A Young Men’s Basketball Team Aims to Play Fast

Predictions don’t always come true. Last season, the preseason media poll had the Cornell men’s basketball team at the bottom of the Ivy League standings, and they surprised everyone by finishing fifth with a record of 13-18, an 11-win improvement over the previous year. This season, though, the Big Red is again projected to finish last in the Ivies, but the players are confident that they’ll be able to exceed expectations once more.

Despite their losing record last year, Cornell boasted an exceptional defense, finishing as one of the top 40 teams in D-1 in both blocks and opponent’s field goal percentage. Shonn Miller ‘15, who is playing for UConn this season, was a key component of Cornell’s stingy defense, and his 1.8 blocks and 1.3 steals per game will be greatly missed.

To maintain their defensive prowess, the Big Red will look to take advantage of their athleticism. “We’re working on building habits and establishing our identity as a team,” junior guard Robert Hatter said. “We want our team to be the one that plays aggressively, fast, and relentlessly, and is able to control the tempo of the game. On defense, we really try to pressure offenses into a bad shot or a turnover so we can push the ball in transition.”

After scoring just 62 points per game last year, the team hopes that playing faster will also jump-start their offense. “We want to play an up-tempo style of play, both defensively and offensively,” senior guard Robert Mischler explained. “We’re going to use our speed and play at a fast pace.”

Cornell will have to find new sources of offense following the losses of Miller, Galal Cancer ‘15, and Devin Cherry ‘15 who, combined, accounted for nearly 60 percent of the team’s scoring last season. Hatter, whose 11.3 points per game ranked second on the team, has the potential to emerge as a star due to his ability to create shots.

Sophomores Jordan Abdur Ra’oof, Pat Smith, and Wil Bathurst will all see increased playing time this year. With eight freshmen and four sophomores, the majority of the roster is underclassmen, and the Big Red will need contributions from their younger talent. “We do have a lot of young guys this year and some may think we lack experience, but the young guys can really get after it and they’re really talented. They listen and get better every day,” Hatter stated. “They’ll really open up the floor and allow us to have multiple attacks on the offensive end.”

Two freshman would could make an impact right away are Stone Gettings, a big man who can stretch the floor with his outside shooting, and Matt Morgan, a two-time all-state guard in high school from North Carolina. “Communication is really key to our success this year with a lot of freshmen learning new things,” Morgan explained. “We have to constantly talk to each other so that we’re on the same page.”

Morgan looks primed to be a major contributor, and he commented that his adjustment has been “a really good one, to say the least.” The first year player is excited to be learning and gaining experience from the veterans, but he also hopes to assume a leadership role. “Being a point guard, you have to be able to lead the team, and that’s what I intend on doing on the court,” Morgan said, “[as well as] being a scorer whenever I get the chance.”

Despite a number of promising prospects, the team faces several possible roadblocks to success. “The biggest challenge this season is definitely going to be overcoming our size,” Morgan said. “We aren’t a huge team so everyone has to do more in order to overcome that. We work on it and talk about it everyday.”

Coach Bill Courtney has high hopes for 6’9 junior David Onuorah, who worked over the offseason to improve his offensive game. Last season, he showed that he is a physical presence inside, grabbing the third most rebounds on the team despite playing only 19 minutes per game. “We are a guard-oriented team, so it’ll be critical that we rebound well,” Mischler commented.

The Ivy League could be very strong this season, with three teams (Yale, Columbia, and Princeton) nearly splitting the first place votes in the preseason media poll and defending-champion Harvard still lurking. This doesn’t stop Cornell from entering the year with confidence — both Onuorah and Morgan described team as “hungry” to win. “Our goals this year consist of winning the Ivy League title and making noise in the NCAA tournament,” Hatter stated. “We know that it won’t be handed to us, but this group of guys is ready to put in the work to get the job done.”

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