M. Hoops tries to speed things up vs. slower teams

Penn men's basketball coach Fran Dunphyt says his team will have to play excellent defense to win twice. The style of play that the Cornell and Columbia basketball teams subscribe to seems simple enough: slow the game down so that it is a low-scoring defensive battle where a minimal amount of offense can win the game. In a league where Penn is the top scorer at 70 points per game, the philosophy appears to be sound, but the Lions (5-10, 1-3 Ivy League) and the Big Red (6-10, 3-1) have struggled throughout the season. Both teams have learned that despite their stellar defensive numbers, they can't win games without dependable scorers. "Most of the season we have not had a player averaging double-figures in points," Cornell coach Scott Thompson said. "We have a hard time finding someone to go to when it gets into the nitty-gritty." Both teams travel to the Palestra this weekend to face Penn (7-9, 1-1), as the Quakers enter the Ivy League portion of their schedule. Tonight at 7:30 p.m., Columbia coach Armond Hill will attempt to win his first game against Penn. Columbia relies on a defense that has limited its opponents to 64 points per game. Their defense is far less impressive when compared to the Lions average offensive output of 59 points per game. Yet Penn coach Fran Dunphy is reluctant to pay too much attention to statistical averages. "When I watch film," Dunphy said. "I see a team that can hurt us if we don't do a great job defensively." Columbia's best player is junior Gary Raimondo. The shooting guard leads the Lions with 13.5 points per game and 2.5 assists per game. He also ranks fourth in the league with 7.5 rebounds per game despite being only 6'2''. Raimondo has seen his shooting percentage dip below 40 percent as teams have keyed on him this year. Six-foot-six-inch forward Justin Namolik is Columbia's most consistent inside scorer with 10.4 points per game, while junior Erik Crep has emerged as a three-point threat with 2.5 threes per game. After their big three scorers, the Lions have no one who scores over five points per game. "While someone doesn't average a lot of points per game, they could still have a good game," Dunphy said. "[Columbia guard] Tony Mboya could get fired up playing against his brother (Penn forward George Mboya) and play well against us." On Saturday, Penn faces a Cornell team that has only six wins this season despite ranking 13th in the country in scoring defense. Cornell has had a difficult time replacing its top three scorers from last season, as freshman Ray Mercedes tops the Big Red with only 10.5 points per game. "We have to rely on the entire team to score," Thompson said. "Nobody has been a consistent scorer for us." Besides defense, Cornell has also excelled on the boards this season, leading the Ivy League in rebounds and out-rebounding its opponents by four a game. Six-foot-11-inch center Jeffrion Aubry is quickly becoming one of the league's best big men and is pulling down 7.2 boards per game this season. But Thompson does not think his team will be able to capitalize on its height advantage against Penn. "What they lack in height," Thompson said, "they make up for in quickness. We have height, but we are not a super-quick team." The Quakers have improved their rebounding in recent games after struggling early in the season. Every starter has taken an active role on the boards, including 6' guard Michael Jordan, who has averaged 10 rebounds over the last three games. "Our first six games we played some large teams," Penn forward Jed Ryan said. "Since then we've played teams that aren't as big. Cornell has some big guys, so we have to do the job we have been doing." The Quakers are also hoping for the return of sophomore guard Matt Langel, who suffered a bruised right thigh in practice last week. The Penn offense seemed out-of-sync during Langel's absence in the St. Joseph's game, and his added scoring threat could be essential against the stingy defenses of Cornell and Columbia. "It's the first time in my life something I can't control has kept me out of a game," Langel said. "There are only a limited number of games, and I want to help my teammates." Ideally, Langel will return this weekend and the Quakers can regain their offensive momentum. Dunphy is certain his team can play at any pace, but the Quakers should be able to run away from Cornell and Columbia if they control the tempo.

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