News and Notes: Tuesday Edition

Cornell Big Red Basketball is 115 years of tradition...Below, news and notes for Tuesday...

Above, "Cornell now has a Basket Ball Team."  This was a headline in the December 1, 1897 issue of the Cornell Daily Sun announcing the creation of the University's first team which commenced training during the 1897-1898 school year.

Above, a photograph and autograph of Edwin R. Sweetland (Cornell Class of 1899).  Sweetland was a member of Cornell's first basketball team and played for the team during its inaugural official varsity season during the 1898-1899 school year.  While at Cornell, Sweetland also played football for the Big Red under the legendary coach, Pop Warner and was named a Walter Camp All American.  Sweetand's incredible career beyond Cornell included serving as the head football coach of Syracuse and then in 1909 as the first paid head basketball coach at the University of Kentucky.  See some of our prior posts on the Origins of Cornell Basketball.

• ESPN's Summer Shootaround Series provides updates on several Division I conferences including some of Cornell's 2012-2013 opponents.  These teams include Duke, Wisconsin, Vanderbilt, Arizona State and St. Bonaventure.  Speaking of the 2012-2013 schedule, did you know that Cornell's first opponent in the Las Vegas Invitational, Presbyterian, defeated Cincinnati last year?  They also defeated Princeton during its Ivy League Championship 2010-2011 season.

• Ned Tomic is in action today in the championship game of the Cleveland AmPro.

• Dwight Tarwater is in London with his parents to watch his brother Davis swim in the Olympics.

News and Notes for Monday

Above and below, Dates in Cornell Basketball History... from 75 years ago, the cover of the January 23, 1938 issue of the Cornell Daily Sun recapping Cornell's win at Yale on January 22, 1938.  Also above, the game program from New Haven.  Below, an image from the Cornell Daily Sun from January 10, 1938 which profiles the Big Red's star players before the conference home opener of the '37-'38 season against Dartmouth.  

 Below, some news and notes for Monday...

• On the Brooklyn Nets' final open roster spot, Nets Daily writes, "The Nets could just wait till training camp to decide on the 14th and 15th men. Al Thornton played well in Orlando. Jeff Foote showed some promise there, but he's still a work in progress. You'd assume both players will get camp invites. In the past, the Nets have brought in as many as 20 players. Still, if the Nets were really interested, you'd think they would have offered Thornton and Foote partial guarantees on vets minimum deals. They did that two years ago. Doesn't seem like they want to do that with them."

• The Clevenland AmPro posted some raw video of Ned Tomic's team in action in the summer league.  Cornell's Tomic scored 14 points and grabbed 12 rebounds as his Youngbloodz team advanced to the league championship game over the weekend.  The AmPro also posted recent raw footage of Shonn Miller's Iggy's Boys team.  Cornellians participating in summer pro leagues this season include:

Ned Tomic-Cleveland AmPro
Shonn Miller-Cleveland AmPro
Galal Cancer-Capital District Basketball Association Summer League
Josh Figini-Howard Pulley Summer Pro League (St. Paul, MN)
Jake Mattthews-Pittsburgh Basketball Club Summer Pro League

• The Cornell Basketball program is holding another session of its camp for youngsters.

• Above, the game program cover from the 2005 Coach vs. Cancer College Hoops Classic.  Below, the brackets from the tournament.  Cornell defeated St. Francis (PA) on November 8, 2005 in the opening round followed by a 67-62 defeat to Syracuse.  Cornell and St. Francis (PA) meet again during the 2012-2013 season.

News and Notes: Friday Edition

Below, some news and notes for Friday...

• The Springfield Republican writes, "With the help of Nets director of minor-league operations Milton Lee, the Armor added center Jeff Foote and forward Dennis Horner [last season] to make a formidable starting five."

• Arizona State officially released its scheduled game with Cornell on November 20 as part of the Las Vegas Invitational.  Meanwhile, Wisconsin released its full nonconference schedule including its meeting with Cornell on November 18, also a part of the Las Vegas Invitational.

News and Notes: Thursday Edition

Above, a 1975 game program from Cornell's visit to Baton Rouge, Louisiana and LSU.  Below, some news and notes for Thursday...

