Troy Bell To Be Honored By Boston College, Have Jersey Retired
Photo courtesy of BCEagles.com
When speaking about Troy Bell, its important to recognize his on court accomplishments, and the path that was blazed for the future Eagle teams. As a star of BC in the early 2000's, being enshrined at the Conte Forum was not a matter of if but when. AD Martin Jarmond confirmed on Twitter that the Boston College alum would indeed be celebrated this season by having his jersey retired later in the year.
Now lets take a look at just what Bell meant to the Eagles. Bell was an unheralded recruit hailing from Minnesota and was the first of numerous "diamond in the rough" recruits that Al Skinner would bring to The Heights. The state of BC basketball in the late 90's was dire. The season prior to Bell coming to Chestnut Hill the Eagles were a lousy 6-21 for the 1998-99 season, followed by his freshman season that would result in a 11-19 campaign. Awarded with a Big East freshman of the year honors and being placed on the All Big East freshman team, it was a taste of what was to come. Bell's sophomore season was a turn around for the ages, resulting in a Big East tournament championship and a trip to the big dance. Boston College basketball was back and its centerpiece, was Troy Bell.
After a return to March Madness in Bell's junior season and a heartbreaking loss to USC that is still haunting to date, Troy Bell's senior season would be marred with inconsistency that resulted in an underwhelming trip to the NIT. Although BC was unable to truly break through in the post season with Bell, the competitive team that transformed in his four years should not be belittled.
Troy Bell's accolades speak for themselves. Like the aforementioned freshman awards, Bell's accomplishments also include: Three time All-Big East, 2-time Big East Player of the year, 2-time All-American, program's All-time leading scorer with 2,632 points, and became a pioneer for what could be described as the "glory years" for BC basketball.
After being drafted in the 1st round of the 2003 NBA draft, the groundwork that was laid by Bell was built upon by many more of Skinner's "diamond in the rough" recruits. Led by the likes of Craig Smith, Jared Dudley, Tyrese Rice, Reggie Jackson, the Eagles went on to the NCAA tournament 5 of the following 6 seasons. Surely a testament to the fit between coach skinner and his players, but Troy Bell ignited the flame and he finally gets to come home and be celebrated.
