Around The Ivy Leagues: Men

There are certain things we assume when we wake up every morning. The sun will rise in the east, 100 tourists will rub John Harvard's foot and someone will be shooting hoops under Lavietes Pavilion's glass pyramid.

It's also pretty safe to assume that the men's basketball team from either Penn or Princeton will represent the Ivy League when March Madness rolls around.

The Quakers and Tigers have combined for all but three Ivy titles since 1963, and have advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament three times in the last six years, including Princeton's legendary 43-41 upset of UCLA in 1996.

With three All-Ivy players playing their final season at the Palestra, Penn was the unanimous favorite to win the league in the preseason media poll. In New Jersey, the final remnants of Princeton's 1997-98 squad that climbed as high as No. 7 in the national polls have graduated, and sophomore center Chris Young--who is the defending Ivy Rookie of the Year--will be the centerpiece of a new era for the Tigers.

But don't count out Dartmouth. All five starters return from a Big Green team that finished a game behind Princeton last season. Dartmouth was clearly the third-best team in the Ivy last year, but it remains to be seen whether the Big Green, which lost all four games to Princeton and Penn in 1997-98, has the experience to challenge the two front-runners this season.

Cornell has four starters back to build on a season that ended with a two-point loss to Penn at the Palestra. The biggest question mark is Harvard, with seven newcomers on its roster and five graduated seniors to replace. A pair of new head coaches will try to turn around the programs at Brown and Yale, while Columbia will struggle to replace All-Ivy guard Gary Raimondo.

Here's how each team looks heading into non-conference play, in the order of the preseason media poll:

1. Pennsylvania

The Quakers (21-6, 13-1 Ivy, 1st) have Michael Jordan. 'Nuff said.

Jordan (15.3 points per game, 125 assists), a first team All-Ivy choice each of the last two seasons, is the best point guard in the conference. Jordan may be short--he's generously listed at 6'0--but he is fast, can handle the ball with ease and is not afraid to drive the lane.

Jordan's penetration should also leave senior guard Matt Langel open for plenty of shots from beyond the arc. Langel (11.3 ppg, .429 three-point percentage) earned All-Ivy honorable mention with his steady shooting and strong court sense. At 6'5, Langel might have to spend some minutes at swingman until Coach Fran Dunphy finds a frontcourt combination he likes.

But Dunphy has nothing to worry about in the paint, where senior center Geoff Owens will be a permanent fixture. The 6'11 Owens (9.3 ppg, 7.3 rebounds per game, 58 blocks), an All-Ivy honorable mention selection last year, is a force to be reckoned with on offense and defense, and he loves slamming home the alley-oop from Jordan.

The one possible weakness is at forward, where the Quakers have lost Paul Romanczuk, a member of the All-Ivy first team, and Jed Ryan, a hard hitter who shot .437 from three-point range, to graduation.

Senior swingman Frank Brown (5.2 ppg, 3.5 rpg) should move into the starting lineup, and Dunphy will choose between junior Oggie Kapetanovic, a transfer from Brown, and freshman Ugonna Onyekwe as his power forward.

Onyekwe, a transport from London, has a talented group of freshmen classmates in forward Koko Archibong and guards Harold Bailey and Dave Klatsky.

Dunphy has front-loaded his schedule in an attempt to snatch some early national recognition, like Princeton did two years ago. The Quakers open against Kentucky at the Preseason NIT, in a field that also includes Arizona, Utah and Maryland. Penn will travel to Kansas Jan. 4.

With the best backcourt in the Ivy, good all-around depth and big-game experience, Penn is a prohibitive favorite to repeat.

2. Princeton

Of course, the Quakers still have to get by Princeton (22-8, 11-3, 2nd). Although the Tigers were shocked late last season at both Yale and Harvard, Princeton bounced back in the NIT by beating Georgetown and North Carolina State before falling to Xavier in the quarterfinals.

Coach Bill Carmody still uses the complex system of his predecessor, Pete Carril. But that system has become much simpler now that Carmody can tell everyone to pass the ball to Chris Young.

The 6'11 Young (12.9 ppg, 5.3 rpg), the 1998-99 Ivy Rookie of the Year in both basketball and baseball, is the most versatile center in the league.

After Mitch Henderson graduated in 1998, Princeton did not have a true point guard last season, and it was often Young who handled the ball at the top of the key.

Young is an accurate perimeter shooter (.393 three-point percentage) like his predecessor Steve Goodrich, who forces opposing centers to come out of the paint on defense. But Young can also run Princeton's traditional backdoor offense, taking the ball with his back to the basket and either hitting a turnaround jumper or feeding a teammate for an easy lay-up.

