Lions Face Formidable Ball-Control Offense

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Matchup Breakdown: Columbia at Princeton


Point Guards: Brett Loscalzo vs. Scott Greenman

Billed as a sharpshooting ballhandler, Scott Greenman has shot a disappointing 35 percent from the field and from behind the arc this season. Brett Loscalzo has played strong defense and avoids bad turnovers. Edge: Even

Shooting Guards: Jeremiah Boswell vs. Will Venable

Will Venable has been the most consistent member of this season?s Princeton squad. Finding gaps within the team?s traditional offense, Venable has used his unique athleticism to an advantage. This may be Boswell?s toughest assignment of the season. Edge: Tigers

Small Forwards: Mack Montgomery vs. Noah Savage

Two of the top freshmen in the League, Mack Montgomery and Noah Savage are a contrast in styles. Montgomery is an athletic slasher as well as a strong rebounder, while Savage is a classic outside jumpshooter. Edge: Lions

Power Forwards: Matt Preston vs. Andre Logan

Matt Preston has a unique knack for the ball in the post. Facing a number of double and triple teams, Preston has also developed more of an outside game. A talented swingman, Andre Logan plays out of position for the Tigers. Edge: Lions

Centers: Gerard Barrett vs. Judson Wallace

Despite battling injuries, Judson Wallace is finally playing with passion. Wallace dominated Penn last week in the first half with his inside-outside game. Gerard Barrett has been inconsistent and will face multi-purpose threat. Edge: Tigers

Bench/Intangibles: Columbia Momentum vs. Princeton Fans

Princeton is off to the worst start in the history of the program. Coming off a dramatic loss to Penn, the shell-shocked Tigers are facing a Lions team that was swept by Yale and Brown. The Tigers will, however, have the homecourt advantage. Edge: Lions

 

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Cornell (9-10, 4-2 Ivy) at Penn (12-7, 5-0)

This game wasn?t circled at the beginning of the year as a game of importance, but it could be the last chance for an Ivy title race extending past this weekend. Cornell, after losing guard Ka?Ron Barnes, was expected to have a long season, but solid play up front and a 4-1 record at home has led them to a 4-2 Ivy start. Penn was also expected to struggle, but hot shooting has led it to a 5-0 start and a commanding position in the Ivy League.

For the Big Red, Ivy title aspirations may be a bit high. Their start has come against a favorable schedule, as they?ve played five of their six in Ithaca. Last weekend, they won by the skin of their teeth against Brown, then won a thrilling double-overtime game against Yale. Playing at Penn a night after playing against Princeton could prove taxing for the Big Red.

This year?s Penn team is not close to the team that went 14-0 in Ivy play two years ago. When outside shooters like Tim Begley and Eric Osmundson hit their shots, they are tough to beat. Otherwise, a disciplined team like Cornell could sneak one out. Cornell and Penn are the only two teams in the League that control their own destiny. Should Cornell win out, it would do no worse than a playoff with Penn. Last year, Cornell finished by losing eight of its last nine. They won?t finish as poorly this year, but the bubble gets popped Saturday.



Cornell at Princeton (10-9, 1-4)

A once-rosy season has turned black for Joe Scott?s Tigers. As bad as the loss to Dartmouth was last Friday, their implosion against Penn on Tuesday topped it. After leading by 18 with 7:35 to play, the Tigers ended up losing 80-72 in overtime, sliding into the Ivy cellar and causing unrest in New Jersey. Only forward Judson Wallace and guard Will Venable seem capable of scoring consistently. Wallace?s back injury showed no ill effects against the Quakers, as he made his first eight field goals en route to a 21-point performance. Cornell is coming off two nail-biters at home, squeaking out victories over Brown and Yale, and will try to win at Princeton for the first time since 1985. They have everything to play for, while Princeton has little to fuel its fire. It shows.



Harvard (8-11, 3-3) at Brown (9-9, 2-2)

Two teams fighting to break .500 meet in Providence, where Brown will finally play its first home conference game after splitting two close ones on the road. Harvard at home should prove easier than Cornell and Columbia on the road. If Harvard can slow the game down, its frontcourt could abuse the Bears. If Jason Forte runs the floor expertly, it will be a long and tiring day for the Crimson. Brown, with a 2-2 record, has to take care of its home floor.



Dartmouth (5-14, 2-4) at Brown

Dartmouth?s upset of Princeton made their season. If the Big Green do nothing else this year, no one will care. If Terry Dunn?s squad doesn?t feel that way, their efforts against Penn will suggest otherwise. As much as the Big Green will try to contain Jason Forte, no one on their team can guard him. Guards Steve Callahan and Michael Liddy will try, but they will fail. As goes Forte, so do the Brown Bears. Brown keeps its season afloat.



