In March 2008, I sat at the Honda Center watching UCLA practice before the first rounds of the NCAA tournament. The Bruins' star at that time was freshman Kevin Love, who put on a show hitting half court and full court shots, and making it look entirely too easy.
Love pulled his favorite parlor trick again the next week and became a YouTube sensation.
I thought of those shots immediately after Ryan Wittman swished an estimated 30-footer at the buzzer Sunday afternoon to beat Davidson at Madison Square Garden. Wittman was subsequently named Ivy League player of the week Monday for the third time this season.
Not that Love and Wittman's shots were on par, but just the simple fact that it's easy to forget how exceptionally skilled players at the Division I level are. Wittman doesn't take 30-footers during the course of the game because, obviously, they're not high percentage shots. But that doesn't mean they aren't within his range.
Perhaps the most revealing part of that shot was, in re-watching the video, Wittman simply pulled up and jumped straight into the air at mid-court rather then let his momentum carry him toward the basket like you would see on, for instance, a three-quarter court shot.
It was probably the most memorable you've-got-to-be-kidding-me moment of Wittman's four-year career, but there have been plenty.
He scored 29 points, including three or four huge shots before his game-winner that partially stemmed Davidson rallies. Steve Donahue said recently it's easy to take Wittman's game for granted because he's so consistent. Sunday was another reminder that No. 20, the Ivy League's all-time leading 3-point shooter, will go down as one of the league's great players.
What's really intriguing is the company Wittman's keeping. Jeff Foote's skill set is incredibly rare for a 7-footer, Harvard's Jeremy Lin is electrifyingly good and Columbia's sophomore guard, Noruwa Agho, is a rising star.
Enjoy every minute of what's left of this season -- because as Wittman showed Sunday, it's going to be special.
Three's Company
The tough part about distinguishing yourself as a high-level mid-major is the surrounding talent pool. On Saturday alone, three outcomes -- Old Dominion over then-No. 11 Georgetown, Richmond over then-No. 13 Florida and UMass over Memphis -- exhibit how muddled that next tier of teams really is.
Inside the Ivy
* Another solid showing by Cornell freshman Errick Peck in Sunday's first half. He had eight points in eight minutes, which led to the MSG announcers mistakenly referring to him as a McDonald's All-American (he was a nominee). But it wasn't flawless -- he played one step too far off Brendan McKillop on the final possession of the first half. McKillop drained an NBA-range 3 at the horn that swung momentum to the Wildcats.
* Heading into Monday's St. John's game, Cornell had played eight of its first 10 games on the road, more than any other Ivy team. The Red is 4-1 on the road and 3-0 on neutral courts.
* Jeff Foote's career-high rebounding average has reached 9.4 after Sunday's 14-board outing. He has two of the three highest single-game rebounding totals this year -- 14 and 18 (Bucknell.)
* Harvard will attempt to add to its big win resume with a visit at No. 14 Georgetown on Wednesday. Tip-off is at noon.
* Penn has lost 14 of its last 17 games at the Palestra.
* Three Ivy teams have played a game without hitting a 3-pointer: Penn (lost to Drexel), Dartmouth (lost to Army) and Princeton (beat Monmouth).
ITHACA -- While St. John's is the primary host school for the four-team 2009 Madison Square Garden Holiday Classic, the Red Storm's road to a record 12th Holiday Classic title is expected to be anything but smooth.
The collective talent of participants Cornell (7-2), Davidson (3-7), Hofstra (7-3) and the Red Storm (8-1) add significant punch to a format that has traditionally pitted two upper-level teams against, to put it bluntly, two cupcakes.
"It's going to be a great test for us," said Cornell senior forward Ryan Wittman, the Big Red's leading scorer at 18 points per game. "That's exactly what we want. All three of these teams are going to be very good. I think we're all pretty evenly matched."
Cornell opens with a Davidson program left re-tooling after the departure of All-American guard Stephen Curry to the NBA. Game time is noon on Sunday at the Garden, to be immediately followed by Hofstra-St. John's.
The consolation is scheduled for 7 p.m. Monday, with the championship immediately after. Sunday's games will be televised locally on the MSG Network.
Cornell is coming off a two-week break for final exams, which ended Friday. The Big Red last played on Dec. 6, beating Saint Joseph's 78-66 at Newman Arena for its fifth straight win and best start through nine games since the 1967-68 season.
