Men's Basketball Dominates TCU, Wins Great Alaska Shootout Final

ANCHORAGE, ALASKA —The banners above Sullivan Arena honoring past champions of the Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout feature a “who’s who” of college basketball bluebloods: Kentucky, North Carolina, Duke, Kansas, UCLA, Michigan State. Now joining them in the last year before the tournament moves out of its 36-year home is Harvard, which never trailed in cruising to the title with a convincing display over TCU, winning by a final margin of 71-50.

“I’m very proud of our team to come here and play at such a prestigious tournament,” Harvard coach Tommy Amaker said. “This is one of the more famous tournaments in all of college basketball. You look at the history and tradition of it, and it’ll tell you exactly why that is, all the great teams that have won this tournament, and we’re very thrilled to know that we were in it.”

Junior guard Wesley Saunders was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player, with an average of 14.3 points, eight rebounds, and 4.7 assists per game over the three Shootout contests. Sophomore point guard Siyani Chambers and junior forward Steve Moundou-Missi were named to the all-tournament team along with Saunders.

“[Saunders] was very deserving of the Most Outstanding Player,” Amaker said. “There’s no question, he earned that. Wesley does everything for us on both ends of the floor, no doubt about it, he’s our best player.”

The drama for Harvard was contained in Friday night’s semifinal against Green Bay; the Horned Frogs, the only representatives of a BCS conference at the Shootout, were unable to match the Crimson’s level of play from the start. The Crimson played a complete half of basketball in the first frame, assisting on 17 of its 20 field goals and holding TCU to 29 percent shooting. Harvard added seven steals and three blocks on defense and committed only four turnovers of its own on its way to a 48-25 first half advantage.

Co-captain Laurent Rivard extended his own school record for three-point field goals, finding holes in TCU’s 2-3 zone and hitting four of his five three-pointers in the first period as the catalyst of Harvard’s 21-6 run to open the game. Rivard attempted 24 of Harvard’s 35 three-point attempts for the tournament, knocking down 10 of those tries.

“When you move the ball, the defense can’t keep up,” Rivard said. “The ball travels a lot faster than the players, so we just had a great half. I found myself open most of the time.”

In what was a recurring theme throughout the tournament, Harvard won the rebounding battle handily, grabbing 44 boards to the Horned Frogs’ 27. Junior forward Jonah Travis provided another efficient effort, chipping in 11 points and seven rebounds in 16 minutes of action, and sophomore Evan Cummins added ten points, six blocks, and five rebounds in fifteen minutes.

“Everybody’s unselfish,” Saunders said. “We were sharing the ball. Everybody was making the extra pass and looking to get everybody involved, so it was just a great team win.”

The second half was sloppy on both sides. The Horned Frogs shot an even worse percentage from the field, going seven-for-32, and the Crimson turned the ball over 17 times, drawing Amaker’s ire midway through the half. TCU attempted 26 free throws to the Crimson’s 10—the only thing keeping the game remotely close—but the Horned Frogs were unable to cut the deficit below 13 in the second half. TCU guard Kyan Anderson was one of the few bright spots for the runners-up, totaling 11 second-half points and 20 for the game.

Harvard had a brief scare in the second half when Saunders stayed down below the Horned Frogs’ basket after a wild swing at a block attempt, seemingly favoring his left hand. But after a few minutes on the bench, Saunders re-entered the game and showed no ill effects from the injury.

The Great Alaska Shootout will move across town next year to the brand new Alaska Airlines Center, a $109 million facility on the campus of Alaska-Anchorage. The last image for the building that has seen many future NBA players compete under its roof was freshman guard Matt Fraschilla dribbling out the clock on a comfortable Harvard victory.

“To have a chance to play the way we played for three games and to win this tournament, we’re very, very proud,” Amaker said. “It’s something we’ll hang on to for a lifetime.”

—Staff writer Andrew R. Mooney can be reached at mooneyar@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @mooneyar.