Harvard at Yale (5-12, 1-2)

Football?s biggest rivals renew their hardwood struggle in New Haven on Saturday. Yale had a golden opportunity to vault itself back into the Ivy race, but the Bulldogs lost in double-overtime against Cornell on Saturday. Yale?s frontcourt of Dominick Martin and Sam Kaplan should match up well against the Crimson?s Matt Stehle and Brian Cusworth. This game will decide little more than the top half of the conference. Yale gets revenge for football season.



Dartmouth at Yale

After their stunning defeat of Princeton, Dartmouth will not sneak up on anyone else this year. That includes James Jones? Bulldogs, who desperately need wins in this easiest of home weekends. Dartmouth?s ball-control offense contrasts with Yale?s up-tempo flow. Yale, like Brown, has opened its season with four straight road games and emerged with a single victory. With more home games coming, however, the Bulldogs will be dangerous to any team that comes to New Haven. To Dartmouth, they?ll be lethal.

 

[Clem D]

Is this for tomorrow? Cornell plays Princeon tonight

 

[Clem D]

ok gotcha

 

[IE]

Penn hosts surprise contenders

Quakers look to pull away from Ivy's Nos. 2 and 3


Penn men's basketball coach Fran Dunphy will be receiving visits from a couple of old friends this weekend.

Dunphy will patrol the sidelines against two coaches he knows well: Joe Jones of Columbia, previously a Villanova assistant, and Cornell's Steve Donahue, Dunphy's former assistant at Penn.

The Lions (12-7, 3-3 Ivy) visit the Palestra tonight before the Quakers (12-7, 5-0) round out the first half of their Ivy League season against the Big Red (9-10, 4-2) tomorrow.

The stakes will be high this weekend -- Cornell and Columbia are currently second and third, respectively, in the Ancient Eight behind the Quakers.

To some, the good fortunes of the teams from the Empire State are quite a surprise.

"I don't think anyone would have really expected that," senior forward Jan Fikiel said. "Especially with Princeton being eight and Yale being seventh."

Sophomore guard Ibby Jaaber said he would have responded with disbelief if someone had told him the current standings before the season started.

"I would have probably said that they were crazy ... but expect the unexpected," Jaaber said.

To Dunphy, however, Cornell and Columbia's success is no shock and he vowed not to take either team lightly.

"I can't emphasize how much respect I have for both Columbia and Cornell," Dunphy said. "This will be a tremendous challenge for us this weekend."

According to Dunphy, Donahue's tenure in the Palestra will give him a great advantage over other coaches who come in to face the Quakers.

"The fact that Steve was here for 10 years and knows our program extremely well makes it even that much more difficult for us," he said.

The Big Red also boasts a veteran squad led by a pair of versatile swingmen.


Senior swingman Cody Toppert is second on the team in scoring, averaging 12 points per game. Dunphy believes that he is a dangerous shooting threat and Fikiel echoed his sentiment.

"I know he's an awesome shooter and I think we're going to have to contest on him," Fikiel said.

When the ball is not in Toppert's hands, it can often be found in the hands of 6-foot-6 junior swingman Lenny Collins. The San Juan Capistrano, Calif., native is fourth in the Ivy League in scoring with 14.6 points per game. He also currently holds Ivy League Co-player of the Week honors for his efforts during the Big Red's sweep of Brown and Yale last weekend.

In those two games, Collins averaged 10.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 3 assists.

Before the Quakers can worry about Cornell, however, they must face a revitalized Lions squad.

Just two years ago, Columbia finished 2-25 and went winless in league play. Coach Armond Hill was fired and replaced by Jones, who is the brother of Yale coach James Jones.

In just two years, the younger Jones has significantly turned around Columbia's program, which is now among New York City's best. In addition, Dunphy believes that Jones' insight into the Ivy League and Big 5 will serve him well against the Quakers.

Leading the Lions is 6-5 senior forward Matt Preston who ranks third in the Ancient Eight in both points and rebounds, averaging 14.7 and 7.4 in each category.

The Lions also rely heavily on 6-8 forward Dragutin Kravic who can stretch defenses with his shooting prowess. The Serbian junior leads the team in three-pointers.

However, the Quakers will be ready for the problem he poses, as they have already faced shooting forwards such as Harvard's Brian Cusworth and Princeton's Judson Wallace and possess several of their own.

"I think we'll be ready for [Kravic]," Fikiel said. "It's not that hard to simulate that in practice."

Indeed, Fikiel himself has become a threat from deep, as evidenced by his trio of clutch three-pointers against Princeton.

With two wins this weekend Penn's magic number to clinch the Ivy League and make it back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2003 will drop to six, if not further. However, Columbia and Cornell will certainly be ready for the Quakers, who must avoid a post-Princeton letdown in order to further distance themselves from the rest of the parity-stricken Ivy League.