• The New York Post writes that the Nets will "add at least one more [player to the roster]– could be Shelden Williams, [Damion] James, free agent Al Thornton, D-League hopeful Jeff Foote...They’ve already committed to more than $335 million (that’s $75 million more than Mikhail Prokhorov paid for the team two years ago). That $335 million contains about $82 million for the upcoming season, plopping them about $12 million over the luxury tax threshold. It’s good to have a billionaire owner. Or an oligarch. Or both."

• Foote's D-League coach, Bob MacKinnon received a contract extension. The Springfield Armor noted in their release, "The 2011-12 Armor had three players earn a total of four GATORADE NBA Call-Ups, including Dennis Horner (New Jersey Nets, twice), Jeff Foote (New Orleans Hornets) and Jerry Smith (New Jersey Nets)."

• Cornell Athletics announced via Twitter, "MBKB: Cornell will play Presbyterian in 1st game on final round of LLVI on Nov. 23. Will play either Longwood or Florida A&M on Nov. 24."

• Wisconsin released its full nonconference schedule and notes of the Cornell game, " Nov. 18 vs. Cornell (Kohl Center) First and second-round games of the 2012 Las Vegas Invitational are being held at the host institutions ... in the only previous meeting, the Big Red knocked UW from the 2010 NCAA tournament with a second-round win in Jacksonville, Fla."

• White and Blue Review writes of Creighton, " The Bluejays will have two games at home as a part of the Las Vegas Invitational before making the trip to Las Vegas. The rest of the field consists of Presbyterian, Cornell, Florida A&M and Longwood. Cornell has already released their non-conference schedule and will be playing Wisconsin and Arizona State leaving the other three teams as potential opponents for the Bluejays."

• The Ithaca Journal writes:

Bill Courtney's third year as Cornell men's basketball coach promises to be a challenging 2012-13 season with 10 of his 12 leading scorers from a year ago back. The Big Red finished 12-16 overall and 7-7 in the Ivy League last season.

A visit to famed Cameron Indoor Stadium and a six-day stint in “Sin City” highlight the Cornell University men’s basketball team’s 2012-13 schedule.

The school released the Big Red’s 31-game schedule — the most scheduled games in program history — on Wednesday.

Third-year coach Bill Courtney’s squad, which finished 12-16 and 7-7 in the Ivy League last season, will play 15 games against teams that participated in the postseason a year ago, including six against NCAA tournament teams.

Cornell will play 14 home games, including three in six days starting Nov. 10 against Western Michigan, reigning Atlantic 10 tournament champion St. Bonaventure and Saint Peter’s (N.J.) at Newman Arena. Two days after facing the Peacocks, the team will head west for the Las Vegas Invitational, where it will take on Sweet 16 participant Wisconsin and Arizona State.

Before heading home, the Big Red will play two more contests at Orleans Arena, off the Las Vegas strip, with potential opponents including Florida A&M, Longwood and Presbyerian.

After Las Vegas, Cornell goes another road trip, highlighted by a date with Duke on Dec. 19. The Blue Devils finished second in the Atlantic Coast Conference last season before being shocked by No. 15 seed Lehigh of the Patriot League in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

Two days before facing Duke, Cornell will visit defending Southeastern Conference tournament champion Vanderbilt.

Other marquee nonconference games include home contests against defending America East regular-season champion Stony Brook on Nov. 28 and Patriot League regular-season champion Bucknell on Jan. 2.

The Big Red’s Ivy League opener will be Jan. 19 at home against Columbia. Two-time defending league champion Harvard visits on Feb. 8, with Cornell visiting Cambridge, Mass., on March 9 in the regular-season finale.

Among the top expected returnees for Cornell are 2011-12 Ivy League Rookie of the Year Shonn Miller; all-Ivy guard Johnathan Gray, a senior who spent part of the summer with the U.S. Virgin Islands’ national team; and forward Errick Peck, the Big Red’s second-leading scorer in 2010-11, who missed last season due to a knee injury.

Shonn Miller at Work in Summer League

Above, Cornell's Shonn Miller last night in the Cleveland AmPro League.

