Tag Archive: Basketball

  1. M. BASKETBALL | Elis win two to end non-league play

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    After a three game slump, the men’s basketball team capped off winter break with a two-game winning streak.

    In their last non-conference game of the season, the Bulldogs (7–7) took down the Baruch Bearcats (8–6) 85–57 Saturday afternoon in the John J. Lee Amphitheater after narrowly defeating Holy Cross 77–76 on Wednesday. Center Greg Mangano ’12 led Yale against the Bearcats with 18 points and 11 rebounds, his fifth double-double of the season.

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    The matchup with Baruch was the Elis’ fifth and final game of the winter break, which got off to a rough start with three straight losses. They lost 71–62 to Sacred Heart (7–8), 60–44 at the hands of Stanford (9–5), and 62–57 to Lehigh (9–7).

    “I think we just need to get our confidence back,” forward Rhett Anderson ’12 said at the time. “We had a winning record… since then we’ve lost three. We need to get that feeling back.”

    The Bulldogs broke the losing streak last Wednesday with a 77–76 thrilling overtime victory over Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass. Guard Austin Morgan ’13 converted a three-point play in the waning seconds of overtime to lead the Elis to their first win in 28 days.

    Three days later against Baruch, the Bulldogs came out strong to win their second in a row. Five consecutive points from Mangano and bank shots from Morgan and Kreisberg helped Yale begin a 9–2 run. Three minutes later, a Michael Grace ’13 18-foot jump shot gave the Elis an 18–9 advantage. Bearcat guard CJ Jurewicz-Johnson then countered with six straight points to shrink the Yale advantage to three.

    “We tried to penetrate and dump some passes off,” head coach James Jones said. “That hurt us.”

    But Yale’s bench put the Elis back on track. Off the bench, guard Sam Martin ’13 and Anderson hit big shots to start a 12–2 run that would give the Bulldogs a 13-point advantage. Supported by an enthusiastic visiting crowd, Baruch fought back and capitalized on three Yale turnovers and closed the gap to 30–24. However, the Bulldogs regained control behind three-pointers from Morgan and Katz. The Elis entered the break with a 39–26 advantage. The team used nine assists to shoot 56 percent in the first half and held the Bearcats to 36.4 percent shooting.

    “We stress making each other better, making the extra pass,” Mangano said. “That’s when we’re at our best.”

    The Bulldogs’ teamwork was demonstrated five minutes into the second half. Leading 47–34, forward Reggie Willhite ’12 fed forward Jeremiah Kreisberg ’14 in the low post. The freshman converted a low post turnaround bank shot. On the ensuing Baruch possession, the Bulldogs created a steal, allowing Willhite to throw down a fast break slam dunk. Morgan then picked up an errant Baruch pass and fired a fast break alley oop pass in Willhite’s direction. Although Willhite was unable to convert the layup, a trailing Mangano tipped home the the miss. The minute long sequence started a 13–0 Yale run that put the game out of the Bearcats’ reach.

    Yale played a stellar second half in which twelve Elis scored as the team outscored Baruch 46–31. In addition, the Bulldogs did not turn the ball over after committing nine first-half turnovers.

    “We have shown that we’re capable of playing at a very high level,” Jones said. “The consistency is the question.”

    Mangano added 3 blocks to his double-double. Guard Brian Katz ’12 recorded a career-high 16 points in 11 minutes. Kreisberg was also in double figures with 11 points. The freshman has reached double digits in points in each of his last four games.

    “Jeremiah’s been playing great,” Mangano said. “As a freshman, it’s tough to do that.”

    Baruch guard Tammer Farid led the visitors with 14 points. Forward Chris Beauchamp, the Bearcats’ leading scorer, was held to 10 points.

    The Bulldogs begin Ivy League conference play next Saturday against Brown at 2 p.m. in Providence, R.I.

  2. M. BASKETBALL | Elis headed for Vermont

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    The men’s basketball team has faced a tough early season schedule, and things do not get any easier this Saturday when they face the University of Vermont.

    The Bulldogs (3–3) will travel to Burlington, Vt. to battle the Catamounts (5–1) who are riding a four-game win streak coming into the contest.

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    The Catamounts dominated Darmouth 80–53 Wednesday night. Catamount senior guard Joey Accaoui hit five three-pointers and registered a game high 21 points. Evan Fjeld added 20 points and nine rebounds. Earlier in the season, Vermont, last year’s America East Conference Tournament Champions, edged Quinnipiac, 79–75 in Hamden, Conn. Yale fell to the Bobcats by nine points in their season opener. The Catamounts’ only loss on the year came at Connecticut, now the ninth-ranked team in the nation.

