IvyBballFan
Masters Student
Posts: 479
Age: 77
Loc: Central Florida
Reg: 11-19-09
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01-18-24 04:28 PM - Post#361813
Cornell has been remarkably consistent and resilient this year. Despite one of their worst first halves of the season against Penn, pretty much like in the UVU game, it was still close at the break. Like UVU, Penn was unable to take advantage. Hmmm. Maybe it’s no coincidence that UVU and Penn rank about the same. In both games, the Red pieced things together in the locker room and rode a dominant, fast-paced second half offensive performance to a comfortable win. A double-double from Nick Spinoso and another nice game from super-frosh Sam Brown were not enough to keep the Quakers in it. And the Big Red did it while taking only one free throw the entire game.
Coach Earle subtly tweaked the “Starting Nine” for league games to add offense and youth. Veteran Nazir Williams now starts in place of DJ Nix and frosh Jake Fiegen has joined the three-four man crew which comes off the bench around the first media timeout. Fiegen has responded with 44% shooting from distance and 5-6RPG in each game. While Nix provided more-than-serviceable defense and ball handling, he was unable to find his shot during OOC play. His steady performance could come in handy in multiple scenarios over the next twelve games, giving the Red a realistic claim to being able to play ten-deep. Depth may partially explain why Cornell has won the second half by an average of eight points in its last eight wins.
Now on to Providence. Speaking of the road, the Red’s record away from Newman Arena is a sparkling 7-3. It’s almost as if Coach scheduled real time experience in the type of games his guys must win if they want to finish in the Ivy's top tier. The only real “bobble” came in Fairfax where they ran into a blistering hot Keyshawn Hall, an imposing 17PT/9R power forward who transferred from UNLV to George Mason, and has the Patriots in the A10 mix, as their leading scorer.
Those who followed the Bears frustrating OOC season can justifiably sense that the Bears’ fortunes are due for a change. A few friendly bounces and that 5-12 record could easily have been something above .500. After six tight OOC losses, Brown’s core five of Lilly Jr, Owuso-Anane, Anya, Kloman, and Cooley hung in there to pull an important league W out of Lavietes Pavilion.
Though Cornell is road-tested, Brown is better than their record and seems to be on the rise. Owuso-Anane and Anya give the Bears enough muscle upfront on their homecourt to put a dent in Cornell’s D-1 leading 65% 2pt shooting rate. Lilly is Lilly. Expect a highly-competitive game in Providence Saturday afternoon. It would not be surprising to see it come down to the FT line where the Red has an advantage.
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Old Bear
Postdoc
Posts: 3998
Reg: 11-23-04
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01-18-24 04:51 PM - Post#361814
In response to IvyBballFan
Hard to disagree with your assessment.
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IvyBballFan
Masters Student
Posts: 479
Age: 77
Loc: Central Florida
Reg: 11-19-09
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01-20-24 04:05 PM - Post#361861
In response to Old Bear
Very streaky first half by both clubs, resulting in a 49-42 half-time lead for the Big Red.
Definite difference in shooting from distance. Brown 1-11; Cornell 9-19. Surprisingly, Cornell outrebounding Brown 18-15.
Still feels like game is up for grabs.
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IvyBballFan
Masters Student
Posts: 479
Age: 77
Loc: Central Florida
Reg: 11-19-09
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01-20-24 05:25 PM - Post#361879
In response to IvyBballFan
Another frustrating loss for Brown. Cornell escapes the Pizz with an 84-83 W. Bears stayed right in it to the end, including a Brown 3ptr at the buzzer.
Brown is way better than 5-12, especially on their home court.
The game actually did come down to FT accuracy. Cornell was 16-22, including two with 6secs left to take an 84-80 lead. Brown was only 25-38, including several crucial misses down the stretch.
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