Last season, Cornell earned a quality victory over La Salle following finals. True to form in recent years, coach Steve Donahue's focus in practice was mostly defensive.
"This has been a great couple weeks," he said. "We film every practice, we analyze where we are and I think we can get better -- a lot better -- defensively."
The Madison Square Garden Holiday Festival in basketball
Teams: Cornell (7-2), Davidson (3-7), Hofstra (7-3) and St. John's (8-1)
Venue: Madison Square Garden, New York
Sunday's schedule: Cornell vs. Davidson, noon; Hofstra vs. St. John's, 2 p.m.
Monday's schedule: Consolation, 7 p.m.; championship, 9 p.m.
Television: MSG Network (Time Warner Ch. 28).
Cornell
Probable starters: Louis Dale, Sr., 5-11, G, 10.2 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 5.0 apg; Chris Wroblewski, Soph., 6-0, G, 10.7 ppg; Ryan Wittman, Sr., 6-7, F, 18.0 ppg; Jon Jaques, Sr., 6-7, F, 3.3 ppg OR Alex Tyler, Sr., 6-7, F, 3.4 ppg; Jeff Foote, Sr., 7-0, C, 13.2 ppg, 8.9 rpg.
Last time out: Wittman scored 17 points, and Wroblewski and Jaques added 15 apiece as Cornell beat Saint Joseph's, 78-66, on Dec. 6 at Newman Arena.
Of note: Cornell has never played Davidson. ... Cornell is 0-2 against the Big East Conference (Syracuse, Seton Hall) this year, and 1-0 against the Colonial Athletic Association (Drexel). ... Foote had 20 points, 7 rebounds and 5 blocks vs. St. John's last season.
Davidson
Probable starters: Jake Cohen, Fr., 6-10, F, 14.3 ppg; Steve Rossiter, Sr., 6-7, F, 6.0 ppg, 5.4 rpg; J.P. Kuhlman, Fr., 6-4, G, 11.7 ppg, .500 3FG; Brendan McKillop, Jr., 6-1, G, 7.1 ppg, 3.8 apg; Will Archambault, Sr., 6-6, G/F, 11.7 ppg.
Last time out: Davidson blasted Division III foe College of New Jersey, 90-49, on Thursday night.
Of note: The Wildcats' schedule has included nationally ranked Butler and Gonzaga, La Salle, South Florida, Rhode Island and Penn State. ... Davidson has already played two Southern Conference games, losing to College of Charleston and beating The Citadel.
Hofstra
Probable starters: Charles Jenkins, Jr., 6-3, G, 19.7 ppg, 4.2 rpg; Nathaniel Lester Jr., 6-5, G, 11.2 ppg; Cornelius Vines Sr., 6-2, G, 8.2 ppg; Miklos Szabo Sr., 6-9, F, 7.7 ppg; Greg Washington Jr., 6-10, F, 7.1 ppg.
Last time out: Jenkins scored 21 points in Hofstra's 75-58 victory over New Hampshire on Dec. 12.
Of note: Vines is a Syracuse native and Henninger graduate. ... Three losses have come to No. 1 Kansas, No. 12 Connecticut and Charlotte. ... Jenkins was named CAA preseason player of the year, along with Old Dominion's Gerald Lee. ... Picked to finish sixth in the 12-team CAA. ... Beat Yale, 68-63, on Nov. 16.
St. John's
Probable starters: D.J. Kennedy Jr., 6-5, G, 16.4 ppg; Sean Evans Jr., 6-8, F, 9.8 ppg, 6.7 rpg; Paris Horne, Jr., 6-3, G, 8.4 ppg; Malik Boothe, Jr., 5-9, G, 5.4 ppg; Justin Brownlee, Jr., 6-7, F, 8.7 ppg.
Last time out: The Johnnies beat Fordham, 73-56 Sunday, at Lou Carnesecca Arena.
Of note: Standout forward Anthony Mason Jr. is out with a lingering hamstring injury. ... Sophomore Quincy Roberts (migraines) will sit out the remainder of the season. ... Forward Justin Burrell is questionable after suffering a high ankle sprain against Duke on Dec. 5. ... Kennedy scored 22 points in an 86-75 victory over Cornell last year.
The Cornell Basketball Blog will have limited publishing during the holiday week. Seasons greetings to all and thank you for reading!