    The Catamounts are led on the boards by freshman forward Brian Voekel and his 9.7 rebounds per game. Also on the Bulldogs’ radar is senior forward Evan Fjeld, who is the Catamounts’ leading scorer at 21.3 points per game and is pulling down 6.2 boards per game, second highest on the team.

    “We need to play well as a team,” Morgan said. “They have a great home court and they’re a really good team.”

    This year, the Bulldogs have looked to a variety of options. Four of the five starters, including center Greg Mangano ’12, guard Austin Morgan ’13, guard Porter Braswell ’11 and forward Reggie Willhite ’12, are averaging double figures in scoring. The Bulldogs’ ability to share the scoring burden across the team has produced a 42.8 field goal percentage and a solid 38.5 three-point shooting percentage.

    In the game against Hartford, the Bulldogs used 22 points from Morgan and a career high 19 points from Willhite to fight off several Hartford comebacks. With Mangano in foul trouble for most of the game, the Elis were outrebounded 34–26. Saturday’s game presents an equally difficult battle on the glass as Vermont is averaging 40 rebounds per game, nearly nine more than the Bulldogs.

    “[Rebounding is] extremely important,” Morgan said. “Going on the road is tough and if you don’t rebound, you don’t stand a chance.”

    The Elis will look to move above .500 for the first time this year on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Patrick Gynasium in Burlington, Vt.

  3. W. BASKETBALL | Rough second half for Elis

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    A shorthanded women’s basketball team was unable to snap its four-game skid after falling 74–62 to Providence College (4–4) in a nonconference matchup Wednesday night at Alumni Hall in Providence.

    After keeping pace in the first half with the Friars, Providence went on a 19–1 run at the beginning of the second half to pull away with the victory.

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    The struggling Bulldogs (1–5) had to deal with the absences of their starting guards Megan Vasquez ’13 and Yoyo Greenfield ’11, who were kept out of the lineup as a precautionary measure after they collided and hit their heads during practice Tuesday. Guards Allie Messimer ’13 and Aarica West ’13 started in their places.

    “I think everybody definitely felt a little bit of pressure, but we handled it really well,” Messimer said. “We were a little more nervous than usual, but everyone ended up doing well and ended up okay.”

    Despite being down two starters, the Bulldogs received at least one point from every player that stepped onto the court. Messimer and forward Michelle Cashen ’12 led the Elis with 12 points each, while forward Mady Gobrecht ’11 added nine. Cashen also recorded seven rebounds, five assists and two steals.

    “I thought the bench people stepped up and did a very good job,” head coach Chris Gobrecht said. “It’s frustrating not to get the win, but we’re dealing with a situation where we have played game, after game, after game that we have yet to be favored in.”

    Though the Elis hit 15 of 30 field goals in the first half, they cooled down after halftime and shot nine-of-31 from the field. The Bulldogs were outrebounded 52-36 by the Friars in the contest, making it the fifth time that the Elis have lost the battle of the boards.

    Providence’s Symone Roberts and Miranda Tate tied for the game-high point total with 18 points each. Mi-Khida Hankins was also strong for the Friars and tallied nine rebounds and five blocks.

    Though the Friars outscored Yale 13-4 in the first five minutes of play, the Bulldogs battled back and went on a 6-0 run to cut Providence’s lead to 13–10 with 12:57 left in the first half.

    The Friars built a 10-point lead following a layup from Roberts that put Providence up 24–14 with 8:11 left on the clock.

    A shot from downtown from Ericka von Kaeppler ’13 kept the Bulldogs close and decreased Providence’s lead to a 27–22 advantage. The Elis hit nine of 18 shots from 3-point range in the game.

    “We have a lot of great shooters, so we’re just kind of expected to be making those shots,” Messimer said.

    The Bulldogs continued to chip away at the Friars’ lead and cut their lead down to 33–32 following an 8-2 run that was fueled by three layups from Cashen and one from Mady Gobrecht with 2:25 left in the half. Cashen scored 10 of her 12 points in the first half.

    The Friars’ Chandler McCabe then successfully converted a 3-point play that gave Providence a 36–32 edge.

    A layup from center Zenab Keita ’14 cut Yale’s deficit down to two points with 58 seconds left on the clock, but Miranda Tate sank a jumper and Lola Wells added a pair of free throws to give the Friars a 40–34 lead at halftime.

    Messimer opened up the second half by hitting a 3-pointer that cut Providence’s lead to 40–37. But after that, it was all Providence.

    Providence outscored the Elis 19-1 over the next seven minutes to take a 59–38 lead with 12:44 left in regulation. It was the Friars’ largest lead of the night.

    “I think that their lead definitely came from what they were doing and not necessarily our offense,” Messimer said. “[It was] more so of our defense that cooled off a little bit. Offense comes with defense.”

    However, Yale rallied to reduce the deficit. A free throw from Mady Gobrecht made the score 67–59 and pulled the Bulldogs within eight points with 4:30 left on the clock, but that turned out to be the closest the Elis would get for the remainder of the game, as Providence was able to maintain their lead and hand Yale their fifth straight loss.

    “We don’t have a single trip where we can afford to give anything less than our best,” coach Gobrecht said. “You have to be on your best every single trip, and that’s a tall order. We’re just going to keep getting better. For the most part we’re not fine with losing, but I’m not concerned about us. We’re going to be okay.”

  4. M. BASKETBALL | Elis hold off Hawks

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    Last December, the men’s basketball team needed a last-second dunk to defeat Hartford. The crowd at John J. Lee Amphitheater Tuesday night did not see quite as dramatic a finish, but Yale’s victory over the Hawks was no less intense.

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    In a game as back-and-forth as an Ivy League conference game, the Bulldogs (3–3) topped Hartford (1–5) 81–76 behind the strength of 22 points from guard Austin Morgan ’13 and 19 points from forward Reggie Willhite ’12. The Elis have now won three of their last four games, with their only loss coming against No. 19 Illinois.

    Yale started quickly. Behind two 3-pointers from Morgan and a 3-pointer and layup from Willhite, Yale took an 11–4 lead over the first four and a half minutes. Hartford fought back, though, and went on a 9–2 run to tie the game at 13. During the run, center Greg Mangano ’12 picked up his second personal foul and was forced to sit for 11 of the first half’s 20 minutes. The Bulldogs’ leading scorer finished the first half with zero points, a game after he scored a career-high 27 against Army. Willhite picked up the slack and scored 11 of his team’s next 23 points to give the Bulldogs a 36–30 lead at the half.

    At halftime, Willhite had 17 points on five-of-six shooting from the field. Morgan contributed 12 points on four-of-four shooting from 3-point range. Hartford forward Anthony Minor led the Hawks with nine points. His teammate Milton Burton added six points and five rebounds.

    “Willhite [went] three-for-three from three,” Hartford coach John Gallagher said. “You can talk to any Ivy League coach and that [ability] wasn’t there [last year].”

    Yale came out storming, scoring eight straight points to start the second half. But as Hartford did throughout the game, it refused to give in, shrinking the gap to 46–44 Yale. Two Morgan free throws, two nearly identical layups from guard Jesse Pritchard ’14 and another Morgan 3-pointer extended the Eli lead to 55–46. Once again, however, Hartford made a comeback and narrowed the lead to one at 55–54 with 7:55 to play in the game.

    After a two minutes of close basketball that saw Yale lead 61–59, Mangano scored eight of the Bulldogs next 10 points to give his team a 71–63 lead with 3:23 to go. Still, Hartford refused to back down.

    “We are fighting every night,” Gallagher said. “We just want to make sure that people realize who we are.”

    A foul by forward Rhett Anderson ’12 on the Hawks’ Joe Zeglinski’s 3-point attempt led to three points. Then, a Mangano layup was countered by another Zeglinski jumper. After Morgan converted two free throws, Hartford’s Clayton Brothers laid a ball in to shrink the gap to five. After being fouled on the ensuing possession, 91 percent free throw shooter Braswell could only convert one of two foul shots. Trailing 76–70 with 1:22 left, a Mustafaa Jones layup and a Zeglinski 3-pointer coupled with a missed Mangano layup put the pressure back on Yale, which led by just one.

    “At the end of a game like that, it’s going to go one of two ways,” head coach James Jones said. “You’re going to stretch the lead out or they’re going to have a chance to climb back in. We were just not smart about decision making down the stretch. … The last layup that Greg missed — it probably would have been a better decision to pull it out and run some clock.”

    Braswell sank two more free throws to extend the lead to three with 36 seconds to play. On the transition, Zeglinski drove into the lane and drew a foul on a layup attempt that just rolled off the rim. However, the Hawks’ leading scorer for the game could only make one of two free throws. The Elis inbounded the ball to Morgan, who was immediately fouled. The sophomore made one of two free throws to give the Bulldogs a three point lead with 20 seconds remaining. With one chance left, the Hawks turned to Zeglinski, who tried a three with four seconds left on the clock. The shot clanked off the rim and was grabbed by Mangano. The Hawks fouled in desperation with two seconds left, but Mangano was able to sink both free throws and give his team a 81–76 win.

    Morgan finished as the Bulldogs’ leading scorer with 22 points and was a perfect five-for-five shooting from beyond the arc. Willhite finished with 19 points, a career high, on six-of-nine shooting.

    “I had a lot of opportunities in the defense they were throwing at us,” Willhite said. “I just stepped up and hit a few shots and got down and penetrated and looked for Austin for threes.”

    Braswell was the distributor on Tuesday, dishing a career-high eight assists and adding nine points. Mangano, who was held scoreless in the first half, scored 12 in the second half and grabbed six rebounds on the game.

    “I feel like we have a lot of options on the team,” Willhite said. “I feel like whoever is making the shots that day is an option.”

    Zeglinski, also held scoreless in the first half, bounced back to post 21 second-half points and eight rebounds. Burton contributed 13 points and five boards.

    “I told him that I’m glad that I don’t have to see him anymore,” Jones said of Zeglinski. “He’s just a tremendous player.”

    The Elis will go on the road to look for their fourth win at 1 p.m. Saturday against Vermont.

  5. W. BASKETBALL | California not so sunny for Bulldogs

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    It was a tough week for the women’s basketball team. Staying in action throughout the break, the Bulldogs were winless in their three games, which included a trip to California to play UC Berkeley and UC Davis. The Elis (1–4) have now hit a four-game skid and have not won since their season opener against Holy Cross.

    The Elis hosted Delaware (5–0) in their home opener on Nov. 21 at the John J. Lee Amphitheater. The Blue Hens denied the Bulldogs their first home win, as All-American guard/forward Elena Delle Donne scored 41 points to propel Delaware to a 79-61 victory.

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    Though four Yale players ended the night with double-digit point totals — guard Allie Messimer ’13 and forward Ericka von Kaeppler ’13 each scored a team-high 14 points — their efforts were not enough to overcome the Blue Hens. Guard Megan Vasquez ’13, the team’s top scorer, was limited to four points on 1-for-11 shooting. The Bulldogs were also outrebounded 40-20 in the contest.

    Following the matchup with Delaware, the team travelled to the West Coast to face Cal (6–1) and UC Davis (6–1) for only the second time in the team’s history.

    “We played two good teams, on the road, a long way from home,” head coach Chris Gobrecht said. “The whole idea was just to get better. We’re not quite whole yet, but we’re getting there. It’s very important for us to get better, and I thought we did that.”

    The road trip started in Berkeley on Tuesday, where the Bulldogs fell 64–41 to the Golden Bears at Haas Pavilion.

    Cal’s Talia Caldwell and DeNesha Stallworth carried most of the offensive load for the Golden Bears and each finished the night with double-doubles. Caldwell had 17 points and 16 rebounds, both game highs. Cal also outrebounded the Bulldogs by a 64-34 margin.

    “We did not board well against Cal, but that was an extremely good rebounding team,” Gobrecht said. “That was kind of less than par.”

    The Elis shot only 16-for-72 from the field in the game. Vasquez contributed a team-high 11 points, while forward Mady Gobrecht ’11 chipped in with 10 points and five rebounds. Forward Michelle Cashen ’12 also totaled eight points, five boards and a game-high five steals.

    “We do need to shoot the ball better,” coach Gobrecht said. “We’re a better shooting team, and we’ve had a lot of great open looks and we’re not knocking all them down, so we’ve got to work on better shooting.”

    The Bulldogs looked to close out their road trip on a high note with a game against UC Davis on Friday night, but they were unable to do so as the Aggies handed Yale a 73-62 loss.

    Paige Mintun led the Aggies with 20 points on 7-of-11 shooting, while Kasey Riecks added 11 points and six rebounds.

    The Bulldogs received an offensive lift from von Kaeppler, whose 14 points matched her career-high point total. She shot 5-of-7 on field goals, including 3-of-4 from three-point range off the bench for the Elis. Vasquez and Cashen also chipped in with 14 and 12 points, respectively, and each added four assists.

    “I feel comfortable [shooting from three-point range],” von Kaeppler said. “A lot of the coaches had told us that they’re confident in our shooting abilities, so there’s no need to feel timid at all when we’re out there, so their confidence in us helps boost our own confidence, and for me specifically it helps a lot.” The Elis were able to stay competitive for the entire first half and took a 12-8 lead after von Kaeppler hit a three-pointer with 13:36 left on the clock.

    However, the Aggies came back and went on a 9-0 run to take a 17–12 lead. Vasquez sank a shot from downtown with 17 seconds left in the half to pull the Bulldogs within five points, but Mintun responded by hitting a buzzer-beater jumper to give the Aggies a 34–27 lead at halftime.

    Davis continued to build their lead in the second half and went on a 20–4 run in the early minutes to take a 54–31 advantage.

    “I just think that we had breakdowns when we’d go a couple of possessions with turnovers or without getting a rebound, and then we’d get back after that, but we couldn’t find a way to string together all of our good stretches and kind of eliminate the parts where we’d breakdown,” von Kaeppler said.

    Though the Bulldogs were able to cut down the lead to 11 points by the end of the night, that run by the Aggies put the game out of reach for Yale.

    It was the fourth consecutive double-digit loss for the Bulldogs. One of the bright spots of the night, however, was that the Elis had a 36-34 rebounding advantage. It was the first time Yale outrebounded an opponent all season.

    “It was a great experience,” Gobrecht said of the road trip. “We played two very high quality teams, and we did fine. We’re going to keep getting better, and we’re going to be ready when the Ivy play comes along.”

    The Bulldogs’ next game is slated for Wednesday night, when they head to Providence for another road game. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m.

  6. M. BASKETBALL | Bulldogs take home opener

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    Center Greg Mangano ’12 continued his break-out season over the Thanksgiving break.

    The 6’ 10” junior center totalled 41 points and 22 rebounds to lead the Elis against two one-loss teams. The men’s basketball team (2–3) lost to No. 19 Illinois (6-1) 73–47, but rebounded against Army (4–2) on Saturday to win their first home game of the season, 87–79. Mangano’s 27 points and 15 rebounds against the Black Knights were career highs.

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    The Elis struggled against a highly ranked Illini team that was averaging 82 points per game coming into the contest. Behind the strength of seniors Demetri McCamey and Mike Tisdale, the Fighting Illini got off to a fast 12–3 lead.

    “They’ve got really good players, some of which will probably end up in the NBA,” forward Rhett Anderson ’12 said. “We knew that it was going to be a challenge for us.”

    A Raffi Mantilla ’11 fastbreak layup, part of eight straight Bulldog points, narrowed the gap to one. However, Illinois would dominate the remainder of the first half and led 30–17 at the break. Yale kept it close to begin the second half. Austin Morgan ’13 hit a three-pointer that narrowed the Illini lead to 40–31 with 15 minutes left in the game. However, a breakaway dunk by Mike Davis and a three-pointer and layup by D.J. Richardson gave Illinois a sixteen point edge. Illinois would dominate the rest of the game and pulled away with a 73–47 win.

    “It was just overall not a good game for us,” point guard Porter Braswell ’11 said. “We didn’t play that well. Illinois is a great team. They did a great job, and they’re very well coached.”

    Mangano led the Bulldogs with 14 points and 7 boards. Morgan contributed 12 points. Richardson was the Illini’s leading scorer with 16 points. McCamey, an All-Big Ten first team selection, finished with 11 points, seven assists and five rebounds, while Tisdale ended with a double-double, 10 points and 13 rebounds.

    Yale rebounded from the lopsided result of the Illinois game, and took down Army behind a 54-field-goal shooting percentage, the Bulldogs’ highest all season. Last season, the Elis fell to the Black Knights 64–48 at West Point.

    “Army is a team that we’ve played before and we knew what to expect,” Mangano said. “They play extremely hard.”

    On the Elis’ first possession of the game, Morgan missed a three-point attempt, but Mangano pulled down the offensive rebound. After Mangano missed the ensuing jumper, Yale forward Reggie Willhite ’12 grabbed another offensive board and laid it in the basket to give his team a 2–0 lead. That dominance on the glass would become a theme for the rest of the game.

    “We were bigger than Army,” Braswell said. “We needed to outrebound them.”

    The two teams would keep it close over the next nine minutes. With 10:17 to go in the first half, Yale trailed 18–17. Then Army went on an 8–0 run that started with two free throws from Black Knight guard Julian Simmons and was capped by a Jason Pancoe three-pointer. But Mangano converted a three-point play and nailed a three-pointer as part of an 11–1 run that gave the Elis a 28–27 lead. Behind seven more points from Mangano, the Bulldogs went into the half with a 45-39 lead.

    “I think our big catalyst was Greg’s performance,” Anderson said of the run. “He played tremendously for us.”

    The Black Knights did not go away quietly as Simmons came out on a tear in the second half, scoring 14 points in the first four and a half minutes to help narrow the Army deficit to one. Bulldog forward Anderson’s three point play extended the lead for a short time, but after five more minutes of basketball, Army forward Ella Ellis sank a three-point shot to tie the game at 65. After a Mangano free throw, Pancoe drilled another three to give his team a 68-66 advantage with 8:18 to go in the second half, the Black Knights’ first lead since 6:38 remaining in the first. Three minutes later the Bulldogs tied the game back up at 72-72. Free throws from Morgan and Willhite and a Braswell layup gave the Elis a six point advantage. From that point on, Yale would shoot free throws and run out the clock.