News and Notes: Wednesday Edition

Above, a look at Cornell's groovy uniform from the 1972-1973 season.  John O'Neil ('75) chases down a loose ball on January 20, 1973 at Manley Fieldhouse in Syracuse, NY.  Below, some news and notes for Wednesday...

• Navy announced its recruiting class and mentions that one of its commits, Tilman Dunbar, played on a Paul VI High School team (Fairfax, Virginia) that boasted five Division I committed players, including Cornell recruit, Tim Higgins (Paul VI HS) Fairfax, VA, 6-10, C (class of 2013).

• Cornell formallyannounced its 2012-2013 schedule:

2012-13 Cornell Men's Basketball Schedule 

Las Vegas Invite, Trips To Duke, Vanderbilt Highlight 2012-13 Cornell Men's Basketball Schedule 

Cornell Athletics   

ITHACA, N.Y. -- Head coach Bill Courtney and his staff continue to take on all comers, as the 2012-13 Cornell men's basketball schedule proves. The Big Red will play 15 games against teams that participated in the postseason a year ago, including six contests against squads that competed in the NCAA tournament.

Cornell will play 31 games total, the second most in school history, including participating in the Las Vegas Invitational, where it will play games at 2012 NCAA Sweet 16 participant Wisconsin and Arizona State, as well as two additional contests at Orleans Arena just off the Las Vegas strip. The Big Red will also play two teams out of the pool of Florida A&M, Longwood and Presbyterian. Joining the Badgers and Sun Devils in the other round will be Arkansas and Creighton.

Also highlighting the schedule will be the second trip in seven seasons to famed Cameron Indoor Arena for a non-conference tilt with Duke when the two teams meet on Wednesday, Dec. 19. The Blue Devils, one of 15 teams on Cornell's schedule that won 19 or more games a year ago, finished second in the Atlantic Coast Conference a year ago. Two days prior to the Duke game, the Big Red will visit defending Southeastern Conference tournament champion Vanderbilt.

Other highlighted non-conference games include the season and home opener against Western Michigan on Saturday, Nov. 10, and home games against reigning Atlantic 10 tournament champ St. Bonaventure on Wednesday, Nov. 14, defending America East regular season champion Stony Brook on Wednesday, Nov. 28, and 2012 Patriot League regular season champ Bucknell on Wednesday, Jan. 2. Rounding out the non-conference games against postseason tournament teams will be a matchup at 20-win American, a CIT participant a year ago, on Sunday, Jan. 6.

Four out of Cornell's seven Ivy League foes (Harvard - NCAA, Princeton and Penn - CBI, and Yale - CIT) won at least 19 games a year ago and made the postseason. They will all pose major challenges, as will improved squads from Columbia, Brown and Dartmouth, when the Big Red attempts to claim its fourth Ivy title in the last six years. The conference portion of the schedule opens at home against Columbia on Saturday, Jan. 19 at Newman Arena.

Cornell improved its win total overall and in Ivy League play in 2011-12, 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 spent part of the summer competing on 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.

