Errick Peck in the Indy Star

Cathedral's Peck commits to Cornell

By Nat Newell
IndyStar.com
March 31, 2009

Cathedral High School basketball star Errick Peck admits the recruiting process was frustrating. He did what the Irish needed, playing inside and leading the seventh-ranked team in Class 4A in rebounding; but major Division I programs didn't get to see what the 6-foot-6 forward could do out on the floor and no scholarship offers were extended.The situation was disappointing, but Peck recognizes most people would embrace his second choice: He has committed to Cornell.

"I was looking for a major Division 1 [program] but I believe this is the best thing," said Peck, who had offers from six mid-major programs. "Looking at the academic side of things, it's the Ivy League. From the athletic standpoint, I'll get an opportunity to play right away and they've played in the NCAA Tournament the last two years so I'll receive that exposure."

Peck, who plans to major in Business Administration, averaged 14.4 points and 11.1 rebounds for a 20-3 Cathedral team but will have to play on the perimeter at the Division I level. He expected to get an opportunity to showcase those skills for his summer team but injuries forced him inside then, too. Penn State was recruiting him but dropped out and an offer from Indiana or Purdue never materialized.

"It's very frustrating because I feel like I can play with those (Big Ten) players after practicing with (Purdue recruit) Kelsey (Barlow)," Peck said of his Irish teammate. "(Playing inside) hurt me a lot. (But) I believe this is the best thing. I still have this hunger to work harder because I've been disrespected. I'll get the chance to play in the NCAA Tournament and you right your own ticket then."

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The Cornell to the Big 10 Debate Continues...

It is now obvious that we are all really missing our beloved Ivy League Basketball...

In the down time of the offseason, we tossed out the idea of "Cornell and the Big 10 potentially... a perfect marriage." Well, it seems like the debate has spread across Ivy blogs. First the Daily Pennsylvanian mocked us, then the Ivy Gate Blog ridiculed the idea as well. Now the Daily Pennsylvanian points out that some of UPenn's alums want the Quakers to join the ACC!

The D.P. writes:

As a follow up to my post yesterday about Cornell joining the Big Ten, Ivy Gate has their own take on the matter. I strongly advise you to take a look at some of the links in that article.

I should add that on the basketball-u boards, a similar discussion of Penn joining the ACC is happening, though most commentators realize that’s not going to happen. Instead, there’s interesting talk about a (hypothetical) conference of solid academic institutions that also have strong athletics (Penn, Duke, Northwestern, Georgetown etc…).

FGM, meanwhile, believes Penn should join the SEC.

The Fire Glen Miller post referenced above is quoted in full down below:

Penn Is Perfect For The SEC

Sometimes Ivy fans like toying with the notion of their school joining another athletic conference, if only to imagine their teams in an alternate universe of scholarship athletes, huge stadiums, subpar academics, recruiting scandals, and "hostesses". Currently, Penn fans are playfully toying with the fantasy of moving the Quakers into the ACC, where the academics are supposedly comparably strong with the Ivy (I assume FSU is being omitted from the discussion). However, some in Ithaca are getting too big for their britches and seriously lobbying for Cornell to move into the Big Ten. Has Cornell's two (WOW!) recent basketball championships and dominance in such big-revenue sports as lacrosse and track got them slightly high? Yes. But at least they're thinking positively. What's next? Princeton to the Big East? Dartmouth to the Pac-10?

It's time for me to jump into this fanciful discussion with a bit of serious talk. I truly believe Penn belongs in the SEC.

Yes, the home of big-time football, frats, illiteracy, and herpes-infested campuses!

I'm from Georgia and a Georgia Bulldogs fan, so please fault me for favoritism. But the following are the similarities between Penn and the average SEC school...

- A large football stadium. Some expansion will be needed to bring Franklin Field (capacity: 52,593) back to its old 78,000 pre-Ivy capacity to compare to the SEC mammoths.

- A longtime football coach who hasn't won anything of late. We have Al Bagnoli, and the SEC has...oh wait...they just fired him, him, and him.

