The men's basketball team did its part in the 'Crush the Crimson" weekend, thumping Harvard, 73-65. In doing so, the Green remunerated Harvard for its lavish Christmas present, a 58-55 loss on Dec. 13th.
The Big Green lay dormant in the first half, trailing by two at intermission, but awoke with a vengeance, dominating Harvard with a 10-0 run to begin the second half. Dartmouth coach David Faucher said that he "felt a will to win almost superseding the game itself."
The game-breaking run was highlighted by superb defensive plays. Kenny Mitchell '97 and Sea Lonergan '97 engaged in some pilferage which they parlayed into points on the other end, while Brian Gilpin '97 intimidated opponents with his powerful metacarpals. The finished product was a 43-35 advantage, which the Big Green retained for the remainder of the game.
Although the Big Green defense played superbly, the key factor in the game was their offensive response to Harvard's vaunted defensive pressure. The Big Green induced the Crimson into committing a staggering 31 fouls, as compared with 11 for Dartmouth.
Especially damaging to the Crimson cause was the predicament of its big guns. Leading scorers Michael Gilmore and Kyle Snowden were saddled with foul trouble in the second half, each finally fouling out.
Naturally, this led to a disparity at the foul line where Dartmouth attempted 40 shots to Harvard's 10. Dartmouth's first-half bugaboos were traceable to its inability to hit those attempts; they converted on a sorry 52 percent.
But Dartmouth's second-half surge was also attributable to free-throw shooting, which soared to an impressive 79 percent.
Coach Faucher pointed out that the team had "some good offensive possessions down the stretch where [Harvard] did commit a lot of fouls." Dartmouth's resurgence at the charity stripe was indeed evident nearing the end.
With Harvard having closed to within two, at 55-53, Jacob Capps '96, Gilpin, and Lonergan each sank a pair of free throws, inflating the margin to eight. A few minutes later, Jamie Halligan '95 iced it for the Big Green, hitting six of six from the line with the game in its waning seconds.
Including Halligan's game-clinching effort, there were several outstanding performances on the Dartmouth side. Lonergan came through with 21 points, including eight of Dartmouth's first 13, while Mitchell recorded nine assists and three steals.
However, it was Capps who came through in this game. His 19 points included a career-high four three-pointers, several of which were gutty shots, hit from a deep corner with a man in his face.
"I was really pumped up after I made my threes, especially the last one at the top of the key. I just let the game come to me ... and took the opportunities when they were presented. Luckily the threes were dropping tonight."
Capps also said that the team's "confidence is definitely at a high point. We feel like we can play with and beat anyone."
Asked about Tuesday's rematch against Vermont, who handled the Big Green, 82-70, earlier this month, Capps said, "we're not going to settle for anything less than a win."
