Grant Mullins

Ivy Saturday Roundup

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Princeton 80, Brown 62

The visiting Tigers jumped out to a 12-2 advantage and never looked back, leading by 26 at one point and outplaying the Bears in every facet of the game. Steven Cook’s 15 points and seven boards set the pace for Princeton, as did 12-point efforts from Henry Caruso and Amir Bell. The Tigers are now just a game under .500 at 13-14 and still claim a distant third place in the Ivy standings. Tavon Blackmon curiously logged just five minutes despite no fouls and no obvious injuries. Nothing makes sense for Brown fans anymore.

Dartmouth 56, Cornell 45

Robert Hatter exploded for 23 points for the Big Red but the Big Green won the battle of the Bigs behind 41 combined points from Alex Mitola, Gabas Maldunas and Malik Gill off the bench. Dartmouth shot 7-for-15 from beyond the arc and wondered what Harvard found so hard about completing the Empire State sweep.

Yale 55, Penn 50

Things got real interesting in New Haven. The Quakers led for the first 37:41 of the game but couldn’t hang on late, with Justin Sears overcoming seven turnovers to notch a crucial block and three-point play in the game’s final minute. The Bulldogs get to 10-2 in Ivy play and will travel to Harvard next Friday for the game of the year. Javier Duren posted 19 points but shot just 4-for-15 from the field and was outshone by Antonio Woods, who scored 14 and added six assists in a losing effort. True to form, Jack Montague nailed two clutch threes down the stretch and finished with 11 points of his own.

Harvard 80, Columbia 70

And it’s the game of the year largely because Harvard won too, also climbing to 10-2 to keep pace with Yale atop the conference standings. Wesley Saunders posted 21 points, including 11 free throws, to lead the way for the Crimson, and Steve Moundou-Missi added 17 on 8-for-11 shooting. Host Columbia shot north of 53 percent for the second time against Harvard this season, but it came up with a second loss because the Lions just couldn’t get anyone going outside of Maodo Lo, whose 33-point, five-steal performance just wasn’t quite enough, even as the Lions cut Harvard’s lead to 48-44 with 11:54 remaining. The Lions have depth issues, but they  do have Alex Rosenberg and Grant Mullins coming back – next season.

Lions must be able to win without Maodo

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“We had a saying: everybody has to guard Lo.”

That’s how Carson Puriefoy described Stony Brook’s game plan against Columbia Tuesday night, when the two sides met in a Morningside Heights rematch.

It is fair to say the Seawolves executed that plan to near perfection, holding Lo to a season-low seven points on just 2-for-9 shooting; his first bucket didn’t fall until less than four minutes remained in the game. Puriefoy shouldered most of the load in stopping the Lions’ star guard, though he was consistently helped with double-teams and other defensive tactics which prohibited Lo from driving or getting clean looks from three.

The Lions fell, 70-61, and dropped to 7-6 on the season, with just a matchup against D-II Central Pennsylvania before Ivy play kicks off with a home-and-home against travel partner Cornell.

The game offered a blueprint to anyone trying to shut down Columbia this year.

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Columbia basketball needs better frontcourt play to defend ‘the bunker’

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Kyle Castlin's scoring and rebounding impact has been felt immediately, but the Lions still have major depth issues. (onebidwonders.com)
Kyle Castlin’s scoring and rebounding impact has been felt immediately, but the Lions still have major depth issues. (onebidwonders.com)

The saying is that your home gym is a fortress; for Columbia, Levien Gymnasium — literally and figuratively — is better called a bunker. The Lions lost just four games there last year: a defeat at the death to Manhattan in the home opener, a double-overtime loss to Harvard assisted by the officials, a 10-point loss to Princeton and the CIT quarterfinal against Yale. Total margin of defeat: 18 points.

It comes as a shock now when the Lions lose in their bunker, as they did last night. It was another close game, as Loyola (Md.) scored a buzzer-beater to finish off the Light Blue after the home side’s furious fightback. Final two minutes aside, the result exposed some fairly major issues with a still congealing squad.

