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NCAA Tournament First Round Recap - Temple vs Cornell(12) Cornell 78, (5) Temple 65
The Big Red, a trendy upset pick since they played Kansas to a virtual standstill at Allen Fieldhouse in early January, more than lived up to the hype today, dismantling one of the best defensive teams in the country. Cornell took a 6-5 lead on a Ryan Whitman jumper at the 17:19 mark of the first half, and never relinquished the lead, shooting its way to a surprisingly easy 78-65 win over Temple. Jay Bilas was the target of some ridicule for picking the Big Red to advance to the Elite Eight. After the way Steve Donahue's squad played today, we sincerely doubt that anybody is mocking Bilas.
The Big Picture: Going into the Big Dance, even the most uninformed of office pool participants were aware that Cornell could stroke the jumper, but hot damn can this team shoot! The Big Red shot over 56 % against an Owls team that was fourth in the nation in field goal percentage defense this season, holding opponents to 37.9 % shooting. The last time the Owls gave up so much as 60 points was more than month ago: 70 points almost two months ago in a 77-72 win over Xavier on Jan. 20. To put Cornell's superlative performance in perspective, the Big Red reached 60 points with more than 11:00 remaining in the second half when Louis Dale splashed down a triple to stake the Big Red to a 61-48 lead. A Jon Jacques three-point bomb five minutes later put Cornell up 71-54, and the final six minutes were merely a formality.
The Good: Fran Dunphy's squad should have realized it was in trouble when Cornell took a 37-29 halftime lead despite making only 2-of-7 triples. While the common perception may be that Cornell is little more than a three-point shooting outfit, 7-0 center Jeff Foote anchors a sturdy frontcourt. Foote dominated the Temple bigs in the first half, scoring 9 points, swatting 2 shots, and helping Cornell to an 11-7 advantage on the boards. Indeed, it's the presence of Foote on the interior that differentiates Cornell from the average mid-major. Foote allows the Big Red the luxury of working from the inside out to the perimeter, and provides Steve Donahue with a scoring option should the jumpers not fall.
The Bad: Temple, so dominant on the business end of the floor in the Atlantic 10 tournament, seemed utterly unprepared for the efficient, “smoother than Billy Dee Williams with a Colt 45” Cornell offense. Even though Temple covered Cornell's three-point shooters relatively well in the first half, the Big Red still torched the nets, making 13-of-19 field goals. Put simply, Temple failed to defend with the same sort of intensity it exhibited in the Atlantic 10 tourney. Jeff Foote may have played at St. Bonaventure, but Cornell isn't Bona when it comes to shooting the rock. We think the Owls realize that now.
The Ugly: Fall behind by double digits to a team that shoots as well as the Big Red, and you're going to get desperate. Desperation for Temple meant chucking up threes in a futile effort to close the gap. Temple finished 5-of-17 beyond the arc today, with Juan Fernandez and Ryan Brooks combining to go 4-of-14. That's just not going to get it done in March.
What's Next? Cornell moves on to a very winnable second-round scrap versus Wisconsin. The Ivy Leaguers played like a team that's capable of a deep March run. Being that the Badgers and Owls play similarly slow-paced, defensively-oriented styles of ball, the Big Red should be ready come Sunday.
By: Tim Coyne |