- Bigtime football! To draw these similarities, I'm actually referring to the Quakers' 1923 season yearbook, and not last year's. Imagine our current group trying to bring down Tebow. That's comedy.

- Large student populations. Penn (19,816) vs. Vanderbilt (12,093).

- Giant frat houses. Us vs. them.

- Down-on-its-luck basketball program. I don't think we can talk about program destruction on the scale of Billy Gillespie.

- Hot cheerleaders. Wait. No. "Pale and plump"...meet Crystal.

- Unwanted stepchild schools. Harvard, Yale, and Princeton don't think they need Penn. The rest of the SEC doesn't think they need Mississippi State.

- Our music scenes. UGA's got R.E.M. and the B-52s. We've got John Legend...and Penn Masala.

- The rotting downtown cores next to our campuses. We have Philadelphia. South Carolina has Columbia (far worse). Yes, all Columbia has is one Waffle House. And yes, the sign in front says "Cheesesteak Factory."

- Our shared utter disregard for ice hockey. Cornell can take their elite hockey team and suck it.

- Our shared utter disregard for all sports not titled football and basketball.

- Snobby alumni. Northern WASPs meet Southern gentlemen.

- Equally self-entitled students. Our JAPs have nothing on spoiled Southern plantation babies.

- Need. Penn needs the SEC to bring up their athletic program cred. The SEC needs Penn's academics to balance out LSU.

See Penn and the SEC were made for each other! And before you start talking geographical distance, remember that LSU is just as far in the boonies as we are. All we need is for our administration to care a little more about sports than finding our U.S. News ranking, and our SEC application is as good as a shoo-in!

Did I have fun writing the above stupid article? Yes. Did you have fun reading my senselessness? I hope. But I'm certainly excited for college football again. In March.

Got any more similarities? Add them!

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We've Made it to the Big Stage!

Cornell Fan Admits Cornell Does Not Belong in the Ivy League

by Max Wasserman
March 31, 2009
IvyGateBlog.com

We've heard it all before. "Cornell shouldn't be in the Ivy League." "It's practically a safety school." "You're not really an Ivy Leaguer if you majored in the Ag School." "Yes I am and you look like a pre-op transexual." What has not been discussed is where the Big Red would go should they leave or be kicked out of the Ivy League--it being an athletic conference after all. Stepping up to fill that void in the discourse is Cornell basketball blog The Cornell Basketball Blog. And boy are they setting their sights high.

Most of the Big 10 schools are large public universities set in collegetowns. The Big 10 schools not only excel in athletics, but they are also regularly ranked among the top national academic universities at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.

Cornell is very much all of the above.

Genius! By moving from the Ivy League to the Big 10/11, Cornell would improve their academic standing from the eighth-best in the conference to second-, third-, or fourth-best in the conference. But what about being competitive in athletics?

As for athletics, Cornell is a national power in several major sports, including indoor and outdoor track (men's and women's), wrestling, ice hockey, and lacrosse. Even the Cornell men's basketball team made two consecutive trips to the NCAA Tournament and finished 2008-2009 with an RPI better than a pair of Big 10 teams (after finishing 2007-2008 ranked ahead of five Big 10 teams).

Wow! They finished better in the RPI than two Big 10 teams this year! If only they had played some of them. And that certainly is a lot of sports Cornell is nationally competitive in. It's hard to think of a single Cornell sports team that isn't good. This is a brilliant idea. It frees Cornell athletics from the shackles of the Ivy League and opens a spot for a school that Harvard and Princeton won't be embarrassed to be seen with. I hear Northwestern may be interested.

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Recruiting News: Errick Peck Update and Video Highlights, Ivy Recruiting Updates (updated 10:00 a.m.)

The Indianapolis Star reports on the recruiting commitment of Errick Peck (pictured above defending) that The Cornell Basketball Blog previously published:

Peck to Ivy League

Errick Peck, a 6-6 Cathedral senior forward, will play at Cornell University, Cathedral athletic director Terry Fox said.

Peck averaged 14.4 points and 11.1 rebounds as a senior, helping Cathedral to a 20-3 record. Peck had taken recruiting visits to Akron and Loyola-Chicago.

