dispatch Maine 76-68

Alright the Ewing Theory doesn't really apply here with Logan Aronhalt out with injury (hard to argue with Gerardo Suero still kicking as the 5th leading scorer in the country...). But Logan Aronhalt has logged the second most minutes in the league behind Mike Black and is 4th in the league in scoring at 15.2 PPG. Add the fact that Albany was coming off a three game skip, an away game at Maine, despite their own incredible slippage, didn't look promising.

And yet, adding 5'8 (or so) Jacob Iati into the starting lineup and playing him for 27 minutes, Albany pulled out a gritty win on the back of Suero's 28 points.

How'd this happened?

The first thing is defense. Logan has been playing on one knee for months -- and he wasn't a stellar defender to begin with. Having him and Suero on the wings was incredible on offense... and an invitation to three point shooters on the other end.

Jacob Iati, defensive stopper, after the jump

It's hard to imagine Jacob Iati being inserted as a defensive stopper. But his energy out there is relentless, and contagious. His hyper efficient, 2-3 from 3PT and zero turnovers, and the rest of the team responded in term.

The defensive effort (68 points / 67 poss. = 101.5 defensive rating) was still slightly worse than average -- but with Suero, that will WIN most games. It was Albany's best defensive performance since Jan 28th.

Another factor? Ralph Watts.

The Ralph Watts effect via ww3.hdnux.com

The 6'5 swingman played a key role in last year's improvement, but hasn't seen any uptick in minutes thanks to Suero's excellence and Will's decision not to rest Logan more. Watts has his smooth movements on offense, but he can be a big upgrade on defense. He'll be forced into more meaningful minutes, and that could be a good thing.

Finally, holding strong on the glass. Albany got torn up inside by Ali Fraser (10-13, 21 points), as is to be expected, but they kept Maine off the offensive glass, which turned out to be even more important.

And Suero himself will have to be a creator, not just a hammer, as he takes on Vermont's stingy defense, if this run is to keep up. 6 assists to 1 turnover is impressive. Also, he'll need to continue to get those steals and boards as a free safety on the wings.

But for now, it looks like Four! McGlynn will have a hand in his face on Wednesday moreso than he would have a week or two ago.