M. Cagers to Face Test in Dartmouth

Everything that happened in the last two weeks doesn't amount to a hill of beans when compared to tomorrow.

That's when the Harvard men's basketball team locks horns with Dartmouth in Hanover. The Big Green won the last meeting between the two schools in early December, 70-61, and another Crimson loss would put the team's hopes for an Ivy League title on thinner ice.

For Harvard to come away with a win, it must stop--or at least contain--junior Sea Lonergan. The off-guard hit eight of 20 shots and 11 of 11 free throws for 30 points in the teams' earlier meeting.

Another problem for the Crimson will be center Brian Gilpin, a seven-foot giant who was mobile enough to score 16 on Harvard.

What Harvard must do, therefore, is what it does best: putting intense pressure on the Big Green guards. Lonergan won't be held scoreless, but he shouldn't score 30. And with someone like junior Dave Demian or sophomore Mike Scott always on the ball, Gilpin will get fewer feeds for easy buckets.

In other words, the Crimson has to hold the Big Green to under 40 percent from the field.

On the offensive end, Harvard's three-point shooting has to come alive. Senior Mike Gilmore and junior Dave Weaver aren't as not from behind the arc as they were earlier this season, and a robust 30 or 35-percent mark for that category will help a lot.

Of course, Snowden has to do his usual double-double, and Harvard has to stay out of foul trouble. And a combined 15 points from junior Chris Grancio and sophomore Paul Fisher wouldn't hurt either.