2011–12 Harvard Crimson men's basketball team

2011–12 Harvard Crimson men's basketball
Ivy League Champion
2011 Battle 4 Atlantis Champion
Conference Ivy League
2011–12 record 26–5 (12–2 Ivy League)
Head coach Tommy Amaker
Assistant coach Brian Adams
Assistant coach Brian DeStefano
Assistant coach Yanni Hufnagel
Captain Oliver McNally
Captain Keith Wright
Home arena Lavietes Pavilion
2011–12 Ivy League men's basketball standings
Conf     Overall
Team W   L   PCT     W   L   PCT
Harvard 12 – 2   .857     26 – 5   .839
Penn 11 – 3   .786     20 – 13   .606
Princeton 10 – 4   .714     20 – 12   .625
Yale 9 – 5   .643     19 – 10   .655
Cornell 7 – 7   .500     12 – 16   .429
Columbia 4 – 10   .286     15 – 15   .500
Brown 2 – 12   .143     8 – 23   .258
Dartmouth 1 – 13   .071     5 – 25   .167
As of March 15, 2012; Rankings from AP Poll

The 2011–12 Harvard Crimson men's basketball team represented Harvard University in the Ivy League athletic conference during the 2011–12 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team played its home games in Boston, Massachusetts at the Lavietes Pavilion, located across the Charles River from the university's main campus in Cambridge with a capacity of 2,195. The team was led by fifth-year head coach Tommy Amaker and senior co-captains Keith Wright and Oliver McNally.[1][2]

Harvard began the season 8–0, the best start by an Ivy League team since Columbia won its first ten games to begin the 1969-70 season.[3] On December 5, 2011, Harvard made its first-ever appearances in the AP Poll and the Coaches' Poll, ranking 25th and 24th, respectively.[4] The season included two wins against teams in the powerhouse Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).

Harvard set a school record with 26 wins during the season and tied a school record for conference wins with 12. Its 14 non-conference wins also tied an Ivy League record previously held by the 2009-10 Cornell Big Red.[5] The season culminated in an invitation to the 2012 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, where Harvard lost in the second round. It was Harvard's first NCAA tournament appearance since 1946 and third consecutive appearance in a postseason tournament.[6] Junior Kyle Casey was a first-team All-Ivy selection, while junior Brandyn Curry and senior Keith Wright earned second-team recognition.

Preseason

Harvard came into the 2011-12 season off of its first Ivy League championship and two school record-setting years in terms of total wins.[7][8] The 2010–11 team that won the league championship during the 2010–11 Ivy League men's basketball season had no seniors.[9] Ivy League Men's Basketball Player of the Year Keith Wright returned to the team as a senior, as did All-Ivy League juniors Kyle Casey, Brandyn Curry and Christian Webster.[10] Harvard entered the season with a 17-game home winning streak, the 10th-longest in the country.[11] Senior co-captain Oliver McNally entered the season with a 32-shot free throw streak,[12] having finished second in the nation in free throw percentage the previous year.[13]

The upperclassmen on the team came from the first top-25 recruiting class in Ivy League history.[14][15] Harvard and Wright won numerous preseason honors. Wright was a preseason John R. Wooden Award Top 50 Watchlist honoree as well as a Lou Henson Preseason All-America team selection.[16] Harvard was selected as the conference preseason favorite for the first time in school history.[17] In addition, Harvard received preseason votes in the AP Poll, marking the fourth straight season it received votes at some point in the year.[18]

The team's schedule included power conference opponents Boston College (ACC), Utah (Pac-12) and Connecticut (Big East) as well as a possible second-round Battle 4 Atlantis match against Florida State (ACC). Expectations were high for Harvard, and a December 8 contest against Connecticut was the only Ivy League game scheduled for broadcast on ESPN2 during the season.[19]