Additionally, the Indy Star also notes that Peck will play in the 21st annual North/South Indiana All-Star Classic, which will be played Sunday at Batesville High School.

Speaking of Peck--- if you want to see some video clip highlights of Cornell's newest addition, click here.

Lastly from the Indy Star, it reports that Cornell and Northwestern are recruiting Jack Isenbarger, a 6'4" from Zionsville, Indiana. Isenbarger, the son of former Indiana University basketball , now an attorney, Phil Isenbarger. The Indy Star notes that Cornell is currently ranked 14th in the U.S. News & World Report rankings. But Isenbarger comment, "I don't want to go to a school that has a basketball program that may not be as strong (or) at a high level," said Isenbarger, who has a 3.5 GPA.

In other recruiting news, Scout.com updates on the recruitment of Kameron Ritter (6'3" guard, Christian Bros. Academy, Albany, NY). Ritter, who has received interest from Cornell, received a scholarship offer from Drake this week.

Scout.com also reports that Kyle Randall, a 6'0" point guard from Hermitage, Pa. committed to UNC Greensboro after receiving offers from Harvard, Bucknell, and Stanford among others and some interest from Cornell.

Finally, Scout.com notes that Harvard, Dartmouth, and Columbia are among those interested in class of 2010's Nolan Hart, a 5'10" guard from Albany Academy in Albany, New York.

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Cornell Basketball in the News

Former Cornell coach Scott Thompson is mentioned in the Register-Guard:

When [Don] Monson was let go after the 1992 season, the [Oregon] Ducks looked widely for a replacement. Oregon’s first choice was former Arizona assistant Scott Thompson, a 38-year-old wunderkind who had rebuilt Rice from the dregs of college basketball to a pair of 20-win seasons. But with UO’s offer on the table, Thompson took more money from Wichita State.

How did that work out? After four losing seasons at Wichita State, Thompson was fired and went to Cornell of the Ivy League, where health problems forced him to resign after five seasons and a 45-60 record.

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Puerto Rico Tip-off field almost set

The field for November's Puerto Rico Tip-off is almost set. The Patriots join a field that includes UAB, Dayton, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Kansas State and Villanova. An eighth team is yet to be announced. Five of these seven teams were in the post season this year and Villanova is still dancing in the Final Four. Meanwhile, Georgia Tech has the #1 rated prospect coming in and there's no way Indiana can be much worse than last year, so the field is looking pretty good. This tournament could give the Patriots a real test early on and hopefully some quality wins.

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Cornell's Donahue added to BU's list

Cornell's Donahue added to BU's list

By Mark Blaudschun
Boston Globe Staff
March 31, 2009

While the rumor machine in the upper tier of college basketball was tossing out minute-by-minute updates on John Calipari's impending move to Kentucky and Rick Pitino's continuing flirtation with Arizona, Boston University officials were working quietly to find a new coach.

BU athletic director Mike Lynch used the NCAA East Regional at TD Banknorth Garden over the weekend as a job fair, with current coaches, former coaches, and assistant coaches coming to town.

Lynch's list of candidates is growing. The latest addition is Cornell coach Steve Donahue, who has guided his team to back-to-back Ivy League titles. Cornell also beat BU by 30 points this season. According to sources close to the situation, Donahue was in town but did not interview for the job. Whether that changes over the next few days is uncertain.

Other candidates include Boston College assistant Pat Duquette, Tennessee assistant head coach Tony Jones, and Bentley head coach Jay Lawson.

Louisville assistant coach Richard Pitino and former Providence coach Tim Welsh both have expressed interest in the job, but neither has been contacted.

"I haven't heard a thing," said Pitino.

Welsh also said he had not heard from BU.

"No one has called me," said Welsh.

BU officials have hired an Atlanta-based search firm, which contacted Siena coach Fran McCaffery early last week.

Part of the problem is that BU is having a difficult time defining the job, with the perception being that Lynch is looking for a salesman who can not only win games but sell tickets and attract attention in an area that is a tough sell for any college program.

