Home of the Roundball Poets
Welcome to Haiku Corner, where we analyze what to look for with each Ivy squad this upcoming season, three lines at a time (with supporting links to boot):
Miles ahead of them,
Can Big Green underclassmen
Fill the Baltic void?
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Defense a given
Dartmouth, your upset special
If Gill fits the bill
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How many of us
Wish we could break a leg
As Keggy the Keg?
There’s a new word surrounding Penn basketball this season: whānau.
What does this word mean and what does it have to do with the Quakers program under new coach Steve Donahue? The word means family in the Maori language.
Yet, as Donahue says, it means much more. It also refers to one’s extended family and their community, something that the Red and Blue hope to embrace in the 2015-16 season.
Embracing the community is a necessity after the Quakers’ recent lack of success. Penn is coming off possibly the worst three-year stretch in program history, a period that led to the ouster of coach Jerome Allen and the tenure of Donahue. A Penn assistant from 1990-2000 and the former head coach of Cornell and Boston College, Donahue brings a new wave of optimism and excitement to his former school.
Thanks to everyone close to the Penn basketball program in some capacity who shared their thoughts on their hopes and expectations for the Quakers this season:
A.J. Brodeur, Penn basketball class of 2020: I think this year for Penn, people need to watch out for the freshman class. There’s a lot of talent there that was under-recruited in high school in my opinion. Also, Steve’s style of play focuses on letting the players play with offensive guidelines and concepts rather than always running defined plays and offenses. It’s worked for him in the past and I’m excited to see where it takes the Quakers this year. I think Penn basketball will definitely turn some heads this year.
Ryan Betley, Penn basketball class of 2020: This upcoming season, I am looking forward to seeing how coach Donahue’s offense works and how the guys on the team buy into it. It’s a big style change from the previous coach, but I think it makes a lot of sense: Shoot rhythm threes and get the ball inside. In addition, I’m intrigued to see how the freshman class performs, knowing I will be teammates with them for the next three years. I know the expectations aren’t that high but I think Penn can still be a sleeper in the Ivy League this year. #GoQuakers
It is ironic that Steve Donahue has become our new head coach.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m fine with the choice. After all, this has to be his dream job. A Philly guy with Quaker DNA who has a deep respect, if not love, for the hoop traditions of the city, returns as leader to the campus that once nurtured his coaching skills as a young assistant. In fact, he was so enamored with his new position that in his introductory press conference he said, “This place is one that has everything I ever wanted in an institution. I am a Big 5 coach. There are only five of us. To imagine that I am one of them, at this institution, is just incredible.”
Some acrostic poems about your Penn Quakers, because whānau is hard to spell.
So
Is he the
Light-em-up
Point guard
Everybody hoped?
Ian Halpern, IHO founder and writer:
Most looking forward to: Watching this team when they get out and run. They have a lot of backcourt talent and should be very fun to watch when they push the tempo and the threes are falling.
Expectations: Relying on youth is a dangerous proposition in the Ivy League. The Bears have a few too many newcomers to expect them to compete for a title, but I think Brown will surprise some people and win a few games they aren’t expected to. Ultimately, I expect a mid-conference finish within a game of .500.
Kevin McNamara, Providence Journal sportswriter:
For Brown to contend in the Ivies this season, we’ll have to see the very best of big man Cedric Kuakumensah. Cedric has shown superlative defensive effort for three years but this season Mike Martin needs his center to dominate on both ends of the floor. Kuakumensah is one of four returning starters at Brown and that experience must show through on a consistent basis. Point guard Tavon Blackmon made big gains last season and could emerge as one of the top guards in the Ivy this season.
Join in the fun. What do you expect from the Brown Bears in 2015-16? Kuakumensah-led sleeper contention for the Ivy crown? Another 10-loss conference campaign? Let us know in the comments below.
Coach Mike Martin enters his fourth season at the helm for the Bears, looking to improve on last season’s 4-10 Ivy record. With Martin’s early recruits coming of age and the addition of some under-the-radar talent, there’s reason for optimism in Providence.
First and foremost, this is Cedric Kuakumensah’s team, as the imposing senior center and captain looks to build upon the greatest defensive reputation in the league. Outside of Kuakumensah, the Bears will look to replace the contributions of reliable big man, Rafael Maia, and they’ll look to a young cast to do so. Watch out for Travis Fuller, the 6-9 freshman from Encinitas, Calif. The early returns are positive on Fuller, as the skilled big man looks to fill Maia’s void in the frontcourt.
Welcome to Haiku Corner, where we analyze what to look for with each Ivy squad this upcoming season, three lines at a time (with supporting links to boot):
King Kuakumensah
But who else inside now?
Must shore up the paint
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Rhythm from Blackmon
But don’t sleep on Daugherty
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Brothers on the wing
Brothers on the greenery
Brothers in big arms
This year”s 2015-16 Cornell season preview comes from Barry Leonard, who is looking forward to his 24th year providing top-notch radio broadcasting of Big Red hoops.
As he enters year number six as the head coach of Cornell basketball, Bill Courtney will embrace the phrase “Youth must be served.”
IHO has reached out to folks who cover or follow each Ivy program to gauge what they’re looking forward to most about this upcoming season and how they expect the team will fare in 2015-16. First up, the team projected in the Ivy Preseason Media Poll to finish last in the Ivy League this season, the Cornell Big Red: