Siyani Chambers was one of three men's basketball players tabbed with Athlete of the Week Runners-Up honors.
There was no doubt that a Harvard men’s basketball player would earn Athlete of the Week honors after the team’s historic 68-62 upset of New Mexico in the NCAA tournament on Thursday. With Laurent Rivard taking home the top honors, here are some of the other athletes with great performances from this past week, including three more men from the basketball squad.
In preparation for Harvard’s third-round matchup against the Arizona Wildcats (26-7, 12-6 Pac-12) on Saturday (6:10 EST, TNT), staff writer David Freed takes a look at the Wildcats’ tape from their Thursday 81-64 win over the Belmont Bruins and takes a look at both what bodes ill and well for the Crimson’s chances against the Wildcats on Saturday.
In previous installments of this preview, I’ve looked at Arizona’s resume and individual matchups with the Crimson. However, going beyond the stats and assessing a team with the ‘eye test’ brings a different perspective. For the Wildcats, it shows the disproportionate affect that senior point guard Mark Lyons has on the offense as well as the strategy Wildcat coach Sean Miller will likely employ to slow down the Crimson shooters.
Wesley Saunders, pictured in earlier action, and his team are playing tight against the University of New Mexico in Salt Lake City. Harvard has never before won an NCAA tournament game.
True story: My grandmother called this morning to ask if I watched Harvard win its first basketball game ever over Mexico.
Well, not quite, but I do believe that we just won.
Thursday night, Harvard put the Madness back in March. Here’s a quick test to see if you have seen a television or computer in the last 24 hours:
What exactly happened in Salt Lake City?
A) Harvard beat New Mexico, marking the first NCAA tournament win in school history.
B) An anchor on SportsCenter referred to Harvard’s win as “the biggest thing to happen to Harvard athletics since the baseball team’s Call Me Maybe video went viral.”
C) The Mountain West conference proved to be a bit overrated, as an Ivy League school stunned its best team and Cal—which lost to that same Ivy League team—upset its second-best team, UNLV
D) Siyani and Laurant are now the most popular male baby names in the country.
E) All of the above
Before the game against Arizona on Saturday (6:10 EDT, TNT), The Back Page brings you a quick ‘By the Numbers’ preview about what to look for against the Wildcats.
0 … Times that Arizona coach Sean Miller has coached against an Ivy League team.
12-5… Arizona’s record on road or neutral site games this season (the Wildcats are 14-2 at home).
11 … Number of three-pointers that Harvard junior Laurent Rivard has made in his two NCAA tournament game (on 16 attempts).
29 … Number of consecutive winning seasons for Arizona (Harvard has four).
The Harvard men's basketball will need a strong performance from sophomore Wesley Saunders Thursday if it is to take down the University of New Mexico.
After upsetting New Mexico to win their first round match-up, the Crimson will take on the Arizona Wildcats on Saturday (6:10 EST, TNT) in the round of 32. With a Sweet Sixteen bid on the line, staff writer David Freed breaks down the individual matchups at stake for the Crimson.
As detailed in the previous part of the preview (LINK HERE), the Crimson stands a better chance against the Wildcats than it did against New Mexico. While all the odds were thrown out of the window in Harvard’s 68-62 victory over the Lobos, the Crimson match up better with the smaller, less defensive-minded Wildcats.