Schedule

Date Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (Attendance)
Regular season
November 11, 2011* MIT W 76–49  1–0 Lavietes Pavilion (2,195)
November 15, 2011* at Holy Cross W 73–64  2–0 Hart Center (1,892)
November 19, 2011* at Loyola Marymount W 77–67  3–0 Gersten Pavilion (3,313)
November 24, 2011* vs. Utah
(Battle 4 Atlantis First Round)		 W 75–47  4–0 Atlantis Resort (2,530)
November 25, 2011* #22 Florida State
(Battle 4 Atlantis Semi-Final)		 W 46–41  5–0 Atlantis Resort (2,394)
November 26, 2011* vs. UCF
(Battle 4 Atlantis Finals)		 W 59–49  6–0 Atlantis Resort (2,752)
December 1, 2011* at Vermont W 55–48  7–0 Patrick Gym (2,827)
December 4, 2011* Seattle W 80–70  8–0 Lavietes Pavilion (1,896)
December 8, 2011* #25 at #9 Connecticut L 53–67  8–1 Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (10,167)
December 10, 2011* #25 at Boston University W 76–52  9–1 Case Gym (3,010)
December 22, 2011* Florida Atlantic W 63–51  10–1 Lavietes Pavilion (1,973)
December 29, 2011* #24 at Boston College W 67–46  11–1 Silvio O. Conte Forum (8,606)
December 31, 2011* #24 Saint Joseph's W 74–69  12–1 Lavietes Paviilion (2,195)
January 3, 2012* #22 at Fordham L 60–54  12–2 Rose Hill Gym (2,891)
January 7, 2012 #22 Dartmouth W 63–47  13–2 (1–0) Lavietes Pavilion (2,195)
January 10, 2012* at Monmouth W 70–61  14–2 Multipurpose Activity Center (1,809)
January 14, 2012* George Washington W 69–48  15–2 Lavietes Pavilion (2,195)
January 21, 2012 at Dartmouth W 54–38  16–2 (2–0) Leede Arena (2,100)
January 27, 2012 at Yale W 65–35  17–2 (3–0) Payne Whitney Gymnasium (2,522)
January 28, 2012 at Brown W 68–59  18–2 (4–0) Pizzitola Sports Center (2,005)
February 3, 2012 Cornell W 71–60  19–2 (5–0) Lavietes Pavilion (2,195)
February 4, 2012 Columbia W 57–52  20–2 (6–0) Lavietes Pavilion (2,195)
February 10, 2012 #25 at Penn W 56–50  21–2 (7–0) Palestra (7,462)
February 11, 2012 #25 at Princeton L 62–70  21–3 (7–1) Jadwin Gymnasium (5,266)
February 17, 2012 Brown W 69–42  22–3 (8–1) Lavietes Pavilion (2,195)
February 18, 2012 Yale W 66–51  23–3 (9–1) Lavietes Pavilion (2,195)
February 24, 2012 Princeton W 67–64  24–3 (10–1) Lavietes Pavilion (2,195)
February 25, 2012 Penn L 54–55  24–4 (10–2) Lavietes Pavilion (2,195)
March 2, 2012 at Columbia W 77–70 OT 25–4 (11–2) Levien Gymnasium (2,702)
March 3, 2012 at Cornell W 67–63  26–4 (12–2) Newman Arena (4,027)
2012 NCAA Tournament
Mar. 15, 2012* #(12) vs. #(5) Vanderbilt
(East Regional Second round)		 L 70–79  26–5 The Pit (10,774)
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. ( ) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Eastern Time.

Rankings

On December 5, 2011, Harvard made its first-ever appearance in either the AP (25th) or Coaches' Poll (24th).[4] That left Brown as the only Ivy League school never to have been ranked in the AP Poll and left only seven Division I schools active since the poll began that have never been ranked in it.[20] Harvard was the first Ivy League team ranked in the Coaches' Poll since the 2009–10 Cornell Big Red and the first Ivy League team ranked in the AP Poll since the 1997–98 Princeton Tigers.[21] By January 2, the team achieved rankings of 22nd in the AP Poll and 21st in the Coaches' Poll.[22] On February 6, the team again attained the ranking of 21st in the Coaches' Poll.[23]

