Old, New, and Future Stars Shine at Crimson Madness

The first official weekend of Harvard basketball for the 2016-2017 season was a busy one, with the team capping off its opening week of practice with the annual Crimson Madness event.

In addition to providing an early look at the program, this weekend saw the team add a third member to its 2017 recruiting class with the verbal commitment of Reed Farley on Friday. Farley, a 6’3”, 175-pound small forward from La Jolla, Calif., pledged to coach Tommy Amaker and the Crimson after visiting campus last week. Farley was in attendance for this weekend’s Crimson Madness event.\

ESPN rates Farley as a two-star prospect and praises his length, athleticism, and motor, projecting him as “the perfect glue-type at the next level.” Farley gives Harvard two wings in next year’s recruiting class, as he joins Chesterfield, Va. shooting guard Mario Haskett. The Crimson’s star-studded 2016 class features Seth Towns as its only wing, and next year’s team will be looking to replace three guards slated to graduate in May. Danilo Djuricic, a 6’8” power forward from Brampton, Ont., is the third member of Harvard’s 2017 recruiting class.

Farley was a key contributor on La Jolla High’s team as a junior. He averaged 14.6 points per game to go along with six rebounds and six assists. Overall the Vikings went 19-11.

Farley played AAU Basketball with Earl Watson Elite, which was co-founded by UCLA alum and Phoenix Suns head coach Earl Watson. Earl Watson Elite has produced numerous NCAA players, including Arizona State point guard Tra Holder and Arizona center Chance Comanche, not to mention Harvard sophomores Balsa Dragovic (forward) and Tommy McCarthy (point guard).

Amaker continues to have recruiting success in Southern California. In addition to Dragovic and McCarthy, senior forward Zena Edosomwan, sophomore shooting guard Robbie Feinberg, freshman point guard Christian Juzang, and freshman forward Henry Welsh all prepped in the area.

Under the lights of Lavietes Pavilion on Friday, the Harvard men’s basketball team showcased its collection of new and returning talent at its annual Crimson Madness event. The showcase featured a dunk contest, three-point shootout, and a short scrimmage.

Despite the novelty of head coach Tommy Amaker’s top-10 recruiting class, one of the biggest stories of the night was arguably the return of senior guard Siyani Chambers to the court. Chambers, a three year starter and former Ivy League Rookie of the Year, anchored the Crimson at the one spot through three Ivy League championships and subsequent tournament appearances. After tearing his ACL last summer, Chambers took a voluntary leave of absence to preserve his last year of eligibility.

Despite the year off, Chambers looked like his old self during the scrimmage, driving inside while keeping defenders on their toes. Interestingly, the starting lineup for the Crimson team had both Chambers and sophomore guard Tommy McCarthy. McCarthy, who stepped into the role of starter in Chambers’ absence last year, averaged 8.8 points per game in his rookie season with a 33.9 field goal percentage.

On Friday McCarthy paced the Crimson squad with 13 points while senior forward Zena Edosomwan lead the White squad with 14. Despite some serious freshman talent guarding him, namely four-star recruit Chris Lewis, Edosomwan was a force to be reckoned with inside throughout the contest. Another notable performance during the scrimmage came courtesy of freshman guard Bryce Aiken, who looked strong in limited minutes.

In a perhaps more interesting dunk contest than in years past, Edosomwan managed to repeat as the champion despite strong performances from junior forward Chris Egi and freshman Robert Baker Jr. Edosomwan’s most electrifying dunk came in the second round when he leapt over three of his tallest teammates.

The three-point shootout featured nearly half of the Crimson’s squad. After strong first-round performances from sophomore wing Corey Johnson, senior guard Corbin Miller, and McCarthy, Johnson shot the lights out in the final round, hitting 12 of 18 shots to take the win.

—Staff writer Stephen J. Gleason can be reached at stephen.gleason@thecrimson.com. Staff writer Troy Boccelli can be reached at troy.boccelli@thecrimson.com.