The game against Longwood could represent a critical turning point in the season, according to team captain David Rufful '12,.
"I think the game went well," he said. "That was an important game to win because it gave us some momentum going into the Ivy League. We were happy that we were able to win it."
The game against Longwood showcased many of the Big Green's season bests, including a 54.7 shooting percentage from the floor and season-high scoring by freshmen John Golden '15 and Jvonte Brooks '15, who earned 17 and 16 points, respectively. The 83-point final score by Dartmouth makes it the highest-scoring game that the Big Green has played against a Division-I opponent in nearly four years.
Rufful explained how the freshmen class has played a vital role in the team's offensive strategy.
"Offensively, I think the freshmen did a really great job contributing," Rufful said. "The combination of freshmen and older leadership stepping up such as R.J. Griffin ['13] and myself towards the end of the game was really great. If we see more of that I think we can expect some wins in the Ivy season."
In addition to its tremendous offensive performance, the Big Green also held down Longwood on defense, keeping its shooting percentage to only 32.9 percent overall and 28.6 percent from behind the three-point line. Antwan Carter led the Lancers in scoring with 20 points and eight rebounds, closely followed by Jeremiah Powman at 14 points and Martiz Washington, who sank four three-pointers.
The Big Green got off to a strong start in the first half, running ahead with a 10-3 advantage over the Lancers. Longwood then scored six more points, coming dangerously close to taking the lead, before Dartmouth responded with an 11-point streak within four minutes to bring the score to 21-9.
The Big Green continued to maintain the pressure on both offense and defense for the remainder of the half, exiting the court at halftime with a 41-30 lead over Longwood.
Perhaps overconfident with its 11-point lead, Dartmouth struggled through the beginning of the second half, turning over the ball nine times in the first 10 minutes. Longwood quickly closed the gap, tying the game at 52-52 with 10:24 left to play in the game. Gabas Maldunas '15 immediately responded with a bucket, starting a scoring streak by Rufful, Golden and Griffin to extend Dartmouth's lead to 64-57. From there, the Big Green coasted to victory over the Lancers.
The men's basketball team is heavy with rookies this year, but they have managed to keep the upperclassmen on their toes, Rufful said.
"I think the freshman class is great," he said. "Right now we have three starting, and they all make practices more competitive. Each year you want to bring in some better players to make the program grow, and if the freshmen keep playing well, the future of Dartmouth basketball is going to be very bright."
The Big Green hopes to continue its winning streak this weekend, when it takes on the Harvard Crimson in Leede Arena on Saturday. Dartmouth lost to Harvard last weekend in its first game of Ivy League play, but Rufful said he is confident that the team can still turn itself around and have a productive season.
"We've been pretty unsuccessful so far, but a lot of those losses have been pretty close," he said. "You can do well in Ivy League conference play and not so well out of [the] conference, so we're hoping to do better."
