Sometimes change is a good thing. Following several consecutive consistent but relatively average seasons, the Harvard men’s basketball team looks to surpass its .500 finishes of the past and climb the Ivy League rankings in its 2002-03 campaign.

Crimson coach Frank Sullivan has enlisted seven freshmen to support a strong core of senior players, including guards Elliot Prasse-Freeman, Pat Harvey and captain Brady Merchant, as well as big men Sam Winter and Brian Sigafoos.

The influx of youth to Sullivan’s squad may present some early difficulties for the team, as the rookies will have to learn the playbook in addition to adjusting to the nature of college basketball.

“[The upperclassmen] were pretty frustrated with us at the beginning because we didn’t know anything,” said freshman guard Zach Martin. “But they always stayed [after practice] to help us out and teach us.”

As captain, Merchant will play an instrumental role in facilitating the new players’ transition to the team.

“It’s a difficult situation for us,” Merchant said. “All the other teams in the league know our offense better than half our team.”

In addition to solidifying its play offensively, the Crimson will also look to replace the defensive intensity that last year’s captain, Andrew Gellert ’02, brought to the team. Gellert led the league in steals for his last three years, and graduated with a school-record 242 career steals.

Gellert led a squad that finished 14-12 overall and 7-7 league, but suffered through several close loses and inconsistent play on the offensive end.

“I thought we had three things go wrong last year that really killed us,” Sullivan said. “Three-point shooting—our makes were down; free-throw shooting; and our assist-to-turnover [ratio] was poor.”

There were several bright spots for last year’s team, as Harvard led the league in steals (9.29 per game), offensive rebounds (11.64 per game) and was second in assists per game with 14.71.

To be successful this year, the Crimson will need to climb the ranks in more critical statistical categories.

The Backcourt

Harvard boasts an explosive and experienced backcourt that no doubt will be the centerpiece of its offensive attack.

Harvey will bear much of the scoring burden again, having led the team with 18.1 points per game last season. He also hit a league-best 67 three-pointers, was second in steals per game with 2.1 and led the league with his 80.6 percent free throw shooting.

A unanimous First Team all-Ivy selection, Harvey will look to continue in his role as the team’s offensive leader.