    “It’s good to get a win, but at the same time, it’s only one win,” Anderson said. “We’re happy with it. It’s a positive for our team, but we also have a long way to go.”

    Braswell added 16 points on top of Mangano’s 27, and Anderson finished with 12 points and seven rebounds, both career highs. Simmons added 28 points for the Black Knights.

    “[Simmons] had a very productive game,” Braswell said. “One person shouldn’t be able to beat us. Being able to contain everyone else allowed us to win the game.”

    The Bulldogs will be in action Tuesday night as they matchup with Hartford at 7 p.m. in John J. Lee Amphitheater.

  7. LIVE BLOG | M. Basketball vs. No. 19 Illinois

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    The News live blogs men’s basketball versus No. 19 Illinois at 9:45 p.m. EST.

  8. M. BASKETBALL | Bulldogs stun BC

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    The men’s basketball team made some noise of their own in Boston two days before The Game.

    The Bulldogs (1–2) stunned power Boston College (1–1) 75-67 Thursday night. Guard Austin Morgan ’13 scored 25 points and hit six three-pointers to lead his team past the Eagles and garner the team’s first win of the season.

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    After falling behind in the first half in their two losses to Quinnipiac and Providence, the Bulldogs knew that they could not afford to get down early. Morgan and company made sure that they would not be in that position again.

    “We had the mindset that we had to play harder than we had been playing,” forward Reggie Willhite ’12 said. “We knew that we couldn’t dig ourselves in a hole to start.”

    On the Bulldogs’ first possession, Morgan drew a foul and went to the line for two free throws. After missing the first, Morgan sank the second to put the Bulldogs up 1-0. One minute and fifteen seconds later, Morgan would drill a three to give Yale a 4-2 lead, and Morgan was just getting started. His ability to drill shots from beyond the arc would become a theme for the rest of the game. He finished six of nine from three point range and 64 percent shooting overall.

    “Every shot I took, it looked pretty good,” Morgan said. “It was just one of those days.”

    Two layups from Reggie Willhite ’12 and another Morgan three made it 11-4 Yale. Boston College would fight back behind the strength of guard Reggie Jackson whose dunk tied the score at 19. However, three Morgan three-pointers would help the Bulldogs extend their lead to 30-25 at the half.

    The Bulldogs shot seven of 11 from beyond the arc in the first half. Five of those came from Morgan who finished the half with 16 points. Jackson scored 14 first half points for the Eagles.

    “My teammates were penetrating and kicking,” Morgan said. “They were looking for me and luckily my shot was on.”

    The Bulldogs came out on an 18-7 tear to start the second half. Willhite started the run with two jump shots before point guard Porter Braswell ’11, Morgan and forward Greg Mangano ’12 all hit threes to give Yale a 48-32 lead with 14:37 remaining, the team’s largest lead of the game.

    “We had been focusing on moving the ball on offense,” Willhite said of the team’s halftime preparation. “We had designed some plays for the second half. I was able to go to the basket strong off some of our plays.”

    However, Boston College was not ready to throw in the towel. The Eagles started shrinking the gap by getting to the line and hitting their free throws. They went 22 of 27 from the charity stripe on the game. The Bulldogs’ 16 point advantage was reduced to 7 over an 11 and a half minute span. With 3:09 to go, the Bulldogs led 67-60.

    “We had to just keep being aggressive and be relentless,” Willhite said. “They’re a good team so they fought hard and battled back.”

    Boston College’s Corey Raji, brother of NFL defensive tackle B.J. Raji, hit two free throws to narrow the gap to five with 2:43 remaining. For the next two minutes, neither the Bulldogs or Eagles could put the ball through the hoop until Braswell drove to the basket and drew the foul. After Braswell sank both free throws, Jackson countered with a three-point play that closed the deficit to four with 43 seconds to go.

    In a two possession game with little time remaining, the Eagles needed to force a turnover or foul. The Bulldogs were able to successfully inbound it to Braswell who was fouled and nailed two more free throws. A Boston College miss on their ensuing possession put the ball in Braswell’s hands for two more free-throws. The senior point guard calmly sank them both to put the game out of reach.

