While the end result did not fall in the Big Green's favor, the Dartmouth men's basketball team's performance in its season-opening game against Rutgers University showed that the team has the skills and the willpower to exceed expectations this season. While many have predicted another last-in-the-Ivy-League finish for the Big Green, players from the team are confident that it can be a competitive force in the conference this season.
Dartmouth (0-1) fell to the Scarlet Knights (1-0) in Piscataway, N.J., on Friday, 62-56. The Big Green shot 36.5 percent from the floor and only 18.2 percent on three-point shots, but forced 16 turnovers and hit 14 of 16 free throws. Dartmouth also struggled on the boards against the Scarlet Knights, which out-rebounded the Big Green, 37 to 23.
R.J. Griffin '13 led the team with 15 points on four-of-12 shooting. John Golden '15, Jabari Trotter '12 and Jvonte Brooks '15 added eight points each for the Big Green.
With a recent string of losing seasons and a poor showing in pre-season polls, the team is optimistic after playing a tight game against a top-conference opponent like Rutgers, a member of the powerhouse Big East Conference.
"We got to see where we were at," Griffin said. "There's a lot of energy with an influx of young guys and [the game] definitely showed that we can play with pretty much everyone in the country."
Although Dartmouth trailed Rutgers for the entire game, the Big Green kept the Rutgers squad fighting all night, and the Scarlet Knights' advantage never reached double-digits. Rutgers opened the game on a 10-2 run, but Dartmouth came back to tie the score at 15. The first half ended with Rutgers just barely grasping a one-point advantage, leading 31-30.
"At the beginning of the game, Rutgers went on a big run and for us to bring it back to one or two points at halftime was when we knew we could hang tough," Griffin said.
Rutgers opened the second half with a run that left Dartmouth trailing 41-32, and the Big Green spent the rest of the game trying to claw back. With 1:12 to go, Dartmouth had cut the lead to three at 59-56 before Rutgers scored the final three points to close out the game.
Griffin said the Big Green did a good job dictating the game's tempo, allowing Dartmouth to stay on par with the Scarlet Knights even as it trailed on the scoreboard.
"We knew that if we came out and just played at our tempo instead of running up and down with their tempo we could win," he said.
The Big Green fell short in several key areas, however. The team shot poorly from the field and, as an undersized team, second-chance points were hard to come by. The Scarlet Knights landed nine more offensive rebounds than Dartmouth.
Griffin noted that rebounding must be an area of focus for the team if it wants to succeed this season.
"We're not a big team, so focusing on rebounding is something we need to work on," he said.
Although the Big Green returned three starters from last year's squad, Dartmouth is cultivating a very young team. Griffin said freshmen like Brooks stepped up against Rutgers and must play well throughout the season if Dartmouth is to be competitive in the League.
"I think Javonte Brooks stood out to me, he really competed well and showed he was just as athletic as anyone on Rutgers," Griffin said.
The team will look to improve upon its last-place League finish last season, when it went 5-23 and won only a single conference game. The preseason media poll has slotted the Dartmouth squad in the same position this season, but the strength that the Big Green showcased against Rutgers gave the team a spark of hope as it begins its regular season.
"I definitely think we're a much better team then we have been," Griffin said.
Dartmouth plays the University of Vermont on Wednesday at 7 p.m. in its first home game of the season.
