A Taste of Ivy League Hoops

One quarter is the perfect sample size. For instance, the first bite of a burrito is often disappointingly lopsided—too much tortilla and sauce (unless, of course, you start eating your burrito from the middle—can’t say that I’ve tried that). But one quarter of a burrito unleashes the truest blend of delicious flavor and texture.

Similarly, at exactly one quarter of the way through the conference schedule, a clearer picture of the Ivy League is beginning to emerge.

At the top in a class by itself, Cornell reigns as the league’s Qdoba. Last weekend’s 36-point blowout win over the Crimson demonstrated as much. Seeing as two of Cornell’s three losses came against Syracuse and Kansas, the recipe for beating the Big Red seems to be nothing short of playing like a top-five team. Coaches around college basketball have taken notice, honoring Cornell by ranking it 25th in the nation, the first time an Ivy team has cracked a poll since the Tigers reached 8th in 1998.

Harvard and Princeton belong in the next division with Chipotle. The two teams have shown that, while capable of competing with anyone, they are not invulnerable to struggles. Last week, on the biggest stage it’s seen in years, the Crimson showed a surprising lack of poise, turning the ball over 25 times, getting into foul trouble, and giving up 14 offensive rebounds. The Tigers too have some clunkers on their resume, including a 27-turnover loss at home to Army, and a road defeat to Rutgers, a game in which Princeton shot 28.8 percent from the floor.

After Harvard and Princeton comes a dramatic drop-off. Brown, Columbia, and Yale—the Felipe’s of the Ivy League—all have either seven or eight wins, but only two of those 22 victories have come against teams with winning records. They might be able to steal a win or two against teams in the tier above them, but as the Bears’ loss to the Quakers last weekend demonstrates, they are just as likely to lose to the Ivy’s cellar dwellers.

Which brings us to the bottom of the league. In terms of burritos, Dartmouth and Penn are like 7-Eleven or a T station—the place that’s probably violating health codes (though you’d rather not know for sure). Yet, each team has shown flashes of competence lately. The Big Green has challenged both Harvard and Columbia for a full 40 minutes, and, improbably, the Quakers defeated Brown in Providence on a controversial tip-in at the buzzer.

Penn’s win goes to show that although the league hierarchy is taking shape, the remaining three quarters of the conference schedule promise to hold plenty of surprises.

PRINCETON (11-5, 2-0 Ivy) at HARVARD (14-4, 3-1)

The Tigers and the Crimson, tied with one another for second place in the conference, make for by far the best matchup on the weekend. Adapting to Princeton’s unique style of play will be Harvard’s greatest challenge. Crimson coach Tommy Amaker compares the Tigers to Georgetown, who beat Harvard, 86-70, in December.

Harvard will need to contain Princeton point guard Doug Davis, whose swagger will surely attract the derision of fans. I get the sense that the Crimson is looking to redeem itself for its lackluster performance in Ithaca and will come out with guns blazing.

Pick: Harvard 68, Princeton 54

YALE (8-13, 2-2 Ivy) at No. 25 CORNELL (18-3, 4-0)

From what I saw out of Cornell last weekend, I think they could beat the Bulldogs with just four players. Although Ryan Wittman is rightly considered his squad’s biggest weapon, at least four other Big Red players are capable of leading the team in scoring on a given night. Yale, on the other hand, relies exclusively on league-leading scorer Alex Zampier. One-dimensional teams can’t survive against Cornell, and neither will the Bulldogs.

Pick: Cornell 75, Yale 58

PENN (2-14, 1-1 Ivy) at DARTMOUTH (4-14, 0-4)

Thankfully for one of these teams, someone has to win. Penn is coming off a surprising win against Brown, but that game might have said more about Brown, which couldn’t close out a five-point lead with 20 seconds left, than it did about the Quakers. Dartmouth is the only Ivy still winless in conference play, but this match-up at home is its best chance for a win all season. I’m taking the Big Green in a nail-biter.

Pick: Dartmouth 62, Penn 59

BROWN (7-14, 1-3 Ivy) at COLUMBIA (7-11, 1-3)

The Bears stumbled last week against Penn, and their road gets harder this week with a trip to New York. Knowing that Cornell looms on Saturday, Brown needs to play with extra urgency against the Lions or risk falling to 1-5 in league play.

Columbia would normally have a good shot at the Bears, but senior guard Patrick Foley went down with a shoulder injury last week, and his status is questionable. This game is a toss-up, but I like the Lions behind guard Noruwa Agho, who seemed to find his three-point stroke against Dartmouth.

Pick: Columbia 65, Brown 60

PRINCETON at DARTMOUTH

The Big Green had better win Friday night, or its season will continue to snowball with a loss here to Princeton and next week on the road to Brown and Yale. The Tigers are simply in a different class than Dartmouth and have no business losing on the back end of their trip.

Pick: Princeton 66, Dartmouth 47

YALE at COLUMBIA

This game is another virtual toss-up for Columbia. I imagine Yale will be hungry after getting shellacked by Cornell, but the Bulldogs simply aren’t good enough to have their way with the Lions. The game will likely be a showdown between Zampier and Agho. Given the injury to Foley, I don’t know if Agho can carry the scoring burden on back-to-back nights. I’m giving the slight edge to Yale.

Pick: Yale 61, Columbia 56

BROWN at No. 25 CORNELL

In terms of margin of victory, I wouldn’t rule out any possibilities for this game. Cornell beat Harvard, the supposed second best team in the conference, by 36. My guess is that the Big Red will stop around 25 tonight.

Pick: Cornell 80, Brown 55

PENN at HARVARD

After facing two tough teams in a row, the Crimson will find some respite on Saturday. Penn’s Zack Rosen is an excellent point guard and is even being heralded as a dark horse for conference Player of the Year, but the Quakers simply aren’t on Harvard’s level. Hopefully the Crimson uses this game to work out some of the problems it’s had over the last few games—ball control, shooting, and foul trouble.

Pick: Harvard 79, Penn 54

RECORD LAST WEEK: 7-1 (To date: 7-1)

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