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LOCATION: New Haven, CT
CONFERENCE: Ivy League
LAST SEASON: 4-22 (.154)
CONFERENCE RECORD: 2-12 (7th)
STARTERS LOST/RETURNING: 2/3
NICKNAME: Bulldogs
COLORS: Blue & White
HOMECOURT: John J. Lee Amphitheater (3,100)
COACH: James Jones (Albany '86)
record at school First Year
career record First Year
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ASSISTANTS: Curtis Wilson (Adelphi '91)
Rob Senderoff (Albany '95)
Ted Hotaling (Albany '95)
TEAM WINS: (last 5 years) 9-8-10-12-4
RPI (last 5 years) 284-282-241-218-308
1998-99 FINISH: No conference tournament.
ESPN.com Clubhouse
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When the highlight film from the 1998-99 Yale basketball season is made, just one game film will need to be edited. The date was February, 12, 1999, and the vaunted Princeton Tigers were in town. Princeton had dominated the Bulldogs throughout many decades. On this crazy mixed-up night, however, Yale pulled off the Ivy League upset of the '90s, a 60-58 victory in double overtime. It set off a celebration at the Lee Amphitheater the likes of which may never have been seen before. Even ESPN was unprepared. There was no footage, no way for them to prove to an international audience that it had indeed happened. Someone had to drive from company headquarters in Bristol, Conn., to New Haven to obtain a videotape. The victory was the second in less than a week and the sign of possible better days on the horizon. Unfortunately, it was the Bulldogs' last win of the season. They lost the final five games. Fast forward that tape to the 1999-2000 season and many things have changed. The coaching staff has been replaced, with James Jones getting a chance to lead a program for the first time in his career.
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Blue Ribbon Analysis |
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BACKCOURT C BENCH/DEPTH D
FRONTCOURT D+ INTANGIBLES D
This will be another rough year for the Bulldogs. There isn't enough talent for this team to win more than a half a dozen games, even with a new coach. Neil Yanke is a real talent and has the size to make an impact in this league. The backcourt of Onaje Woodbine and Isiah Cavaco is a solid one, but they are forced to play major minutes. That will not bode well on those difficult Ivy League weekends. The depth is just not here and coach James Jones will have his work cut out for him. For a first big break, Jones will have to put in very long hours to build a program. His first season could be a difficult one. |
Jones is not an entirely new face around New Haven. Before going to Ohio as an assistant coach in 1997, he held the same role at Yale from 1995-1997. As luck would have it, he was the coach in charge of the recruiting effort that brought 6-10 junior center Neil Yanke (9.2 ppg, 6.9 rpg) and 5-10 junior guard Isiah Cavaco (6.9 ppg, 1.2 rpg, 72 assists) to the program. Yanke and Cavaco join 6-2 sophomore guard Onaje Woodbine (9.5 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 52 assists) as the returning starters. That's the good news. Woodbine had an especially good freshman season and was second on the team in scoring, minutes (30.3 per game), assists and three-pointers (30). Cavaco runs the point and can score when needed, recording seven double-digit scoring games last year. The bad news is the bench is thin, especially in the backcourt. Six-foot-two junior Mark Bratton (2.4 ppg, 1.0 rpg) is the only upperclassman. He is being counted on to provide some spot rest. Two freshmen round out the group: Six-foot-three Ime Archibong (Bishop McGuinness HS/Greensboro, N.C.) and 6-1 Chris Leanza (Benedictine HS/Parma, Ohio). Leanza was the Associated Press Co-Player of the Year in Ohio's Division II. Up front there is Yanke and little else. The 6-10 junior is the leading scorer among returning players and was fifth in the Ivy in rebounding and sixth in blocked shots. In that victory over Princeton, Yanke had 21 points and 10 rebounds, one of his four double-doubles last season. Backing up Yanke at center will be 6-10 junior Tom Kritzer (1.7 ppg, 1.3 rpg), who is still trying to shake a bad back that has hampered him his entire career. The forward spots are up for grabs. The Bulldogs will miss the services of David Tompkins, who led the team in scoring (16.2 ppg), rebounding (9.9 rpg), field-goal percentage (.600) and steals (39). Part-time starter Ted Smith (3.4 ppg, 2.0 rpg) played in all 26 games, starting eight. Smith, a 6-6 senior, should be the favorite to start at small forward. John Kirkowski (1.9 ppg, 1.6 rpg) brings the most experience up front, so he could team with Smith. Kirkowski is a 6-6 senior. Bench player Jason Williams (1.1. ppg, 0.8 rpg) broke his wrist early last season and was not able to get back into playing form. Williams, a 6-4 senior, will be ready to go by the start of this season. Brad Reusch (4.1 ppg, 1.3 rpg) will play small forward and provide a shooting threat. Reusch is a 6-5 sophomore with excellent long-range shooting abilities. Six-foot-seven sophomores James Ahern (0.4 ppg, 0.9 rpg) and David Huhs (0.0 ppg, 0.0 rpg) were not factors in 1998-99, and 6-7 sophomore Tyrone Powell (0.3 ppg, 0.3 rpg) injured his foot last season and played just four games. Three 6-7 freshmen, T.J. McHugh (Ignatius HS/Cleveland), Bill Parkland (Sandia HS/Albuquerque, N.M.) and Joe Truhe (Good Counsel HS/Wheaton, Md.), will all compete for minutes in the frontcourt.
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