Greg Mangano surrounded by campers at Notre Dame-West Haven basketball camp
Yale graduate Greg Mangano has signed a professional contract with Antalya of the Beko Turkish Basketball League.
“It’s exciting,” Mangano said. “I did some research on the area, and it’s right on the coast and supposed to be very nice.
“I’m also playing professional ball so that’s exciting.”
Mangano set Yale’s all-time record for blocked shots and finished among the school’s all-time leaders in several categories. The 23-year-old from Orange averaged 18.2 points, 9.7 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game his senior year, earning first-team All-Ivy honors.
Mangano boosted his pro stock with a solid stint at the prestigious Portsmouth Invitational Tournament where he averaged 10.7 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.0 block.
But despite the accolades and solid tryouts with several NBA teams he went undrafted in the NBA draft a couple of weeks ago.
“My agent said that if I was European, I would have been drafted 50th,” Mangano said. “It’s kind of disappointing, but without a doubt the NBA still doesn’t respect the level of competition in the Ivy League.
“Then again I had my best games (numbers-wise) against Florida and Wake Forest.”
Mangano said he feels that he was “just as good or even better than several players picked in the final dozen NBA selections.”
Said Mangano: “The NBA has always been the goal and is still the goal. I have to go over to Turkey and have a good year to prove that I can play against good competition. I just can’t have an average year there. I don’t have to average 22 points and 14 rebounds, but I also can’t score 10 points and grab four rebounds. They also want me to put more weight on, which has always been the case.
“Playing in the NBA summer league was still a possibility, but then I got this offer and I felt it was the best for me,” he said. “I could have stayed home and played in the NBA D-League, and I had some very intriguing offers, but I feel that this will be a great place to start (my professional career).”
Mangano, a 6-10 post player with great range, will join a league with a solid American presence. Antalya finished 13th last season in the 16-team league featuring a backcourt of former Villanova stars Scott Reynolds and Corey Fisher.
The Beko League is regarded as one of the top professional leagues in Europe and the same league that tried to lure Kobe Bryant during last year’s NBA strike.
Antalya also signed Seton Hall guard Jordan Theodore last week and had been eyeing a deal with the Pirates’ Herb Pope.
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There was a distinct sense of disappointment by Yale men’s basketball coach James Jones as the NBA draft progressed on Thursday night.
Although Bulldogs star center Greg Mangano was a bit of a long shot to get drafted, when Jones saw the end of the second round progress — loaded with post players, most of whom were foreigners or deemed projects — Jones wondered why his guy wasn’t selected.
“I really felt that Greg was just as good if not better than a lot of the players picked (at the end of the second round),” Jones said.
Of the final 13 picks in the draft, NBA teams opted for seven foreign players, using their method called “draft and stash” where they select a player and then let him play overseas for a couple of years and hope they mature into the next Dirk Nowitzki. Most of them are very raw skill-wise.
Mangano worked out for several teams and Jones said the 6-foot-10 shot-blocker from Orange will most likely hook up with a team in the NBA Summer League. Then it will be up to Mangano to see if he gets a good deal overseas or plays in the NBA Developmental League.
Yale’s Reggie Willhite may also go that route. Jones said Willhite is cut from the same cloth as Oklahoma City’s Thabo Sefolosha. “He’s working to show teams that his jump shot is there and he’s already a great defender,” Jones said.
Penn's Zach Rosen
Another Ivy Leaguer who did not get selected in the draft was Penn’s Zach Rosen.
“He was the best point guard we’ve played against in several years,” Jones said. “I’m sure he has pro aspirations, but I don’t know what his plans are.”
It looks like Jeremy Lin’s success did little to quell any Ivy League stigmas that may exist. But after watching that trio play for four years, I believe Mangano would have been the starting center at UConn (and Andre Drummond was drafted ninth), Reggie Willhite is one of the best ball defenders I’ve ever seen and Rosen will not only play in the NBA one day, but he will make an impact.
‰Congratulations to former Cheshire Academy star Johannah Leedham, who will be on the Great Britain women’s basketball Olympic team.
In a story I wrote about Leedham and her sister while the two were playing together in high school, I quoted their former coach as saying Hartford coach Jen Rizzotti watched them play on one occasion with great interest.
Rizzotti refuted that fact, saying she had never seen them. I then emailed Rizzotti to tell her that if she in fact hadn’t seen Johannah Leedham play, then she should hurry down and check her out. I don’t know if she ever did, but somehow both of the Leedhams ended up at Franklin Pierce where Johannah became the best Division II player in the country.
Now she’s an Olympian. Someone missed the boat.
As for Cheshire Academy, I sent my son there last year and it was an awesome experience.
‰After a thrilling Stanley Cup finals, it is disheartening to hear the NHL is once again facing labor issues. Then I learned that Donald Fehr is the new chief of the players’ association.
All I can say is, “Uh, oh.”
‰Earlier in the week the college football hierarchy announced that in 2014 there will be a four-team playoff system to determine the national champion.
A day later they announced Alabama and USC were already two of the finalists.
‰The very first inning the day after Kevin Youkilis was traded from the Red Sox to the White Sox, Will Middlebrooks booted a ball and the fans greeted him with jeers of: “Youuukk.”
Of course Boston had to find a way to get Middlebrooks into its lineup daily, but bringing back a utility player with less ability than Nick Punto and a 25-year-old pitcher who had already been traded four times was not the way to go about it.
