Crimson Cruises To Holiday Victory

On the eve of Thanksgiving, Harvard men’s basketball had much to be thankful for, as 12 players saw action in a 78-60 romp over UNH at Lavietes Pavilion.

Coming off a disappointing loss to Army on Monday, the Crimson looked to right the ship and justify the vote it received in this week’s AP Top 25 poll.

“It was an impressive response to our worst performance at Army,” Harvard coach Tommy Amaker said. “I was really pleased to see how our kids were very focused, very determined against a team that is a lot better than what they displayed tonight.”

The game was never in doubt. Using its size advantage early, the Crimson got on the board with three straight post-ups from sophomore forward Keith Wright and senior co-captain Doug Miller.

“This is the best game I’ve seen [the big men] play all season,” co-captain guard Jeremy Lin said. “They came out from the tip, running all over the place and being physical.”

Next, Harvard looked to freshman guard Christian Webster, making his first collegiate start in place of sophomore guard Max Kenyi, who tore his MCL in Monday’s game.

The freshman knocked down a trey from the corner for three of his 15 points on the night.

“After that first shot in the corner I felt confident, and I went from there,” Webster said.

The Crimson connected on its first four shots en route to an early 11-2 lead while the Wildcats missed nine straight to start.

The rest of the half was marked by tenacious defense and efficient offense. Harvard held UNH to just 19 percent shooting in the opening period, and did not allow a two-point field goal in the entire frame.

“If we can do that every game, we’ll give ourselves a chance to win,” Lin said.

The offense was equally prolific. The Crimson scored a season-high 46 points in the first half due to 11 three-pointers and 60.9 percent shooting from the field. The spark plug for much of the night was sophomore guard Oliver McNally who tallied a career-high nine assists to go with zero turnovers on the game.

“[McNally’s] halftime stats would’ve been a great line for a game,” Amaker said. “I think the world of the kid...You can count on him—he’s a player that’s going to show up every night.”

With time running out in the opening period, Harvard was in the familiar position of trusting Lin with the ball. The senior cradled the ball for a few seconds, ran off a pick at the top of the key, and buried a three-pointer as time expired to give the Crimson a 46-26 lead. The buzzer beater was the Lin’s third in four games.

Lin finished the game as the leading scorer, with 18 points along with seven rebounds and two assists.

For Harvard, much of the second half was devoted to the freshmen. Webster and fellow freshmen Brandyn Curry, Dee Giger, Kyle Casey, Jeff Georgatos, and Peter Edelson all saw playing time and combined for a total of 38 points.

“I like what these kids have been able to do thus far,” Amaker said. “We thought they were going to be able to make strong contributions to our team. Some of them are above and beyond what we thought at this point, and we’re pleased with that.”

The win was a marked improvement over last Monday, when the Crimson was plagued by 30 turnovers and 61.3 percent shooting from the free-throw line.

Last night, Harvard only coughed the ball up 15 times and hit 22 of 24 from the charity stripe.

“A lot of things were much better. We talked to our kids about regrouping and responding,” Amaker said. “I was very pleased with how we were able to respond in a lot of ways.”

—Staff writer Timothy J. Walsh can be reached at twalsh@fas.harvard.edu.