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
NR = Not ranked. RV = Received votes. ( ) = First place votes.
Week
Poll Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Final 
AP Poll[24] RV RV RV RV 25 RV RV 24 22 RV RV RV RV 25 RV RV RV RV RV  
Coaches Poll[24] RV RV 24 RV 25 23 21 25 24 23 23 21 RV RV RV RV RV

Season

Harvard's season began with a Crimson Madness event on October 15 where the team raised a 2010–11 Ivy League Championship banner and held an intrasquad scrimmage.[25][26] The team opened the season with a victory over MIT on November 11 that extended Harvard's win streak against MIT to nine games.[27]

Following the victory over MIT, Harvard took part in the 2011 Battle 4 Atlantis Tournament. The team beat Utah 75–47 in the first game of the tournament,[28] its first-ever win against a Pacific-12 Conference opponent.[29] On November 25, Harvard faced Florida State, which was then ranked 22nd in the AP poll and 20th in the Coaches' Poll. Harvard won that game 46–41 for the second-ever defeat of a ranked opponent in team history.[30] Harvard then matched up against UCF in the tournament final, winning 59–49.[31] Wright earned Ivy League player of the week for his performance in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament.[32] McNally extended his free-throw streak to 51 in the Florida State victory,[33] but his run ended in the final minutes of the UCF game.[34]

The 2008–09 team had previously defeated then-ranked Boston College (17th in the AP Poll and 24th in the Coaches' Poll) for the first win over a ranked team in the program's history,[35] but lost to all ranked opponents in the 2009-10 and 2010-11 seasons.[36][37] The win against Boston College was the 1000th in school history.[38] The Florida State victory was the school's second over a ranked team in its history and the highest-ranked opponent in the Coaches' Poll that Harvard has ever defeated. Florida State went on to win the 2012 ACC Men's Basketball Tournament.[39]

Harvard began the season 8–0, the best start by an Ivy League team since Columbia won its first ten games to begin the 1969-70 season.[3] Harvard, then ranked 25th in the AP poll and 24th in the Coaches' poll, next faced its most formidable challenge yet: Connectucut, which then had a 7–1 record and was ranked 9th in both polls. Harvard had the better record against common foes, Florida State and UCF (2–0 versus 1–1).[40][41] Connecticut won the teams' previous meeting at Harry A. Gampel Pavilion in 2009 by a score of 79–73 as the 2009-10 Huskies (then ranked 14th in the AP Poll and 13th in the Coaches' Poll) survived a 30-point, 9-rebound effort by Jeremy Lin.[42] Harvard lost the 2011 meeting 67–53.[43]

Harvard won its next four games, including victories over Boston University and Boston College for a season sweep of city rivals after beating MIT in November.[44][45] Harvard's victory over Boston College was its fourth in a row against the Atlantic Coast Conference team,[45] giving it five consecutive wins overall against ACC teams, including its only two wins against ranked opponents.[30][35][45][46][47][48][49] After rising to 21st in the Coaches' Poll and 22nd in the AP Poll, Fordham upset Harvard 60–54 in January.[50] A 65–35 win over Yale three weeks later was Harvard's widest margin of victory against its Ivy League rival in 183 meetings.[51][52] Harvard lost its third Ivy League game of the season, falling to Princeton on February 11, but avenged the loss in a home win on February 24.[53] That victory gave Harvard a new school record for single-season wins as well as single-season non-league wins and tied the record for conference game wins.[54] A day after beating Princeton, however, Harvard lost to Penn, snapping a 28-game home winning streak dating to February 20, 2010.[55][56][57][58] Nonetheless, Harvard finished the season with a 26–4 overall record. The team won Ivy League regular-season title and earned its first invitation to the NCAA tournament since 1946. Harvard entered the tournament with a 2–1 record against teams in the field and was seeded 12th in the East Region.[59] Harvard lost in the second round of the tournament to fifth-seeded Vanderbilt on March 15 by a score of 79–70.[60][61]

