The Dartmouth men's basketball team tipped off its season this past weekend at the inaugural Air Force Classic tournament in Colorado. Joining Dartmouth at Clune Arena were teams from the Air Force Academy, the University of Northern Colorado and Virginia Military Institute.
The Big Green was sluggish throughout its game against Air Force, losing 67-38 in the season opener for both teams. However, Dartmouth was able to post a strong showing in the consolation round against VMI, with a 98-87 victory to claim third place in the tournament and even the team's record to 1-1.
Head coach Terry Dunn liked his team's adjustment after the first game.
"The two teams we faced have two contrasting styles of play," Dunn said. "We faced a different defense in the second game and did a good job of adjusting."
The Air Force Falcons, a team that went 26-9 last year, posed a stiff challenge for the Big Green in the opening round. An eight-minute scoring drought midway in the first half put the Big Green in a hole from which it could not recover, allowing the Falcons to pull away for the win.
Air Force has not been defeated by an out-of-conference opponent at home since Dec. 29, 2001.
Dartmouth jumped out to an early 8-3 lead over Air Force thanks to back-to-back plays by guard DeVon Mosley '09. Mosley hit a three-pointer to put the Big Green up 5-3 and then stole the ball on the Falcons' subsequent possession, leading to another three by captain Michael Giovacchini '08.
The two teams were all even at 10-10 at the 13:50 mark after a jumper by Alex Barnett '09, but Air Force kept Dartmouth scoreless until 5:30 left in the half, when Mosley hit another three-pointer. By then, the Falcons held a 25-13 lead, part of a 29-5 run to put the game out of reach.
For the Big Green, Mosley led the team in scoring with 10 points. Barnett finished with eight points. Dartmouth shot 27.7 percent from the floor and 25 percent from long range. The team was dominated 26-6 in the paint and 25-9 in free throw chances. The Big Green did not get to the line once in the first half, and launched mostly jump shots during its scoring drought.
The Big Green was also plagued by 18 turnovers and had no fast break points. Dartmouth did not execute two of the keys Dunn outlined before the season -- getting to the free-throw line and increasing the tempo in transition.
In the third place game against VMI, the Big Green was able to take command with a 17-8 run in the first half.
Giovacchini was pleased with the way the team bounced back after the disappointing loss to the Falcons.
"We played well as a team tonight," Giovacchini said. "VMI pressed the entire game, and we handled their pressure well throughout the game, except for one stretch at the end of the half."
The Big Green was led offensively by Mosley with 23 points and Barnett with 19 points and a career-best 15 rebounds. Giovacchini had a game-high eight assists along with his 11 points, while Colorado natives Elgin Fitzgerald '10 and Robbie Pride '10 poured in 11 points and 10 points, respectively.
Both Dartmouth's offense and defense stepped up. The Big Green shot 52 percent from the field and was able to come up with rally-killing three-pointers again and again. The team also got to the free-throw line 24 times, a significant improvement over its first game.
"We did a good job of getting into the lane and to the free-throw line," Dunn said. "We also made our shots when we needed to."
The defense also held VMI to 5-for-26 (19 percent) from beyond the arc, VMI's worst shooting night from long range in nearly two years.
"We did a good job stopping any runs that they [VMI] had and responded with solid plays," Giovacchini said. "Everyone contributed, and it was a good team win."
Through the first seven minutes, the match-up was even with the score tied 15-15, but Dartmouth took charge over the next five minutes. Guard Marlon Sanders '09 capped the 17-8 run with a steal and a lay-up, giving the Big Green a 32-23 lead. Dartmouth held a 45-39 advantage at half and never looked back.
Early in the second half, the Big Green extended its lead back to 12 when Pride sank a three at the 17-minute mark. Although VMI remained in contention the rest of the way, it drew no closer than four points, doing so both with 12:57 and 4:23 left in the game. However, Giovacchini and Pride both hit three-point daggers to halt VMI's scoring runs.
The Big Green returns to Hanover for its first home game of the season on Saturday, Nov. 17, hosting James Madison for a 7 p.m. tip-off.
"We are excited to be back for our home opener," Dunn said. "We want Dartmouth basketball to be big here again. We need the fans to support the team, and hopefully, we'll give them a reason to."