Boston should have held onto Youkilis until close to the trade deadline and then unloaded him. The White Sox were already desperate and the way players have been dropping lately, you could have guaranteed the Red Sox would have gotten a better deal. And if they hadn’t, it wouldn’t have cost them anything extra as they’re already paying most of Youkilis’ remaining contract.
It just exemplifies what a dismal start Ben Cherington is off to since taking over for Theo Epstein. First he botched the Epstein compensation pact and then he picked up Marlon Byrd, who has since been released and found to have been using performance-enhancing drugs.
In baseball terms, Youkilis is already his third strike.
‰One of the most popular reality shows on cable TV is “Storage Wars,” where a group of businessmen and collectors buy abandoned storage units from facilities on the West Coast.
Whether those TV auctions are staged or not is anyone’s guess, but such auctions are fairly common. You can go online to get a schedule of auctions in every state in New England. There were over 30 auctions in Connecticut in June alone.
Get ready. Yuuup.
‰The phantom catch by the Yankees’ Dewayne Wise on Tuesday night just reemphasized the need for instant replay in baseball. Wise made a gallant effort leaping into the stands in foul territory trying to snare a pop-up hit by Cleveland’s Jack Hannahan.
Replays showed the ball clearly bounced out of his glove, but umpire Mike DiMuro ruled that Wise caught it without ever asking the outfielder to show him the baseball. DiMuro later admitted he made a mistake, although Yankee radio announcers John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman still contend it was one of the greatest catches they ever saw. (What game does Sterling watch?)
The most absurd view of the play, however, had to come from former Cincinnati Reds general manager Jim Bowden. He said Wise should have fessed up to dropping the ball in the name of sportsmanship and told the umpire to rule it a foul ball.
No wonder the Reds haven’t been any good in decades.
‰I find it hard to believe the PGA is considering banning long putters on the tour. Webb Simpson won the U.S. Open using a long putter. Keegan Bradley used it to win the PGA Championship.
When I took up the game of golf I found that the hardest thing to do was to snap a 3-iron out of the rough and try to get it to the green 180 yards away. Now, all you have to do is drop a hybrid on the ball and you’re there.
The premise of the complaint against the long putters is that when the putter is anchored against the belly, it is a third contact point with the body, thus giving it more control.
I don’t buy it. First ban titanium and oversized drivers and then we’ll worry about putters.
Bill Cloutier can be reached at bcloutier@nhregister.com. Follow Bill on Twitter @BillCloutier. To receive breaking news first, simply text the word nhsports to 22700. *Msg & Data Rates May Apply.
With the NBA draft approaching on June 28, a pair of Bulldogs are working to boost their professional resumes.
Mangano, a 6-10 post player with a deft outside touch, is regarded as a possible second-round selection. He has appeared on some mock drafts.
But Jones feels that if Mangano isn’t selected, it could be the best thing for him.
Reggie Willhite/Yale photo
“If he doesn’t get picked he becomes a free agent and then he has the pick-and-choose option where he can decide where he feels he has the best chance of making a roster,” Jones said.
Jones said that Mangano has already worked out in a couple of NBA camps. He has workouts planned with the Los Angeles Lakers, Clippers and the Boston Celtics beginning on June 17. He is also scheduled to work out for the Bucks and the Jazz.
If Mangano doesn’t get selected, he could reach a free-agent deal immediately after the draft is concluded.
“I’ve called the Celtics and the Sixers to set up things for Greg,” Jones said. “None of the general managers have called me, but I believe they don’t do that because they know that all they’d hear is someone trying to sell their player. They’ve probably called (other Ivy League coaches) to talk to them about Greg.”
Willhite, a 6-4, first-team All-Ivy selection, worked out for the Celtics on June 1, and Jones was told that his former swingman posted the second-best conditioning score in the history of the team. Willhite is certainly a candidate for the NBA D-League which produced Jeremy Lin last season. He is an explosive leaper and defensive wizard.
Mangano wraps up stay at Portsmouth, eyes pro future
Yale's Greg Mangano wrapped an impressive showing at Portsmouth Invitational, a showcase for college seniors eyeing pro careers.
Mangano ended his stay at the Portsmouth Invitational by scoring nine points and grabbing three rebounds in Cherry Bekart & Holland’s 78-75 loss to Portsmouth Partnership in the third-place game. Mangano started at forward, played 21 minutes and was 4-of-9 from the field.
In three games at the Invitational, Mangano averaged 10.7 points and six rebounds. More importantly he showed the many NBA and international scouts on hand that he can play away from the basket. He shot 46.2 percent (6-of-13) from three-point range in the three games.
Mangano, a two-time first team All-Ivy selection, enjoyed an outstanding career for the Bulldogs. He is Yale’s all-time leader with 213 career blocked shots, which is the third most in Ivy League history. In addition, he finished sixth in school history with
Eyeing NBA draft, Mangano has strong showing in Portsmouth
Greg Mangano made a good first impression at the Portsmouth Invitational, scoring 10 points, grabbing six rebounds and blocking three shots to help Cherry Bekart & Holl to an 85-73 victory over K&D Rounds Landscaping on Wednesday night.
Mangano started at forward and played 23 minutes. He was 4-of-10 from the field, including 2-of-4 from three-point range. He was one of three Ivy League players in the game. His teammate -Harvard’s Keith Wright - had nine points and seven rebounds. Penn’s Zack Rosen scored four points and handed out six assists for K&D Rounds.
