The Dartmouth men's basketball team was a perfect 2-0 in Ivy league match-ups this weekend as they defeated both Columbia and Cornell at home.
With the sweep the Big Green improved to 8-5 and more importantly 3-1 in the Ivy League.
"These were big wins for us," co-Captain Matt Bush '96 said. "We showed ourselves that we have the character and the confidence to win. We're right back in it."
The two wins halted Dartmouth's five game slide that began at North Carolina and ended in Hanover with a 59-57 thriller over Columbia.
Dartmouth 59, Columbia 57
With five seconds remaining and the score tied at 57, Asa Palmer '98 nailed two clutch free throws to put Dartmouth ahead for good and back into the win column.
"I felt perfectly calm going to the line," said Palmer who finished with six points. "I don't usually, but for some reason tonight I felt perfectly calm."
The game began as a typical Ivy League battle with the lead changing hands seven times in the first half. Dartmouth lead at the break 32-26, but Coach Dave Faucher was not entirely pleased.
"Not making easy opportunities early will eventually come back to haunt you," Faucher said. Dartmouth saw its lead vanish as Columbia went on a 11-0 run in the middle of the second half to lead 43-40.
That was when Dartmouth decided to dig in. Brian Gilpin '97 drained a couple of baseline jumpers, while co-Captain Jacob Capps '96 hit a pair of free throws and a three point bomb as Dartmouth regained the lead 51-50 with nine minutes to play.
More importantly, Dartmouth regained control inside the paint. Keith Stanton '97 rejected three shots, and Gilpin snagged a key rebound, minimizing the Lions' second chance opportunities.
"We won the game with rebounds," Faucher said. "It's ironic because that's the way we lost the game to Harvard."
In fact the Big Green out-rebounded the Lions 33-28.
But of course points win games, and Dartmouth was actually down one when Kenny Mitchell '97 slashed baseline towards the hoop but was fouled and went to the free throw line. With seven seconds left, he hit the first to tie the game.
"I thought I was going to hit them both," said Mitchell who finished with five points and seven assists. But the second attempt was just long, and Palmer was fouled as he came up with the monster rebound and game winning free throws.
Capps lead Dartmouth with 15 points and standout Sea Lonergan '97 added 14. With the win, Dartmouth improved to 7-5 (2-1 Ivy) and Columbia slid to 4-9 (0-1 Ivy)
Dartmouth 68, Cornell 57
Over 1,400 fans watched the Dartmouth men's basketball team shell the Cornell Big Red for the Big Green's second win in as many nights. As a bonus, they got to see Lonergan surpass the 1,000 point mark in his Big Green career -- the 19th in player Dartmouth history to do so.
Lonergan surpassed 1,000 points with a 12-foot jumper from the left side of the key in the first minute of the second half. The superstar junior entered the game with 997 career points but was held to just two points in the first half.
"The mark really wasn't on my mind until the end of the first half," Lonergan said. "By then I wanted to get by it so I could just come out and play ball."
With typical class, Lonergan was quick to downplay his individual kudos and voiced his pride in Dartmouth's win, its second in a row.
The Big Green were never challenged by Cornell all night. Seven minutes into the match-up Mitchell and P.J. Halas '98 combined for three three-pointers giving Dartmouth an 11 point lead. The Big Green never looked back.
"It was a relief to play in a situation in which the game didn't depend on every possession," Faucher said. "We created openings, shot the ball well and hit our threes," he said.
The early big lead was extended to 33-16 with a Gilpin layin with just under five minutes remaining in the half.
"The good start allowed the coach liberty to try plays with different players," Busch said.
In fact, fans had good looks at juniors Chris Butler and Jason Fisher who both got some quality playing time in the first half. The tandem provided additional strength under the boards.
The Big Green entered halftime on an emotional high after Lonergan stole the ball, went coast-to-coast and rifled a pass to Bush who layed it in with one tick left on the clock. Bush's score made it 38-23. Dartmouth out-rebounded the Big Red 27-20 in the first 20 minutes.
In the second half, Cornell tried to counter Dartmouth's superior talent with a raw physical, hacking approach. In fact, after Lonergan hit the jumper that gave him 1001 career points, Cornell rewarded him by undercutting him as he went up for a lay-up the next time down the court.
The crowd fell silent as Faucher and his trainers tended to Lonergan who appeared to be in grave pain. Within minutes though, Lonergan was able to get up and the crowd responded with a standing ovation.
"I landed flat on my back," Lonergan said. "I couldn't breath."
Lonergan recovered and drained his free throws enroute to a 15 point effort to lead all scorers.
Minutes later it was Capps who was leveled by a Cornell moving pick. The foul on Capps re-injured the knee which Capps had been operated on in November and he was carried off the court for treatment.
An outraged crowd had no problem voicing their disapproval to the referees, but with typical class neither Capps nor Lonergan offered retaliation. They let the scoreboard speak for them. Capps later returned to the game, to the thunderous approval of the crowd.
With just under three minutes remaining, Dartmouth had built a 21-point lead that ensured them a weekend sweep of their Ivy league play. A 10-0 run for the Big Red in the final two minutes kept Cornell from being embarrassed.
"These wins were big and we are back," said Lonergan as he and other team members signed autographs after the game, "Dartmouth is definitely back."
The win brought the Big Green to 8-5 (3-1 Ivy) while Cornell sinks to 3-8 (0-2 Ivy)
Dartmouth's next game is Jan. 17 at the University of New Hampshire.