The search firm, Parker Executive Search, has the dubious distinction of having helped Indiana find Kelvin Sampson and Kentucky find Billy Gillespie. Both were fired after short and unsuccessful stints.

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Cornell's 2009 Basketball Prospect Camp

The Cornell men’s basketball program and Head Coach Steve Donahue are offering The Cornell Basketball Prospect Camp from June 26-28 on the Cornell campus in Ithaca, New York. This camp is intended for high school students in grades 9-12 and is recommended for players who are serious about potentially playing collegiate basketball at Cornell or at other institutions.

The Cornell Basketball Prospect Camp will provide basketball instruction by Cornell coaches and serves as an opportunity for high school prospects to gain invaluable exposure to the Cornell coaching staff.

Check the Cornell Basketball Prospect Camp website for more information.

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Cornell Basketball (Blog) in the News

Pictured above, photos from Cornell games against Big 10 opponents during the last three seasons--Iowa, Northwestern, Indiana and Minnesota. Below, the Daily Pennsylvanian's Zach Klitzman responds to a couple posts here on The Cornell Basketball Blog...

From Zach Klitzman of the Daily Pennsylvanian:

Cornell in the Big Ten?

In the outlandish pipe dream department, here’s a post from The Cornell Basketball Blog arguing for Cornell’s inclusion in the Big Ten. Now it’s true that some of Cornell’s academics — especially the agriculture and hotel management schools — are more befitting of an state school in the Midwest than the Ivy giants of the Northeast. But come on, let’s not get ahead of ourselves here, Cornell.

Yes, the Big Red have made the last two NCAA Men’s Basketballl Tournaments. But they still have a measly three tournament appearances in the 70 year history of the event (granted that’s three more than Northwestern). So it’s not like they’re a powerhouse in basketball.

However, in the post the claim is made that Cornell is a national power in track, wrestling, ice hockey, and lacrosse. I’ll admit they’ve been impressive in wrestling and ice hockey, two sports in which the Big Ten is extremely successful. However, the Big Ten does not sponsor men’s lacrosse, and in fact the only members of the conference that play the sport are Ohio State and Penn State (in the Great Western Lacrosse League and the ECAC, respectively). And somehow I find it unlikely that the Big Ten would want a school based on its track teams.

Simiarly, the Big Ten prides itself on a strong football heritage — recent BCS failings aside. Sorry Cornell, but you’re not that good at football. In fact, it’s impossible for Cornell to be a Football Bowl Subdivision team since the NCAA requires a school to average 15,000 fans per home game at least once every two years. Last year Cornell only averaged 7,075 fans per home game, in 2007 they averaged 8,897, in 2006 they averaged 5,008 and in 2005 they averaged 7,669. So clearly they don’t meet the rule.

And from the Cornell administration’s standpoint, it doesn’t make sense to leave the Ivy League just so the Athletics Department can improve its reputation. From a University perspective, the academic prestige of being an Ivy League institution outweighs the athletic prestige of playing in a conference like the Big Ten.

Look at Northwestern. Frankly, does that school even get that much prestige from being in the Big Ten considering they get pummeled in basketball and football in most years and its best team — women’s lacrosse — doesn’t even compete in the conference?

In the end, while one can dream of the Big Red facing the Wolverines, or Hoosiers or Buckeyes or Hawkeyes, in reality, that’s just not going to happen.

Also from Zach Klitzman of the Daily Pennsylvanian:

The Cornell Basketball Blog has a look at next year’s projected Ivy rosters. However, with recruiting not finalized, I don’t know how accurate it necessarily will be. For example Penn is projected to have 16 players, which means they’d bring in four freshmen to complement the 12 returning players. Also, it says Penn will only have one senior, which is defined as a player in their final year of eligibility during 2009-2010. So unless Darren Smith and/or Andreas Schriber apply for a medical redshirt, Penn’s number will actually be three.

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Josh Figini Named Academic All State and to All Star Basketball Series

Cornell basketball recruit, Josh Figini was named Academic All State by the Minnesota Basketball Coaches Association.