Mangano’s team will play next on Friday night at 7 p.m. against the Portsmouth Sports Club.
The Portsmouth Invitational is a four-day, 12-game tournament that is played in front of representatives from every NBA team and a number of overseas teams.
Mangano, a two-time first team All-Ivy selection for the Bulldogs, enjoyed an outstanding career. He is Yale’s all-time leader with 213 career blocked shots, which is the third most in Ivy League history. In addition, he finished sixth in school history with 735 career rebounds and 13th in school history with 1,213 career points.
Men’s basketball gamedays
YALE AT PRINCETON, PENN
Today at Jadwin Gymnasium, Princeton, N.J., 7 p.m.
Saturday at The Palestra, Philadelphia, 7 p.m.
Records: Yale (19-7, 9-3 Ivy); Princeton (16-11, 7-4); Penn (17-11, 9-2)
Video: goprincetontigers.com; pennathletics.com
Scouting Yale: The final weekend of the season is full of possibilities for the Bulldogs. Yale could actually win the title outright if all things go its way. Yale trails Harvard by a game in the Ivy League. If the Bulldogs sweep the weekend series and Harvard loses its last two games (at Columbia and Cornell) Yale would win the league and become the first school in the nation to earn an NCAA berth. While all four results will be considered upsets the fact that the Bulldogs are still alive is testament to how well they’ve played this season. Yale finished the season 11-1 at home and is currently 8-6 on the road. The Bulldogs are trying for their first 20-win season since 2002.
Scouting Princeton: The Tigers are 37-6 all-time against the Bulldogs at Jadwin. Princeton is still mathematically alive in the Ivy League race helped by their win over league-leading Harvard earlier in the season. Yale beat Princeton 58-54 at New Haven this season. Ian Hummer led the Tigers with 18 points in the game. Yale hasn’t swept the season series against the Tigers since 2008.
Scouting Penn: The Quakers ended Harvard’s 28-game home streak on Saturday to move to within a half-game of the Ivy League lead. Led by Zach Rosen, Penn has won fivestraight, four of which have come by three points or less. Rosen was named the Ivy League Player of the Week on Monday. He scored the Quakers' last 16 points in a win at Dartmouth and the last nine points in the victory over the Crimson.
Probable starters
Yale
Name, Ht, Year, Pos, PPg.
Jeremiah Kreisberg, 6-10, So., F, 7.7
Greg Mangano, 6-10, Sr, C, 18.5
Reggie Willhite, 6-4, Sr, F, 12.6
Austin Morgan, 5-10, Jr, G, 12.3
Michael Grace, 6-0, Jr.G, 5.5
Princeton
Name, Ht, Year, Pos, PPg.
Patrick Saunders, 6-8, Sr., F, 6.3
Ian Hummer, 6-7, Jr., F, 16.2
Brendan Connolly , 6-11, Jr.C, 5.3
T.J. Bray, 6-5, So., G, 7.2
Doug Davis, 5-11, Sr., G, 13.2
NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Greg Mangano will have the opportunity to showcase his skills for NBA scouts when he participates in the prestigious Portsmouth Invitational in April.
Mangano, who leads the Ivy League in scoring (18.5 ppg.), rebounding (9.7 rpg.) and blocks (62), will be one of the top seniors from across the nation to participate in a four-day, 12-game tournament in front of representatives from every NBA team. The Invitational runs from April 11-14 in Portsmouth, Va.
Mangano has enjoyed an outstanding career for the Bulldogs. His 210 career blocks are the most all-time at Yale and the third most in Ivy League history. In addition, he is seventh in school history with 708 career rebounds, and his 1,166 career points are the 15th most by a Yale player.
Over the summer, Mangano was a part of the 12-player roster that represented the United States in the 2011 World University Games in Shenzhen, China. In six games during the tournament, Mangano averaged 3.2 points and 3.2 rebounds. The team was coached by Purdue's Matt Painter.
As a junior, Mangano finished ninth in the nation in blocked shots (3.0 per game) and 24th in rebounding (10.0 rpg.). He averaged 16.3 points and was a unanimous first team All-Ivy selection and earned all-district honors from the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC).
Mangano led the Ivy League in rebounding and blocked shots and was second in scoring. He was the first Ivy player to average a double-double for the season since Harvard’s Kyle Snowden in 1995-96. His numbers were even more impressive in Ivy games where he averaged 18.6 points and 10.4 rebounds, which both led the league.
Mangano was dominant on both ends of the floor. His 85 blocks were the most in a season in school history and the third most in Ivy history. In addition, his 51 blocks in league games were a new Ivy record
He also became the first Yale player since Chris Dudley in 1986-87 to average a double-double for the season.
“Greg has performed extremely well over the last two seasons, and he is well deserving of this honor,” said James Jones, The Joel E. Smilow, Class of 1954 Head Coach of Men’s Basketball at Yale.
This year is the 60th annual Portsmouth Invitational. Notable players who have participated over the years include Dave Cowens, John Lucas, John Stockton, Tim Hardaway and Scottie Pippen.