Harvard set a school record by selling out 10 of 12 home games at Lavietes Pavilion (the sellouts came in all seven Ivy League matchups, as well as versus MIT, Saint Joseph's, and George Washington).[51] All five of Harvard's starters and 12 total players returned from the previous year's championship team, but freshmen accounted for over 22% of minutes played in the 2011-12 season.[51] By sweeping its four games against Massachusetts rivals, Harvard extended an in-state winning streak to 14 games.[51] The program also defeated teams from a record-setting 11 conferences, plus an independent.[51] Other school records set during the season included best Ivy League start and most road wins, with 12.[29] Harvard's 14 non-conference wins in the regular season tied an Ivy-League record.[5]

Honors

In-season

Each week the Ivy League selected a player of the week and a rookie of the week.[62]

Player of the Week Rookie of the Week
' Name Class Position ' Name Position
November 28, 2011Keith WrightSr.F
December 5, 2011Jonah TravisF
December 12, 2011Kyle CaseyJr.F
January 16, 2012Keith WrightSr.F
January 23, 2012Corbin MillerG
January 30, 2012Steve Moundou-MissiF
March 5, 2012Kyle CaseyJr.F

Postseason honors

Kyle Casey and Keith Wright were selected by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association to its 10-man All-District I (ME, VT, NH, RI, MA, CT) team, while Tommy Amaker was named the All-District I Coach of the Year.[63] The National Association of Basketball Coaches announced its Division I All‐District 13 team on March 14, recognizing the nation’s best men’s collegiate basketball student-athletes. Keith Wright was a first-team selection, while Kyle Casey was a second-team selection.[64] Wright was also selected to participate in the NABC 2012 Reese's Division I All-Star Game at the 2012 NCAA Tournament final four.[65]

The following players earned Ivy League postseason recognition:[66]