In addition, Figini was among the forty of the state's outstanding senior boys basketball players selected to compete in the 27th annual Minnesota High School All-Star Basketball Series. Doubleheaders will be played Friday, April 3rd at Halenbeck Hall on the campus of St. Cloud State University and Saturday, April 4th at Leonard Center on the campus of Macalester College in St. Paul.

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Ryan Wittman Named Mid Major All American

Ryan Wittman was named by CollegeInsider.com as an Honorable Mention Mid-Major All-American. Wittman earned the same honor in 2008. Wittman was also selected the League's MVP by CollegeInsider.com.

CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major All-America Team

Rather then assembling first, second, third and fourth team squads, the collegeinsider.com Mid-Major All-America team is one team consisting of 21 players and honorable mentions. Division I coaches and NBA scouts are part of the selection process, but final decision rests with the collegeinsider.com staff.

NOTE: Stephen Curry (Davidson), Lester Hudson (UT-Martin), Eric Maynor (VCU) and Patrick Mills (Saint Mary's) were all named to the CollegeInsider.com All-America Team.

Marqus Blakely #	F	6-5	Jr.	Vermont
Matt Bouldin	G	6-5	Jr.	Gonzaga
John Bryant	C	6-10	Sr.	Santa Clara
Jeremy Chappell	G	6-3	Sr.	Robert Morris
Seth Curry	G	6-3	Fr.	Liberty
Kenny Hasbrouck #	G	6-3	Sr.	Siena
Gordon Hayward	F	6-8	Fr.	Butler
Matt Howard #	F	6-7	So.	Butler
Cedric Jackson	G	6-3	Sr.	Cleveland State
Charles Jenkins	G	6-3	So.	Hofstra
Johnathon Jones #	G	5-11	Jr.	Oakland
Gerald Lee #	F	6-10	Jr.	Old Dominion
Tywain McKee #	G	6-2	Sr.	Coppin State
Orlando Mendez-Valdez	G	6-1	Sr.	Western Kentucky
Demetrius Nelson	F	6-8	Sr.	The Citadel
Drake Reed	F	6-5	Sr.	Austin Peay
Alex Renfroe	G	6-2	Sr.	Belmont
Larry Sanders	F	6-9	So.	VCU
Ryan Thompson #	G	6-6	Jr.	Rider
Kevin Tiggs	F	6-4	Sr.	East Tennessee State
Ben Woodside	G	5-11	Sr.	North Dakota State

HONORABLE MENTION: Michael Bramos # (G, 6-5, Sr, Miami), Osiris Eldridge # (G, 6-3, Jr, Illinois State), Shy Ely (G, 6-4, Sr, Evansville), Kenneth Faried (F, 6-8, So, Morehead State), Matt Janning, (G, 6-4, Jr, Northeastern), Tremaine Townsend (F, 6-9, Sr, Cal State Northridge), Omar Samhan (C, 6-11, Jr, Saint Mary's), Diamon Simpson # (F, 6-7, Sr, Saint Mary's), Anthony Smith # (G, 6-5, Sr, Liberty), Edwin Ubiles # (F, 6-6, Jr, Siena), Ryan Wittman # (F, 6-6, Jr, Cornell), Booker Woodfox (G, 6-1, Sr, Creighton).

# Player was named to collegeinsider.com pre-season All-America team.

IVY
Player of the Year: Ryan Wittman (Cornell)
Most Valuable Player: Alex Barnett (Dartmouth)
Coach of the Year: Sydney Johnson (Princeton)

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News and Notes: Around the Ivy League

Pictured above, Cornell Basketball's Town Hall Meeting on March 6, 2009.

"I was hired to teach them the game of basketball, and I did that to the best of my abilities. I apologize for nothing. You may not be pleased with the results but I am."-- Coach Norman Dale (portrayed by Gene Hackman) in the movie Hoosiers (1986).

With these words during a public town meeting, Coach Dale defends his performance as head basketball coach of the Hickory High School Huskers. (By the way, Dale was a newly hired coach at Hickory, Indiana following a dismissal from his prior coaching position with the Ithaca Warriors.)