COLUMBIA AT YALE
When: Today at 7 p.m. Where: Lee Amphitheater, New Haven Records: Columbia (14-12, 3-7 Ivy League); Yale (17-7, 7-3 Ivy) TV: YES Scouting Yale: The Bulldogs are 9-1 at home and sit in third place in the Ivy League after losing at Harvard last weekend. Yale rallied from 21 points down in the second half to defeat Columbia two weeks ago for its sixth straight win in the series. Reggie Willhite had 24 points and seven steals in the game to lead the comeback and also hit the game-winning shot. Yale trails Penn by a half-game for second place in the Ivy League and the Quakers play at Harvard on Saturday. Scouting Columbia: The Lions dropped a 61-59 decision in overtime last time out at Penn. Meiko Lyles led Columbia with 17 points in the game. Columbia has lost three straight games and six of its seven losses in the league losses have been by five points or fewer. The Lions are 25th in the nation and first in the Ivy in scoring defense allowing just over 60 ppg. Probable starters
Yale
Name, Ht, Year, Pos, Ppg. Jeremiah Kreisberg, 6-10, So., F, 7.9
Greg Mangano, 6-10, Sr, C, 18.4
Reggie Willhite, 6-4, Sr, F, 12.5
Austin Morgan, 5-10, Jr, G, 12.2
Michael Grace, 6-0, Jr., G, 5.9 Columbia Alex Rosenberg, 6-7, Fr., F, 6.9
John Daniels, 6-8, Jr., F, 2.9
Mark Cisco, 6-9, Jr., C, 9.8
Brian Barbour, 6-1, Jr., G, 15.2
Meiko Lyles, 6-3, So., G, 10.5
Off the bench: Yale: Brandon Sherrod, 6-6, Fr., F, 3.8; Jesse Pritchard,6-5, So., G, 1.6. Columbia: Blaise Staab, 6-5, Sr., F, 4.0; Chris Crockett, 5-10, Sr., G, 5.6.
NEW HAVEN – Last weekend is already a blur to Yale men’s basketball coach James Jones. His Bulldogs lost an overtime heart-breaker at Cornell and then rallied from 21 points down in the second half to defeat Columbia.
The weekend split left Yale (16-6, 6-2 Ivy League) in exactly the same place it was before it started,in second place and a game behind Harvard in the Ivy League standings. Yale visits Dartmouth (4-20, 0-8) on Friday night before playing at the Crimson (21-3, 7-1) on Saturday at Cambridge, Mass., in another crucial weekend of league play.
“The entire weekend is a complete blur,” Jones said of last week’s split. “You think about playing those games so close together. A four-hour bus ride. We got little sleep and the fact that you play overtime one night and then play the next night.
“We didn’t even get a chance to digest the Cornell game (an 85-84 loss) fully and they’re throwing the ball up for another game. I’m not sure what to take from the comeback in the Columbia game but I know that this team is resilient and they never give up.”
Yale forward Reggie Willhite took over the game against the Lions scoring 24 points including the game-winner in the 59-58 victory. Jones said it might have been the best game he’s ever played at Yale.
“He did what he was capable of doing,” Jones said. “There are very few people in the league that can stay in front of him. We were able to isolate him a little and he was able to do some stuff on his own.”
Said Willhite: “A lot of people were probably writing the season off during the Columbia game. It shows your true colors when your back is against the wall. The loss to Cornell definitely stung. Being down 21 points and staring the end of the season in your face, we had to find something that worked. We played our hearts and were able to get back into it.”
Yale defeated Dartmouth 62-52 getting a game-high 16 points from Willhite. They’re certainly not looking past the Big Green tonight.
“You do exactly what you’ve always done to prepare,” Jones said. “Last week we spent a lot more time on Cornell because they play differently than any other team in the league. This week we spent as much time working on ourselves as we did Harvard or Dartmouth.
“Dartmouth is always tough, especially up there. They’ve played everybody tough. Last week Penn’s Zach Rosen had to bury a 3-pointer from over 30 feet away to beat them. They’re dangerous. We’re very good inside and if we go in there we have a distinct advantage.”
Should the Bulldogs beat Dartmouth it has a short turnaround to get ready for nationally-ranked Harvard.
“It’s the curse of the Ivy League,” Willhite said. “Playing back-to-back nights is always tough but it’s even tougher when you have a huge rivalry game on the second night.”
Yale was embarrassed by Harvard 65-35 earlier in the season. The Bulldogs were never in the contest but Jones feels that his team can truly compete with the Crimson.
“Even in that game, Harvard only scored 65 points,” he said. “So our defense wasn’t that bad, we just couldn’t make a basket.”
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YALE AT CORNELL
When: Today at 7 p.m. Where: Newman Arena, Ithaca, N.Y. Records: Yale (15-5, 5-1 Ivy); Cornell (8-12, 3-3) Video: cornellbigred.com Scouting Yale: The Bulldogs hit the road for another crucial weekend. Yale sits in second place in the Ivy League, a game behind Harvard who plays tough road games this weeked at Penn and Princeton. The Bulldogs have won three straight and are off to their best start since 2006-07. Yale’s defense was the key last weekend limiting both opponents under 40 percent shooting and Greg Mangano averaged 21.5 ppg in a pair of game to earn Ivy Player of the Week honors. Scouting Cornell: The Big Red are 7-2 at home this season and are always in close games. In its last 18 Division I games, 16 have been decided by single digits. Drew Ferry leads the balanced Cornell scoring at 11.7 ppg and the Big Red feature the top freshman in the league in rugged forward Shonn Miller. Chris Wroblewski recently cracked the 1,000-point mark. Probable starters
Yale
Name,Ht,Year,Pos,PPg. Jeremiah Kreisberg,6-10,So.,F,7.6
Greg Mangano,6-10,Sr,C,19.0
Reggie Willhite,6-4,Sr,F,12.3
Austin Morgan,5-10,Jr,G,12.0
Michael Grace,6-0,Jr.,G,6.3 Cornell Drew Ferry,6-2,Sr.,G,11.7
Chris Wroblewski,6-6,Sr.,G,10.1
Shonn Miller,6-7,Fr.,F,9.5
Jonathan Gray,6-3,Jr.,G,6.9
Eitan Chimerewski,6-8,Fr.,F,6.6
NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Greg Mangano had another big week for the Yale men’s basketball team, and it has resulted in a pair of honors for the 6-10 center. Mangano, who averaged 21.5 points and 11.0 rebounds in Yale’s weekend sweep of Penn and Princeton, earned Ivy League and CollegeSportsMadness National Mid-Major Player of the Week honors.
