Crimson Look For Repeat of Last Year

Everyone deserves a second chance.

The Harvard men’s basketball team will get its second opportunity to knock off an elite non-conference opponent tonight when it travels to Chesnut Hill to take on Boston College.

Last Sunday the Crimson visited No. 13 Connecticut and, sparked by co-captain Jeremy Lin’s 30 points, came within six points of an upset.

Tonight, Harvard is looking to do more than just hang around with its opponent.

“Our kids can’t be feeling sorry for themselves,” coach Tommy Amaker said. “We’ll have our chances coming up at BC, and I’m hopeful that we’ll be excited on the one hand and then determined on the other...We’ve shown we can battle and compete and play with an opponent like [UConn] this year, and now let’s show that we can do that and win—and I’m hopeful that’s the mindset of our kids.”

Boston College is thankful to have a second chance of its own: another shot to defeat the Crimson.

Last season, Harvard handed the then-No. 17 Eagles an embarrassing 12-point loss, just days after the Eagles had defeated then-No. 1 North Carolina.

But this time around it may be more difficult for the Crimson to sneak up on the Eagles and come away with another upset.

“You know BC is not going to take this game lightly,” said Jeff Goodman, a senior college basketball writer for FOXSports.com. “These guys want Harvard this year. This is a game they’ve almost circled on their calendar.”

“We’re not going to catch anybody,” Amaker said. “I’m sure there’s been talk of that sort all year with students and fans and players, so I’d assume that there will be a very good crowd for them and I’m sure that their mind set will be focused on Harvard.”

On top of the Eagles’ sense of determination, the Crimson will also be forced to deal with a very talented basketball team.

Coming off wins over Providence, Michigan, and previously undefeated Miami, Boston College sports an athletic lineup.

Despite graduating their leading scorer from a year ago, Tyrese Rice, and carrying an injury to their talented wing, Rakim Sanders, the Eagles have managed to post an impressive 73.8 points per game.

Boston College is led by a duo of wing players, 6’6 junior Corey Raji and 6’3 sophomore Reggie Jackson, both of whom average at least 15 points and nearly eight rebounds per game.

“[Their wing players] are big and strong and physical, so we’re going to have our hands full,” Amaker said. “Our perimeter and our guards are really going to have to play good post defense.”

Luckily for Harvard, the Eagles will likely be without Sanders, their third-leading scorer from a year ago, who suffered a high ankle sprain in the team’s third game. After the weekend’s contest against Miami, Sanders told Goodman that he did not expect to return until the Eagles’ game against Rhode Island on Sunday. Nonetheless, the Crimson have been preparing as if Sanders will be in the lineup.

For Harvard to emerge victorious from tonight’s game, the Crimson will need to receive offensive production both Lin and his supporting cast. When Harvard defeated Boston College a season ago, Lin put up an impressive stat line of 27 points, eight assists, and six steals, but two other players contributed double-digit scoring nights as well, including guard Oliver McNally—now a sophomore—who dropped 17 points.

In the Crimson’s latest loss to UConn, McNally was largely absent, scoring zero points on zero-for-six shooting while freshmen wingmen Christian Webster and Dee Giger uncharacteristically shot a combined one-for-seven from behind the arc.

“I think it’s important that we have to hit on a few if not all cylinders to win a game like that,” Amaker said. “[Lin] was sensational but it was hard to find multiple guys giving us the kind of production we need to get to pull a game like that out.”

Although a second option failed to emerge in the Crimson’s previous matchup, the team is filled with potential suitors for the role. Seven players this season have scored in double figures, and Harvard will be hoping that two or three of them can hit shots and help the Crimson return to Cambridge with a major victory.

—Staff writer Martin Kessler can be reached at martin.kessler@college.harvard.edu.