However, Young will miss the services of two first team All-Ivy selections in 1998, guard Brian Earl and forward Gabe Lewullis, two excellent three-point shooters who have graduated. Carmody is hoping to reload the roster with freshmen forwards Cameron Carr and Spencer Gloger.

Carr and Gloger will join an experienced frontcourt. Senior forward Mason Rocca (7.7 ppg, 5.9 rpg) is a hard-nosed rebounder, but don't expect Rocca to be a scoring threat. Sophomore center Chris Krug (2.1 ppg, 2.9 rpg) saw a lot of minutes as a rookie last season, and junior forward Nathan Walton (4.2 ppg, 4.0 rpg) is the son of Hall-of-Famer Bill Walton.

Princeton's biggest weaknesses are in the backcourt, where the loss of Earl--the 1998-99 Ivy Player of the Year--will be painful. Sophomore swingman Ahmed El-Nokali (2.5 ppg, 1.5 rpg) started as a rookie, but he is not a distance shooter. El-Nokali is the only guard who saw significant playing time during the Ivy season last year.

Junior guard C.J. Chapman (4.1 ppg) will likely start at point guard, while sophomore guard Eugene Baah (1.9 ppg, 0.8 rpg) will come off the bench for defensive purposes. Sophomore swingman Ray Robins (1.0 ppg, 0.7 rpg) will give the Tigers depth.

With a center like Young, and Carril's legendary backdoor system, anything can happen at Jadwin Gym this year. But Carmody has a lot of work to do in developing Young's inexperienced teammates.

3. Dartmouth

The Big Green (14-12, 10-4, 3rd) has a legitimate chance to turn the Ivy into something other than a two-team conference. Dartmouth swept every team but Penn and Princeton last season, and the exact same roster--plus two freshmen--will have another shot at the Quakers and Tigers in 1999-2000.

The most talented player is senior forward Shaun Gee (17.4 ppg, 6.5 rpg), the only returning member of the All-Ivy first team besides Michael Jordan. Gee can pull up from anywhere on the court, dish to his teammates or drive and finish with authority.

With Gee providing more than enough offense, junior center Ian McGinnis (8.2 ppg, 12.2 rpg) can concentrate on cleaning the glass. Although he is only 6'8, McGinnis led the nation in rebounds per game and earned All-Ivy honorable mention. When Dartmouth came to Harvard, McGinnis pulled down 19 boards.

Rounding out the frontcourt is sophomore swingman Charles Harris (8.2 ppg, 3.1 rpg). One of two rookies to start for the Big Green last season, Harris provides extra scoring punch to a talented offense. But Harris is really a guard, and Coach Dave Faucher will hope senior Ryan Smerek (1.5 ppg, 2.7 rpg) and sophomore Jay Jenckes (0.6 ppg, 1.1 rpg) can give the Dartmouth frontcourt some depth.

There is plenty of talent in the backcourt as well. Junior guard Greg Buth (16.5 ppg, 2.7 rpg), a second team All-Ivy selection, led the nation with a .466 three-point shooting percentage last season. Sophomore point guard Flinder Boyd (7.2 ppg, 151 assists) proved himself a capable floor leader as a rookie, and developed better floor sense as the season went on.

Although there is plenty of experience in Hanover, freshman forwards Greg Friel and Meador Hall will also need to contribute if Dartmouth is to challenge Penn and Princeton for the title. Depth is Dartmouth's weakness. Outside the starting five, the Big Green has no proven talents.

4. Cornell

The Big Red (11-15, 6-8, 5th) has four starters back and an outside shot at contending for the school's second league title since 1957.

Junior forward Ray Mercedes (14.2 ppg, 5.5 rpg) will lead the Cornell attack. The runner-up to Harvard's Dan Clemente for Ivy Rookie of the Year in 1997-98, Mercedes can score from inside and outside (.308 three-point percentage).

Coach Scott Thompson will probably start junior-college transfer Greg Barratt alongside Mercedes. The 6'9 Barratt, who averaged 13.4 ppg at Utah Valley State College last season, began his collegiate career by playing in 15 games on Utah in 1997-98, when the Utes lost to Kentucky in the NCAA championship game.

Senior Keirian Brown (8.2 ppg, 6.4 rpg) returns at center. Although he is only 6'6, Brown began starting in the post late last season and should be improved this year.