Mangano was recognized by the Ivy League for the eighth time in his career, which ties for the second most in league history. Only Brown’s Earl Hunt (9 – 2000-03) has more.
In Yale’s 60-53 victory over Penn, Mangano hit a big three-pointer and had two huge offensive rebounds off of missed free throws in the last three minutes as the Bulldogs’ scored the final 10 points of the game. He finished with 23 points and 10 rebounds.
He followed that up by scoring 20 points and grabbing 12 rebounds in the 58-54 win over Princeton.
Mangano leads the Ivy League in scoring (19.0 ppg.), rebounding (10.1 rpg.) and blocks (49).
Reggie Willhite, who scored 20 points and grabbed nine rebounds in the win over Princeton, was named to the Ivy League Honor Roll.
The Bulldogs have a pair of road games this weekend. They play at Cornell on Friday and then are at Columbia on Saturday. Both games begin at 7 p.m.
By Bill Cloutier
Assistant Sports Editor
bcloutier@nhregister.com
NEW HAVEN -- Yale’s loss to Harvard a week ago made this weekend’s games imperative. The Bulldogs’ men’s basketball team had to sweep powerhouses Penn and Princeton if they were to truly contend for an Ivy League crown.
Mission accomplished.
Reggie Willhite and Greg Mangano both scored 20 points and Yale held off a late rally to defeat Princeton 58-54 before 2,175 fans at the Lee Amphitheater Saturday night. The win, Yale’s third straight, moves them to 15-5 overall and 5-1 in the Ivy League. Harvard leads the league at 6-0 and both teams have eight games left.
“It feels amazing,” Yale captain Reggie Willhite said. “Coach told us before the game how Princeton had beaten us five straight times. We knew how important it was to get a Penn-Princeton sweep. It’s always one of the most difficult parts of the season and to win both of them at home feels great.”
Princeton, one of the preseason favorites in the league, fell to 11-10 overall and 2-3 in the Ivy. The Tigers were led by Ian Hummer with 18 points. Mack Darrow had 11 and Patrick Saunders had 10.
Yale was fantastic in the first half. The Bulldogs took a 32-23 lead into the break despite shooting 2-for-10 from 3-point range. The rest of their game, however, was precise led by Willhite, who had 13 points at the break. Yale’s defense held Princeton without a point for nearly 10 minutes.
“We re-geared after Harvard,” Willhite said. “Everybody understood what this weekend meant, myself included, and we played pretty well.”
The Bulldogs opened up the advantage to a dozen early in the second half but it seemed like they wanted to put the game away from the 3-point line. Yale missed five straight shots from long range in a scoreless span of nearly five minutes.
While the stretch didn’t hurt them much on the scoreboard, Jones said the offense went stagnant and Princeton finally began to chip away. Hummer led the charge scoring 10 straight Tiger points and Princeton eventually closed the gap to 53-51 on a putback by Darrow with 1:08 to play.
“I still felt pretty good,” Jones said. “We maintained the lead for the most part. I just felt we took some ill-advised shots but what’s anchored us all weekend was our defense.”
Yale didn’t buckle and Jeremiah Kreisberg made two free throws on the next trip to extend the lead to four. Princeton, which missed several open 3-pointers in the second half, never got closer than three points in the final minute and never had the ball with a chance to tie the game. The Tigers shot 33 percent from the field in the game.
“Our guys did a good job of staying focused and we did all that was necessary to win the game,” Jones said. “We got a little tight in the second half and we stopped trying to win the game and instead tried to manage it.
“We haven’t been in that situation in games, to manage the lead.”
Kreisberg played his best game in weeks for the Bulldogs. The sophomore forward from Berkeley, Calif., scored nine points and two took charges.
“I texted him last night and told him I have great confidence in him and he was going to have a good game today,” Jones said. “He’s been in a little bit of a haze but he got himself out of it. He knows he’s a good player. He just needs to make sure he has the confidence.”
It was the fifth time in Jones’ tenure at Yale that he’s swept the weekend series against Penn and Princeton. The Bulldogs, who are 9-1 at home, now play four straight games on the road capped by a Feb. 18 trip to first-place Harvard.
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NEW HAVEN — A decade ago the Yale men’s basketball team entered its weekend series against Penn and Princeton with a 3-1 mark. The Bulldogs swept the pair of games and went on to share the Ivy League title.
They haven’t won a league crown since.
With the circumstances identical to begin this weekend, Yale scored the final 10 points to defeat Penn 60-53 in a crucial league contest in front of 2,012 at the Lee Amphitheater Friday night.