    The Elis shot 50 percent from the field and 57 percent from beyond the three-point stripe. Willhite finished with 13 points while Braswell added 16. Both finished with five rebounds. On the defensive end, Yale held the Eagles to 16 percent shooting from three-point range and 40 percent overall. The Eagles’ junior guard Jackson finished with 30 points, a career-high, and eight rebounds.

    “This is the biggest win of my career at Yale,” Braswell said in a press conference. “As a kid growing up, you watch Boston College and the ACC teams and to beat them is an incredible feeling.”

    The Bulldogs will be in action next Tuesday night as they travel to Urbana-Champaign, Ill. to take on the University of Illinois at 9:45 p.m.

  9. M. BASKETBALL | Bulldogs lose in opener

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    UNCASVILLE, CONN. – Poor scheduling at the Connecticut 6 Classic delayed the men’s basketball season opener against Quinnipiac, but when it was time to play, the Elis weren’t ready.

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    Quinnipiac stormed out to a nine point lead in the first three minutes of the game and went on to defeat the Bulldogs by that same number, 84–75. The Bulldogs were without forward Michael Sands ’11, who was elected captain for the 2010-11 season. It was announced on Saturday that he had withdrawn from Yale for personal reasons and will no longer be with the team. The Elis have not yet elected a captain in his place. Forward Greg Mangano ’12 led the Bulldogs with 20 points and nine rebounds, but he and his teammates couldn’t match the Bobcats’ Justin Rutty and James Johnson, who tallied 19 and 16 points respectively.

    “All in all, it was a good effort, but we got down early in the first half,” point guard Porter Braswell ’11 said. “The whole game we were trying to come back.”

    After the Bobcats won the tip, Rutty began the game with an easy lay-up off the glass. A Deontay Twyman three and points from Rutty and James Johnson gave Quinnipiac a 9–0 lead. For the rest of the first half, the Bulldogs and Bobcats went back and forth without any significant changes to that advantage. Quinnipiac never extended their lead beyond 12, and the Elis were only able to come within seven points. The Bulldogs trailed by 11 points to end the first half. Mangano was the tallest player on the court at 6’10” and used his height to his advantage, scoring 15 points and grabbing six rebounds in the half.

    “Greg is certainly talented offensively,” head coach James Jones said. “He did a great job defending guys from time to time. He was the backbone of our offense.”

    Rutty showed why he is the defending Northeast Conference Player of the Year by scoring six points to lead Quinnipiac on an 18–10 run to begin the second half.

    Down by 21 with 13 minutes left, Yale struggled to chip away at the lead. Things did not get easier as Mangano exited the game with four fouls. With eight minutes to go, they trailed by 20.

    “There were a couple ones that I should have avoided,” Mangano said of the fouls. “I just have to play smarter. Getting those fouls on any of our post guys just hurts the team.”

    Despite being without their leading scorer, the Bulldogs refused to give up. They began applying full-court pressure and forced a few Quinnipiac turnovers. Guard Austin Morgan ’13 converted a three-point play and forward Jeremiah Kreisberg ’14 banked a shot in to shrink the lead to 15. After Quinnipiac’s Twyman answered with a field goal, Morgan nailed two more free throws.

    But on the ensuing Bobcat possession, the Bulldogs suffered another blow when the Bobcats’ James Johnson swung his elbow into Braswell’s mouth. Braswell was forced to sit out for the next few minutes of the game.

    “My front tooth got pushed up and back,” Braswell said. “I’ve got one or two stitches in my mouth.”

    Despite losing last year’s second leading scorer on the current roster, the Bulldogs continued their comeback. Guard Brian Katz ’12 hit one of two free throws off the foul on Braswell, deemed intentional by the referees. An additional two free throws from Morgan and one three pointer each from Reggie Willhite ’12 and Isaiah Salafia ’14 shrank the lead to eight. With 2:30 remaining, Willhite added two more free throws to bring the deficit down to six. However, from that point on, Yale could not make any more progress. The Bobcats extended the lead to nine and the teams just traded points from then on.

    “It’s hard to keep that going,” Braswell said of the Bulldogs’ late run. “When they started pulling ahead, it wasn’t because of a lack of effort. Just sometimes the ball bounces that way.”

    Rutty, a 6’ 7” 255 pound senior who coach Jones described as a “monster” before the game, finished the match with a double-double, with 19 points and 10 rebounds.

    “We knew going in what to expect from him,” Mangano said. “He’s just a good player.”

    The loss marked the Bulldogs’ first chance to try out Jones’ new motion offense. The Bulldogs shot 42-percent from the field, and 24-percent from beyond the arc.

    “We’re still getting the hang of the offense,” Braswell said. “There’s definitely a difference between practicing at practice and the game.”