Sophomore Wallace Prather (12.8 ppg, 90 assists) will be the Big Red floor general. Prather started at point guard as a rookie last year, leading the team in assists, steals and minutes played, and he finished the season by scoring a career-high 22 points at Penn.

Prather will be joined in the backcourt by junior Kevin Cuttica (7.8 ppg, .375 three-point percentage), senior Jim Pieri (2.5 ppg, 0.7 rpg) and sophomore A.J. McGuire.

5. Harvard

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6. Brown

The future could be bright for the Bears (4-22, 2-12, tied-7th) and first-year Coach Glen Miller, but the future will not come anytime this year.

Miller takes over a Brown squad that finished in the cellar last season and lost its only bright spot, second team All-Ivy center Kamal Rountree, to graduation.

Miller helped build Connecticut into a national powerhouse as an assistant under Jim Calhoun from 1986 to 1993. While Calhoun led UConn to its first-ever NCAA championship last season, Miller was head coach at Connecticut College, where he led the Camels to the Division-III Final Four.

Miller plans to turn around the program at Brown by implementing a motion offense and an aggressive pressure defense this season. He hopes to accomplish this with the help of another newcomer, sophomore guard Jihan Bowes-Little, who averaged 21.0 ppg and 6.0 apg at the University of Portland before transferring to Providence.

Miller will likely use a three-guard rotation in his up-tempo offensive scheme. Senior point guard Corey Vandiver (6.5 ppg, 80 assists), a two-year starter, and sophomore Travis Brown (7.5 ppg, 3.4 rpg), who started as a rookie and shot a .423 three-point percentage last year, should join Bowes-Little in the backcourt.

Miller will need a lot of bodies if he plans to maintain a pressure defense, so sophomores Jesse Wood (3.7 ppg, 1.2 rpg) and Omari Ware (1.9 ppg, 2.0 rpg) should be part of the backcourt rotation.

Inside, Miller will rely on a pair of sophomore forwards who saw significant playing time last year in Shaun Etheridge (8.3 ppg, 5.2 rpg) and Josh Meyer (5.8 ppg, 2.2 rpg). It is unclear who will replace Rountree at center, but sophomore John Verdeaux (0.7 ppg, 1.5 rpg) and junior Tyler Driggers (0.5 ppg, 0.9 rpg) will compete for the job.

Miller should also give plenty of minutes to a pair of freshmen forwards in Earl Hunt and Alaivaa Nuualiitia.

7. Yale

The Elis (4-22, 2-12, tied-7th) had the same record as the Bears, so it should be no surprise that Yale also followed Brown in hiring a new head coach, James Jones. Yale has beaten either Princeton or Penn in each of the last four seasons, but there haven't been many wins in between those upsets.

The Bulldogs' strength will be in the backcourt. Junior point guard Isaiah Cavaco (6.9 ppg, 72 assists) will be the floor leader, and sophomore shooting guard Onaje Woodbine (9.5 ppg, .303 three-point percentage) also started last season.

In the frontcourt Jones will have to replace forward David Tompkins, a second team All-Ivy selection who graduated. One answer is Jason Williams (1.1 ppg, 0.8 rpg), a senior whose greatest asset could be the fact that two players in the National Basketball Association also have his name.

Besides Williams, Jones will look to sophomore forward Brad Reusch (4.1 ppg, 1.3 rpg) to establish himself this season. Senior forwards John Kirkowski (1.9 ppg, 1.6 rpg) and Ted Smith (3.4 ppg, 2.0 rpg) will provide leadership.

Junior center Neil Yanke (9.2 ppg, 6.9 rpg) will play in the paint for the Elis.

8. Columbia

The Lions (10-16, 5-9, 6th) are in a rebuilding year, as Coach Armond Hill will probably start no one with more than one year of Ivy playing experience.

In the backcourt Hill will have to replace guard Gary Raimondo, a second team All-Ivy choice last season. The point guard will be sophomore Victor Munoz (1.9 ppg, 16 assists) who was highly recruited out of high school before partially tearing his ACL in his senior season.

Munoz will be joined at shooting guard by a committee of four freshmen--Egan Hill, Brad Johnson, Jaime Irvine, the son of Detroit Pistons assistant coach George Irvine, and Billy Raftery, the son of television analyst Bill Raftery.

In the frontcourt Hill will choose between a trio of sophomore forwards in Craig Austin (6.3ppg, 2.0 rpg), Joe Case (2.3 ppg, 1.4 rpg) and Mike McBrien (5.6 ppg, 4.3 rpg). Freshman Chris Wiedemann should start at center.