Hot Takes Week 6

Hot Take: Men’s basketball will bounce back against Yale and Brown

Frances Kantrow | Team: Men’s Basketball | Event: Game against Yale and Brown | Date: Feb. 13-14

After a disappointing 58-71 loss to Harvard on Saturday night, the Big Green look to get back in the win column this weekend. Dartmouth is currently tied for third with three other teams in the Ivy League standings, so they are on the cusp of an Ivy Madness appearance. 

On Friday night, men’s basketball will face Yale, which is the reigning Ivy League champion and the leader in the Ivy League standings this season with a 6-2 record. Dartmouth fell 83-68 to the Bulldogs earlier in the season, hanging on in the first half before falling behind later in the game. I predict the Big Green will be able to keep up with the Bulldogs this time around and get the upset win. 

The team then takes on Brown on Saturday. Brown is currently 1-7 in league play, good for last place in the Ivy League. The Big Green won 77-70 in overtime against the Bears in their previous matchup in Providence, R.I., but I believe Dartmouth will only need 40 minutes this weekend to beat Brown and build momentum going into the last weekend of conference play. 

Hot Take: Men’s hockey will prove their Ivy League dominance

Madison Savoy | Team: Men’s Ice Hockey | Event: Games against Yale and Brown | Date: Feb. 13-14. 

This weekend, the Big Green men’s ice hockey team is set to play Yale and Brown. Yale currently sits 54th in Division 1 rankings with a record of 7-17-0. The last time the Big Green played against the Bulldogs, on Dec. 6, they took the game 6-1. 

The Bears sit 58th in the division’s rankings, with a record of 4-19-1. When Dartmouth competed against Brown on Dec. 5, they dominated the ice, winning 7-3. 

The Big Green are holding down the seventh spot in the national rankings, with Cornell trailing closely behind in eighth. This weekend, the Ivy League competitors will both be playing teams that are struggling to find wins this season, except this Saturday when Cornell plays Union College — who sit at 30th with a record of 16-10-2 — which is comparable to Cornell’s own 17-6-0 record. 

This weekend the Big Green will widen the gap between itself and Cornell, gaining more in-conference points to climb the Ivy League leaderboard and NCAA standings. 

As long as Dartmouth continues to leave it all on the ice, they should have no trouble beating Yale and Brown again. Cornell will likely beat RPI, ranked 56th with a 7-21-0 record, but could face a challenge against Union. The Union squad only lost 1-2 when they last faced Cornell, this weekend playing on their home ice, the game results could flip, it will come down to who wants the win more. 

Hot Take: Equestrian remains undefeated

Ava Politis | Team: Equestrian | Event: Head-to-head against the College of Charleston | Date: Feb. 15

The equestrian team capped off their last season as the National Collegiate Equestrian Association National Champions and they are currently on the path to repeat. The Big Green finished the fall undefeated, as they defeated Charleston this season already. Thanks to the Cougars, the Big Green were last year’s National Champions as they defeated Charleston in the NCEA Single Discipline National Championship. Currently equestrian is the No. 1 team in the NCEA for Single Discipline and will remain on top after this weekend.

At their last competition in the fall at Centenary University, New Hampshire native Cassidy Exner ’27 received most outstanding performer honors and first-years Grace Russo ’29, Lucinda Exner ’29 and Camilla Jerng ’29 all won their points for the first time in the collegiate ring. With veteran performers like Exner and the young talent coming up, the Big Green should have no trouble staying undefeated this season.