20.4 2nd — 47-45 Cornell. Dale somehow avoids a shot clock violation and gets a three off; it misses badly, but Naeve picks up the rebound and gets fouled. With the crowd absolutely deafening, he misses the first shot of a one-and-one. Montgomery picks up the rebound, and Loscalzo tries a three from the right side which falls short, but Armstrong gets the ball and the Lions call timeout. Coming out of the stop in action, the ball goes to Armstrong down low, but his jumper from the side falls short, not even getting a piece of the rim, and Cornell recovers. Dale is fouled but misses the first free throw, and the Lions get the ball back.

1:16 2nd — 47-45 Cornell. Cornell’s first play out of the timeout is purely improvized, with Dow going up one-on-one with Mack Montgomery. Dow gets past his man and hits a rainbow shot, but it’s whistled off because of a travel. Armstrong hits a jumper from the free-throw line with four seconds left on the shot clock on the Lions’ possession after his man falls down, and the combination of crowd noise and Columbia’s zone forces the Big Red into a 30-second timeout on their next possession.

3:59 2nd — 45-43 Cornell. Tempo’s picked up, with both teams rushing down the court and taking quick shots. Baumann’s 3-3 from three-point range in the half, mainly because he can’t find a way around Naeve inside. Outside of a pretty reverse layup, Wittman’s been quiet this half and pretty much all game. There’s been a lot more contact in this half; Dow drove into the lane and slammed into Justin Armstrong, with no call either way. Dale is running the Cornell offense right now, driving into the lane without hesitation and attacking the basket using his speed. Columbia’s offense is ice cold right now, and they can’t buy a shot; Armstrong just went straight to the basket and put up a right-handed layup, only to watch it rim out.

12:30 2nd — 36-36. Naeve is controlling both ends of the court right now, drawing two quick fouls on Nwachukwu and swatting away a layup attempt in the early going. Lions taking quick shots and not connecting on them. They’re definitely rushing and pressing right now. Jones has Foley and Loscalzo in, as well as Bulger, who’s covering Wittman once again. Naeve takes a quick breather, Baumann hits a three after Cornell’s Alex Tyler bobbles an entry pass down low, and Naeve is quickly back in. Bova and Jason Miller set to come in for the Lions, for some inexplicable reason. Meanwhile, Loscalzo can’t stop jacking up threes that he has no business taking.

HALFTIME — 28-25 Columbia. Brett Loscalzo hits a pull-up three with 0.4 seconds left on the clock to give the Lions lead going into the break, right after Wittman hits a long two to tie it. Stats and analysis coming up in a bit.

Notable stats from the first half:

Combined points by Baumann and Nwachukwu so far: Two, all for Baumann. It goes without saying that unless the Lions can get some offense down low, they won’t have the lead much longer.
Loscalzo’s the leading scorer for Columbia with six points, and he and Foley have combined for 12 points on 5-6 shooting. Jones might want to think about bringing out his two guard offensive set more often and seeing if Loscalzo and Foley can spark a Columbia run.
Both teams shooting well from the floor, 48 percent for Cornell and 46 percent for Columbia. Cornell’s only 1-9 from beyond the arc though, while the Lions have hit three of their five three-point attempts. Wittman is 3-8 and 1-4 from three.
Naeve has six points, three rebounds and three blocks so far, and is really dominating the paint right now with his size. Obviously, that could provide some problems for Columbia if or when their shots stop falling from the perimeter.

57.4 1st — 25-23 Columbia. Apparently, the Lions and Big Red are incapable of moving with the ball anymore. At least, that’s what you would think with all the travel calls the refs have been calling. Story of the half so far? The offenses and their inability to get any sustained momentum going. Wittman and Louis Dale have been virtually invisible all half, but then again, so have John Baumann and Ben Nwachukwu. The Lions have zero happening in the paint right now, with only a driving layup courtesy of Justin Armstrong or Foley every now and then. Columbia’s still giving up too many offensive rebounds, but the Big Red have been unable to capitalize as of yet. Part of that is Columbia’s defense, and part of that is Cornell just struggling in general. The Big Red aren’t going to Andrew Naeve, their big seven footer, as often as you’d think they should.

