The fans began to scream. It was late in the second half of the men's basketball team's methodical deconstruction of Cornell Saturday night, en route to a 60-38 victory, but the roaring of the crowd had nothing to do with any Princeton basket. A voice had just swept over the stands and announced Columbia had defeated Penn.
Princeton's perennial rival step inside Jadwin Gym on Tuesday. But two scores that received a more subdued reaction may prove to be more important: That same night Yale (13-7 overall, 5-1 Ivy) slipped past Harvard, 66-57, while Brown (13-6, 4-2) narrowly escaped an upset by Dartmouth, emerging with a 74-71 victory.
Yale, not Penn, is in second place in the Ivy League. Brown, not Penn, was picked as a preseason favorite to win the Ivy League by numerous publications. Princeton (9-7, 4-0) will play both this weekend, in what could prove to be the defining two games of the season.
"They give you two different looks," junior forward Ray Robins said. "Brown is a run and gun team. Yale is a team that will come down and run a play each time down the floor. One is a full court game, the other is a half court."
While no one has blinked at the Tigers nestling into first place in the league, the Elis have surprised nearly everyone with their best league start since the 1981-82 season.
Unlike previous years, Yale sports a startling offense that has quickly become one of the most dangerous in the league. Replacing a plodding, star-oriented style with a proletariat revolution has produced an equalized attack that promises points from every corner. Princeton also boasts balanced scoring from multiple players. But the Elis average 77.9 points per game. The Tigers average 59.8.
After graduating star player Neil Yanke — a loss that left Yale with no seniors — many envisioned a three-team race between Brown, Penn and Princeton, and that Yale would merely pester the big boys with the persistence of a pesky younger brother.
But the Bulldogs signed rookie of the year candidate, guard Edwin Draughan, and spread the scoring generously. Though Draughan leads the team with 12.2 points per game, that is only 2.6 points more than the fifth highest scorer, Ime Archibong. Nine different players have lead the team in scoring this season, while overall, the Elis are threatening the school record, set in 1955-56, of 78.2 points per game.
As other teams have discovered to their dismay, savvy defense can defeat even the most explosive offense. Opponents are averaging a slim total of 43.2 points per game and only 16.8 in the first half. Coach John Thompson '88 has responded to the Tigers' superior athleticism to previous years, unveiling an effective three-guard press this past weekend and employing a man-to-man defense with greater frequency.
"We switched our philosophy around a little bit," injured sophomore forward Andre Logan said. "We're lot more athletic than some of the teams in the league and we can play a different style of basketball. Coach has done a great job of conforming to our athletic ability."
Brown has struggled this year to weave tight nets on defense. In Friday night's loss to Harvard, the Bears gave up 89 points— including 40 to three guards. In a ten-minute stretch, Harvard racked up 26 straight points, all on physical plays inside the paint. Saturday, Dartmouth shot 50 percent from the field in a loss to Brown, including 11-of-23 from three-point range. The Tigers might start feeling the loss of Logan, who could have wriggled through the porous defense, more acutely in this game.
But Brown is a more experienced team than Yale, returning all of its starters from last season, its best team since 1986. Versatile guard Earl Hunt was the top sophomore scorer in Ivy history. Hunt is joined by forward Alaivaa Nuualiitia, who led the conference last season in field-goal percentage and finished second in rebounding.
The Tigers could end the weekend entrenched in first place or languishing in fourth. Penn can wait.
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