The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Bulldogs happy to be home
NEW HAVEN — For the Yale men’s basketball team, the road to the Big Dance travels on a very familiar floor.
The Ivy League men’s and women’s tournament descends upon the John J. Lee Amphitheater, as eight teams bid for two NCAA Tournament berths. And for the No. 2 seed Yale men, it could not be a better scenario — hosting the tournament, needing two wins to secure an NCAA berth.
“It’s really awesome for us,” senior guard Trey Phills said. “It’s honestly pretty cool that we’re this close (to the NCAA Tournament) again and we have the home court advantage. It’s awesome.”
Phills was a freshman when the Bulldogs went to the 2016 NCAA tournament and upset Baylor in the first round before losing, 71-64, to Duke. The team was the best of James Jones’ 20-year run at Yale, the coach said Friday.
But the traits of that season — defense, rebounding, unselfishness on offense — are evident this season. Yale is an experienced, wellcoached roster with size and athleticism, a team that will pose matchup issues for any opponent.
“We feel pretty good,” Phills said. “Everybody feels good though. We just know what type of team we can be. We have to focus on the things that have gotten us this far, then do it two more times.”
Yale will face No. 3 Princeton at 3 p.m. Saturday. Top seed Harvard will play No. 4 Penn at 12:30. The women’s semifinals start at 6 p.m., with No. 1 Princeton facing No. 4 Cornell followed by No. 2 Penn against No. 3 Harvard at 8:30 p.m.
“We’re just really excited to have an opportunity to play in our own building this weekend,” Jones said.
A good crowd is expected and the host team would love it to feel like a true home game.
“Hopefully New Haven show us some love,” Phills said. “They always do.”
On Friday morning, Jones talked about the experience of preparing for the tournament in his own building.
“We were just in our locker room … it’s our court,” Jones said. “I have friends and family coming to visit my home. It’s just a whole different scenario for us. The comfort level that you have, being in your own spot, I think that makes a huge difference.”
A rundown of the men’s teams:
YALE
Coach: Jones (20th year)
Record: 20-7 overall, 10-4 in the Ivy League
Lately: The Bulldogs lost three of five to end the season but a regular seasonending 81-59 victory over Princeton snapped a twogame losing streak.
Who To Watch: Ivy League Player of the Year Oni Miye averages 17.4 points and 6.4 rebounds; Blake Reynolds averages 11.1 points and shoots 43.2 percent on 3-pointers; Jordan Bruner averages a team-best 8.5 rebounds to go with 10.2 points; Alex Copeland averages 13.3 points.
Probable starters: Copeland, 6-3, Sr., G; Bruner, 6-9, Jr., F; Oni, 6-7, Jr., G; Reynolds, 6-7, Sr., F; Phills, 6-2, Sr., G.
The Skinny: Yale is long and athletic, a team that won 14 of 15 over a twomonth stretch this season. The Bulldogs are bidding for their fifth NCAA tournament appearance and first since 2016, when they upset Baylor.
PRINCETON
Coach: Mitch Henderson (seventh year)
Record: 16-11 overall, 10-4 in the Ivy League
Lately: The Tigers ended the season with a four-game losing streak, including a regular-season ending home loss to Yale.
Who To Watch: Myles Stephens averages 13.6 points and 6.5 rebounds; Richmond Aririguzoh averages 11.6 points and 6.3 rebounds.
Probable Starters: Stephens, 6-5, Sr., G; Aririguzoh, 6-9, Jr., C; Noah Bramlage, 6-8, Sr., F; Jaelin Llewellyn, 6-2, Fr., G; , Max Johns, 6-3, Fr., G.
The Skinny: The Tigers lost leading scorer Devin Cannady (18.2) after the senior guard was arrested for throwing a punch at a campus police office outside a Wawa convenience store and was suspended by the team before eventually taking a leave of absence from school. So Princeton starts two freshman, although the Tigers have good size and Stephens is a scoring threat in the backcourt. Princeton has qualified for the NCAA tournament 25 times, mostly recently in 2017.
HARVARD
Coach: Tommy Amaker (12th year)
Record: 17-10 overall, 10-4 in the Ivy League
Lately: Won four of five to end the regular season, earning the No. 1 seed.
Who To Watch: Bryce Aiken leads the Crimson with 21.8 points; Chris Lewis averages 10.7 points, Noah Kirkwood 10.4 points.
Probable Starters: Lew, 6-9, Jr., F; Kirkwood, 6-7, Fr. G; Aiken, 6-0, Jr., G; Christian Juzang, 6-2, Jr., G; Kale Catchings, 6-6, Fr., F.
The Skinny: The Crimson secured the No. 1 seed through a tiebreaker with Yale, which they beat twice this season. Harvard is seeking its sixth NCAA Tournament berth and first since 2015.
PENN
Coach: Steve Donahue (fourth year)
Record: 19-11 overall, 7-7 in the Ivy League
Lately: Won final three games and four of its last five in the regular season.
Who To Watch: A.J. Brodeur averages 17.4 points and 8.2 rebounds; Devon Goodman is averaged 14 points and a team-high 35.4 minutes.
Probable Starters: Brodeur, 6-8, Jr., F; Goodman, 6-0, Jr., G; Max Rothschild, 6-8, Sr., C; Antonio Woods, 6-1, Sr., G; Jake Silpe, 6-2; Sr., G.
The Skinny: The defending Ivy League champion finished strong after losing eight of 13. Brodeur, who hails from Northborough, Mass. and attended Northfield Mount Hermon, is one of the league’s best players, leading the team in scoring, rebounding, assists (111) and blocks (41).