7:59 1st — 18-16 Columbia. Every other trip down the court for Cornell is a turnover, their offense is really struggling to set anything up. Bulger was guarding Wittman for a good five-minute stretch, which included Wittman getting Bulger to bite on a ball fake and then draining a wide-open three. Guess that’s why Wittman’s won the Rookie of the Week award so many times. Perimeter shooting has heated up for Columbia, since everytime they go inside they’re getting double teamed. Lions defense underneath is soft right now, giving up a lot of offensive rebounds and second chance points. Jones’ 2nd unit is in right now, including KJ Matsui and Joe Bova, with Foley on point.

13:30 1st — 6-5 Columbia in the early going. The Lions and Big Red can’t buy a basket right now; at least two running layups have glanced off the backboard. Columbia’s pressing a bit early, but so is Cornell. Both teams look a little bit out of sync right now. Lot of fouls being called right now, and the refs really aren’t helping the flow of the game by calling just about any contact. Jones has his two-guard offense out right now, with Patrick Foley and Brett Loscalzo in the game, along with rookie Kevin Bulger. Foley has been the Lions’ offense so far, setting up plays and aggresively driving to the basket.

So as stated in the first post, we’re going to be taking this week off from blogging to set up a daily schedule and work out some other issues. We’ll be back with daily updates starting on Monday, January 22.

Thanks to everyone who checked out our running game log for the Penn and Princeton games. If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions about the blog, please feel free to let us know.

If there is any major breaking news, we will post updates as more information becomes available.

3:34 2nd — 66-41 Penn. Penn’s slowing the pace down now, but it’s too late for the Lions. Every other offensive possession is a travel for Columbia, and the offense looks completely out of sync. The game’s turned into a free-throw shooting drill for the Quakers, as the Columbia players can’t keep the Quakers in front of them and are fouling left and right. The Lions are still having some success down low with Baumann and Nwachukwu, but the backcourt has given Columbia nothing, as both Brett Loscalzo and Montgomery are scoreless, and Patrick Foley and Niko Scott have been invisible all night. Barring an unheard of miracle, this game’s over.

7:56 2nd — 56-37 Penn. The Quakers are still getting into the paint with ease. Penn’s passing is acrobatic right now; everyone’s getting a touch and it’s really confusing the Lions, as they can’t rotate fast enough to keep up. Armstrong draws a controversial technical foul, and so far tonight the officials have been really uneven, calling ticky-tack fouls on both sides. Columbia just hasn’t been able to execute a successful offensive posssession; only Nwachukwu’s had any luck with the ball. The Lions look worn out from chasing the Quakers around the court.

11:48 2nd — 52-32 Penn. Penn’s outside shot is falling from everywhere, no matter how tight the Lions play defense. Columbia’s offense works best when they attack the basket, forcing Penn to foul, but they’re having trouble finishing their shots. No one can keep up with Jaaber right now, as Penn keeps getting easy looks at the basket, inside and outside. One of the few positives for the Light Blue is that Penn can’t touch a Columbia player right now with out a whistle; the Quakers have six team fouls already. The last two possessions for the Lions have seen an ill-advised three-point attempt by Baumann and a tough two-point shot from the elbow by Foley, both with plenty of time left on the shot clock. Columbia’s definitely pressing right now, and a few more baskets by Penn could put this game away.

15:53 2nd — 43-27 Penn. More of the same so far in the second half. The Lions can’t keep up with Penn’s offense, and the Quakers are getting open looks from everywhere on the floor. On the other end, Nwachukwu is still Columbia’s only offense, as the shots won’t fall for the Lions. Jaaber continues to fuel the Penn offense, using his speed to drive into the lane or to create his own shot on the perimeter. Joe Jones keeps rotating through lineups looking for a combo that can slow the Quakers down, but so far he hasn’t found success.

