Changing Of the Guard

BETHLEHEM, PA--Before the game, freshman point guard Jared Leake and junior shooting-guard Matt McClain were supposed to have been the weak points of the Crimson squad.

But on Friday, Leake showed signs of a maturity and talent necessary to capably run the offense, while McClain turned in the Crimson's best performance of the evening.

Against top-ranked talent (Lehigh is expected to get an NCAA tournament bid), Leake and McClain showed enough poise to outshine the entire frontcourt, the Crimson's supposed strength.

Leake, in particular, had a strong debut, registering the Crimson's first two assists. Even more impressive were the dribbling skills he exhibited in breaking the Lehigh press.

When it comes to moving the ball upcourt, Harvard Coach Frank Sullivan has placed his trust entirely in his point guard. Against a full court press, Sullivan's point guard is expected to break it all by himself.

Sharp dribbling, not crisp passing, is the key.

This strategy may seem dangerously prone to turnovers, but Leake did not commit a single one bringing the ball upcourt. Instead, his flashy round-the-back and between-the-legs dribbles left Lehigh guards Mike McKee and Chuck Penn nearly falling over in his wake.

Lehigh went after Leake all evening, but in 19 minutes of play, he shot two-for-three from the field, pulled down three rebounds, had two steals and two assists.

He's not perfect, though. While Leake is a phenomenal dribbler with a good shot, he tends to telegraph his passes. Four of his five turnovers were the result of bad passes.

"I thought [Leake] handled the pressure very well," Sullivan said after the game. "It's a very big jump from the high school level."

Leake was very strong in his debut, but the real story of the game was McClain. McClain turned in a team-high 39 minutes, splitting time between point and shooting guard.

At times, McClain was the only guard on the floor for the Crimson. While not possessing Leake's flashiness, McClain got the job done more efficiently. In those 39 minutes, McClain only turned the ball over four times, compared to Leake's five in 19 minutes. McClain was also more of an offensive presence than Leake, scoring 10 points on four-of-nine shooting.

On offense, McClain showed a poise and leadership the Crimson is going to need from him this season to stay in the Ivy League race.

While their offensive skills are formidable, the defensive roles these two play are mixed.

In a surprising tactical maneuver, Sullivan plays Leake under the basket on defense. While this initially seems strange, there are numerous benefits.

Leake is quick enough so he can position himself in front of rumbling forwards and take the charge, or he can knock the ball out of opposing centers' hands.

McClain is left on the perimeter to defend the point guard. It's easy to judge McClain's effectiveness: McKee, the Engineers' point guard, scored three points in 22 minutes.

Not bad, but the flip side of having Leake under the basket is the fact that the opponent's shooting guard is covered by a forward, usually Tyler Rullman.

The Engineers' shooting guard, Chuck Penn, lit up the Crimson for 21 points.

But winning starts with the guards, and McClain and Leake have shown themselves to be capable of leading this Crimson team.

The potential is there, even if the consistency has yet to come.