The last Dartmouth (10-15, 7-5) home-stand of the season lived up to its billing this weekend in two dramatic games fought in Leede Arena.
Determined to extend its three-game win streak, Dartmouth was ready to battle the Brown Bears (10-15, 3-8) from the very beginning. Double and triple teaming center David Gardner '05, Brown shut down Dartmouth's recently potent offense during the first ten minutes of play, and with Jason Forte running the point, the Bears quick penetrations proved troublesome at first to the normally stalwart Big Green defense.
With five minutes to play in the first half, though, Dartmouth picked up its intensity and managed to climb its way back into the game, taking the lead off of a Chuck Flynn '08 lay-up. The game proved to be even from then on, as both teams entered the half with 24 points.
However, with Mike McLaren '05 and Mike Lang '06 chipping in 18 points apiece, the second half swung to the Big Green. After building its lead to 10 points off of a 21-7 run, Dartmouth once again began to slip, but despite the refs calling the game exceptionally close, the Big Green held on for the 66-64 victory.
Saturday night's game proved to be even more of a nail-biter versus Yale (9-15, 5-6). As both the last home game of the season and Senior Night, fans and Dartmouth students alike packed Leede Arena, creating a charged atmosphere that was full of noise and Big Green support. With seniors Steve Callahan, David Gardner, Mike McLaren and Mike Liddy honored before the game, everyone knew that they were in for something special.
Early in the first half, Yale rained down bullets from the sky, rarely missing a shot despite Dartmouth's tough defense.
The Big Green managed to overcome a seven-point deficit to take the lead off of a McLaren three at the 7:31 mark.
With Liddy and Callahan exchanging point guard duties throughout the night, Dartmouth picked up its intensity in the closing five minutes of the half to extend their newly found lead against the Bulldogs and establish a 33-19 advantage heading into the locker room.
However, Yale wouldn't go away that quickly. Going on an offensive tear, the Bulldogs came within five by the midway point in the half. In the ensuing possession, Jonathan Ball '08 flew up the court in transition and made a spectacular dunk after going coast to coast. But his momentum was too great, and he came down hard. Fortunately, the injury was minor, and Ball returned to the action two minutes later.
Despite all members of the Big Green contributing on the offensive end, Yale still managed to tie the game up on an Edwin Draughan fade-away jumper with less than two minutes to play. After a shot clock violation on Dartmouth's next offensive set, Draughan drove the lane with 36.4 seconds left and drew a foul before he could launch a shot. Shooting one and one, Draughan drained the first shot to give Yale a 51-50 lead in front of 1,026 Dartmouth hopefuls.
The Yale guard missed his next free throw, and McLaren brought the ball up the court, pulling up for the potentially game-winning jumper. The shot deflected off the rim, but Ball grabbed the offensive board. In the ensuing melee, a Yale player gained possession but traveled with just 3.4 seconds left in the game.
The mood was tense in Leede, and few thought the Big Green could pull out the win against this tough Yale team. But the Dartmouth seniors were not going to go away empty handed. Liddy lined up for the inbounds pass and dished it to Callahan, who had been playing all weekend with bad knees. Callahan drove the lane and leaned in with the finger roll. As time expired, the ball was still circling the rim. And then it fell in.
In a fitting end to the game, the crowd erupted in jubilation. Dartmouth students rushed the court, and all were ecstatic as the Big Green stole the 53-52 victory -- the last game at Leede Arena this season.
With a five-game win streak on the line, Dartmouth will conclude its basketball season on the road next week against the Ivy League-leading Penn Quakers and the Princeton Tigers. Though Penn has already clinched the Ancient Eight title, the Big Green is currently tied with Harvard and Cornell for second place in the conference.