Not unlike the Hoosiers film, the University of Pennsylvania is hosting a similar town meeting in Philadelphia to constructively discuss the state of its men's basketball program which finished 2008-2009 with 10 wins and 18 losses (6-8 Ivy League) and witnessed three players quitting the team.

At least one of the defecting players blamed Penn coach, Glen Miller as the reason for his leaving the program.

Front and center and under the town hall lights (or fire) is head coach, Glen Miller.

Penn Athletics issued the following email this week announcing the town hall meeting:

Penn Basketball Alumni, Family and Friends,

The Division of Recreation and Intercollegiate Athletics and the John R. Rockwell Head Coach of Men’s Basketball, Glen Miller, would like to invite you to join Coach Miller for an open discussion of Penn Basketball on Sunday, April 26, 2009 at 10:30 a.m. at the Inn at Penn. This special “town hall” forum is intended to bring together season ticket holders, former players, alumni and select student supporters as well as long-time friends of the program for an extended question and answer session about Penn Basketball with Coach Miller. This gathering of former players and loyal, steadfast fans will last for approximately 1 hour and will be immediately followed by the 2009 Men’s Basketball Team Banquet beginning at 11:30 a.m.

If you are interested in attending the 2009 Team Banquet as well as the preceding “town hall” session, please feel encouraged to do so. We would welcome having you join the coaching staff and the division to help us honor the careers of this year’s departing seniors. The 10:30 a.m. “Town Hall” meeting will be a free, no charge event, but to attend the 11:30 a.m. 2009 Team Banquet the cost will be $40 per person. If you would like to attend either or both events, please indicate such and provide your RSVP to Joe Neary, Athletics Coordinator, at nearyjp@upenn.edu or 215-573-0315 by no later than Wednesday, April 22, 2009.

Sincerely,

Mary DiStanislao, GRD’05
Senior Associate Director of Athletics

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Cornell Basketball in the News

From the Daily Gopher a reference to new Cornell recruit, Josh Figini (pictured above:

This Cornell fan is not happy that Josh Figini was left off the All-Metro team (Star Tribune). Figini is headed to Cornell to play next season. It is kind of interesting how Cornell has tapped into Minnesota for Ryan Wittman who will be a senior next year shooting to be first team Ivy League for three years in a row.

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Should Cornell Leave the Ivy League and Jump to the Big 10?

What would you say to the idea of Cornell playing round robin basketball games against the likes of Michigan, Indiana and Purdue? Football against Ohio State? Should Cornell join the Big 10? Think about it. While we are not advocating a divorce from the Ivy League, Cornell and the Big 10 potentially could be a perfect marriage. And The Cornell Basketball Blog is not alone in this thinking.

Cornell Professor Issac Kramnick once wrote:

I have come to love this place in my thirty-six years of teaching here, to love this Ivy League school with its Big Ten soul, this university that since its birth has played such a rebellious and innovative role in American higher education.

Others have noticed the "Cornell-Big 10" connection. Cornell Basketball Head Coach Steve Donahue once said, "We have a Big Ten-type of campus." Coach Donahue is definitely onto something.

But the similarities go far beyond the campus.

Most of the Big 10 schools are large public universities set in collegetowns. The Big 10 schools not only excel in athletics, but they are also regularly ranked among the top national academic universities at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.

Cornell is very much all of the above.

Like most of the Big 10 schools, Cornell (a part private, part public institution) has a very public oriented mission with land-grant status. Cornell also has membership in the State University of New York (SUNY) system. And it also goes without saying that Cornell is regularly regarded academically as one of the top dozen or so national universities in the country.

Like most Big 10 schools, Cornell is massive both in physical size and in student body. Home to 20,000 students, Cornell's Ithaca campus is over 5,000 acres when including the University's gardens and natural areas and 745 acres of academic, athletic and residential areas. Cornell also maintains extended campuses in every county of New York State, not to leave out campus centers in Washington, D.C., Maine, Puerto Rico, New York City, Rome, Peru/Amazon River, and Qatar.