0:00 1st — Penn’s Brian Grandieri nails a last-second three-pointer from about 30 feet out to give the Quakers a 37-23 lead at the break. Penn’s been dominant on both ends of the court so far.

Stats from the 1st Half:

Columbia’s shooting only 31% from the floor, while the Quakers are shooting at a 52% clip, including 6-11 from three-point range. Jaaber and Nwachukwu lead all scorers with 11 points each, while Brian Grandieri has chipped in 10 points for Penn on 4-4 shooting. The Lions do have seven offensive rebounds, but have struggled in turning those into second-chance points. Penn’s also made the most off of the Lions’ mistakes, turning six Columbia turnovers into 11 points. For the second half, the Light Blue are going to have to focus on slowing the Penn offense down while also being more patient offensively if they want to get back into this game.

1:25 1st — 32-23 Penn. Nwachukwu’s back in, and Columbia’s started to go back inside, and they’re having some success, drawing fouls on Penn’s big men and picking up offensive rebounds for putbacks. Penn is flying up the court on the offensive end, though, and Columbia still hasn’t found a way to slow them down, especially Jaaber.

3:22 1st — 29-19 Penn. The Lions have started to launch long range shots, and so far, it’s not working. With Nwachukwu on the bench, the Light Blue can’t get their inside game working either, and Columbia’s missed four straight shot attempts. Jones’ lineup right now is confusing, with seldom-used sophomore Jason Miller on the floor. Even without Jaaber, who spent the last three minutes on the bench, Penn’s pushed their lead into the double digits, and they’re doing it with solid passing. Of course, Columbia’s impatience on the offensive end isn’t helping their cause.

7:18 1st — 24-19 Penn. Ben Nwachukwu has become Columbia’s prime offensive weapon now, as the Lions are giving him the ball down low and letting him attack the basket. So far, he’s managed to overpower Penn’s interior defense and rolled off three straight baskets on three straight possessions. On the other end, Columbia’s still having trouble keeping up with Penn’s very up-tempo offense, and the Quakers continue to shoot the lights out from distance.

10:23 1st — 21-13 Penn. The Columbia offense continues to press, and isn’t getting the same crisp passing and open looks from last night’s game against Princeton. Penn’s capitalizing on the Lions’ mistakes, and their offense looks to be running on all cylinders, especially from three-point range. Joe Jones calls timeout to try and calm down his team and refocus them offensively.

15:31 1st — Penn jumps out to a quick 10-6 lead. The Lions have looked tentative on offense, and are pressing somewhat. Columbia has switched to a 2-3 zone defense in an attempt to slow the Quaker offense, but success has been limited so far for the Light Blue on the defensive end, as Penn’s finding open men on the perimeter and driving into the lane without too much difficulty. Joe Jones has brought out his 2nd unit, with KJ Matsui, Joe Bova, Patrick Foley, and Justin Armstrong taking the court.

20:00 1st — And we’re underway here at Levien. No changes in either projected starting lineup for either team. Penn wins the tip.

NEW YORK, N.Y.–

Welcome again to Levien Gym for the second game of Columbia’s opening Ivy League weekend doubleheader. Tonight, the Lions (10-5, 1-0 Ivy) face the best team in the league and last season’s Ivy champions, Penn (8-6, 1-0 Ivy). Last season, Columbia dealt the Quakers a stunning defeat, handing then-undefeated Penn a 59-57 loss. The win came on a last second tip-in by junior forward Ben Nwachukwu, who had 10 points and five rebounds. Junior guard Justin Armstrong led the Lions with 23 points.

