Steve Donahue is planning on dipping into his bench more this weekend, a result of that Yale loss last Friday. On Saturday, Adam Gore's minutes spiked to 15, and Jason Battle played a bigger role.
"For one, Gore’s come around a lot more; his presence is felt by our other guys and you can’t measure it. It’s there and you can feel it. And Jason Battle is playing better and maybe he’s a better matchup in the league than say Adam Wire – not that he can’t – but Battle may give you things that Adam Wire doesn’t. And they both can help you. I think it keeps us fresher this time of year; I think they’re all good players; I think that’s an advantage we have, and I think it’s foolish if we don’t (use it). I sense that the guys are fired up that more guys are playing and we’re getting more energy throughout the game.”
I asked if he felt that played a role in the Yale loss. His response:
"I felt that a little bit. I wish I went a little deeper into the bench early and gave guys breaks, because we’re up seven with 15 to go in the game and we’re just not playing with the energy that I would like. I think that may have helped, and Kreef’s another guy. Those veteran, senior guys knows what it takes in the league, and I don't want to underestimate that so they’re going into the rotation, helping guys, probably more often that we’ve had the last seven, eight games.”
Junior Jon Jaques has simulated Alex Barnett this week in practice. I'll say this about Jaques - the kid can flat out hit tough, tough shots. I saw a few shots drop Wednesday that I'm not sure Barnett can make.
"I think he’s really good because he makes hard shots and he’ll make hard shots. That’s what helps get us ready for Barnett. He might not be as athletic, but at the same time he can shoot those same shots, make hard ones and fadeaways, and it definitely helps us in practice.”
HANOVER, N.H. — After sitting out the bulk of this season rehabbing a knee injury, then playing minimal minutes since his return last month, Adam Gore can now tell himself his fingerprints are all over an important win.
In a pivotal three-play sequence early in the second half that blew open the game, the Cornell senior guard pump-faked a defender to set up a Chris Wroblewski 3-pointer, then knocked down consecutive triples to spark the Big Red to a 75-57 victory at Leede Arena.
"It felt pretty good," Gore said. "Reminiscent of some of those old days from last year and past years."
Said Cornell coach Steve Donahue: "I really can't put a word out that describes how much he means to this team. He's incredible in terms of his energy and his leadership."
Cornell moved one giant step closer to its second straight Ivy League championship. With a win tonight at Harvard (12-13, 4-7), the Big Red can clinch at least a share of the title with the opportunity to win it outright against Penn on March 6 at Newman Arena.
Because Princeton (11-12, 6-4) and Yale (12-13, 7-4) both won Friday night, and play each other tonight at Jadwin Gymnasium, Cornell (19-8, 9-2) can't lock down the league's NCAA automatic berth until next weekend at the earliest. Harvard beat Columbia (11-14, 6-5) on Friday, all but eliminating the Lions from contention.
Ryan Wittman continued his torrid shooting of late, scoring 20 points on 7-of-11 shooting, including 4-of-5 marksmanship from behind the arc. Louis Dale finished with 14 points, and Chris Wroblewski and Jeff Foote each added 11.
Donahue credited three of his seniors, Gore, Jason Battle and Brian Kreefer — each of whom saw extended minutes — for making important contributions.
"After that Yale (loss last weekend), I thought they were guys that needed to be out there, and they needed to be apart of finishing their careers the right way," Donahue said.
Cornell led 37-34 early in the second half when Gore set up Wroblewski's 3-pointer. On the next possession Gore drained a long trey from the right wing, forcing Dartmouth into a momentum timeout. It didn't work, because a Foote offensive rebound set up Gore again, and his aim was true.
Dartmouth clawed back to within eight, but two 3's from Wittman and another from Wroblewski broke the Big Green's spirit with just under 10 minutes to play.
On the night, Cornell shot a sizzling 57.9 percent (11 for 19) from beyond the arc. They outrebounded Dartmouth, 34-30, and defended Alex Barnett well enough that the 6-6 senior finished with 19 points, an average night by his standards.
Dartmouth was coming off a historic road sweep of Penn and Princeton, but couldn't extend its streak of wins.
"The last weekend Dartmouth played as good as anyone I've seen play at Penn and Princeton," Donahue said. "Terry Dunn has done a terrific job. ... I'm thrilled we were able to win this basketball game on their home court."
Notes: In other Ivy men's action, Princeton beat Brown, 56-48; Harvard beat Columbia, 72-63; and Penn fell to 0-5 in the league at the Palestra with an 87-79 loss to Yale.
Scouting Harvard(not including Friday's games)
Coach: Tommy Amaker (2nd season)
Record: 11-13, 3-7 Ivy League
Last time out: Harvard won at the Palestra for the first time since 1991, getting 22 points from senior Drew Housman in a 66-60 victory on Feb. 21.
Last time vs. Cornell: Cornell set a new record for assists in a game with 31, and freshman Chris Wroblewski established career-highs of 17 points and seven assists in the Big Red's 96-75 victory on Feb. 13 in Ithaca.
Probable starters: Evan Harris (6-8, 230, Sr., F), Keith Wright (6-8, 240, Fr., F), Jeremy Lin (6-3, 200, Jr., F), Drew Housman (6-0, 185, Sr., G), Andrew Pusar (6-2, 200, Sr., G).
Statistically: Lin leads the Crimson in scoring at 18.1 points per game, and ranks 10th in rebounding (5.3), first in steals (2.6) and second in assists (4.3) in the league. ... Harvard is 0-4 in the first of back-to-back games, and 2-2 in the second of back-to-back games. ... Harvard is 1-8 when its opponent scores 70 or more points.
Outlook: The Crimson were overwhelmed by Cornell's massive height advantage two weeks ago in Ithaca, as the Big Red passed through, around and over its counterpart in a 21-point win.
Harvard's been a much better team at home, and was the team that came closest to handing Cornell an Ivy League loss last year. The Big Red needed six points in the final 30 seconds from Alex Tyler to win by a point.
That said, Harvard is hands down the league's worst defensive team, and unless Amaker's young kids catch lightning in the bottle, Cornell should be able to outscore them in a repeat of that Feb. 13 game.
With two wins this weekend, Cornell would capture at least a share of its second straight Ivy League title.
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