Around the Ivies: Harvard returns entire lineup as Ivy favorite

The men’s basketball team began play in disappointing fashion last weekend, losing 73-57 at home to Wagner. Princeton finished last season tied with Harvard at the top of the Ivy League, and needed a last-second game-winning shot in an Ivy playoff to get the league’s lone NCAA Tournament bid. The Tigers will have to improve over the next two months to compete at the top of the conference, which features many strong teams with returning talent. Here’s a look at how Princeton’s top competitors look this year:

Harvard (12-2 in the Ivy League last year)

The Crimson is coming off a great year in which it tied for first place in the Ivy League with Princeton at 12-2. Although everybody returns from that team, Harvard will still play a somewhat young and different lineup this year, with seven talented freshmen joining the roster. As expected, the Crimson is already off to a winning start after grabbing a 76-49 victory over MIT.

Senior forward Keith Wright, the reigning Ivy League Player of the Year, and senior guard Oliver McNally led the Crimson to victory in the season opener with 13 and 12 points respectively. Forward Kyle Casey and point guard Brandyn Curry are likely to be the team’s other leaders.

Yale (8-6)

Yale finished third in conference play last season. Forward Greg Mangano led the Bulldogs during the 2010-11 season with 16.3 points per game and was the second-leading scorer in the Ivy League; he played for Team USA at the World University Games this summer, gaining valuable experience to take into his senior year. Forward Jeremiah Kreisberg also played overseas, making the Israel Under-20 National Team, giving the team a second strong option in the frontcourt.

The team won its first game this season, eking out a 73-69 victory against Central Connecticut State. Mangano continued his dominant streak from last year with 23 points, 13 rebounds and two blocked shots. The senior is on the short list of contenders to win the Ivy League Player of the Year.

Penn (7-7)

After finishing in fourth place last year, Penn is looking to return to the upper echelon of Ivy League basketball. So far, the Quakers are 1-1 this season, having beaten University of Maryland, Baltimore County, before losing in overtime to Big-Five rival Temple, which is just outside the top 25 in both major polls.

In the two regular season games that Penn has played, star guard Zack Rosen has been absolutely dominant offensively, scoring 26 points against UMBC and 27 against Temple. Rosen, who has been named to the first All-Ivy team each of the last two years, is likely to continue that honor, but he will need help from a young and inexperienced frontcourt.

Columbia (6-8)

The Lions finished tied for fifth in the Ivy League last year. So far in the 2011-12 season, they are 0-2, but it must be noted that their first opponent was the defending national championship team, No. 4 Connecticut. Columbia hung with the Huskies for much of the game before losing by 13 points.

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The team is pretty balanced in terms of experience, with six freshmen and five seniors. Columbia has not finished better than fourth place in the Ivy League for over a decade. The Lions’ disappointing loss to Furman yesterday was a setback in more ways than one — senior guard Noruwa Agho, who was the league’s leading scorer and named first team All-Ivy last year, suffered a knee injury and may not return this season.

Cornell (6-8)

In March 2010, a senior-led Cornell team famously made it to the Sweet-16 round of the NCAA Tournament. After falling all the way to fifth place last year, the Big Red looks to bounce back to the top half of the Ivy League.

Cornell is off to a 1-1 start, beating Binghamton 76-61 in its home opener after losing to St. Bonaventure. Freshman forward Shonn Miller was the leading scorer in Cornell’s victory with 19 points. The Big Red, which won three consecutive titles before Princeton broke the streak last year, will rely on Miller and other freshmen, particularly in the frontcourt.

Brown (4-10)

This past decade, Brown has finished as high as second and as low as eighth in the Ivy League. Last year, the Bears were closer to the bottom end of the range, finishing seventh at 4-10. The Bears have struggled to a 1-2 start, losing to weak opponents in both Division-I games. Guards Matt Sullivan and Sean McGonagill, the reigning Ivy League Rookie of the Year, have been the team’s leading scorers so far.

Dartmouth (1-13)

Dartmouth has trailed all the other Ivy League teams for the past two seasons, posting a combined record of 2-26 in league play. The Big Green gave Rutgers a tougher game than expected before falling short, 62-56.

But with only three seniors and six freshmen on the team, Dartmouth might be looking at a fresh set of talent that could challenge the rest of the Ivy League. Freshman forward Jvonte Brooks was named co-Rookie of the Week after making every shot he took in the team’s opener.