Penn, coming off an Ivy-opening 74-56 win over Cornell in Ithaca, will be anchored by their two returning playmakers from last season, senior point guard Ibrahim Jaaber and and senior forward Mark Zoller. Zoller is having the best season of his collegiate career, averaging 19.2 points and eight rebounds per game, and is a danger both in the paint and from beyond the arc. Jaaber, meanwhile, has done a superb job of running the offense, with 16 points and almost six assists per contest. In addition to his passing skills and ability to drive to the basket, Jaaber is also one of the top defensive players in the league, and is averaging over three steals per game so far this season. If the Lions want to replicate their success from last season’s game against Penn, they’ll have to find a way to keep Jaaber from penetrating into the lane, while also containing Zoller in the low post.

Here are the game notes for tonight’s contest, courtesy of the Columbia Athletic Department:

Columbia-Penn Game Notes

And here are tonight’s projected starting lineups:

COLUMBIA

F – John Baumann (Jr., 6-8, 230)
C – Ben Nwachukwu (Jr., 6-8, 245)
G – Mack Montgomery (Jr., 6-5, 220)
G – Niko Scott (Fr., 6-3, 200)
G – Brett Loscalzo (Jr., 6-0, 180)

PENN

F – Steve Danley (Sr., 6-8, 225)
F – Mark Zoller (Sr., 6-7, 220)
G – Ibrahim Jaaber (Sr., 6-2, 170)
G – Kevin Egee (So., 6-3, 175)
G – Brian Grandieri (Jr., 6-4, 190)

Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 PM. You can catch the game on WKCR 89.9 FM or on WSNR 620 AM. Additionally, the game will be shown tonight on television on Sports Net New York (SNY). As always, you can also follow the game online with the SIDELION pass on the Columbia Athletics website.

18.8 2nd — Princeton drives down the court looking for a quick basket, but a jumper from the elbow by Luke Owings falls short. Montgomery collects the rebound and hits both free throws to stretch the Columbia lead to 10, 64-54.

53.9 2nd — 62-53 Lions lead, as the game has turned into a battle of free throws. Columbia’s in the double bonus, as the Tigers have 10 team fouls.

1:45 2nd — The Lions are now in the penalty, as Foley picks up the seventh team foul with 2:06 on the clock. The first shot of a one-and-one for Princeton rims out, though, and the Lions pick up the rebound and call timeout. Columbia leads 58-49.

2:26 2nd — Mack Montgomery hits a three at the top of the key with one second on the shot clock with just under three minutes remaining to push the Columbia lead to six. The Tigers drive and try a three, but it hits the back of the rim, and Montgomery collects the rebound and draws a foul on Owings, his fourth and Princeton’s seventh. Montgomery hits both free throws to give Columbia the 57-49 lead.

3:35 2nd — Scott drives into the lane and tries a runner with his left hand, misses, picks up his own rebound and kicks it out to a wide open Loscalzo for a three with six minutes left. The Tigers drive down the court, but a layup attempt by Finely is swatted away by Nwachukwu. Princeton recovers and, with the crowd at a fever pitch, misses a long two-point attempt from the corner. Lions lead 52-49.

6:12 2nd — Nwachukwu corrals a wild pass from Scott and lays it in to give the Lions a 49-47 lead with seven minutes left. The Tigers respond with a layup of their own by Zach Finley to tie it once again.

7:19 2nd — Scott hits a three from the left side with eight minutes left to tie the game at 47. The Tigers finally miss a three from the top of the key, and in the rush for the loose ball, Conway picks up his fourth foul of the game, Princeton’s sixth team foul.

8:07 2nd — Princeton hits another three to take a 47-44 lead. The Lions are rushing on offense, forcing passes and shots, and Princeton is capitalizing on every mistake so far this half.

9:49 2nd — Both offenses are trading baskets right now, with the Tigers hitting everything from outside and the Lions doing their best to match with layups and runners. The Light Blue have struggled this half on both ends of the court, and lead 44-41.

