Notebook: Sharpshooting Leads Men's Basketball to Victory Over Wofford

Returning home after a month on the road, the Harvard men’s basketball team (6-7) won for the fourth time in its last five outings, defeating the visiting Wofford Terriers (3-9), 77-57. The Crimson shot a season-high 63.8 percent from the field. After taking a six-point lead into break, Harvard outscored the Terriers by 14 in the second half.

A DIVERSIFIED GAME

Early in the season, junior Zena Edosomwan praised frontcourt mate Evan Cummins for an underrated aspect of the senior’s game—his passing.

“Evan has a high basketball IQ and is extremely unselfish,” Edosomwan said in November. “He is an amazing passer and really crafty around the rim … If I get good position, I can get the ball from him.”

Over the past couple games, however, Edosomwan has been settling into his own as a passer. The junior had a career-high five assists on Thursday, narrowly missing a sixth when senior Agunwa Okolie was fouled on a layup attempt.

On an afternoon when he hoisted only 10 shots (two under his season average), the Los Angeles native made contributions across the board, tying for the team lead in points and leading the squad in both rebounds and assists. He and Cummins combined for 30 points on just 20 shots.

“Evan and Zena have done a terrific job of playing off of each other,” Harvard coach Tommy Amaker said. “I love how they are passing the ball to each other.”

As a team, the Crimson spread the wealth across the board against Wofford. Harvard had 22 assists on 30 field goals, with every player but sophomore forward Chris Egi registering a positive assists-to-turnover differential.

After registering eight turnovers in the first half, Harvard had just four giveaways in the second half as part of a 46-point offensive outburst. The Crimson shot nearly 71 percent from the field in the second period, assisting on 14 of the 17 field goals they took.

SPACING THE FLOOR

After starting the season 2-6, the Crimson has rebounded in large part because of its three-point shooting. The surge has largely coincided with the introduction of senior Patrick Steeves into the lineup, who helps space the floor in multiple ways for the Crimson. Steeves, who ranks second in the Ivy League in three-point shooting, also ranks second on the team in assists despite playing under 20 minutes a game.

In the ensuing five games, Harvard has averaged 75.4 points a game while seeing an uptick in its three-point shooting. During its run to the Diamond Head Classic final, the Crimson shot 42 percent from behind the arc. On Tuesday, the Crimson made eight of its 14 treys, with its top four shooters—all of whom shoot 35 percent or better—making at least one apiece.

Harvard coach Tommy Amaker has spoken throughout the season about how the three-point shot comes from the team’s interior play, however. Amaker preaches playing “inside-out” basketball, with spacing coming as much from solid interior play as three-point shooting.

Against Wofford, the Crimson’s two primary interior players—Cummins and Edosomwan—hit 13 of their 20 shots, all in the paint, to open up the floor for their shooters. Harvard made six of its nine threes in the second half after hitting just two of five attempts in the first half.

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