Close no longer good enough for Bulldogs

JULIA TIERNAN/YH Swingman Jason Williams, PC '00, and the Bulldogs will have their hands full this weekend.

Losing agonizingly close league games has been all too common an occurrence for the men's basketball team this season. The team put together a surprising second-half comeback against Penn on Fri., Jan. 8, but fell six points short. Two weeks ago against Dartmouth, Onaje Woodbine, BK '02, nearly made a game-winning three-pointer, but the ball rattled out of the rim. On Fri., Feb. 5, against Cornell with less then 10 seconds to go, Isaiah Cavaco, JE '01, fed a pass to Dave Tompkins, SY '99, who then made a game-tying basket. Yet the Bulldogs fell short in overtime, 79-69.

Finally, after these disappointing losses, the team was able to earn its first Ivy League win of the year. On Sat., Feb. 6, the Elis defeated Columbia, 60-48. The victory came as Tompkins put together consecutive performances of 25 points, earning him Ivy League Player of the Week honors.

At this point in the season, with even a .500 record out of reach, the players have had to come to grips with reality and determine where the team will go from here. The most important thing is maintaining an optimistic attitude. "Everyone has been doing a good job of keeping positive. Coach [Dick Kuchen] has been trying to keep us upbeat," Tompkins said. Cavaco said he "felt good about [the team's] efforts" last weekend. He believes the team is "finally going in the right direction." When asked what led to the first league win, Cavaco said, "We took care of the ball a little better and that really made the difference."

The Bulldogs, however, get little time to enjoy their victory. On Fri., Feb. 12, they face Princeton (16-4, 7-0), and on Sat., Feb. 13, they battle Penn (14-4, 6-1). Yale will have their hands full with the league's top two teams. When the perennial Ivy leaders met on Tues., Feb. 9, both teams showed the explosiveness that keeps them atop the conference. Despite a 29-0 first-half run, the Quakers could not hold off the Tigers, who came back to post a 50-49 win.

Yet according to Tompkins, the Bulldogs are in a desirable position going into the weekend. "We're really excited and there is no pressure on us at all," he said. "They're both coming in here looking for Ivy League titles. We have a chance to win both games this weekend. We're playing better now then we have all year."

What will be the key to success? Much will need to go the Elis' way, but according to Tompkins, Cavaco and center Neil Yanke, MC '01, will play especially critical roles. "Cavaco has been playing well," he said. "People are looking to him and Yanke to step up and help carry the scoring and rebounding."

Cavaco believes that turnovers and sustained scoring will be most important against Penn and Princeton. Last time the Bulldogs faced the Quakers and Tigers they committed 24 and 21 turnovers, respectively dismal totals, even compared to their league-worst average of 17. These numbers will have to change if the Bulldogs hope to pull out victories this weekend.

"To beat these teams we have to take care of the ball and handle their pressure," Cavaco said. "Both teams will make big runs and we must answer with our own runs. Once we eliminate those [lapses] we'll be pretty good."

Yale will battle some impressive individual performers on the Princeton and Penn teams. Tiger guard Brian Earl `99 and forward Gabe Lewullis '00 both average nearly 15 points per game. When asked if Yale could control the boards against Princeton, Yanke said, "Oh yeah, we didn't do as well as we could've last time. They shot lots of threes and were getting long rebounds." Against Penn the Bulldogs will have to deal with Michael Jordan '00, who scores 15 points per game and creates numerous opportunities for his teammates with his slashing drives.

The virtual absence of team captain Charlie Petit, DC '99 has hurt Yale all year. Petit, who is playing with a broken foot, recently reinjured the foot and will see "very limited action," according to Tompkins. "His injury definitely affected the team. We were expecting a lot from him." The team especially misses Petit's deadly three-point accuracy.

Despite Petit's absence, many Eli players feel that getting their first Ivy League win last week was a milestone. Though they cannot win the league title themselves, Yale players hope they can help decide who does.

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