First Team All-Ivy
Second Team All-Ivy

Notes

  1. ↑ "Harvard Men's Basketball Media Day Interviews". GoCrimson.com. Harvard University. 2011-10-11. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  2. ↑ "Men's Basketball Attends Media Day". GoCrimson.com. Harvard University. 2011-10-11. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "2011–12 Ivy League Men's Basketball: Week 17 • February 27, 2012" (PDF). IvyLeagueSports.com. 2012-02-27. p. 6. Retrieved 2012-03-04.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Duke, UNC don't cede much in Top 25". ESPN. 2011-12-05. Retrieved 2011-12-05.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "2011-12 Ivy League Men's Basketball: Postseason - Week 2 • March 18, 2012" (PDF). IvyLeagueSports.com. 2012-03-18. p. 7. Retrieved 2012-03-21.
  6. ↑ "Harvard 2011-12 Men's Basketball Postseason Guide" (.PDF). GoCrimson.com. Harvard University. p. 3. Retrieved 2012-03-19.
  7. ↑ "Amaker Named Finalist For Jobe Award". Harvard University. 2010-03-10. Retrieved 2010-03-31.
  8. ↑ "Princeton and Harvard Keep Pace". The New York Times. 2011-02-25. Retrieved 2011-03-17.
  9. ↑ Walsh, Timothy J. (2010-11-11). "Finding Mister Wright". Harvard Crimson. Retrieved 2011-03-06.
  10. ↑ "Men's Basketball All-Ivy – 2010–11". Ivyleaguesports.com. 2011-03-09. Retrieved 2011-03-12.
  11. ↑ "2010–11 Highlights" (PDF). Ivyleaguesports.com. p. 5.
  12. ↑ "Oliver McNally Game-by-Game Stats (2010–11)". ESPN. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  13. ↑ "NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Player Free-Throw Shooting Statistics – 2010–11". ESPN. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  14. ↑ Thamel, Pete (2008-03-02). "In a New Era at Harvard, New Questions of Standards". The New York Times. Retrieved 2010-04-02.
  15. ↑ "Tommy Amaker". Harvard University. Retrieved 2010-03-31.
  16. ↑ "2011–12 Ivy League Men's Basketball: November 7, 2011" (PDF). IvyLeagueSports.com. 2011-11-07. p. 4. Retrieved 2011-12-06.
  17. ↑ "2011–12 Ivy League Men's Basketball: November 7, 2011" (PDF). IvyLeagueSports.com. 2011-11-07. p. 6. Retrieved 2011-12-06.
  18. ↑ "2011–12 Ivy League Men's Basketball: November 7, 2011" (PDF). IvyLeagueSports.com. 2011-11-07. p. 5. Retrieved 2011-12-06.
  19. ↑ "2011–12 Ivy League Men's Basketball: November 7, 2011" (PDF). IvyLeagueSports.com. 2011-11-07. p. 7. Retrieved 2011-12-06.
  20. ↑ Brennan, Eamonn (December 5, 2011). "Harvard shakes one monkey off its back". ESPN. Retrieved December 5, 2011.
  21. ↑ "Harvard Men's Basketball Appears In National Polls". IvyLeagueSports.com. 2011-12-05. Retrieved 2011-12-05.
  22. ↑ "2012 NCAA Men's Basketball Rankings – Week 9 (Jan. 2)". ESPN. 2012-01-02. Retrieved 2012-03-04.
  23. ↑ "2012 NCAA Men's Basketball Rankings – Week 14 (Feb. 6)". ESPN. 2012-02-06. Retrieved 2012-03-04.
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 "2011–12 NCAA Men's Basketball Rankings". ESPN. ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved October 21, 2011.
  25. ↑ "Highlights: Harvard Men's Basketball Hosts Crimson Madness". GoCrimson.com. Harvard University. 2011-11-15. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  26. ↑ "Men's Basketball Unveils Ivy Championship Banner at Crimson Madness". GoCrimson.com. Harvard University. 2011-11-15. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  27. ↑ "Harvard 76, MIT 49". ESPN. 2011-11-11. Retrieved 2012-03-04.
  28. ↑ "Harvard 75, Utah 47". ESPN.com. 2011-11-24. Retrieved 2011-12-06.
  29. ↑ 29.0 29.1 "Harvard 2011-12 Men's Basketball Postseason Guide" (.PDF). GoCrimson.com. Harvard University. p. 9. Retrieved 2012-03-19.
  30. ↑ 30.0 30.1 "Harvard upsets cold-shooting Florida State to reach tourney final". ESPN.com. 2011-11-25. Retrieved 2011-11-28.
  31. ↑ "Unbeaten Harvard wins Battle 4 Atlantis crown". ESPN.com. 2011-11-26. Retrieved 2011-12-06.
  32. ↑ "2011–12 Ivy League Men's Basketball: Week 4 • November 28, 2011" (PDF). IvyLeagueSports.com. 2011-11-28. p. 5. Retrieved 2011-12-06.
