M. Hoops Repels Crusaders 84-70

After stunning Boston College 62-61 on a buzzer beater in last Wednesday's season opener, the Harvard men's basketball team (2-0) followed up that thriller with another quality performance in beating Holy Cross (2-3) 84-70 last night at Lavietes Pavilion.

On this night, however, no last-second heroics would be needed as the Crimson took control of the game late in the first half and cruised the rest of the way to an easy 14-point victory over the Crusaders.

The game began in scary fashion, however, as Holy Cross jumped out to a HOLY CROSS  70 HARVARD  84 14-8 lead on the strength of some hot shooting.

Sophomore forward Jared Curry contributed a three-pointer and a lay-up in that stretch as the Crusaders started the game sinking their first six shots, most off wide open looks given up by what looked to be a sluggish Harvard defense.

The offense did not look any better in the first few minutes as the Crimson shto three straight errant three-pointers and allowed the Crusaders to get some early seoparation.

But after the initial five minutes of careless play, harvard responded with a lay-up from captain Paul Fisher and a three-pointer from senior guard Mike Beam that cut the lead to 14-13.

Then Beam, last game's hero and Harvard's deadliest three-point marksman, knocked down his second consecutive three-pointer one minute later, staking Harvard to a 16-14 lead it would not relinquish.

Beam finished the night with 11 points and was 3-of-5 from beyond the arc. He has started this year right where he left off last year when he finished fourth in the nation in three-point shooting opercentage.

Form then on Harvard turned the game over to big men Fisher and senior center Bill Ewing. Fisher dominated the inside all night as he took advantage of Holy Cross' weak interior defense and capitalized for 11 first-half points as harvard began to extend its lead.

Taking consecutive feeds from senior point guard Tim Hill, who finished with a career-high 11 assists, Fisher gave the Crimson a 35-31 lead with 5:47 left in the half and sparked a 13-7 run that gave the Crimson a 10-point lead at the half.

Fisher finished the night with 20 points and 11 rebounds in an excellent performance on a night when his team continued to get him the ball down low.

"I thought I played pretty well," Fisher said. "I was a little out of sync, but my teammates did a great job of setting me up with easy shots."

Also contributing to the run was the defensive play of Ewing. Like his namesake in New York, Ewing swatted back shot after shot denying the Crusaders a chance to keep up on a night when the rest of the Crimson's defense was not its usual stellar self.

Ewing had four blocked shots in the first half during the Crimson's run and finished the game with five, tying a team record for blocked shots in a game.

"It's something I bring to the table, but we really don't rely on it. When we're really on defensively, we take away the driving lanes and take those shots away," Ewing said.

"It was great to be able to contribute tonight and get in the record books," he added. "I've put in a lot into this program, and it's nice to know you're in the books."

Perhaps the only negative in the first half was the poor post defense and constant foul trouble that allowed Holy Cross to keep the game relatively close.

Marred by early foul trouble, the Crimson found itself watching the Crusaders get to the line again and again. Holy Cross was already in the bonus nine minutes into the game, and they used the charity stripe to stay close.

But the Crimson weathered the defensive lapses and foul trouble--especially Beam's, who had three fouls before the half--and took a comfortable 48-38 advantage into the intermission.

Sophomore forward Jared Curry contributed a three-pointer and a lay-up in that stretch as the Crusaders started the game sinking their first six shots, most off wide open looks given up by what looked to be a sluggish Harvard defense.

The offense did not look any better in the first few minutes as the Crimson shto three straight errant three-pointers and allowed the Crusaders to get some early seoparation.

But after the initial five minutes of careless play, harvard responded with a lay-up from captain Paul Fisher and a three-pointer from senior guard Mike Beam that cut the lead to 14-13.

Then Beam, last game's hero and Harvard's deadliest three-point marksman, knocked down his second consecutive three-pointer one minute later, staking Harvard to a 16-14 lead it would not relinquish.

Beam finished the night with 11 points and was 3-of-5 from beyond the arc. He has started this year right where he left off last year when he finished fourth in the nation in three-point shooting opercentage.

Form then on Harvard turned the game over to big men Fisher and senior center Bill Ewing. Fisher dominated the inside all night as he took advantage of Holy Cross' weak interior defense and capitalized for 11 first-half points as harvard began to extend its lead.

Taking consecutive feeds from senior point guard Tim Hill, who finished with a career-high 11 assists, Fisher gave the Crimson a 35-31 lead with 5:47 left in the half and sparked a 13-7 run that gave the Crimson a 10-point lead at the half.

Fisher finished the night with 20 points and 11 rebounds in an excellent performance on a night when his team continued to get him the ball down low.

"I thought I played pretty well," Fisher said. "I was a little out of sync, but my teammates did a great job of setting me up with easy shots."

Also contributing to the run was the defensive play of Ewing. Like his namesake in New York, Ewing swatted back shot after shot denying the Crusaders a chance to keep up on a night when the rest of the Crimson's defense was not its usual stellar self.

Ewing had four blocked shots in the first half during the Crimson's run and finished the game with five, tying a team record for blocked shots in a game.

"It's something I bring to the table, but we really don't rely on it. When we're really on defensively, we take away the driving lanes and take those shots away," Ewing said.

"It was great to be able to contribute tonight and get in the record books," he added. "I've put in a lot into this program, and it's nice to know you're in the books."

Perhaps the only negative in the first half was the poor post defense and constant foul trouble that allowed Holy Cross to keep the game relatively close.

Marred by early foul trouble, the Crimson found itself watching the Crusaders get to the line again and again. Holy Cross was already in the bonus nine minutes into the game, and they used the charity stripe to stay close.

But the Crimson weathered the defensive lapses and foul trouble--especially Beam's, who had three fouls before the half--and took a comfortable 48-38 advantage into the intermission.