One set of travel partners is wrapping up its home-and-home series, while another pair is meeting for the first time. The two matinee battles are the only games of the weekend involving Ivy teams, and one of the games could play a big role in determining the final makeup of the standings. Here’s what you should know:
Cornell (8-8, 1-1 Ivy) at Columbia (10-6, 1-1 Ivy) – 2:00 pm ET
Live stats | Cornell audio | Columbia video | Columbia audio | WKCR audio (free)
The two players most closely associated with last year’s Columbia-Cornell tilts won’t be playing in this one. Dragutin Kravic hit the shot that won the first game, but he graduated this past spring, and Adam Gore won’t be able to light up the Lions at Levien like he did last year after tearing his ACL in the season opener. The two teams are relatively even in the ratings, so Columbia is a slight favorite at home. However, the Big Red brings more momentum in the game after winning its final three non-league contests and pounding Princeton on Saturday. Cornell has done well at Columbia, winning three of the last four games in Manhattan, including last year’s 81-59 blowout.
After leaning heavily on the three-pointer outside the league, Cornell showed a great ability to score inside last weekend, scoring the majority of its points on two-pointers. The Big Red forwards will face a challege in Columbia’s talented frontcourt. Ben Nwachukwu snapped out of a recent rut and had a good weekend against the Ps. If Nwachukwu can continue to play like that on Saturday, that bodes well for the Lions’ chances. Both teams shoot the three well and defend it even better, so it will be interesting to see whether one side is able to break through from beyond the arc. Another interesting stat to watch in turnovers, as both sides play very conservatively on defense and don’t force many opponent mistakes. The team that commits fewer unforced turnovers should have an edge.
Pomeroy says: Cornell 63, Columbia 66
Brown (5-11, 0-1 Ivy) at Yale (5-9, 1-0 Ivy) – 3:00 pm ET
Gametracker | Brown audio | Yale audio
Yale will be looking for the sweep of Brown after winning in Providence for the first time since its 2001-02 tri-championship season. The Bulldogs haven’t swept the Bears since James Jones took over the program, last winning the season series in 1997-98 when Dick Kuchen was roaming the sideline. In the first meeting last weekend at Brown, Yale dominated on the boards, outscoring the hosts 14-0 in second-chance points. The Bears also were misfiring from the outside, shooting just 5 of 19 (26.3 percent) from three. Factor in just 11 free throw attempts for Brown, and it’s easly to see why Yale won comfortably.
The Bears aren’t likely to suddenly morph into a strong rebounding team, so Craig Robinson will need his team to shoot much better and do a much better job of getting to the line. The Bulldogs have done a much better job lately of playing defense instead of fouling, and they’ll look to continue that against the team that relies on free throws for offense more than any other Division I team. Yale hasn’t shot the three-pointer as well as it should this year (35.0 percent), so it’s susceptible to a hot three-point shooting game by an opponent, which the hot-and-cold Bears are very capable of enjoying.
Pomeroy says: Brown 53, Yale 63
