Following last week’s dramatic last-minute victory over the University of Pennsylvania, the men’s basketball team looked to secure its second straight win against an Ivy League opponent.
The Leopards (1-4 overall) took on Cornell University (3-1 overall) on the road in a tough 81-71 loss last Saturday. The team failed to bounce back, losing with a similar 86-72 score against Rhode Island (4-0 overall) on Wednesday night.
The Maroon and White entered Saturday’s contest having lost three straight and seven of the last eight matchups against Cornell.
Heading into the contest, the Leopards looked to shut down the frenetic pace of the Big Red.
“Our game plan was to stop them in transition because they are one of the fastest teams in the country,” senior guard Luka Savicevic said. “We tried to get early matchups in transition and to stop them from shooting those threes.”
A brutally slow start plagued the Leopards, going 0-10 from the field to begin the game. Sophomore guard Mark Butler’s layup got the team on the board, but the offense remained sluggish for much of the first half as the team went down 12-2.
The bench kickstarted the comeback effort, with a pair of threes from freshman guard Caleb Williams and Savicevic helping the team string together some positive possessions.
“I think we just needed some time to get into the game, and we started playing a faster game,” Savicevic said. “We started playing with more pace. We shared the ball more, and we got some open shots that we were able to make.”
After another stagnant offensive spurt saw the Leopards face a 26-15 deficit, it was freshman guard Alex Chaikin and again Williams and Savicevic keeping the Maroon and White alive, combining for the team’s next 13 points to make it just a 33-31 deficit entering the half.
Sophomore center Misha Bednostin, who started the game in the absence of senior Justin Vander Baan and senior forward Chris Rubayo, knotted the score up at 33 apiece to open the half.
Instead of seizing the opportunity, the Leopards turned the ball over on three consecutive possessions, allowing the Big Red to retake the lead.
Sophomore forward Joshua Wyche wrote in an email that the team is focusing on “limiting careless turnovers and being solid under pressure” moving forward.
Facing a 50-43 deficit with just over 13 minutes remaining, Williams caught fire, scoring eight points in two and a half minutes as part of a 10-2 Maroon and White scoring run.
“The freshmen came in with a lot of energy,” senior guard Devin Hines said. “They’re super excited each and every day to be here, and it’s really translated onto the court.”
Unfortunately, Bednostin fouled out late in the game, forcing the Leopards to go small with four guards with Wyche as the 5-man.
“My mindset is to be communicative, physical, and proactive on both ends of the floor without fouling,” Wyche wrote in an email.
The Leopards were down only 68-65 at Bednostin’s exit, but the size disadvantage proved to be too much to overcome, as the Red Foxes went on a 13-6 run to close out the game.
“We played with four guards and one forward, so it was pretty tough for us to fight down there in the paint,” Savicevic said. “I think that was the deciding part of the game at the end, but we gave our best effort to try to stop them and to close the game.”
Looking to bounce back from Saturday’s loss, the Leopards took to the road again, facing off against Rhode Island University.
“We really want to limit their opportunities to get second chance points, once again, stop them in transition,” Hines said. “That was the main emphasis because they really like to get downhill, especially after a missed shot.”
Unfortunately for the Maroon and White, the Rams’ offensive attack proved to be too much, jumping out to a dominant 14-0 start in less than four minutes.
Similar to the game against Cornell, the Leopards’ offense picked up as the game went on, going into halftime down 40-27.
Back-to-back baskets by Bednostin and senior guard T.J. Berger saw the Leopards cut the deficit to just five points with over 11 minutes remaining.
However, The Rams quickly extended the lead to double digits and held the Maroon and White at bay for the remainder of the game, as the slow start proved insurmountable en route to an 86-72 loss.
The Leopards return home to Kirby Sports Center for a Sunday afternoon clash against Rosemont College (0-4 overall).
