Previewing Ivy Madness
The Madness is almost here.
For the first time since 2017 when the Ivy League introduced a four-team tournament to decide their automatic qualifier into the NCAA Tournament, Ithaca will be the host site for all the action. From March 13-15, Newman Arena will be jam-packed with fans from across the Northeast hoping to see their teams make the Big Dance.
Starting with the men’s tourney, the marquee matchup will no doubt be the first semifinal between Cornell and Yale on March 14 at 11 a.m.. It was just a couple of weeks ago that the Bulldogs came to town for their second matchup against the Big Red. After easing past Cornell earlier in the season 102-68, it was a much different story on that fateful Friday night. Jake Fiegen played hero for the Big Red with a game-winning three-pointer to help the Big Red pull off the 72-69 upset. Imagine if this Saturday’s game plays out similarly. Expect a court storm of even greater proportions if that’s the case.
Although Cornell enters the tourney as the fourth and final seed, the Big Red has plenty of reasons to run the table and make their first NCAA Tournament since the unforgettable Sweet 16 run in 2010. Besides the obvious home-court advantage, Cornell’s offense has powered them through this season, averaging a whopping 88.9 points per game and ranking 51st in KenPom in adjusted offensive efficiency.
The Big Red can score 100 points on any given night thanks to players like Fiegen and the conference’s top scorer Cooper Noard. But they can just as easily allow a boatload of points. Look no further than their regular season finale at Dartmouth, a 111-90 victory in Hanover. While the game essentially held no value given Cornell already locked up a spot in Ivy Madness, it’s still cause for concern. Their 83.2 points allowed per game is bottom of the Ivy League and they rank 336th out of 365 Division I teams in KenPom’s adjusted defensive efficiency. The old adage “defense wins championships” rings ever true for Cornell if they want to come out on top on their home court.
The Big Red will have a mighty challenge against a Yale team that has been one of the best mid-major teams in the country. The top-seeded Bulldogs went 11-3 in conference play, and their strong suit is also on the offensive side of the court with a ranking of 45th in KenPom’s adjusted offensive efficiency. The Bulldogs also have championship pedigree on their side as the two-time defending champions, including last year’s victory over Cornell. Yale returns three starters from that championship squad, including leading scorer and rebounder Nick Townsend.
The other semifinal is also intriguing. #2 Harvard and #3 Penn will do battle on March 14 at 2 p.m.. Their regular season matchups were incredibly tight battles. The Crimson too, the first meeting 64-63 in January, but the most recent contest went the Quakers’ way, prevailing 64-61 on February 28. Harvard makes its first Ivy Madness since 2019 boasting the top defense in the Ancient Eight at 66.9 points allowed per game and are led on offense by Robert Hinton’s 17.5 points per game. The Quakers are back in Ivy Madness under former Iowa head coach Fran McCaffery after missing out the last two years. Ethan Roberts is their go-to scorer at 16.9 points per game.
The championship game is slated for March 15 at noon.
While Cornell did not make the women’s tournament, the bracket will be just as entertaining. After all, the Ivy League was a three-bid league in last year’s tourney with Princeton, Columbia and Harvard. The trio will be joined by Brown for this year’s Ivy Madness.
The first matchup is between #1 Princeton and #4 Brown on March 13 at 4:30 p.m.. The top-seeded Tigers are nationally ranked and coasted to a 12-2 record in Ancient Eight play with their only losses coming against Columbia. They defeated the Bears by just nine points in their first meeting but had a much more comfortable time the second go-around, a 69-37 rout on February 21. This semifinal will pit the top offense in the league (Princeton’s 73.1 points per game) against the top defense (Brown’s 56.5 points allowed per game).
The second semifinal features #2 Columbia and #3 Harvard, which takes place March 13 at 7:30 p.m.. The Lions were the only Ivy League team to win an NCAA Tournament game last year, beating Washington in the First Four. Columbia, who is receiving votes in the national poll, is led by the league’s top scorer Riley Weiss with 19.7 points per game. The Crimson are the defending champions, stunning the three-time defending champs Princeton in last year’s final. While they graduated reigning Ivy League Player of the Year and Tournament MVP Harmoni Turner, Harvard still has a solid shot at repeating. The Lions and Crimson faced off this past Saturday, with Harvard coming out on top 68-64.
The championship game is set for March 14 at 5:30 p.m..
Newfield’s Maddie White wins state race walking title
The late February-early March period is always an exciting time in high school sports. As sectionals basketball tournaments roll, multiple other sports hold their state championships. That includes indoor track and field, where many local athletes took part. But only one finished at the top of the podium.
Newfield junior Maddie White won both the state and federation titles in the 1,500-meter race walk. Her time of 6:53.11 was not only better than the runner-up by 22 seconds. It was not only better than her old PR of 20 seconds. It was also the second-fastest time in the entire nation. And oh by the way, White has yet to lose a race this indoor season in the event. Talk about utter dominance.
