News and Notes: Thursday Edition

Below, some news and notes for Thursday...

• The Daily Pennsylvanian writes, "The Ivy League finally landed a two-year television contract with NBC Sports Network earlier this month, the most important move in the Ancient Eight’s brief history of televised games. NBCSN will broadcast six to 10 football games, six to 10 men’s basketball games and up to four men’s lacrosse games annually. The deal continues through the 2014 lacrosse season. But the Ancient Eight definitely missed a trick by failing to provide a national stage for its post-Penn/Princeton era. Since its last conference deal for both football and basketball expired with YES Network in 2008, Cornell has reached the Sweet 16..."

• CHBC News of Canada writes, " A Kelowna teen has been chosen to represent Canada as part of its junior national basketball team.  Braxston Bunce, a Kelowna Secondary School student, will travel to Toronto at the beginning of June to prepare for the FIBA Americas, which take place in Brazil in mid-June.  The top four countries will then pursue the U19 FIBA World Championship next year.
  Bunce is slated to join the men’s basketball team at Cornell University in the fall."

• Cornell Athletics issued the following release:

Men's Basketball Adds Four Into Class of 2016

ITHACA, N.Y. -- The Cornell men's basketball team and head coach Bill Courtney have announced that four incoming freshmen will join the Big Red family and make up the Class of 2016. Guards Nolan Cressler and Robert Mischler, forward Holt Harmon and center Braxston Bunce will join three returning starters and 13 returning letter winners out to bring home Cornell's fourth Ivy League title in the last six seasons in the upcoming 2012-13 campaign.

“At the start of recruiting for the class of 2016, our staff came to the conclusion that we could improve by finding young men who could shoot the basketball, as well as adding size to our roster,” Courtney said. “We are very happy with the four man class that we have coming in and feel like we certainly filled our needs."

Cornell improved its win total overall and in Ivy League play, finishing 12-16 overall and 7-7 in conference action. The Big Red is scheduled to return 10 of its 12 leading scorers, including 2011-12 Ivy League Rookie of the Year Shonn Miller and All-Ivy guard Johnathan Gray, who will spend the summer competing as part of the U.S. Virgin Islands' national team. Also expected to return is starting forward Errick Peck, the team's second-leading scorer in 2010-11 who missed last season due to injury.

Braxston Bunce

Fr. * C * 6-11 * 250 *  Kelowna, B.C. (Kelowna Secondary School)

At Kelowna Secondary School

A member of the Canadian Under-19 national team, Bunce was named the high school player of the year in the province of British Columbia. Bunce averaged 16.4 points and 11.0 rebounds as a senior. He had averaged 2.1 points and 2.6 rebounds as the youngest member of the U-19 Canadian team at the Fiba U19 World championship held in Latvia. Included was an eight-point, six-rebound effort in a win over Egypt. A team captain as a senior, he was an all-league and all-area selection who helped lead his team to a league title. The scouting service HoopStars Canada ranked among the top 15 prospects in Canda. He was invited to play in the Okanagan Valley All Star Game, scoring 13 points in that game. As a junior, Bunce was named second-team All-Canada after averaging 13.4 points and 10.4 rebounds.

Nolan Cressler

Fr. * G * 6-4 * 200 *  Pittsburgh, Pa. (Plum HS)

At Plum HS

A second-team all-state selection as a senior at Plum HS, Cressler was a two-time first-team all-section pick.  He became the school's career scoring leader in his final season (1,565 points) and was named the Pittsburgh Post Gazette's East Player of the Year and the WPIAL AAAA Player of the Year. Cressler averaged 25.8 points and 8.8 rebounds per game in his final season, a year after averaging 25.5 points and 7.6 rebounds as a junior. A member of the Post Gazette's Fab Five team, he was selected to play in both the Roundball Classic and AK Valley Cager Classic All-Star games, setting the single-game scoring record at the latter (38 points). Cressler earned a spot on the Pittsburgh Tribune's Terrific 10 squad and helped lead his squad to a sectional title as a sophomore.

Holt Harmon

Fr. * F * 6-9 * 240 *  Plano, Texas (Plano West HS)

At Plano West HS

Harmon was a two-time all-district selection at Plano West HS who earned all-region accolades as a senior. Team team MVP in his final season, he graduated among the school's all-time leader in points (third), rebounds (third), games played and started (first) and free-throw percentage (sixth). Harmon averaged 12.8 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game in his final season in helping his squad to a 26-9 record and a final ranking of fifth in the state. He shot 50 percent from the floor and 76 percent from the free-throw line while also accumulating 11 blocks and 17 steals. Harmon earned a spot on the Showboat Classic All-Star team. He averaged 10.8 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game as a junior.

Robert Mischler

Fr. * G * 6-3 * 190 *  Mishawaka, Ind. (Marian HS)

At Marian HS

Mischler was an all-state selection as a senior at Marian HS after earning all-league accolades in his final two seasons. An academic all-state first team as a senior, he earned a spot in the Michiana McDonald's All-Star team after averaging 13.8 points as a senior. Mischler was named as one of Hoosier Basketball Magazine's top 100 seniors. He averaged 12.9 points per game while shooting 41 percent from beyond the 3-point arc as a junior and was one of 48 juniors selected to play in the Indiana Class Basketball All-Star Classic. He was a four-year varsity player and two-time captain who scored 987 career points and was a better than 40 percent shooter from 3-point range. He was also a three-year letter winner on the gridiron at quarterback who earned honorable mention all-state as a senior. A second-team all-conference pick and a first-team academic all-state selection, he served as team captain in his final season.