History Remains Within Reach

During lay-up lines last Friday night, as posters of Jeremy Lin made their way through the bleachers, Harvard players and coaches stopped for a moment and looked at the crowd—blacked-out and boisterous. They whispered to one another, pointed at people and posters (one impromptu sign read, “Hey Cornell, Andy Katz came to see us, not you!”). Smiles crept across their faces.

I felt chills.

The crowd was a monument to the Crimson’s season, a symbol of the progress the program has made over the past three years, the culmination of a determined effort to make basketball matter on campus. Although Harvard’s players and coaches have been adamant about staying focused on the present, those smiles betrayed a feeling of satisfaction, of having, in some sense, fulfilled a part of their vision.

Of course, Cornell defeated the Crimson at Lavietes Pavilion, 79-70, effectively ending Harvard’s shot at the Ivy League title. But by no means does that end the Crimson’s season. Many monuments—tangible, like the season wins record, and intangible, like those smiles during warm-ups—are within Harvard’s grasp.

Sitting at 96th in the RPI, the 18-6 Crimson is on the verge of breaking the program record of 19 wins and could crack 10 conference victories for the first time since 1996-97. More importantly, Harvard has an excellent chance at making a post-season tournament such as the College Basketball Invitational or the CollegeInsider.com Tournament, and a decent shot at the National Invitational Tournament if it manages to win out.

The fate of the rest of the Ivy League could be determined this Friday night when Princeton, which sits one and a half games back from the Big Red, travels to Ithaca. A Tiger victory would prolong the race and possibly lead to a one-game playoff between the two teams in the future. But, if Cornell wins (the more likely outcome), it will essentially clinch the conference title and approach the rest of the Ivy schedule with its NCAA tournament seed in mind, whereas the Tigers, like Harvard, will be fighting for a bid to another post-season tournament.

The rest of the Ivies are looking to play spoiler. A single upset can define a season and provide a springboard into the next year. Brown, Columbia, Penn, and Yale are fighting for fourth place in the conference, but the seniors on those teams are more concerned with getting one last memorable win.

So this weekend—on which Senior Night falls for half the teams in the conference—marks the beginning of the final chapter for the season. Regardless of whether or not a team is playing for hardware, each still has a shot at a storybook ending.

BROWN (10-17, 4-6 Ivy) at HARVARD (18-6, 7-3 Ivy)

The Bears had perhaps the best weekend of any team in the league last Friday and Saturday with a sweep over the Killer P’s on the road. Their win over Princeton was a shocker and placed Cornell in the driver’s seat for the Ivy title. The reason for Brown’s resurgence comes in the frontcourt, where Matt Mullery and Peter Sullivan have dominated the paint.

When the Crimson traveled to Providence two weeks ago, the Bears led by as many as six points in the second half, but Harvard left with an 81-67 victory. Kyle Casey tied a career high with 27 points and Doug Miller scored a season-best 12 points, as the duo topped the Brown combo of Mullery and Sullivan, who had 7 and 21 points, respectively.

I sound like a broken record at this point, but the Crimson hopes to see minutes from injured forwards Keith Wright, Pat Magnarelli, and Andrew Van Nest. If any of those players can be effective, Harvard can neutralize the Bears frontcourt once again and earn the season sweep.

Pick: Harvard 75, Brown 66

PRINCETON (16-7, 7-2 Ivy) at CORNELL (23-4, 9-1 Ivy)

The Ivy title rides on this game. If the Tigers win, they’re only a half-game back, whereas if the Big Red prevails, Cornell’s magic number will be one with three games to play.

The last matchup between these two teams came down to the final shot—a missed three by Douglas Davis—but at that point Princeton was playing its best basketball. This time, the Tigers are coming off their worst loss of the season, and the Big Red can smell its third straight conference championship. Ryan Wittman, Louis Dale, and Jeff Foote are too good to lose their penultimate home game. I see Cornell coming out on fire and winning.

Pick: Cornell 60, Princeton 51

YALE (10-17, 4-6 Ivy) at DARTMOUTH (5-19, 1-9 Ivy)

The burden of a winless conference record is finally off the Big Green’s back. The Lions had to miss 40 shots, including 21 three-pointers, for it to happen, but Dartmouth picked up an ugly 48-44 win at home.

I expect a return to the mean this week. Yale lost two uncompetitive games to Princeton and Penn, but it still has more talent than the Big Green. Much like in the first meeting—a 69-56 win—the Bulldogs should win handily.

Pick: Yale 68, Dartmouth 54

PENN (5-18, 4-5 Ivy) at COLUMBIA (9-15, 3-7 Ivy)

Columbia’s season is on life support. An embarrassing loss to Dartmouth and a listless effort in Cambridge have left the Lions in seventh place in the conference.

The Quakers, on the other hand, pulled off a minor upset at Yale Saturday, and continue to rise. Zack Rosen is a legitimate All-Ivy point guard, and, if he were on Cornell, Princeton, or Harvard, would be a candidate for Player of the Year. Columbia beat Penn 66-62 earlier in the season, but I see the roles being reversed this time around.

Pick: Penn 69, Columbia 64

BROWN at DARTMOUTH

The Saturday schedule is perhaps the worst line-up of games all season. Each matchup has blowout potential, and this one is no exception. Brown is hitting its stride, and Dartmouth is still lousy. The good news is that the Big Green’s season is mercifully nearing its end.

Pick: Brown 74, Dartmouth 61

PRINCETON at COLUMBIA

Win or lose on Friday, the Tigers will have an awful lot to play for against the Lions. After the way Columbia rolled over against the Crimson, I have a tough time envisioning it defeating a team as talented and disciplined as Princeton. For that reason, I give the edge to the Tigers.

Pick: Princeton 55, Columbia 45

PENN at CORNELL

The Big Red has a chance to avenge the one blemish on its resume—a resounding loss to the Quakers on Feb. 2. With the game being the last home contest for Cornell’s highly decorated senior class, I expect Newman Arena will be rowdy. Those seniors will look to impress the faithful by redeeming that earlier loss by as wide a margin as it possibly can.

Pick: Cornell 86, Penn 66

YALE at HARVARD

In the hardwood version of The Game, Harvard students see Dan McGeary, Miller, Magnarelli, and, of course, Lin for the final time. What these players have meant to Crimson basketball is obvious, and I expect the crowd will honor them by heckling the Elis and referees in the most creative and obnoxious ways allowed under sportsmanship standards.

The last meeting between these two teams was a dogfight and could have gone either way. I think the emotional lift of Senior Night will give Harvard an edge this time around. I’m picking the Crimson by nine.

Pick: Harvard 76, Yale 65

RECORD LAST WEEK: 4-4 (To date: 23-9)

—Staff writer Timothy J. Walsh can be reached at twalsh@fas.harvard.edu.