All taken together, the public mission, the grande size of the campus and student body, the stellar academic reputation and the setting in idyllic little Ithaca, Cornell has a whole lot more in common with Wisconsin in Madison and Indiana in Bloomington than it does with Penn in Philadelphia, Harvard in Boston or Columbia in New York.

Finally, there are also numerous historical connections between Cornell and the Big 10. Cornell's co-founder Andrew Dickson White was educated at the University of Michigan. Indiana's beloved 7th president, David Starr Jordan was a Cornell alumnus and Cornell's last two presidents were recruited from their presidencies at the University of Iowa.

And by the way, the Big 10 needs a 12th member in Cornell. Northwestern is the lone "private school" member, while Penn State is sitting by itself out in the east. Cornell is a piece that fits the puzzle. Cornell would add a second campus post for the conference in the east, joining Penn State, while also giving Northwestern some company as another elite private institution with an esteemed academic history.

As for athletics, Cornell is a national power in several major sports, including indoor and outdoor track (men's and women's), wrestling, ice hockey, and lacrosse. Even the Cornell men's basketball team made two consecutive trips to the NCAA Tournament and finished 2008-2009 with an RPI better than a pair of Big 10 teams (after finishing 2007-2008 ranked ahead of five Big 10 teams).

Joining the Big 10 would only improve the basketball program's ability to compete on a national level.

What do you think? Ivy or Big 10 for Cornell?

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Ivy League Roster Report

Below we provide anticipated roster sizes for each of the respective Ivy League teams for the 2009-2010 season, with links to the official team websites. In addition, we include the number of seniors (in their final year of eligibility during 2009-2010) for each team.

With an anticipated 2009-2010 roster size of 20 players, Cornell has more players than any other Ivy League team. But with 9 Cornell players entering their final year of eligibility the Big Red expect to return the fewest number of veterans in the league the following season. Just 11 players are scheduled to remain in the program.

IVY LEAGUE '09-'10 ROSTERS SIZES

• Cornell (20 players, including 9 seniors, 11 returning for '10-'11)
• Princeton (18 players, including 4 seniors, 14 returning for '10-'11)
• Harvard (16 players, including 2 seniors, 14 returning for '10-'11)
• Penn (16 players, including 1 senior, 15 returning for '10-'11)
• Yale (16 players, including 4 seniors, 12 returning for '10-'11)
• Brown (15 players, including 2 seniors, 13 returning for '10-'11)
• Columbia (15 players, including 3 seniors), 12 returning for '10-'11)
  
• Dartmouth (14 players, 2 seniors, 12 returning for '10-'11)

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Cornell Basketball in the News

A couple of references to Cornell Basketball in the news today...

A Brown Daily Herald writer advocates respect for the NIT. The author notes:

This year, for example, Cornell got a seed in the NCAA tournament because they were the Ivy League champions. According to the Ratings Percentage Index (RPI), a statistical tool used by the NCAA to seed teams in the tournament, Cornell was only the 115th best college basketball team this year. San Diego State, Creighton, UAB, St. Mary's (Calif.), Illinois State, and Niagara all finished the season with top 50 RPIs and trips to the NIT.

Also, in a late publication, the Boise State student newspaper, The Arbiter, published a late recap of Cornell's first round exit from the NCAA Tournament. The Arbiter writes:

If you watched the first half of play, you saw a low scoring Missouri squad that was barely hanging onto a four point lead against Cornell as they went into the locker room.

Boy the difference a half makes. The Missouri Tigers used their halftime speech to fire them up and propel them to a 78-59 victory over the Big Red.

"I thought the second half was typical of our basketball team all year long," Missouri head coach Mike Anderson said. What was typical was the 57 percent field goal shooting, and the 37.5 percent from beyond the arch. On the night they finished a sound 47.5 percent from the field.

The Tigers used a stifling defensive effort all afternoon to cool of the Big Red. A normally hot handed Cornell team was held to just 35.9 percent shooting on the night. To say the least Anderson was very pleased with his teams effort on the defensive end.

