Best Case Scenario for Hoops Heading Into Ivy

Red hoops are 4-2 right now with seven non-conference games left before Ivy opener against Columbia in January.

The realistic goal is to go 5-2 over the next seven (losing to Syracuse and Duke). Winning five of the next seven games is definitely a plausible scenario with Stony Brook, Quinnipiac, Alvernia (D-III) and NJIT still on tap. The tough game will be winning at Bucknell in two weeks, but definitely not impossible.

If the Red can get it done (winning 5 of 7), we head into Ivy play 9-4. Thats a pretty good record with only one troubling loss (Colgate) and a pair of decent wins over Siena and Bucknell. I can deal with the losses to Ohio, Duke and Syracuse.

I can even deal with the loss to Colgate (they are currently 6-3 and we lost without Jason Hartford).

We learn a lot about this team this month. They play four games between December 19 and New Year's Eve.

They play 9 of the next 11, including Y, on the road?! That's some rough scheduling...

It is.... but to be fair... we only played one game on the road in the first six.

CornellFan
It is.... but to be fair... we only played one game on the road in the first six.

You have to imagine it was possible to swap NJIT and Bingo or something to balance things out a touch. It's an awfully rough travel schedule heading into the games that matter. I fear the team will start 2-2 Ivy and be forced to win 10 straight for a chance at the crown.

Here were my thoughts on the Ivy schedule back in early November:

[cornellbasketball.blogspot.com]

I agree, the early going is rough--- but it gets easier as the move through the Ivy games.

The record so far is nice, and it will be good to see continued winning. Aside from the record, I'd like it if the team played 48 40 minute games.

Edit: So embarrassed. Of course it is 40 in college. And yet, as I was writing, in my head I was reducing the length to 48 minutes from the 60 that they play in my fake-NBA.

Ugh--- I don't know what it is with these kids, but they NEVER play the full 40 minutes (in college hoops it is two 20 min halves, not 48 min).

Cornell is becoming famous among Ivy fans for building leads and then losing them in the 2nd half.

Take a look at what happened last year.

[cornellbasketball.blogspot.com]


This year, we've done a good job of escaping with Ws, but our double figure late leads were reduced to narrow escapes in three of our wins.

Against Colgate we led by 8 in the second half and lost. Same as against Ohio.

CornellFan
Ugh--- I don't know what it is with these kids, but they NEVER play the full 40 minutes (in college hoops it is two 20 min halves, not 48 min).

Cornell is becoming famous among Ivy fans for building leads and then losing them in the 2nd half.

Take a look at what happened last year.

[cornellbasketball.blogspot.com]


This year, we've done a good job of escaping with Ws, but our double figure late leads were reduced to narrow escapes in three of our wins.

Against Colgate we led by 8 in the second half and lost. Same as against Ohio.

From today's Ithaca Journal, Donahue apparently has a revelation that this is a problem:

In the wake of Cornell's Dec. 1 loss to Colgate, in which the Raiders effectively slowed down the Big Red's transition game, Donahue has put his team through two weeks-plus worth of practices focusing on half-court situations.

“We just put a ton of time into half-court offense and defense, sets on the offensive end, guarding different things on defensive end, and really we hadn't spent a lot of time on that [never woulda guessed], because the team was focusing on dictating an up-tempo pace,” Donahue said. “I want to push the basketball, make good decisions, but the last 5 minutes of the game, the situation changes because if it's close, you have to execute.

“You can't rely on taking a quick shot and hope it goes. You've got to take a little extra time, you've got to guard a little better, and I think that's what this last couple weeks have done.”

We'll see if anything really comes of this.

Al DeFlorio

CornellFan
Ugh--- I don't know what it is with these kids, but they NEVER play the full 40 minutes (in college hoops it is two 20 min halves, not 48 min).

Cornell is becoming famous among Ivy fans for building leads and then losing them in the 2nd half.

Take a look at what happened last year.

[cornellbasketball.blogspot.com]


This year, we've done a good job of escaping with Ws, but our double figure late leads were reduced to narrow escapes in three of our wins.

Against Colgate we led by 8 in the second half and lost. Same as against Ohio.

From today's Ithaca Journal, Donahue apparently has a revelation that this is a problem:

In the wake of Cornell's Dec. 1 loss to Colgate, in which the Raiders effectively slowed down the Big Red's transition game, Donahue has put his team through two weeks-plus worth of practices focusing on half-court situations.

“We just put a ton of time into half-court offense and defense, sets on the offensive end, guarding different things on defensive end, and really we hadn't spent a lot of time on that [never woulda guessed], because the team was focusing on dictating an up-tempo pace,” Donahue said. “I want to push the basketball, make good decisions, but the last 5 minutes of the game, the situation changes because if it's close, you have to execute.

“You can't rely on taking a quick shot and hope it goes. You've got to take a little extra time, you've got to guard a little better, and I think that's what this last couple weeks have done.”

We'll see if anything really comes of this.

So that explains the dysfunction ... they hadn't been practicing the half court sets

This Cornell team has a chance to get much better in the next month with quality competition (Bucknell, Syracuse, Duke) and lots of road games (six).

I think we will know who we are on Feb 1.

CornellFan
This Cornell team has a chance to get much better in the next month with quality competition (Bucknell, Syracuse, Duke) and lots of road games (six).

I think we will know who we are on Feb 1.

You must mean Feb. 2 -- Jeff Foote sees his shadow, it means six more weeks of basketball.

(Just so Ugarte doesn't ding me: Yes, I repurposed an old Michael Jordan joke.)