Date Opponent Location Time/Result
11/10/2012 Western Michigan University Ithaca, N.Y. - Newman Arena 12:00 p.m.
11/14/2012 St. Bonaventure University Ithaca, N.Y. - Newman Arena 7:00 p.m.
11/16/2012 Saint Peter's College Ithaca, N.Y. - Newman Arena 7:00 p.m.
Las Vegas Invitational
11/18/2012 University of Wisconsin Madison, Wis. TBA
11/20/2012 Arizona State University Tempe, Ariz. TBA
11/23/2012 TBA Las Vegas, Nev. TBA
11/24/2012 TBA Las Vegas, Nev. TBA
11/28/2012 Stony Brook University Ithaca, N.Y. - Newman Arena 7:00 p.m.
12/1/2012 Colgate University Ithaca, N.Y. - Newman Arena TBA
12/17/2012 Vanderbilt University Nashville, Tenn. TBA
12/19/2012 Duke University Durham, N.C. TBA
12/22/2012 Boston University Boston, Mass. TBA
12/28/2012 St. Francis University (Pa.) Loretto, Pa. TBA
12/30/2012 Binghamton University Vestal, N.Y. 2:00 p.m.
1/2/2013 Bucknell University Ithaca, N.Y. - Newman Arena 7:00 p.m.
1/6/2013 American University Washington, D.C. TBA
1/12/2013 The College at Old Westbury Ithaca, N.Y. - Newman Arena TBA
1/19/2013 * Columbia University Ithaca, N.Y. - Newman Arena TBA
1/26/2013 * Columbia University New York, N.Y. TBA
2/1/2013 * Princeton University Princeton, N.J. TBA
2/2/2013 * University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, Pa. TBA
2/8/2013 * Harvard University Ithaca, N.Y. - Newman Arena 7:00 p.m.
2/9/2013 * Dartmouth College Ithaca, N.Y. - Newman Arena 7:00 p.m.
2/15/2013 * Yale University New Haven, Conn. TBA
2/16/2013 * Brown University Providence, R.I. TBA
2/22/2013 * University of Pennsylvania Ithaca, N.Y. - Newman Arena 7:00 p.m.
2/23/2013 * Princeton University Ithaca, N.Y. - Newman Arena 7:00 p.m.
3/1/2013 * Brown University Ithaca, N.Y. - Newman Arena 7:00 p.m.
3/2/2013 * Yale University Ithaca, N.Y. - Newman Arena 7:00 p.m.
3/8/2013 * Dartmouth College Hanover, N.H. TBA
3/9/2013 * Harvard University Cambridge, Mass. TBA

News and Notes: Tuesday Edition

Below, some news and notes for Tuesday...

• Fans of college basketball history and of Cornell Basketball history, should consider purchasing the new book, The Classic, the story of the legendary Dixie Classic Tournament held between 1949 through 1960 on Tobacco Road. Prior to the creation of March Madness, the Dixie Classic was one of college’s premier hoops events. The Dixie Classic's demise occurred in 1961 due to a point-shaving scandal organized by New York area mobsters. Annually tipping off just after Christmas in Reynolds Coliseum on the NC State Campus, the tournament was played over three days for more than a decade. The holiday event opened with each of the Big Four—NC State, UNC, Duke and Wake Forest—playing non-conference opponents selected from some of the most competitive programs in the country including, Cornell. The Cornell Big Red were the runner-ups of the 1951 Dixie Classic, falling by 2 points to N.C. State in the championship game and returned to the event as invitees in 1954 as the defending Ivy League champions. Below, Cornell's results from the Dixie Classic in 1951 and 1954.  Above, pages from the 1954 Dixie Classic program and below an excerpt from the March 23, 1954 issue of the Cornell Daily Sun announcing Cornell's invitation to the 1954 Dixie Classic.  Cornell returns to Dixie and "Tobacco Road" this season with a visit to Duke.

12/27/1951 vs Wake Forest W 58-51 - Raleigh, N.C.
12/28/1951 vs Columbia W 66-64 - Raleigh, N.C.
12/29/1951 at North Carolina State L 49-51 - Raleigh, N.C. (Championship Game) 

12/27/1954 at North Carolina State L 61-95 - Raleigh, N.C.12/28/1954 vs Southern Carlifornia L 58-77 - Raleigh, N.C.12/29/1954 vs West Virginia L 71-79 - Raleigh, N.C.

Below, legenday sportswriter, Dick Schaap, recapped Cornell's runner-up finish in the 1951 Dixie Classic for the Cornell Daily Sun.

• Incoming Cornell recruit, David Onuorah (Marist HS) Atlanta, GA, 6-8, 230, F, participated in the prestigious AAU event, the Nike Peach Jam between July 16-22 in Georgia.  Playing with his team, the Memphis-based Bluff City Legends, Onuorah started all five games, averaging 21.8 minutes, 4.2 points, 5.2 rebounds, 1.6 blocks while shooting 8/20 (40%) from the floor and 5/11 at the FT line.  Bluff City struggled to an 0-5 record in the tournament.  Onuorah's height has been listed between 6'8" and 6'9" on most recruiting websites and was listed at 6'9" at the Peach Jam.