ITHACA, N.Y. -- A school record three Cornell men's basketball players earned a spot on the National Association of Basketball Coaches All-District teams, with junior Ryan Wittman becoming the first Big Red player to earn first-team honors since 1955. Wittman also became the first Big Red player to earn two all-district nods in a career after being placed on the second team a season ago. Both Louis Dale and Jeff Foote were named to the all-district second team in District 13.
Wittman joined Dartmouth's Alex Barnett and Harvard's Jeremy Lin on the first team from the Ivy League, along with American's Garrison Carr and Navy's Kaleo Kina. Dale and Foote headlined a second team that also included Lehigh's Zahir Carrington, Brown's Matt Mullery and Chicago State's David Holston.
Wittman leads Cornell and ranks second in the Ivy League in scoring (18.5 ppg.) while chipping in 3.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 0.9 steals and a 1.4:1 assist-turnover ratio in 28 starts for the 19-9 Big Red. Already the school's career leader in 3-point field goals (257), he is second in Ivy League history with a full season to go. A two-time All-Ivy selection, including a unanimous first-team pick in 2007-08, Wittman ranks sixth on the school's career scoring list with 1,377 points, is first on the 3-point percentage list (.433) and also is in the top 10 in field goals made (seventh, 469) and attempted (ninth, 1,038), free-throw percentage (fourth, .850) and games started (eighth, 83). Wittman is fourth on the school's single-season scoring list with 517 points so far this season, while his 86 3-pointers ranks second behind only the 93 he hit as a freshman in 2006-07. Wittman matched the school's single-game 3-point record with nine makes as part of a 33-point effort at Syracuse earlier this year, part of his 26 double-figure scoring games in 2008-09.
Dale, the reigning Ivy League Player of the Year, missed eight games earlier this season, but has been his same dominant self in ranking among the Ancient Eight leaders in scoring (13.7 ppg.), rebounding (4.5 rpg.) and assists (3.7 apg.), as well in steals (1.3 spg.), field goal percentage (.475), 3-point field goal percentage (.392) and free-throw percentage (.843). Dale was named Ivy League Player of the Week on Jan. 19 after scoring 19 points, grabbing five rebounds and dishing four assists in the conference-opening win over Columbia. He also tallied a season-high 23 points in the win over Quinnipiac, including hitting the go-ahead free-throws with 10 seconds to play, then stealing the inbounds pass for clinch the victory. Dale has posted 17 double-figure scoring efforts in his 20 contests, including three 20-point games. He has led the team in assists in 12 contests and in steals nine times.
Foote's rise to all-district status may be the most unlikely story of the three, but it was a well-deserved honor for Cornell's starting center. The Ivy League's leading rebounder (6.9) and shot-blocker (2.2 bpg.), Foote is also among the team leaders in scoring (12.2 ppg.) and assists (2.2 apg.) while starting all 28 contests for the Big Red. The two-time Ivy League Player of the Week's 61 blocked shots rank third on the school's single-season list. A second-team All-Ivy selection in 2007-08, he has a pair of double-doubles this season and is second on the team with 19 double-figure scoring efforts. Foote had a career-high 25 points in the win over La Salle, had 20 points, seven rebounds and five blocks against St. John's, and notched 19 points, eight rebounds and seven blocked shots vs. Loyola (MD).
The NABC Division I All-District teams recognize the nation's best men's collegiate basketball student-athletes. Selected and voted on by member coaches of the NABC, these student-athletes represent the finest basketball players across America. The 240 student-athletes, from 24 districts which were realigned this season, are now eligible for the State Farm Coaches' Division I All-America teams to be announced on Saturday, April 4, at Hoop City in the COBO Center at 10 a.m. as part of the 2009 NABC Convention in Detroit. Cornell's District 13 is made up of teams from the Ivy and Patriot Leagues, as well as Division I Independents Chicago State, Longwood, Savannah State and Texas-Pan American.
Cornell's other all-district honorees are Roger Chadwick (honorable mention in 1952), Lee Morton (1954), Jack Sheehy (1955), Louis Jordan (honorable mention in 1958), Jim Morris (second team in 1967), Hank South (third team in 1968), Gregg Morris (third team in 1968), John Bajusz (second team in 1987), Ka'Ron Barnes (second team in 2004) and Wittman (second team in 2008).
District 13
First Team
Ryan Wittman Cornell
Jeremy Lin Harvard
Garrison Carr American
Alex Barnett Dartmouth
Kaleo Kina Navy
Second Team
Louis Dale Cornell
Zahir Carrington Lehigh
David Holston Chicago State
Matt Mullery Brown
Jeff Foote Cornell
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