    Yale will get another chance tonight as they travel to Rhode Island to take on Providence at 7:00 p.m.

  10. LIVE BLOG | M. BASKETBALL | Yale vs. Quinnipiac

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    The News live blogs men’s basketball versus Quinnipiac starting at 8 p.m.

  11. M. BASKETBALL | Bulldogs open season against Qpac

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    Former captain and shooting guard Alex Zampier ’10 accounted for 26 percent of the men’s basketball team’s scoring last season, but head coach James Jones hopes that with a new offensive scheme, the team will be able to spread out the ball and make a more serious run at an Ivy League title.

    One year ago, the Bulldogs, who begin their season Saturday night against Quinnipiac, finished fourth in the Ivy League after compiling a 6–8 conference record, and 12–19 overall. The media has projected Yale to finish fifth in the Ivy League, but those projections may not be a good indicator as the Bulldogs have exceeded their preseason ranking in four of the past five seasons.

    “This year, I think that the league is as wide open in terms of teams that can win as it has since I’ve been here,” point guard Porter Braswell ’11 said. “It’s really exciting that the league is going to be competitive.”

    After averaging 66.7 points per game a season ago, the Bulldogs have instituted a new motion offense. The new scheme will rely on individual players to read the defense and make decisions. Last year, the Bulldogs used set plays and were exploited by defenses that scouted ahead and understood their offense; however, the Bulldogs realize they cannot rely on the new scheme alone. Jones, who will begin his 12th season with the Bulldogs, added that with a young team and the loss of four seniors, he has to focus on minimizing mistakes. Zampier, who averaged 17.4 points per game to lead the team, has moved on after graduation along with three other seniors.

    “There are very few guys on our team who have logged significant minutes,” Jones said. “You start from the ground up and you certainly do that with a young team.”

    This year, Jones said that captain Michael Sands ’11, Braswell and guard Raffi Mantilla ’11 are expected to lead the inexperienced team. Sands was second on the Bulldogs last year with 10.8 points per game after Zampier, and led the team in rebounds with 6.1 per game. Mantilla is expected to be the deep threat the Bulldogs need to replace Zampier after shooting 36.8 percent from beyond the arc a year ago. Braswell was 10th in the Ivy League last season with 2.4 assists per game. As point guard, he will be the initiator of the new offense.

    “[It involves] a lot more passing and cutting and kind of getting back to the basics,” Braswell said. “You’ll see us getting out into transition a little bit more than we have in the past.”

    With Zampier gone, the Bulldogs will have to replace the scoring provided by the shooting guard who accounted for over a quarter of Yale’s points. Jones said that last year, teams thought if they could stop Alex Zampier, they could effectively shut down the Bulldogs. This year, he hopes to spread the scoring beyond just one player.

    “We want to have a team by committee,” Jones said of this year’s point scorers. “We want to make sure that we have a number of guys who can carry the scoring burden.”

    Coach Jones also said that he expects the new freshman class to help the team before the year is over. Forwards Will Bartlett ’14, Greg Kelley ’14, Jeremiah Kreisberg ’14, and guards Jesse Pritchard ’14 and Isaiah Salafia ’14 constitute the Eli freshmen. Kreisberg was the 69th-ranked power forward in his class according to ESPN.com.

    Defensively, Jones said that the team is switching from a base 2-3 zone to a matchup 2-3 zone. A matchup 2-3 zone involves elements of a typical man-to-man defense. The on-ball defender applies pressure to the ball handler, and teammates on the other side of the floor play help defense. Forward Greg Mangano ’12 said he is fully behind the change.

    “I think a lot of that is to help us out on defensive rebounding,” Mangano said. “It tries to stop teams from penetrating and kicking it out to make three-point shots.”

    The Bulldogs will meet their first challenge Saturday as they face off with last year’s regular season Northeast Conference Champion Quinnipiac. The Bobcats are projected to win another NEC championship, and Jones said the game will be a good indication of how the Elis stack up against proven teams.

    Back for the Bobcats is reigning NEC Player of the Year Justin Rutty who averaged 15.3 points and 10.9 rebounds as a junior. In last year’s matchup with Yale, Rutty put up 23 points while grabbing 14 boards.

    “He’s a monster,” Jones said of the Bobcats’ star player. “We need to have a body on him whenever he’s around the basket. We need to make sure that we know where he is.”

    Yale is expected to be without Michael Grace ’13 and Kelley. Grace is out with a bad ankle, while Kelley suffered a concussion.

    The Bulldogs’ matchup against Quinnipiac is set to begin at 8 p.m. in Uncasville, Conn., at the Mohegan Sun Arena as part of the Connecticut 6 Classic.