Men's basketball fights to no avail

Yeomen continue to struggle in loss to Allegheny

Fueled by an explosive offensive performance by slasher sophomore James Knight and an amazing display of full-court aerial passing accuracy from guard senior Jabali Sawicki, the Oberlin men gave Allegheny College a scare Wednesday night. Unfortunately, the effort was not enough to record the men's first win of the season.

Though the Yeomen were plagued by poor shooting in the opening minutes, sloppy Allegheny play and an intense Oberlin effort kept the game close. However, it was not until the Yeomen found themselves down 21-13 with 9:09 remaining in the first half that they decided to turn up the heat. Intense half-court defensive pressure out of both man-to-man and 1-3-1 zone coverage created havoc in the Gator backcourt, producing numerous turnovers and scoring opportunities.

Offensively, the Yeomen turned to Knight to carry the torch. And over the next four minutes Knight did everything but set fire to the building. Scoring 13 of his game-high 28 points in an electrifying display of transition offense, Knight led the Yeomen charge. Turning an eight point deficit into a three point lead with 1:33 left in the half, Oberlin looked poised to take a halftime lead. Allegheny regrouped in time to go on a 7-0 run and enjoy a four point lead going into halftime.

Both teams came out of their lockerrooms and played the start of the second half in much the same way they ended the first. The Yeomen produced frequent mental miscues, while the Gators continued to respond with the ruthlessness of an annoyed bill collector. With only five minutes gone in the second half, Allegheny had opened up a 15-point lead that was not to be overcome for the rest of the game.

This is not to say the men didn't try. California native Sawicki consistently forced numerous turnovers, and operated his beloved west-coast offense to perfection with quick 15-20 yard full-court strikes to streaking Yeomen. Although he officially ended up with only four assists, there were as many as 10 such bombs, most of which led directly to Oberlin points. Behind this aerial attack Oberlin pulled to within four points with 6:51 remaining, but that was as close as they would get.

Taking advantage of opportunities made available by Oberlin mental mistakes, Allegheny dominated the final minutes of the game, ending on a 19-6 run to win by a score of 80-61.

Why did Oberlin play so poorly in the final minutes? The obvious answer is mental and physical fatigue. The five most-played players for Oberlin played an average of 33 minutes, compared with only 26.8 for the Gators. By playing an average of 6:12 more per player, the Oberlin mental fatigue in the final minutes should not be entirely surprising. To put this time difference in perspective, if this game had been played at a high-school level, the Allegheny players would have played 4 quarters while the Yeomen would have been forced to play close to five. It is no coincidence that Oberlin lost the game in essentially the last 6:51 while their top players had to play an "extra" 6:12. If the Yeomen are to find their first win of the season, their bench will have to find some depth soon.

He's got game: Senior Jabali Sawicki stares down his opponent en route to an easy layup. Sadly, his efforts could not help the team avoid another defeat. (photo by Leslie Torre)