Ithaca junior Tsadia Bercuvitz had the next-best finish, placing second in the 3,000-meter run with a time of 9:32.34, just five seconds off the winner. Bercuvitz also placed 14th in the 1,500-meter run and helped the 4×800-meter relay team with senior Eliza DeRito, junior Skyler Lovenheim and sophomore Avery Whittaker finish in 31st place. Also from Ithaca, senior Hayden Cornell finished 11th in the weight throw, senior Zoli Nadasdy placed 19th in the 1,600-meter run, and junior Maren Golden placed 21st in the pole vault.
As for the other local athletes, Lansing senior Trent Thibault finished in 11th place in the 3,200-meter run. Watkins Glen senior Maddie Tuttle placed 11th in the 1,500-meter race walk. Union Springs junior Tessa Love secured a 15th-place finish in the high jump. Groton senior Ross Bush placed 19th in the 1,000-meter run. Candor senior Logan Aman placed ninth in the 55-meter dash preliminaries.
Triple heartbreak in Section IV basketball championships
Three local teams took part in Section IV basketball championships over the weekend, and unfortunately all three came up just shy of claiming a sectional crown.
On March 6, Ithaca boys basketball battled Corning inside a packed Watkins Glen Field House for the Class AAA championship. It was as close to a David vs. Goliath scenario, the former being the young and talented Little Red team against a 20-1 Hawks team led by arguably the best player in the section in Nolyn Proudfoot. And boy what a performance Proudfoot had. 48 points (just two shy of his career-high) to lead Corning to a 90-68 win for its second straight year. While Ithaca’s season came to a close, it was an incredibly successful season. After winning just six games the past two years, the Little Red finished with a 9-10 record and made its first sectional final since 2018. This team will continue to be fun and entertaining to watch with most of their roster back for next year.
Then on March 7, Union Springs girls basketball took on defending champions Delhi at Tompkins Cortland Community College in the Class C final. The Wolves had vengeance on their minds after falling to the Bulldogs in last year’s semifinal. But they were once again bested by Delhi 54-40. Union Springs allowed the first eight points of the game but quickly seized a 9-8 lead. The game remained tight until midway through the fourth quarter. Delhi’s five-point lead expanded to 14 with an 11-2 run to end the game. That brought an end to a fantastic season for the Wolves, wrapping things up with a 21-3 record and an IAC championship in hand.
The most dramatic of the three local championship games came on March 8 down in Binghamton at the Visions Veterans Memorial Arena, as Watkins Glen boys basketball faced Windsor in the Class B final. It was no more than a two-possession game all throughout the first half and into the third quarter. The Lake Hawks seized control by taking a nine-point lead heading into the final stanza. They maintained a four-point advantage with just over a minute remaining, but some costly turnovers helped the Black Knights pull off a remarkable comeback to win it 58-56. The Lake Hawks end the season at 15-7, a strong campaign especially after starting out 0-4.
Other things that caught my eye
- Other great winter seasons around these parts came to an end this past weekend. On the ice, Cornell women’s hockey was thrashed 7-2 by Yale in the ECAC semifinals, held for the first time in Lake Placid. Both SUNY Cortland basketball teams took part in the Division III Tournament. The women got in as an at-large bid but fell to Messiah 64-58. The men won their first round matchup against Franklin & Marshall 56-52 for their first NCAA Tournament victory since 2016. But the Red Dragons were edged by Endicott 58-57 in the following round. SUNY Cortland women’s hockey was in the SUNYAC Championship at Plattsburgh, where they were defeated 4-1 by the Cardinals. And Ithaca High School boys hockey’s phenomenal season ended in the Division I regional championship against Pittsford, getting blanked 4-0. The Little Red’s senior-heavy squad ends the year at 18-3-1.
- Speaking of Ithaca High, Koen Anderson was the lone local swimmer at the boys swimming and diving state championships at Ithaca College over the weekend. The senior and Williams College commit put in two strong performances, placing sixth in the 200 free and 11th in the 500 free. He set a personal-best time in both events.
- Over on East Hill, Cornell wrestling captured its second consecutive Ivy League championship and will send five wrestlers to the NCAA Tournament: sophomore Tyler Ferrara (133 pounds), Vince Cornell (141), freshman Jaxon Joy (149), junior Simon Ruiz (174), and junior Meyer Shapiro (157). All those listed but Shapiro won Ivy League titles, as Shapiro finished runner-up.
- It’s now official: Cornell men’s hockey will host Harvard for the best-of-three ECAC quarterfinal series from March 13-15. It will only be a matter of time before the Lynah faithful swap out their popcorn for fish, whether it be the Swedish kind or the… pungent kind.
