Athlete of the Week: Neil Yanke

JULIA TIERNAN/YH

So much for the so-called sophomore slump. After playing in 25 games and starting in five in his freshman year, men's basketball's 6'10", 230-pound center Neil Yanke, MC '01, has started in all but one game this season. Playing an average of 29 minutes per game, his statistics of 7 rebounds and 9.3 points per game are among the best on the team. Yanke's teammate, guard Isaiah Cav-aco, JE '01, said, "He's had a really good year; he's pretty impossible to guard when he gets the ball in the right spot."

Of course, individual success always means a lot more if your team is winning. Yanke found this out on Friday night after his team's 60-58 double overtime win against Princeton. Yanke shone with his career fourth double-double (21 points, 10 rebounds) and five of the Bulldogs 13 points in the two overtime periods. "I had other games where I had similar points and rebounds, but it didn't mean as much because we didn't win," Yanke said of the victory. "To have 21 points and 10 rebounds against Princeton makes it my best game of the season."

His teammates agree. "It was by far the best of his season," Captain Charlie Petit, DC '99, said of the Princeton game. "From what I hear, it was probably the best game of his basketball career. It was the biggest game, and he played his best in the biggest."

Yanke's 21 points last Friday seem remarkable considering the entire Yale team only scored 33 points in the team's Sat., Jan. 9 loss at Princeton. Or that the game was Princeton's first Ivy League loss in 35 games and its first loss against Yale since March 6, 1993. Or that it was only Yale's second Ivy League victory this season. "It felt so good after losing 18 games to win period.... To have the win at home in double overtime against Princeton like that is unbelievable," Yanke said.

Yanke's off-season work ethic and continued improvement throughout the season are partially responsible for the victory. After seeing only limited action in his freshman year, he worked throughout the summer to earn the starting position at center this season.

"I made it my goal to start and did what I had to do to get to that point, but I didn't assume it would happen," Yanke said. According to Yanke his improvement has not been a dramatic or overwhelming process. He has taken things one day at a time. "I'm taking little steps each week," Yanke said. Cavaco added, "He definitely continues to get better. He's become a lot more aggressive."

The term aggressive seems a bit strong for the self-proclaimed "King of Minesweeper." Cavaco claims Yanke "likes to walk around really slow, looks lazy, and is goofy." But last weekend, Yanke proved to Yale, to Princeton, and to a shocked sports world that he has become a tough competitor whom the Elis can count on when they need a big win.

--Deirdre Brill

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