NOTEBOOK: Lin Makes Impact In Supporting Role

PROVIDENCE, R.I.—It is not very often that a team’s leading scorer can have his lowest scoring output of the season and still be praised by the opposing coach for his offensive effectiveness.

But such was the case Saturday night when co-captain Jeremy Lin finished with five points on six shots in the Harvard men’s basketball team’s win over Brown.

“It looks like his point production has dropped, but his effectiveness hasn’t changed any,” Brown coach Jesse Agel said. “As his teammates have developed, he’s had to do less, and he’s done more facilitating, all to the greater good of their team.”

Facing double teams and early-help defense, Lin deferred to his teammates early and often, finishing with a game-high seven assists with just one turnover. When Lin was able cut to the basket and draw the extra defender, the guard was able to find his open teammates who knocked down the shots.

Although the 6’3 guard managed to finish with seven assists, Lin struggled to find his teammates early on. By the end of the first half, Lin had recorded just a single assist and had not taken a shot.

His lone field goal came with 11:22 remaining in the contest. With Lin holding the ball on the right wing, co-captain Doug Miller set a screen to the right of Lin’s defender. Lin jabbed left, then went right and finished with a layup

Lin’s five points broke his previous season low of six points, which Lin recorded twice this season in games against Army and Santa Clara.

YOUNG MONEY

Harvard basketball fans worrying about their program’s future when Jeremy Lin retires his Crimson uniform may have found their savior.

A day after dropping 20 points on Yale, freshman Kyle Casey finished with 27 points and nine rebounds on Saturday night, matching his career scoring high. Casey worked both inside and outside, knocking down three deep balls while also managing to have his way in the paint over weaker Brown defenders.

“That guy has a lot of potential, and he’s going to have a great four years,” Lin said. “It’s just a matter of time before he takes over the league, I think.”

Casey, who did not make a single three-point shot until Harvard’s 13th game of the season against Seattle, has since been lighting it up from deep. In Harvard’s last 10 games, the freshman has shot 12-of-21 from beyond the arc, a rate of 57 percent.

With less than six minutes left in Saturday’s contest, Casey’s shooting sealed the game for the Crimson. The rookie hit back-to-back three pointers, and Harvard’s lead would not fall below double digits for the remainder of the contest.

Casey matched his career high with just over two minutes left in the game. After classmate Brandyn Curry missed a three from the corner, Casey swooped in to pull down the offensive rebound. He exploded back up to the basket, dropping in the easy two.

EXECUTIVE DECISION

Following Harvard’s back-to-back losses to Cornell and Princeton, Amaker made the decision to switch up the Crimson’s starting lineup. With the new lineup in place, the Crimson has pulled out three straight victories.

Amaker has opted for a defensively-oriented lineup, replacing sophomore point guard Oliver McNally and freshman wingman Christian Webster with freshman Brandyn Curry and sophomore Max Kenyi.

The new, more athletic lineup has given teams trouble early on but has also allowed the Crimson to receive a scoring boost from its bench.

“Webster and McNally coming off the bench, being a little more offensively aggressive, is giving us the points and production we’ve missed coming off the bench,” Amaker said.

Webster has seen the biggest increase in production, finishing in double figures in each of the last three games after failing to do so for nearly a month.

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