As the college basketball season enters the madness that is March, the Big Green most likely will end up on the outside of the bracket. Despite this, Dartmouth seems to improve game after game, especially in the defensive category. This weekend, Cornell (10-11, 5-3) and Columbia (12-9, 3-5) will travel to Hanover and face the Big Green on back to back evenings.
On Friday, Dartmouth will face the Ivy League's number two team, the Cornell Big Red. In this colorful match up, Dartmouth must contain Lenny Collins, who leads the team in scoring and assists (14.1 ppg, 2.7 apg), and senior Eric Taylor, the Big Red's big rebounder, averaging 5.9 per game and providing valuable senior leadership. Dartmouth, however, should have the advantage in the paint, as Cornell lacks serious big men to handle Dartmouth's centers and forwards.
Moreover, Cornell shoots a mediocre 34.8 percent from behind the arc. Should Dartmouth force Cornell to settle for some threes and manage to stay in the game by eating up the offensive glass, the Big Green stands a serious chance at upsetting the Big Red.
Last, it is imperative that Dartmouth keeps Cornell from getting to the charity stripe, where they excel, draining an impressive 73.3 percent of their free throws. If the Big Green holds Cornell to 55 or less points, victory is well within their grasp.
Columbia is this year's surprise team, as one of only three teams in the Ivy League with a winning record. But the Lions have been struggling of late, losing their last four games in a row. However, their 64-45 home victory on Jan. 29 against the Big Green will still be fresh in their minds. Fortunately for the Green, Columbia is a completely different team on the road, failing to win one game on their opponents' courts all Ivy season.
Seeking redemption for that road loss, Dartmouth will try to avoid getting swept by Columbia on Saturday evening. Matt Preston leads the Lions' offensive with 15.2 points per game and eats up the boards, with a more-than-respectable 7.3 rebounds per game.
Even smaller in the paint than Cornell, Columbia is a quick and agile team that moves the ball around well and commits relatively few turnovers. In this match up of two first-year coaches, it should be interesting to see how both teams have progressed throughout the season. Victory lies in the defense and whichever team is more tenacious should steal the W at Leede this Saturday.
With just six games remaining in the season, Dartmouth looks to end strong both on the road and at home. As each game passes, the Big Green gains more and more experience reflecting their tremendous learning curve on the court.