13:08 2nd — Patrick Foley hits two free throws to extend Columbia’s lead to 40-36. The Lion offense has gone cold, with the team unable to get the ball in down low. Princeton, meanwhile, has found their groove from outside, hitting 3-4 three-pointers so far in the half.

15:46 2nd — Princeton’s Justin Conway just picked up his third personal foul, but the Columbia lead is down to five, 38-33. Princeton’s tightened up their zone defense, and the Light Blue are having some difficulty in getting passes into the low post.

16:49 2nd — A three from Princeton’s Marcus Schroeder cuts the Columbia lead to seven, 38-31. The Tigers are 2-3 from downtown so far in the half. The Tigers have switched to a full court press, which is giving the Lions some trouble getting down the court.

19:20 2nd — Princeton airballs their opening shot, a three from the top of the key with no time on the shot clock. The Lions respond with a three-pointer by Baumann to open up their lead to 36-23.

HALFTIME — Biggest stats from the game so far:

1. The Lions are shooting 78% from the field (14-18), nearly all of them high percentage shots. Columbia’s attempted only two three-pointers so far.
2. On the other side of the ball, the Tigers have hit only 2-10 three pointers, but are 8-12 from inside the arc.
3. Princeton’s Michael Strittmatter leads all scorers with 10 points. Baumann leads the Lions with seven points and two rebounds.
4. Both teams have protected the ball well, with nine total turnovers between the two squads.
5. 10 rebounds, all defensive for Columbia. Of course, that should be expected when you’re hitting almost all of your shots.

The Lions offense obviously can’t keep up the shooting pace they’re on, but they’ve shown a strong ability to get through Princeton’s zone and get in the paint. The Light Blue have struggled passing out of double teams so far, but have displayed some solid half-court passing.

On Princeton’s end, the story has been their offense from outside, which has been nonexistent. Only Strittmatter has had any success from the three-point line, going 2-2. Columbia’s zone has stifled the Tigers’ outside shooters, but as the half wore on, Princeton was having more success getting the ball into the low post for uncontested layups. The Lions will have to do a better job sealing off entry passes into the post if they hope to keep the Tiger offense from waking up.

We’ve reached the end of the half, and are ready for tipoff.

0:00 1st — We’ve reached the halfway point of the game, and the Lions lead 33-23 over Princeton.

3:48 1st — Ben Nwachukwu banks in a layup and draws the foul, much to Princeton head coach Joe Scott’s ire. Nwachukwu’s free throw hits off of the front of the rim. Lions up 29-16.

5:48 1st — Princeton draws their seventh team foul, putting them in the penalty. Sophomore Joe Bova hits both free throws to put the Lions up 25-14.

6:43 1st — Baumann takes a pass in the low block and hits the layup while drawing the foul. The junior hits the free throw to give the Lions a 23-14 lead.

7:52 1st — Tigers hit their first three in seven attempts, with sophomore forward Michael Strittmatter hitting a wide-open shot from the right side. Columbia leads 20-12, and Niko Scott leads the Lions with six points on 3-3 shooting, as the team has been penetrating Princeton’s zone with ease.

9:35 1st — Princeton misses their fifth three, followed by a foul by Noah Savage and a layup off the inbounds pass by Baumann. 18-9 Lions lead.

10:49 1st — Matsui drains a three from the left side to give the Lions a 15-7 lead as the officials take a timeout. The Tigers are 0-4 from three-point range so far, but the Lions have already racked up three team fouls in the early going.

12:54 1st — 10-5 Columbia leads. Nwachukwu and KJ Matsui in for John Baumann and Mack Montgomery.

15:09 1st — Freshman guard Patrick Foley and junior guard Justin Armstrong come in for freshman Niko Scott and junior Ben Nwachukwu. Scott came off the court a bit gingerly.