The only high point for Cornell was that of All-Ivy League all star Ryan Wittman who finished the game with a team high 18 points. However, he and the rest of The Big Red struggled from beyond the arch, an area were they normally excel at. On the day they only had six three pointers, which included a 4-11 performance from Wittman.

For Missouri they were led by the trio of DeMarre Carroll, Leo Lyons and J.T. Tiller, who finished with 13, 23 and 11 points respectively on the day.

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Recruiting News

Just another reference to Miles Asafo-Adjei's commitment to join the Big Red. From The City Newspaper:

Asafo-Adjei to Cornell: Ensworth High star wing player Miles Asafo-Adjei has committed to play basketball at Cornell. He was a standout in both football and basketball for the Tigers and helped lead his team to the DII-AA state basketball title.

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Men's Hockey on ESPNU Tonight @ 8PM for Frozen Four Ticket

The Cornell men's hockey team will play tonight (Sunday) at 8 p.m. on ESPNU with an opportunity to advance to the 2009 Frozen Four. A national hockey powerhouse, the Big Red appeared in the 2003 Frozen Four.

Below are some of the impressive team results from Cornell Athletics during the 2008-2009 school year:

• Men's Basketball (Ivy League Champions)
• Wrestling (Ivy League Champions, EIWA Champions, Final No. 2 National Ranking, 5th Place National Championships)
  Wrestling National Championships Final Team Standings
  1. Iowa 96.5
  2. Ohio State 92.0
  3. Iowa State 84.5
  4. Nebraska 78.5
  5. Cornell 73.5
  6. Edinboro 72.0
  7. Missouri 70.0
  8. Illinois 55.0
  9. Wisconsin 53.0
  10. Maryland 47.5

• Men's Indoor Track (Ivy League-Heptagonal Champions)
  
• Women's Indoor Track (Ivy League-Heptagonal Champions)
• Men's Hockey (Ranked No. 9 Nationally)
  

Additionally, in spring athletics, Men's Lacrosse is currently ranked No. 3 nationally.

GO BIG RED!

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The 2009-2010 Big Red

Below is the projected roster for Cornell's 2009-2010 season. The 20-player roster includes 9 seniors in their final year of eligibility. The 2008-2009 roster is available on CornellBigRed.com.

Potential transfers who would sit out 2009-2010 and late commitments from high school seniors could be added to this roster during the next few months.

NAME	CLASS YEAR	HEIGHT	POS.	NOTES
Jeff Foote	Senior (5th Year)	7’0”	C	Transfer via St. Bonaventure, 2nd Team All Ivy League 2008 and 2009, Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year 2009
Alex Tyler	Senior	6’7”	PF
Ryan Wittman	Senior	6’6”	SF	1st Team All Ivy League 2008 and 2009, 2007 Ivy League Rookie of the Year
Geoff Reeves	Senior	6’5”	SG
Louis Dale	Senior	5’11”	PG	2008 Ivy League Player of the Year, 2008 All-American, 2008 and 2009 1st Team All Ivy League
Max Groebe	Junior	6’4”	SG/SF	Eligible for a 5th year after transfer from UMass
Mark Coury	Senior	6’9”	PF/C	Eligible for a 5th year after transfer from Kentucky
Chris Wroblewski	Sophomore	6’1”	PG/SG	2009 Ivy League Rookie of the Year
Adam Wire	Junior	6’6”	PF/SF
Pete Reynolds	Senior	6’8”	PF
Jon Jaques	Senior	6’7”	PF/SF
Marc Van Burck	Senior	6’11”	C	Transferred from Colorado and Salt Lake C.C.
Andre Wilkins	Senior	6’5”	SF/PF	Transferred from Blinn College
Aaron Osgood	Junior	6’9”	PF/C
Alex Hill	Sophomore	6’4”	SG/SF
Errick Peck	Freshman	6’6”	PF
Miles Asafo-Adjei	Freshman	6’1”	PG
Josh Figini	Freshman	6’8”	PF/SF
Eitan Chemerinski	Freshman	6’8”	PF/SF
Peter McMillan	Freshman	6’7”	SF/PF

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