Crimson Come Alive at a Good Time
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – If the past two games are any indication, Harvard may found itself. The timing isn’t bad, either, considering only Ivy League games remain.
After struggling for most of December following a win over Michigan, the Crimson have come alive with two straight wins to start the new year. The most recent was Tuesday night’s 77-57 win over Colgate, a very complete effort from the Crimson against one of the Patriot League’s better teams thus far.
“It’s a couple of games now for us where we’ve put together a 40-minute game,” said head coach Tommy Amaker. “I think we’re playing with a great deal of confidence, and I like the hustle and energy we’re playing with on defense.”
Thus far, the Crusaders have shown themselves to be very capable of scoring, as they average 72 points per game and shoot over 47 percent from the field. They have scored at least 70 points in 10 of 17 games and have been held below 60 just once. But defense has been hard to come by on a consistent basis, as teams have scored over 73 per game against them and shot over 45 percent from the field. Tuesday night’s game was just the fifth time an opponent has scored below 70 against them, and the Crimson are 5-0 in those games.
During the seven-game losing streak following the win over Michigan, the Crimson didn’t get blown out. Their most lopsided loss was an 11-point setback at Long Island, so they were right there in most games. Two games were decided by three points, including an overtime loss to UC Irvine. The effort got better, and now the results are coming.
“I’ve been pleased with the way we’ve been playing lately, and not just the two wins,” said Amaker. “We’ve played good stretches of basketball, and I like the fact right now that we’re able to play some good stretches and kind of streak it out there a little bit, if you will, and played with longer moments of playing good ball.”
One move that may seem curious at first looks to be paying off. In recent games, Amaker has moved juniors Drew Housman and Evan Harris to the bench, moving senior Brad Unger and freshman T.J. Carey into the starting lineup in their place. Unger had 10 points in his first start against UC Irvine, eight points and nine rebounds against Dartmouth and 12 points on Tuesday night. Carey has given them energy from the backcourt.
Housman and Harris have taken to the move well. Harris has come off the bench before, so he knows the reserve role, but Housman has started since he arrived in Cambridge, so how he ultimately adapts to the role remains to be seen. While Harris has played well off the bench save for Tuesday night, when he played just eight minutes, Housman initially had some struggles, including 11 turnovers against UC Irvine. Still, Amaker sees the obvious positives if he can keep them in that role and get the production out of them that they’re capable of giving the team.
“It’s nice when you can go to your bench and you’ve got (Dan) McGeary, Housman and Harris, and (Kyle) Fitzgerald is the other one,” said Amaker. “I think that’s one of the keys now, the bench is giving us a lift. We can play more bodies, and when we go to our bench, there’s not a drop-off, we’re able to pick the pace up.”
The biggest bright spots in the non-conference schedule have been two sophomores, Pat Magnarelli and Jeremy Lin. Magnarelli posted his fourth double-double on Tuesday and could be ready to come into his own, while Lin leads the team in scoring is starting to show some of the potential he flashed in a more limited role last year. From the point guard spot, Lin is third on the team in rebounding.
Besides just getting the win, Tuesday night’s game had another bright spot. In the second half, Colgate got within six just over five minutes in. The Crimson’s response was to put them away, as they ran off 11 unanswered points and led by double digits the rest of the way. They didn’t give the Raiders any hope of completing the comeback.
If they keep this up and pick up a win at Dartmouth on Friday, it’s almost too bad they then have a three-week break in the action for final exams. They’ve been able to get into a good rhythm of late, and three weeks where the only basketball they have is practice won’t help much. Even so, they already have a teaching tool from this season to help push them forward no matter who the opponent is.
“I think we all remember what happened after we beat Michigan, so I think everyone is staying hungry,” said Lin.
That hunger might need three weeks of rest, but if they keep it around, they appear to be getting their act together at a good time.