15:41 1st — After missing a third straight three, Princeton recovers the ball, but turns it over on an offensive foul by freshman guard Marcus Schroeder. Niko Scott drew the charge. 8-3 Lions lead.

16:40 1st — After an airball by Conway, Niko Scott drives into the paint, loses the handle, recovers, and hits a falling-down jumper to give the Lions a 6-3 lead.

18:18 1st — Princeton scores their first points on a driving layup by Justin Conway, who draws the foul from Ben Nwachukwu. Conway drains the free throw to give the Tigers a 3-2 lead.

20:00 1st — Lions win the tipoff and take a 2-0 lead on a jumper in the paint by Scott. Princeton’s opening possession leads to a travel by freshman guard Lincoln Gunn.

7:00 PM — No change in Princeton’s lineup or for the Lions. Tipoff is about a minute away.

NEW YORK, NY–

Welcome to Levien Gym, site of tonight’s opening Ivy League contest between the Columbia Lions (9-5, 0-0 Ivy) and the Princeton Tigers (9-4, 0-0). Tipoff is scheduled for 7:05, and you can catch the game on both WKCR (89.9 FM or wkcr.com) and WSNR (620 AM), as well as on the Columbia Athletics’ SideLION package.

Of course, last year, the Lions were able to surprise the Tigers on Hall of Fame weekend, picking up a 65-64 win at Levien to complete a sweep of the Killer P’s. Junior guard Justin Armstrong had 23 points, including the game-winning jumper with 10 seconds left, to lead the Lions.

Here are the game notes for tonight’s men’s basketball contest, courtesy of the Columbia Athletic Department:

Columbia vs Princeton Game Notes

Tonight’s projected starting lineups:

COLUMBIA:
F – John Baumann (Jr., 6-8, 230)
C – Ben Nwachukwu (Jr., 6-8, 245)
G – Mack Montgomery (Jr., 6-5, 220)
G – Niko Scott (Fr., 6-3, 200)
G – Brett Loscalzo (Jr., 6-0, 180)

PRINCETON:
F – Kyle Koncz (Jr., 6-7, 200)
F – Luke Owings (Sr., 6-6, 210)
C – Justin Conway (Sr., 6-4, 215)
G – Justin Schroeder (Fr., 6-2, 185)
G – Lincoln Gunn (Fr., 6-3, 180)

We’re just about ready for tipoff, as the Lions have taken the floor.

One additional note: Today is Niko Scott’s 20th birthday, according to the guys at WKCR.

As the title of this post says, welcome to The Press Box, the new home for Spectator’s online coverage of Columbia University athletics. Here at The Press Box, you can find pregame and postgame analysis of major Columbia games, live in-game blogging, transcripts of interviews and press conferences, Ivy League news and analysis, and stories and features unique to the blog, each and every day. And in addition to the print content, The Press Box will also be the place where you can find exclusive audio, video and photo of Columbia athletics, ranging from interviews and press conferences to video analysis to photo galleries. In short, think of this blog as an extension of the print Sports section itself, readily available online and filled with all the news and multimedia on Columbia athletics that you could ever want.

But just like the newspaper, the content of this blog can be influenced by you, the reader. Let us know what you would like to see covered, if we should focus more or less on an issue or story, if you’d like to see more or less multimedia, etc. Any and all suggestions and comments are welcome, and are helpful in not only deciding what to run online, but also what to run in our print edition.

To that end, contacting us is simple. Either comment on a post on the main page (by hitting the “Comments” link at the top of the post) or shoot us an e-mail at:
sports at columbiaspectator dot com.

The Press Box will start up this Friday with live in-game reports from this weekend’s men’s basketball games against Penn and Princeton. After that, the blog will not be updated again until January 22, when we will begin posting on a daily basis.

Once again, if you have any questions, comments or suggestions, please don’t hesitate to let us know.

Thanks for taking the time to read this,
Jonathan Tayler and Jonathan August
Spectator Sports Editors