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Columbia’s Alex Rosenberg out indefinitely with foot fracture

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The roster upheaval is starting to get disturbing for Columbia fans. First, senior guard Meiko Lyles and sophomore forward Zach En’Wezoh left the program earlier this month. Now, per the Columbia Spectator, Alex Rosenberg is out indefinitely after sustaining a Jones fracture in his right foot during practice Friday. As the Spectator notes, the usual recovery time for the injury is six to eight weeks, which would wipe out most of his nonconference season.

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Fool's Gold

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Wolfgang is distraught over last weekend
Wolfgang is distraught over last weekend”s Lion taming as Columbia”s conference play troubles surface yet again.

Is there anything worse than false hope? Anything?

When I was young, my father used to take me to the New England Aquarium. I loved it there – the penguins were my favorite. But I had one memory that stuck out, sore and unlike the others. After watching the penguins, the otters, and the algae-laced sea turtles, I went to the gift shop, and headed straight to the rocks and minerals section. I saw this shiny rock, and I needed to have it. The rock I needed – it was solid gold. I asked my dad if I could have it. He chuckled at my childish ignorance and explained, “Wolfgang, that’s fool”s gold.” Though it shined like gold, it was just like any other rock.

Needless to say, I had an episode of déjà vu this weekend.

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Columbia 71, Cornell 61

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The Lions did what they had to do, making the halftime adjustments to run away from overmatched Cornell last night at Levien.
It wasn’t pretty down the stretch, but the Lions did what they had to do, making the halftime adjustments to run away from overmatched Cornell last night at Levien.

Rarely does a 10-point win leave the Lion Loyalists as unsatisfied as it did on Saturday night in Upper Manhattan – the aura around the post-game press conference was indicative of that.

Despite Cornell’s late-game run sparked by a full-court press and a small lineup, Coach Smith was proud of the way his team fought through the adversity saying, “We went through some tough ones like that last year and didn’t get it done, so hopefully [this win gives us] a little confidence moving forward.”

The Lions began the night hitting 3-4 from three, taking advantage of a Cornell defense that was overplaying the backdoor cuts and providing open looks off of handoffs and down-screens. But after a David Onuorah (6 pts, 4 rbs) rim-rattling dunk, another Onuorah put-back layup, and a Devin Cherry (16 pts) old fashioned three-point play, the game was tied at 21 with 2:59 left in the first half. A pair of “and-1s” from Alex Rosenberg, followed by a Maodo Lo layup got us to halftime, just 29-26 Columbia.

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Can the Lions become Kings of the Ivy League Jungle?

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Below, Wolfgang breaks down the Ivy
Below, Wolfgang breaks down the Ivy”s hottest team. But will it translate to conference success?

Entering their final non-conference game against Stony Brook (KenPom #113) tonight, Kyle Smith’s Columbia Lions are generating some serious buzz. After a heartbreaking defeat against Manhattan and a hard fought loss to then-#2 Michigan State, the Lions are 8-4 over their last 12 games. Coach Smith is settling on his eight-man rotation, and these young Lions are looking like a team that can contend at the top of the league. The unanswered question remains; is this the same Columbia team from last season that looked strong entering conference play, but then limped to a 4-10 conference finish, or is this a different pride of lions?

The biggest question entering this season was how the Columbia guards would fill the void left by Brian Barbour and limit turnovers. Although the Lions turn the ball over on 19.4% of their possessions (226th in the country), the turnovers aren’t killing Columbia, and are simply a product of Smith’s unconventional, high-risk, high-reward offense.

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Lions Lose Heartbreaker at the Buzzer

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Columbia's recent streak of heartbreaking close losses continued on Tuesday night in a shocking last second defeat to Manhattan, 71-70.
Columbia’s recent streak of heartbreaking close losses continued on Tuesday night in a shocking last second defeat to Manhattan, 71-70.

In tonight’s battle for Manhattan’s basketball throne, one team’s misfortune became the other’s gain, as the Jaspers pulled out the stunning 71-70 victory at Levien Gymnasium.

