HARVARD BASKETBALL 2005-06: Dominant Duo Aims to Trump History

Breaking a multi-year losing streak is always difficult—especially in Boston.

In 2004, the Red Sox needed the magic of David Ortiz and Curt Schilling to win the World Series for the first time in 86 years. This year, Harvard may have the magical players, in the form of junior center Brian Cusworth and captain Matt Stehle, necessary to pull off a similar miracle—winning the Ivy League championship for the first time in school history.

Stehle and Cusworth will provide the Crimson with the most lethal four-five combination in the Ivies, giving the team its greatest opportunity in recent years to capture the Ivy League’s automatic NCAA tournament berth.

“We have a team that is as tough or tougher than any team in the past,” Cusworth says. “We see [a championship] in the near future and believe this is our year.”

There are reasons to believe, and the biggest is Cusworth, both in size and in skill. The 7’0 center was a dominant force down low last year, scoring 13.4 points per game while leading the league in blocks. As a result, he received numerous preseason accolades, including selection as the best NBA prospect in the Ivies.

Cusworth’s talent, combined with the skill and leadership of Stehle, poses a definite challenge to perennial powerhouses Penn and Princeton.

“A lot of teams when they face Penn and Princeton play more defensively,” Cusworth says. “I think now with such a strong team and so much firepower, we can go at them.”

The leader of this charge will be Stehle, the Crimson’s first Massachusetts-born captain in more than 50 years. One of the preseason favorites for Ivy League Player of the Year honors gives versatility a new name. Stehle ranked in the league’s top 10 in nine out of 12 categories, including scoring, rebounding, steals, and blocked shots, leading to his selection to the All-Ivy First Team. As captain this year, Stehle realizes he must set an example by working to improve his game even after such a phenomenal season.

“I’d like to see my name get off of one of those lists—turnovers,” Stehle says. “[Cusworth] and I also need to, day in, day out, play to our abilities and bring that consistency to the team.”

Stehle has come a long way to get to this leadership position—not only in terms of success but also in position. His freshmen year in high school, Stehle was a 5’10 point guard. Although now at 6’8 he plays the four, he has not lost the skills he acquired while playing the point. His ability to slash to the rim and create down low led to many easy baskets for himself and his teammates—Stehle finished second on the team last year with 70 assists.

“He opens up so much for other players and myself on the team,” Cusworth says. “[Especially] for us, we have a great ability to play off each other.”

Things are a lot different from Stehle’s sophomore year, when embarrassing defeats were the norm in Harvard’s 4-23 season. Last year things changed. With Cusworth’s return from a foot injury and Stehle’s continued stellar play, huge losses become the exception. The Crimson stayed in almost every game, posting a 7-7 mark in the Ivies. Now, in their last year playing together, Stehle and Cusworth’s sole mission is taking the team to the top.

“We had a good season last year, but not good enough,” Stehle says. “Anything short of winning the Ivy title would not meet my goals for the year.”

If the preseason means anything, Stehle sees this goal within reach, despite Penn’s status as the unanimous Ivy favorite.

“Cusworth is having the best preseason he’s had yet,” Stehle says. “He’s playing the best basketball I’ve seen him play.”

In addition, the team overall is stronger as a result of the more strenuous conditioning program. Stehle and Cusworth, as Harvard’s leading big men, are no exception.

“I think the two of them worked really hard on their bodies, their strengths, and their physical condition,” Harvard coach Frank Sullivan says.

With the top two returning players in the Ivy, Cusworth and Stehle, the Crimson is confident, but they know they must back that confidence up on the court.

“The reality is we have the top two leading scorers and rebounders in the league coming back,” Sullivan says. “But the accolades mean nothing now, without success in the coming year.”

It’s hard to expect a miracle, but with Stehle and Cusworth, there is hope.