M. Hoops Searches For First Victory

When the Harvard men’s basketball team takes on Colgate tonight at 7 p.m. in Lavietes Pavilion, the word on everyone’s lips will be “confidence.”

Neither team has it—and both teams are desperately looking for it.

The Crimson (0-6) enters tonight’s game coming off an 86-42 defeat at the hands of Boston University on Tuesday. The Raiders (3-3) also took a pounding in their last outing, falling 72-49 at home against Buffalo.

“We just need to regroup and get it back together,” junior captain Jason Norman said. “We can’t put our heads down. I don’t think any of us have ever been beat that bad, but we’ll move on and be a better team for it.”

For both teams, it seems that starting strong will be at least as important as finishing strong.

“We need to come out and establish some momentum,” sophomore forward Matt Stehle said. “The start of the game will be crucial for both team’s confidence. I think it will indicate who will win.”

Colgate will look to its 6’7 forward Howard Blue to right the ship. Blue has averaged 16.5 points and six rebounds per game this season, leading the team in both categories.

“He’s a big guy and good inside presence,” Stehle said. “One person will not be able to stop him. It’s going to have to be a team effort.”

Harvard will also have to contend with the Raiders excellent perimeter shooters. Colgate guards Alvin Reed, Jon Simon and Mark Linebaugh anchor a squad that shoots 38 percent from three-point range. Simon and Reed are second and fourth in the Patriot League in three-point shooting percentage, respectively. Such precision from behind the arc could spell trouble for the Crimson, as Harvard ranks dead last in defending the three, allowing opponents to hit at a 43 percent clip.

However, the Crimson will face an even bigger challenge on Sunday, as Harvard visits Vermont (1-4) at 3 p.m. The Catamounts appeared in the NCAA Tournament last season and started out this season with an ambitious four game road trip including games at UCLA and UMass.

The specific challenge for Harvard will be containing last year’s America East player of the year, Taylor Coppenrath. The Vermont forward almost single-handedly led his team to victory over the Bruins, but his 38 point, five rebound, five assist performance was not enough as the Catamounts fell 68-67. This season, Coppenrath is averaging 25.2 points per game—third in the country.

“We’re just going to try to keep the ball out of his hands as much as possible,” Stehle said. “He’s probably the best big man that we’ll face all season.”

If the Crimson is able to contain Coppenrath, Vermont will look to its only other double-digit scorer—guard T.J. Sorrentine—to carry part of the load. Although he missed last season after breaking both of his wrists, Sorrentine has experienced only a little fall off from the 2001-02 campaign in which he contributed 19 points per game.

Despite the blowout on Tuesday night and the difficult matchups ahead, Harvard is approaching this weekend in a positive light.

“[Aside from the BU game] there hasn’t been one game that we couldn’t—some would say shouldn’t—have won,” Stehle said. “It would be huge for us to go out and get the win at home versus Colgate.”

—Staff writer Michael R. James can be reached at mrjames@fas.harvard.edu.