  33. ↑ "Oliver McNally Game-by-Game Stats (2011–12)". ESPN. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  34. ↑ "Harvard 59 (6–0, 2–0 away); UCF 49 (4–2, 2–0 home); Complete Play-By-Play". ESPN. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  35. ↑ 35.0 35.1 "Lin powers Harvard to rare upset over No. 24 BC". ESPN.com. 2009-01-07. Retrieved 2010-04-02.
  36. ↑ "Harvard Crimson Schedule – 2009–10". ESPN. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  37. ↑ "Harvard Crimson Schedule – 2010–11". ESPN. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  38. ↑ "No. 23/24 Harvard Extends Win Streak Over BC to Four Games, Tops Eagles, 67-46". GoCrimson.com. 2011-12-29. Retrieved 2012-07-05.
  39. ↑ TheACC.com (2012-03-11). "Florida State Wins the #ACCTRNY 85–82 over North Carolina: This is Florida State's first ACC Championship". CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2012-03-14.
  40. ↑ "Shabazz Napier, Ryan Boatwright have big parts in UConn's OT win". ESPN. 2011-11-26. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  41. ↑ "UCF, trailing by 17, storms back to upset No. 4 UConn". ESPN. 2011-11-25. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  42. ↑ "Dyson's 24 points, 14 boards help UConn fend off Harvard". ESPN. 2009-12-06. Retrieved 2011-12-09.
  43. ↑ "No. 9 UConn spoils No. 24 Harvard's 1st game as a ranked team". ESPN. 2009-12-08. Retrieved 2011-12-09.
  44. ↑ "No. 24 Harvard returns from UConn loss with romp over Boston U". ESPN. 2011-12-10. Retrieved 2012-03-04.
  45. ↑ 45.0 45.1 45.2 "No. 23 Harvard beats Boston College for fourth straight season". ESPN. 2011-12-29. Retrieved 2012-03-04.
  46. ↑ "Harvard Men's Basketball All-Time Results". GoCrimson.com. Retrieved 2012-07-07.
  47. ↑ "Harvard Men's Basketball All-Time Series Records". GoCrimson.com. Retrieved 2012-07-07.
  48. ↑ "Harvard 74, Boston College 67". ESPN. 2009-12-09. Retrieved 2012-07-07.
  49. ↑ "Harvard 78, Boston College 69". ESPN. 2011-01-05. Retrieved 2012-07-07.
  50. ↑ "Bryan Smith, Chris Gaston lead Fordham by No. 21 Harvard". ESPN. 2012-01-03. Retrieved 2012-06-30.
  51. ↑ 51.0 51.1 51.2 51.3 51.4 "Harvard 2011-12 Men's Basketball Postseason Guide" (.PDF). GoCrimson.com. Harvard University. p. 7. Retrieved 2012-03-19.
  52. ↑ "Laurent Rivard, Harvard rout Yale for 5th straight win". ESPN. 2012-01-27. Retrieved 2012-03-19.
  53. ↑ "Harvard rallies from 10 down to edge Princeton". ESPN. 2012-02-24. Retrieved 2012-03-04.
  54. ↑ "Harvard Basketball Game Notes (HARVARD (24–4, 10–2) vs.COLUMBIA (14–14, 3–9))" (PDF). GoCrimson.com. 2012-03-02. Retrieved 2012-03-05.
  55. ↑ "Penn tops Harvard to throw Ivy League race wide open". ESPN. 2012-02-25. Retrieved 2012-03-04.
  56. ↑ "Harvard Crimson Schedule – 2009–10". ESPN. Retrieved 2012-03-05.
  57. ↑ "Harvard Crimson Schedule – 2010–11". ESPN. Retrieved 2012-03-05.
  58. ↑ "Harvard Crimson Schedule – 2011–12". ESPN. Retrieved 2012-03-05.
  59. ↑ "Going Dancing: No. 12 Seed Harvard Readies for Fifth-Seeded Vanderbilt; Thursday's Game Shown Live on TNT". GoCrimson.com. 2012-03-12. Retrieved 2012-03-19.
  60. ↑ "NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Notes: Game No. 2 – (5) Vanderbilt vs. (12) Harvard Thursday, March 15, 2012 • "The Pit" • Albuquerque, NM" (PDF). GoCrimson.com. 2012-03-15. Retrieved 2012-03-19.
  61. ↑ "Vanderbilt overcomes Harvard's late charge to advance". ESPN. 2012-03-15. Retrieved 2012-03-19.
  62. ↑ "2011–12 Men's Basketball Weekly Releases". IvyLeagueSports.com. Retrieved 2011-12-06.
  63. ↑ "USBWA Names 2011–12 Men's All-District Teams". U.S. Basketball Writers Association. 2012-03-06. Retrieved 2012-03-06.
  64. ↑ "National Association of Basketball Coaches Announces 2012 Division I All-District Teams" (PDF). National Association of Basketball Coaches. 2012-03-14. Retrieved 2012-03-14.
  65. ↑ "Harvard's Wright Selected to Play in the 2012 NABC Division I All-Star Game". IvyLeagueSports.com. 2012-03-26. Retrieved 2012-04-14.
  66. ↑ "Men's Basketball All-Ivy – 2011–12". IvyLeagueSports.com. 2012-03-07. Retrieved 2012-03-12.

External links