With the victory, Yale (14-5) improves to 4-1 in league play with another big contest against Princeton on tap tonight.
"This was a huge win," Yale center Greg Mangano said. "After the way we played last week there were a lot of people doubting us, but we know how good we can be. It’s good to have the opportunity to bounce back and prove ourselves."
A week ago Yale made loads of careless turnovers and was hammered by Harvard. While they didn’t clean things up much on Friday night, they won the game with heart.
"The mark of a good team is when you can overcome your mistakes and we were able to do that," Yale coach James Jones said. "There were plenty of them tonight, but we were still able to overcome the bad play with desire."
Mangano led all scorers with 23 points, including a huge 3-pointer that tied the game at 53 with 2:27 to play. Austin Morgan and Michael Grace each added 11 points for the Bulldogs.
Penn was paced by electric guard Zach Rosen, a two-time All-Ivy first-team selection, with 16 points. Rob Belcore added 11 points and six assists for Penn (11-10, 3-1).
The Quakers missed a lot of open shots. Rosen was 0-for-5 from 3-point range and high-scoring forward Tyler Bernardini, who scored 29 points in a game at UCLA earlier in the season, finished with six points on 2-of-13 shooting.
The game was close throughout. Yale broke open a 29-29 halftime score with the first eight points of the second half, but the lead evaporated quickly. Rosen then began to take over and a jumper in the lane gave the Quakers a 53-50 lead with 4:50 to play.
Penn never scored again.
"We wanted to make sure Penn won the game and we didn’t give it to them," Jones said. "We didn’t play well last week and we wanted to learn from that."
After Mangano’s 3, Reggie Willhite picked Rosen’s pocket with just over a minute to play. Willhite’s ensuing layup was blocked from behind but Morgan was there for the rebound. His shot was also blocked, but it was ruled goaltending and Yale took the lead for good.
The Bulldogs put the game away on the free-throw line, but it was an adventure. Brandon Sherrod made the first of a 1-and-1 situation, but missed the second. Mangano got the rebound and he was fouled.
Mangano missed his free throw, but out-raced everyone to the baseline to pull in the long rebound — his 10th of the game — and was fouled again. This time he put the game out of reach, making both free throws.
"I’m very disappointed," Penn coach Jerome Allen said. "Not so much because we lost, but we looked like we didn’t work that hard. I know what it’s going to take to win a title and we didn’t have it tonight."
The same can’t be said for the Bulldogs, who clearly out-worked Penn down the stretch.
"Everyone was singing our praises and saying this weekend was going to be easy for us," Allen said. "I still think we’re a better team and I’m really disappointed to come up short."
Allen said that Mangano made the difference.
"Every time he was open he made the shot, and every time we didn’t box out he got the rebound and scored."
Yale was 7-for-14 from 3-point range in the game. Penn shot 38 percent from the field. Willhite finished with eight rebounds, five assists and three steals.
Yale's split against Harvard and Dartmouth certainly didn't seal its fate in the Ivy League but it made this weekend very important.
The Bulldogs welcome Penn into town on Friday night and then have to turn around and meet Princeton.
While Princeton also has the quick turnaround, playing Brown the previous night, it frankly isn't as difficult as getting ready to play Penn.
Brown is 1-3 in the league and actually is quite similar to Yale.
The difference between preparing for Penn and Princeton is night and day.
Chatted with Greg Mangano's dad the other day and he said his son is tired.
It certainly hasn't hindered his play but think about Mangano's grueling schedule in the past year.
Twice he went to China, the first time playing exhibitions with his teammates. Then he tried out for the World University Games and earned a spot on Team USA.
You know how hard he had to work to make that team.
Now he's the focal point of opposing defenses every night of the season at Yale.
After the season is over he'll get little time off as you can be sure he'll be headed to every NBA camp he can to get more exposure.
Here is some video of the disappointing night at the Lee Amphitheater as Harvard pounded Yale 65-35.
The 3-pointer in the video hit by Greg Mangano was his 1,000th point of his career.
By Bill Cloutier
Assistant Sports Editor
bcloutier@nhregister.com
NEW HAVEN -- Contrary to popular belief the Ivy League trophy will not be awarded to the winner of Friday night’s Yale-Harvard men’s basketball game.
The teams were picked one-two in the league’s preseason poll and have not disappointed.
Harvard (16-2) gained national recognition after winning an early-season tournament loaded with national powers in the Bahamas and leaping into both national Top 25 polls. The Crimson are currently ranked 23rd in the nation in the ESPN/USA Today coaches’ poll and dropped out of the AP poll after a recent loss at Fordham. Harvard finished in a tie for the Ivy League title last year but lost the league’s title game against Princeton 63-62 in a game also played at the Lee Amphitheater.
Yale (12-4) has won four straight and is 6-0 at home on the season. The Bulldogs racked up 10 wins before the league schedule, the most since the 1991-92 season.
They’re both 2-0 in the league play tied with Penn atop the standings.
Those are the resumes. You already know about the rivalry.
The Bulldogs host the Crimson at the Lee Amphitheater at 7 p.m. The game is a sell-out and has been the talk of the campus for weeks.
“Sure it’s early but it’s Harvard-Yale and that makes it a big game,” said Yale guard Austin Morgan. “The fact that we were both picked to do well in the Ivy League makes it even bigger. It’s always good to have the New Haven community excited about the game.
“I don’t know how many times it’s been a sell-out but we’re excited to be a part of it.”
