Enthusiasm flagged at Leede Arena last night as Scott Drapeau scored 25 points, leading the New Hampshire Wildcats to an 87-60 shellacking of the Big Green.
With Dartmouth center Brian Gilpin '97 out with an ankle injury, suffered 11 minutes into the game, the Wildcats had their way inside.
A rotating triumvirate of Dartmouth centers could do little against the 1993-94 North Atlantic Conference Player of the Year.
With Gilpin out, the team was ineffective on the boards, getting out-rebounded 52-32. This staggering deficit reflects Dartmouth's offensive misfiring and New Hampshire's subsequent defensive rebounding. It also attests to Dartmouth's inability to grab more offensive boards.
Although New Hampshire shot an impressive 51 percent, it grabbed 15 rebounds off its few misses, earning the 'Cats extra lives. The 'Cats clawed out 15 offensive rebounds, many of which were re-routed through New Hampshire's offensive pathways, finally registering on the scoreboard as two points.
The Big Green, on the other hand, were impotent on the offensive glass, although they had plenty of misses to rebound, shooting only 35 percent. Although they recorded 14 offensive boards, missed tips comprised the useless majority of them.
A large part of this can be attributed to Gilpin's absence, but much of it was Drapeau's presence in the paint. By himself, the 235-pound center grabbed 15 rebounds, cleaning the offensive glass on five of them.
However, without their 7-foot Hoosier State native, the Big Green had trouble scoring consistently, as they were unable to complement their potent outside scoring and driving with a legitimate inside threat.
Jamie Halligan '95 (17 points) and Sea Lonergan '97 (21 points) shot well in the post and on threes, but the team's remaining firepower proved to be a collective dud.
The Big Green's defensive effort, or lack of it, dismayed Coach Dave Faucher. "We had no semblance of team defense," a dispirited Faucher said, "and that is the most discouraging thing to me."
The defense was indeed minimal, as the Big Green allowed the Wildcat shooters to break the 50 percent barrier, taboo for team defense. Drapeau seemed to score over Dartmouth's big men every time he touched the ball, while Providence transfer Matt Alosa drove through and around Dartmouth's spongy defense.
Freshman Matt Acres also hurt the Big Green with 14 points on pinpoint seven of eight shooting, including the only jam off the game. Acres, whose brother Mark played in the NBA, drove the baseline from the wing and slammed one through the iron as helpless Big Green defenders watched in awe.
His dunk came near the end of a spectacular run by New Hampshire midway through the second-half. The Wildcats tallied 19 points by scoring on 10 consecutive possessions. Acres scored eight of his 14 during this back-breaking stretch, capping the run with the crowd-silencing dunk.
There were a few positive signs for the Big Green. Keith Stanton '97 seemed to regain his confidence after starting the second half. Stanton proceeded to grab some key rebounds and scored six points in only 11 minutes of play.
The second team also played well at the close of the game, raiding the offensive boards and playing with vigor.
All in all Faucher said the team's play was "unacceptable," and that "it was not an indicative Dartmouth performance."
Fans will be looking for signs of life and a more indicative performance when the team faces the Maine Black Bears on Jan. 31.
