To Surprise of Many, Goffredo’s Season Has Makings of Player of the Year

PROVIDENCE, R.I.—With a few more performances like this, he could bring home Harvard’s first Ivy League Player of the Year award since 1984 and only its second ever.

Heading into the season, that was the likely introduction to a piece about the achievements of captain Matt Stehle or junior center Brian Cusworth, who along with Penn’s Ibrahim Jaaber claimed almost all of the preseason media accolades doled out by various media outlets.

But while Stehle’s average of 14 points, nine boards and five assists per league game and Cusworth’s output of 13 points, nine rebounds and three blocks per Ivy contest are impressive, they pale in comparison to the numbers posted by junior sharpshooter Jim Goffredo.

After serving a two-year apprenticeship behind single-season three-point record holder Kevin Rogus ’05, Goffredo made his first collegiate start in the Crimson’s season-opener against Vermont. The 6’1 junior scored 15 points and knocked down three trifectas, including one that sparked a game-ending 9-0 run and a Harvard win.

But the assumption of the shooting guard role wasn’t a particularly smooth one. Despite leading the team in scoring for most of the non-conference season, he cracked the 20-point barrier just once and struggled mightily from the field. Over the final six non-league games he shot a combined 24-of-77 (31 percent) from the field and 10-for-41 (24 percent) from three. His 24 threes through 13 games were almost a full trifecta per game behind the pace set by Rogus during his junior year.

Maybe Goffredo’s role was to knock down the occasional big three-pointer and to be automatic from the free-throw line. On a team with two potential league MVPs, that wouldn’t be so bad.

As Harvard took the floor for its first Ivy contest against Dartmouth, that was precisely the part he was expected to play. After the Big Green put together an 11-2 run that virtually erased an early double-digit lead, Goffredo hit that big three. Then, he hit another. And another. And another. His purpose was to be the escape valve for the Crimson’s frontcourt weapons. But at some point during that first half of the game against Dartmouth, Goffredo became the weapon. He got his shots, he found his rhythm, and he delivered.

He finished the game with seven three-pointers (tied for the Crimson’s second-best single-game performance) and 33 points (three short of tying the 10th best showing in Harvard history).

Fast-forward to Saturday night’s game against Brown.

Goffredo entered as the league’s leading scorer, averaging 21 points through Harvard’s first three Ivy games. Still, the Bears chose to stick with their zone in order to shut down Stehle and Cusworth. They wouldn’t let the preseason players of the year beat them. So, the current player of the year did.

After the Crimson jumped out to a 19-9 lead with 7:52 left in the half, Brown center Mark McDonald nailed a three to pull the Bears back within seven. What followed might well be the best three minutes of Goffredo’s career.

Freshman point guard Drew Housman found Goffredo on the subsequent possession, and Goffredo buried his second three of the game. Under a minute later, Housman again hit Goffredo, who nailed another three. The junior guard grabbed a steal on the other end and then proceeded to make his only mistake during the run, missing the back end of a one-and-one. Goffredo made up for that, though, nailing trifectas on each of the next three possessions to cap off a personal 16-3 run that put Harvard up 35-15 with 4:06 left before halftime.

“Jimmy made some phenomenal plays,” Harvard coach Frank Sullivan said. “He was definitely in rhythm, and everyone derived great energy from that.”

“The big guys did a great job setting screens on the outside players,” Goffredo added. “Matt, especially, set some great screens. And the way we were able to move the ball around the perimeter definitely opened up a lot of shots.”

He nailed his seventh and final three of the half with 29 seconds remaining on the clock. Goffredo had 22 points at the break, and the Crimson lead was 22. He was no longer just the afterthought role player. He was the difference.

“We had to do a better job knowing where he is,” Brown coach Glen Miller said. “He got hot, and he’s one of the better shooters in our league.”

Goffredo finished with eight threes on the night—the second-best single-game performance in Harvard history—and 30 points. He has hit 20 trifectas in four Ivy games and needs just three per game down the stretch to match Rogus’ single-season record of 74.

“I’m not really doing anything different,” Goffredo said. “The shots are just falling.”

Today, the Crimson sees one of its own atop the Ivy League scoring list and at the forefront of the league Player of the Year discussion.

And though it isn’t Stehle or Cusworth, there’s one Crimson player who doesn’t mind opponents who continue to act as if it were.

—Staff writer Michael R. James can be reached at mrjames@fas.harvard.edu.