While the Bulldogs are anxious to play in front of a packed house, Yale coach James Jones isn’t concerned with counting tickets.
“Every Tom, Dick and Harry has called me for a ticket for the game,” he said. "We’ve been sold out for three weeks and I expect the atmosphere to be as good as gets. But I don’t care if we play in front of four people, I’d rather come out with a ‘W’”
Jones has a masters in coach-speak. It’s one-game-at-a-time and a win here doesn’t mean anything if you lose the next night. In the Ivy League that’s the rule, because win or lose, Yale hosts Dartmouth on Saturday and then has to get ready for Penn and Princeton the next night.
But it also can make Friday’s game all the more important. If the Bulldogs can’t beat Harvard at home it will be awfully hard to do so in Cambridge, Mass., in a few of weeks. And there’s always that two-game trip to Princeton and Penn at the end of the season to worry about. Very few teams ever sweep that series. All the games are the same," Jones said. "If we win on Friday and then lose on Saturday we’re in the same place. You want to win all 14 of them and this one is only different because it’s a home game. You want to be in control of your destiny.”
Yale split the season series with Harvard last season with both teams winning nail-biters on their home courts. For the most part the cast of characters is the same. Jones said Harvard is a little deeper than it was last year.
"They don’t have any bad players and by that I mean they don’t play anyone just because you need to spell a guy,” Jones said. “Everybody that they play this year is capable, very good basketball players. At that same time you look at a guy like Christian Webster, who I think is tremendous and Kyle Casey, who is tremendous, and they’re all playing less minutes than they did last year because they have a good group of freshmen.”
Said Morgan: “We have to play as a team. Harvard is good all-around. If we can get the ball inside out, the strength of our team is inside, we’ll be successful.”
While Harvard certainly has a ton of talent Yale will counter with its “Big Three” of Morgan, who is second in the nation in free throw shooting (93.7 percent), defensive wizard Reggie Willhite, and Orange's Greg Mangano, the top post player in the league.
Mangano leads the Ivy in scoring (19.4 ppg), rebounding (10.3 rpg) and blocks (40). After playing with Team USA over the summer in the World University Games in China, he has continued to progress toward the elite big men in the nation.
And what will make Friday night even more special is that Mangano needs just three points to become the 24th player in program history to reach 1,000 for his career.
His presence, along with smooth sophomore Jeremiah Kreisberg is where Jones starts his game-planning.
“Our advantages, like every game, are that we’re better inside than most every team that we play,” Jones said. “Harvard is pretty good inside, too. What I’ve come to understand is that there are players in this country that if you give them the ball on the blocks and expect them to score and you happen to have five or six of them in this game.
“It should be thrilling and fun to watch.”
Said Morgan: “They’re a good team and they’re getting respected because of it. We’re trying to get respect, too. That’s why they play the games, to see who’s better.”
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The Yale men's basketball team pulled away from Brown late in the second half to move to 2-0 in the Ivy League.
The win sets up the monstrous game with Harvard on Friday at the Lee Amphitheater.
Greg Mangano scored 18 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in the win.
Jesse Pritchard came off the bench to provide a big spark. He had nine points and eight rebounds for Yale, which outrebounded Brown 49-31. Austin Morgan had 10 points and five assists.
NEW HAVEN — Things got so bad on the injury front recently that the Brown men’s basketball team plucked a couple of bodies from the football tewam to join the squad.
Against the imposing Yale (10-4) frontline they’ll probably need them.
Yale, led by sizzling center Greg Mangano, opens Ivy League play against the Bears Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. at the Lee Amphitheater. The Bulldogs have won the past three games in the series.
Mangano is coming off a monstrous, 35-point, 22-rebound, performance against undermanned St. Joseph College (L.I.) last game. But don’t let the DIII stats skewer what the senior from Orange has done this year. Mangano is already a three-time Ivy League Player of the Week choice averaging 19.9 ppg and 10.7 rebounds. He scored 26 points and grabbed 15 rebounds against then 10th ranked Florida a week ago and had 20 and 11 against Wake Forest.
Brown coach Jesse Agel knows his team will have its hand full guarding the 6-10 post from Notre Dame-West Haven.
"We don’t have one guy who can go out and get us 22 rebounds," Agel said. "As a group we have to do a better job of rebounding and that will be a key component of whether we can be successful.
"We’ll have to work as a unit to stop him. But last week we were down to seven players and now we’re back to 10 players, all the sickness is over and it’s just down to injuries, so we’re excited about that."
While Brown is just 5-11, the Bears do have a pair of impressive wins on the docket this season. They beat Rhode Island for the first time since 2001 and also beat a strong Central Connecticut State team in early December. Both of those wins came at home and the Bears are still searching for their first road win of the season.
Brown features exciting sophomore guard Sean McGonagill. Also a bit hampered recently buy injuries, McGonagill set Brown’s Pizzitola Center mark for points (39) and field goals in a game (15) in a game against Columbia last season. The outing was even more outstanding considering that McGonagill had facial surgery two days prior and was wearing a protective mask.
"They’ve changed some things recently that they had been doing," Yale coach James Jones said. "McGonagill is still the main cog. He makes them go. Andrew McCarthy has done a real nice job of making perimeter jumpshots and he’s been really active. Those are the main two guys."
