Dartmouth Overwhelms Basketball Team, 86-68

Hanover, N.H., Dec. 8--"We controlled the whole tempo of the game. We held our poise when they came back in the second half, but then we just took it to them again."

Dartmouth Coach George Blaney summed up his squad's 86-68 trouncing of the Crimson here tonight in the right terms. Except for the first three minutes of both halves, the Big Green completely dominated every aspect of the game, moving well offensively and fording 35 Harvard turnovers on defense.

The only time the Crimson had the psychological advantage was before the tip-off. Dartmouth has violated the no-dunk rule in its pre-game warm-ups, and the Crimson's Jim Fitzsimmons made the technical and Floyd Lewis tallied the ensuing jumpshot.

But from that point on it was Dartmouth's game. With the Big Green fans cheering every rebound, the home team moved to a 30-18 advantage near the end of the half. Dartmouth's guards, James Brown and Bill Raynor, who between them scored 26 of their squad's 40 points in the first half, led the way, scoring and forcing turnovers on the Big Green's full court press.

Fitzsimmons, who led the Crimson with 27 points, and Tony Jenkins kept Dartmouth from blowing Harvard out of the game, however. They combined for ten of Harvard's last 12 points in the half and Jenkins's defensive play against all-Ivy Paul Erland, who only scored one field goal in the half, kept the Crimson within 8 at halftime, 40-32.

Harvard came out strong in the second half and scored nine straight point to take the lead briefly. But the Crimson never took control of the game. Dartmouth, led by Raynor, who scored 27, and Brown, who scored 24, pulled back and never trailed again.

With five minutes left, Harvard--trailing by nine--had a chance to come back, as it went into a half-court zone press. But the Green maintained control, and Jim Masker, who "played the best game of his career" (coach Blaney) scored three quick baskets to put the game out of reach.

Statistically, Dartmouth won the game from the freeline, scoring only on 32 of 37 attempts. Raynor hit on 15 of 17.

In the freshman preliminary, Harvard overcame a six-point halftime deficit to defeat the Dartmouth freshmen, 84-78. Harvard's freshmen record is now 3-0.