By Mike Waters
The Post-Standard
November 23, 2009
Once Boeheim stepped inside the locker room, he issued a stern warning to the group of giddy Orange men.
“I told them one thing,” Boeheim said. “Tuesday night is going to be the toughest game they’ve had all year, so hopefully they are ready for that.”
Syracuse had just knocked off two nationally ranked opponents on back-to-back evenings in New York, rocking the Tar Heels less than 24 hours after dispatching No. 13 California to the tune of 95-73.
Boeheim, though, had his sights set on the Orange’s game against Cornell on Tuesday at the Carrier Dome.
“That’s the first thing Coach said when he walked in,” SU senior center Arinze Onuaku said. “He said the toughest game we’re going to play is Tuesday. We understand.”
Onuaku and his Orange teammates should understand. Cornell returns all five starters from last year’s squad that went 21-10, won the Ivy League and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year.
In addition, the Big Red had Syracuse down by 16 points in last year’s matchup at the Carrier Dome. Syracuse trailed at half, but managed to scrounge its way to an 88-78 victory.
Cornell sports a 2-1 record that includes wins at Alabama and UMass along with a home loss to Seton Hall last Friday.
“If we don’t bring our A-game, we could lose,” Syracuse senior Andy Rautins said. “We’ve just got to stay focused.”
Big Red to test zone
Cornell boasts a bevy of top-notch shooters, especially forward Ryan Wittman. The 6-foot-4 senior torched Syracuse for 33 points in last year’s meeting. He made nine out of 19 shots from 3-point range, while Cornell shot 13-for-29 (45 percent) as a team from beyond the arc.
Cornell’s shooters should challenge Syracuse’s 2-3 zone defense, which has been impregnable this season.
In four games, Syracuse has yet to allow an opponent to shoot better than 40 percent from the field or 30 percent from 3-point range.
Syracuse’s lineup is bigger and longer than last season’s team, but the Orange is also displaying more tenacity on defense.
“Everybody’s bought into playing defense,” SU junior Wes Johnson said. “I think that’s what the main focus is on — defensive intensity.”
Cornell Senior Forward Ryan Wittman
The Cornell basketball team, with 7-foot center Jeff Foote in the back of the huddle, returns an experienced group of players.By Donna Ditota
The Post-Standard
November 23, 2009
Ithaca -- Last week, Cornell’s basketball team built a 15-point second-half lead over Alabama, withstood a couple Crimson Tide scoring flourishes and left Tuscaloosa with its first win of the season.
For many college basketball observers, the Big Red’s ability to invade SEC territory and return to Ithaca with a win came as something of a stunner. But for two-time Ivy League champion Cornell, the victory was years in the making.
"If we would have lost I would have downplayed it. It was the first game of the year," Cornell coach Steve Donahue said. "But that being said, I would have been very disappointed if we didn’t win. That’s nothing against Alabama. But I think this team is ready to play well and finally get that win in a big environment against a very good team."
"We didn’t play the best game," said Cornell center Jeff Foote, "but we hung tough, we fought through it. Some things that would have beaten us last year we didn’t allow to beat us this year. They had a couple presses and started making little runs. Last year, Minnesota did that and we kind of crumbled. But this year, we held tough and came away with the win. It was good to get that win. But we know we can play with every team."
That confidence comes from years of playing together, from two straight Ivy League championships and the NCAA trips those titles bestowed. Cornell returns all five starters from its 2008-09 NCAA Tournament team.
Point guard Louis Dale, a two-time first team All-Ivy performer and 2007-08 Ivy player of the year, returns to Cornell for his final season. Ryan Wittman, the sweet shooting wing player, joins Dale as a two-time first-team All-Ivy honoree. Foote, the 7-foot center, is the reigning All-Ivy defensive player of the year. Dale, Wittman, Foote and fellow seniors Alex Tyler and Geoff Reeves form the nucleus of a mid-major team seeking major college basketball respect.
To command that kind of attention, Donahue has opted to play a pre-Ivy schedule that includes games with Alabama, Massachusetts, Seton Hall, Syracuse and Kansas. Cornell, which lost to Seton Hall last Friday to go 2-1, plays Syracuse in the Carrier Dome on Tuesday. The Big Red has made four NCAA Tournament appearances and has yet to win a game. A couple marquee non-conference wins this season could help the Red in numerous ways.
"There’s a lot of reasons to play those kind of games," Donahue said. "One of the reasons is if we’re fortunate enough to win our league again, we’ll have an opportunity to have a better RPI and a better seeding and a better opportunity for advancement in the NCAA Tournament."
Cornell’s five top seniors have started a combined 282 games. All those mutual minutes have created an intense chemistry between teammates that understand each other’s moves and motivations.
Wittman said when he lopes out on Cornell’s fast break, he knows Dale will get him the ball without the two performing any overt sounds or gestures. Dale knows where his teammates prefer to catch the ball. But perhaps more importantly, Cornell players said, their reliance on each other over the years has fostered a trust that should help withstand the rigors of a long, rugged college basketball season.
"Over the years, the senior class has played a lot of good teams," Wittman said. "Last time was probably the first time we found ourselves in position to win those games against some of the higher major teams. The win against Alabama definitely helps. When they started making a run, we kind of brought it in and said, ‘Hey, let’s make a run of our own, let’s bring it down and get a good shot.’"
"I think early on (in our careers), playing against big-time opponents or big games, we kind of got caught up in it and didn’t really play our game," Dale said. "I think now that we’re more experienced and having had that big-time experience we know it’s just a game and we’re going to execute and play our game."
The Big Red has for years been a formidable shooting team. Cornell was fourth nationally last season in 3-point field goal percentage (41.1). Wittman and Dale headline the 3-point brigade, but sophomore Chris Wroblewski led the Ivy League in 3-point percentage at 45 percent. This season, Cornell adds a different wrinkle to that look.
Foote, the transfer from St. Bonaventure, added 25-30 pounds of muscle to his spindly frame. He spent last summer eating healthier and working with the Cornell strength and conditioning coach; the results of that effort are evident on his newly sculpted shoulders. Foote’s added bulk helps the Red pose a bigger threat in the middle and alleviates some of the pressure on its perimeter game.
Foote also spent part of his summer in Minnesota, where he played in a pro-am league with Wittman.
"He had a tremendous year last year and the difference from last year to this year is huge," Wittman said. "Last year he kind of struggled against bigger people who could push him around. This year, hopefully he’s going to be able to push people around. If he gets the ball down low, he’s really hard to guard. And with his ability to pass to the shooters on our team, people are going to have to make some decisions on how to guard us."
At a recent Cornell practice, Donahue surveyed his players as they put up shots before their official session started. He likes his team. He has experience, depth and a team that has been to consecutive NCAA Tournaments for the first time in school history.
Those players, he said, have improved every aspect of their games since they first arrived in Ithaca.
"This is the best (team) I’ve been on here," Wittman said. "We’ve got loads of experience and a ton of depth. We’re really familiar with each other and really excited for this year."
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