McGonagill’s offensive prowess may force Yale to defend him with its phenom stopper Reggie Willhite on Saturday. Willhite has a knack for not only shutting down the oppositions best scorers but virtually eliminating them. This year Willhite has also taking up much more of the offensive slack scoring 12.6 points a game.
And guard Austin Morgan continues to possess the outside stroke scoring 13.0 points and leading the team with 36 3-pointers.
Yale, picked second in the preseason Ivy League poll surely knows how important every league is on the slate and will need focus in Brown which it plays two straight games before Yale hosts Harvard in a titanic clash on Jan. 27
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NEW HAVEN — Is it possible to have a double-double by halftime and actually be playing poorly? Those are the lofty standards that Yale’s Greg Mangano has set for himself.
In fact Mangano didn’t think he played that well at all in Sunday’s 101-86 win over St. Joseph’s (Long Island) at the Lee Amphitheater.
But take a step back and appreciate his final numbers, the type of statistics that are reserved for the most elite players.
Mangano finished Sunday’s game with 35 points and 22 rebounds, both career highs. He had also had three blocked shots and grabbed 13 offensive rebounds.
“The guys were doing a good job of getting me the ball, but I had some good opportunities that I missed,” Mangano said. “I was a little more successful in the second half, but I don’t think I played that well.”
Mangano’s performance left Yale coach James Jones a bit speechless. He grabbed the most rebounds for Yale since Chris Dudley pulled down 22 against Harvard in 1987.
“I really don’t know what to say about it,” Jones said. “Offensively he’s as good as you can get. He missed free throws, but I don’t know how much you want him to score. At halftime he had 15 points and 11 rebounds and I was mad at him.”
Take away any of the his contributions and Yale could have been set up for a major embarrassment. The Bulldogs (10-4) raced out to a 29-4 lead in the game’s opening minutes but then got complacent and watched the Golden Eagles close the gap to 46-43 at the half.
“I didn’t think we did a great job of finishing off the first half,” Jones said. “We took the foot off the pedal. They missed some shots early and were a little nervous, but we didn’t do a good job of defending all night.
“They’re a pretty good basketball team. They can shoot. At halftime there was a bit of everything.”
Sure St. Joseph’s is a Division III school, but it’s not just any D-III program. Starting five seniors, the Golden Eagles won 22 games last season and never got rattled when Yale threatened to turn the game into a laugher. It was the first time in the program’s history that it played a Division I school.
“It was kind of fool’s gold in the beginning,” said Mangano, who continually took advantage of his 4-inch height advantage over the St. Joseph’s front-court players. “We knew they could shoot the ball and once they settled in and starting making their shots we found ourselves in a little bit of trouble.
“I think the general consensus in the locker room is that we played pretty poorly.”
In the end, guard Chris Jiminez finished with 22 points and Olivier Laurent added 18. The Golden Eagles, who entered the game averaging 86 points a game, missed their first seven 3-pointers of the game but finished 11 for 27 from behind the arc to make a game of it.
Yale never really put the game away until under four minutes were left to play when they pushed a 10-point lead back up to 17.
“We kept our composure and pulled away at the end,” Jones said.
Will Childs-Klein, who put the Bulldogs over the century mark earlier in the season against Lindon State, did it again with a dunk on Sunday for the final margin.
“We shot 52 percent for the game and scored 101 points and won,” Jones said. “I don’t know how many more points you want to score, but I don’t know the last time we gave up 86 points. We didn’t give up that much to Seton Hall. I wouldn’t suspect that they’re as good as Holy Cross and we didn’t give up 86 to them. It’s disappointing that we didn’t do a good job against them.”
It was the final non-league game of the season for the Bulldogs who open up Ivy League play on Saturday against Brown.
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Men’s basketball gameday
ST. JOSEPH (L.I.) AT YALE
When: Sunday, 4 p.m. Where: Lee Amphitheater, New Haven Records: St. Joseph’s (9-1); Yale (9-4) KEEP AN EYE ON Scouting Yale: The Bulldogs play their last game before beginning Ivy League play for the final 14 games of the season. This should serve as a final chance for coach James Jones’ bench players to show they deserve playing time once the league play begins against Brown on Saturday. Greg Mangano continues to lead the Bulldogs and is nearing 1,000 points for his stellar career. Scouting St. Joseph’s: This the first time the Golden Eagles, a Division III school, have ever played a Division I opponent. They start five seniors and average 85 points a game so expect and end-to-end matchup. They were picked second in the Skyline Conference preseason poll and went 22-7 last season. PROBABLE STARTERS
YALE Player Ht. Yr. Pos. PPG
Greg Mangano 6-10 Sr. F 18.7
Reggie Willhite 6-4 Sr. F 12.1
Austin Morgan 5-11 Jr. G 13.3
Jeremiah Kreisberg 6-1 So. F 8.2
Michael Grace 6-0 Jr.. G 6.5 ST. JOSEPH'S Chris Jiminez 6-0 Sr. G 15.3
Olivier Laurent 6-2 So. G 15.3
Vincent Russo 6-4 Sr. F 7.6
Trey Black 6-2 Sr. G 16.0
Steve Velazquez 6-4 Sr. F 12.1 OFF THE BENCH Yale — Isaiah Salafia, 6-3, So., G, 3.3 ppg.; Brandon Sherrod, 6-6, Fr., F, 3.3; St. Joseph’s — Shahab Syez, 6-6, Sr., C, 9.9; Cody Lohsen, 6-4, So., F, 4.8.
— Bill Cloutier
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