NOTEBOOK: Men's Basketball Bricks Three Final Chances in the End of an Era

Clang. Clang. Clang.

With less than a minute to go—the Harvard men’s basketball team (22-8, 11-3 Ivy) saw three chances to take the lead. Thrice the Crimson got a look it would take again, barely contested threes by its two best scorers, senior wing Wesley Saunders and junior co-captain Siyani Chambers.

Miss. Miss. Miss.

The result: a heartbreaking 67-65 loss to North Carolina (25-11, 11-7 ACC) in the second round of the NCAA Tournament and an introduction to the darker side of March. After winning second-round games in consecutive years, the Crimson found itself on the other side of the coin: shocked at the podium, avoiding eyes and muttering answers.

“This obviously isn’t the finish that I wanted to have, but we knew it was going to end eventually,” Saunders said.

CONTROLLING THE PACE

The game was billed as a contrast of styles: while Harvard grinded its way through Ivy play, averaging 52.5 points in its two biggest wins over rival Yale, Tar Heels coach Roy Williams said a day ago that he’d rather win in the 80s than in the 50s.

Throughout Thursday’s contest, the diverging game plans were evident. North Carolina ran out after every defensive rebound, generating a fast-break opportunity on its second possession, its last, and many in between. The most crucial came late. Tied at 65, Tar Heel junior J.P. Tokoto pulled down a Chambers miss with 31 seconds remaining and found a streaking Marcus Paige. In a two-on-one against sophomore Corbin Miller, Paige played it perfectly, finding Justin Jackson for a fast break dunk.

“We knew coming into the basketball game how challenging it was going to be with their transition game and then their offensive rebounding,” Harvard coach Tommy Amaker said.

For the game, the Crimson largely kept the pace in its favor. While Harvard was outscored on fast break points, 10-2, it committed only seven turnovers—every time the Tar Heels went out and running, it was off a long rebound. The Crimson outscored North Carolina, 29-6, on points off of turnovers, forcing 17 mistakes and keeping itself in the game amidst tough shooting (38.2 percent from the field).

“You’ve gotta give Harvard credit for driving me whacko,” said Tar Heels coach Roy Williams afterwards.

DOING IT ALL

All game, the Crimson turned to Saunders when it couldn’t find offense elsewhere. Saunders was responsible, through point or assist, for 38 of the Crimson’s 65 points on the night. He had the first 10 points for the Crimson and 15 of the 25 in the first half, escaping Tokoto with an array of spin moves and crossovers.

“We thought we had a strategy for him, but it didn’t work,” Williams said. “J.P. really did a pretty doggone good job, but he was really, really hard to guard.”

As large as Saunders’s presence was during the initial stages of the night, it loomed largest at the finish. After Harvard fell down 14 to start the second half, he either assisted on or scored 12 of the next 18 points as Harvard cut the deficit to nine. It was his jumper that cut the lead to two after a Paige three with 3:23 to go appeared to be the dagger.

As the game ended, the Crimson went right back to him. With 40 seconds left and the game tied, he sprinted around a Tar Heel hedge and found Miller in the corner. The Crimson’s second-best three-point shooter passed up the open look, flipping the ball straight to Chambers.

The junior, whose four-point play gave Harvard its first (and only) lead of the night 30 seconds earlier, didn’t hesitate—going straight for the jugular. The ball clanged off the back iron, his shot 17 seconds later doing the same.

After North Carolina center Kennedy Meeks missed a free throw, Harvard put the ball in its star’s hands. Saunders hesitated, chose not to drive, and went for the win. The shot—which afterwards the senior admitted “felt kind of good”—hit the back of the rim.

“We wanted it in Wesley’s hands,” Amaker said. “The way he’s been playing, [the way] he played tonight, he was outstanding. I thought he was as good as anybody that played in our game here this evening.”

MOVING FORWARD

At the postgame podium, the Crimson talked about the end of an era. The seniors—who totaled 41 points and all but eight rebounds—won four Ivy League championships. They were part of the Crimson’s first NCAA Tournament trip since the Ivy League was founded, its first win in that span, and established a new reign of league control. The team lost just nine Ancient Eight games over the last four years, and rescued a title from the jaws of defeat this season.

“I wouldn’t rather go out there and battle with any other group of guys,” Saunders sad. “Everybody is like family. We’ve been through good times, bad times, and, I mean, it’s just been a blessing that I’ve been able to be a part of this.

The game put on display what the Crimson loses—a stable cadre of big men the likes of which it cannot replace. The only non-senior big man to get minutes, sophomore Zena Edosomwan, was largely ineffective aside from a pair of wide-open dunks—dragging down just one rebound in eight minutes.

Seniors Kenyatta Smith and Jonah Travis held their own against North Carolina’s imposing front line, hounding the starting frontcourt Meeks and Jackson into nine combined turnovers and helping Harvard bring down 12 offensive rebounds—the same number as the Tar Heels.

“I’m really proud of the senior class,” Chambers said. “They left a great legacy. I learned so much from them, and I can’t thank them enough.”

—Staff writer David Freed can be reached at david.freed@thecrimson.com.