The play that gave Manhattan a second life was a controversial foul call on Mike Alvarado’s desperation three-point attempt with 4 seconds to go, down 70-67. During the play, Alvarado leaned into Columbia defender Maodo Lo (8 points, 6 rebounds) and was granted the shooting foul despite Lo’s proper defense. Alvarado then went to the line for three shots, and the chance to tie the game at 70.

After missing the first and making the second to get Manhattan within 2 points, Alvarado appeared to intentionally miss the third. The rebound fell to a fortunate Jasper player whose errant putback fell just within the reach and leap of George Beamon. As he crashed to the floor, he laid it perfectly off the backboard and in, getting fouled in the process. Confidently, the 5th year senior stepped to the line and swished the free throw to take the one point lead, 71-70. But it wasn’t quite over yet.

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Season Preview: Columbia Lions

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Can Columbia learn how to win close games this season with a young roster of sharpshooters and unproven big men?
Can the Lions learn how to win close games this season with a young roster of sharpshooters and unproven big men?

In 2012-13: 12-16, 4-10, 8th place, No Postseason.

A Look Back

Before the start of last season, some considered Columbia a dark horse contender for the Ivy title. After a promising 8-6 non-conference record that included a dominant road victory over Villanova, that preseason prediction didn”t appear too farfetched. However, Columbia limped through a frustrating 4-10 Ivy League campaign. Senior Brian Barbour was banged up all year, while Mark Cisco averaged a career low 45.6% from the field and 8.1 points per game – 2 points below his junior season”s average. Alex Rosenberg shot an abysmal 26.7% from three, and Kyle Smith didn’t call for enough screens to free up Steve Frankoski. It seemed that many of Columbia”s losses were either the result of bad timing or bad luck. 

On the brighter side, last season we saw the emergence of two future all-Ivy League shooters, Grant Mullins and Steve Frankoski. The twine-tickling tandem combined for a 100-239 (42%) mark from behind the arc in the 2012-13 season, and could see those offensive numbers improve with the return of junior guard, Meiko Lyles. Lyles should get his fair share of defensive attention on the perimeter himself, and take some of it off of Frankoski and Mullins.

A player who showcased maturity and development during the tail end of the season was sophomore guard, Maodo Lo. He came onto the scene in the middle of the season, and showed a dynamic offensive game and gritty on-the-ball defense. As a likely candidate for Ivy breakout player, how can you not be high on Lo? 

It”s always tough to lose seniors – especially Barbour, Cisco and Daniels. Barbour is an obvious loss, and given his previous All-Ivy seasons, Columbia will need some of the younger players to step in and provide some much needed leadership at the point. Cisco – disregarding my personal frustrations with his finishing inside – had his moments, and will need to be replaced as a big body inside. John Daniels will be missed for his defense, energy off the bench, rebounding efficiency, and his legendary flush over IHO Defensive POY and Cornell rim-protector, best online casino Shonn Miller.

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Round 1 in the Books

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Saturday”s league contests had Ivy fans expecting two very close games between traveling partners. Instead, we got

two pretty decisive victories from Columbia and Brown. The Lions” victory provided more evidence that Columbia is a real contender this year. If they want to compete for the title, this was a road game they needed to have. Meanwhile the day”s biggest statement came from Brown. The Bears” victory wasn”t necessarily unexpected, but the way they routed Yale was certainly a surprise. For such a balanced team with many different ways to put the ball in the bucket, it”s worth noting that the Bears now boast the third-best defense in the league, yielding fewer than 1 point per possession. With Albrecht back now, perhaps we have to raise the ceiling for the quickly-improving Bears: reaching the top half seems to be within the realm of possibilities.

Cornell and Yale will have to go back to the drawing board to figure out a way to salvage a split with their traveling partners after disappointing opening weekends–Cornell with an eye on fixing the defense, and for Yale, the offense.

In some of the season”s final non-conference action, Harvard had a stirring comeback that fell short in Memphis and Penn was dismantled by St. Joe”s in a Big 5 matchup. Let”s take a look at this weekend”s top performers:

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