By Joe Budzelek
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| Yale senior Casey Simmons sky high for a slam midway through the first half (photo credit: David Schamis) |
What a difference a week can make.
After losing to Princeton on the road, 76–60, last Saturday, the swing of the pendulum nearly broke off in the opposite direction as Yale obliterated Cornell, 102–68, on Saturday afternoon in the Bulldogs’ Ancient Eight home debut.
Noting that both teams entered the game coming off losses last weekend, Yale head coach James Jones elaborated on his team’s hunger following the victory: “I don’t think you ever forget anything. That’s what makes you good. But I think it’s interesting that Cornell lost both games at home and then came on the road. They had a strong desire to win this game. We lost our last game, so we also had a strong desire to win, and our will overcame.
“We were both motivated by what happened in our last game. What you want to do now is not get complacent and make sure you understand that this is what it takes to be successful. You have to do it every time, not just when you think you have a challenge, but every time.”
Making a whopping 71 percent of their first-half field-goal attempts, Yale’s dominance of the Big Red allowed Jones to empty his bench, with fourteen players earning minutes, a season high against a Division I opponent.
Cornell’s pressure defense posed no problem for Yale’s poised offense, as the Bulldogs committed only five turnovers and consistently capitalized on their height, facilitating play over double-teams to find teammates for easy, wide-open jumpers. Fifty-six percent of Yale’s field goals came off assists, with sophomore forward Isaac Celiscar leading the way with a career-high ten assists to go along with fourteen points. “Our guys were unselfish,” Jones said. “When you’re able to play off a double-team and get open shots on the perimeter, it turns into a shooting drill. That’s what it becomes. I can’t tell you how many open looks we got. The defense didn’t do anything to make us miss those shots. Those are the shots everyone looks for, and I thought we did a good job of that tonight.”
Several Bulldogs delivered standout performances that countered their earlier conference struggles. After totaling just 23 points with an uncharacteristic seven turnovers and no made three-pointers in his first two Ivy League games, senior Nick Townsend returned to form, finishing with 20 points on 4-for-5 shooting from beyond the arc, along with eight rebounds and four assists, without committing a turnover.
Against Princeton, Jordan Brathwaite and Riley Fox combined to shoot 1-for-15 from three, but both players rebounded by going 2-for-4 from deep on Saturday, with Fox recording his fourth 20-plus-point game of the season.
While Yale’s offense currently ranks 33rd nationally in offensive efficiency, according to Ken Pomeroy, a strong scoring performance against Cornell’s struggling defense was expected. However, Yale also delivered one of its best defensive performances of the season, holding the potent Big Red to just 68 points after Cornell entered the game averaging 94 points per contest. The Bulldogs harassed Cornell’s perimeter-centric attack, forcing the Big Red to miss 32 of their 43 three-point attempts and holding star guard Jake Fiegen to just nine points following his 33-point outburst against Dartmouth last week.
With their most complete performance of the season on both ends of the floor, Jones is eager for his team to recognize the blueprint for the championship caliber this roster can reach when firing on all cylinders. “We just need to continue to pay attention to the details defensively to be successful,” Jones said. “If we do that and play to our strengths on offense, we’ll be in good shape.”
Yale will return to action on Monday, hosting the Columbia Lions, who are amid a two-game skid after starting the season 12–3 under first-year head coach Kevin Hovde, a former assistant on last season’s Florida national championship team.
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