With the Lions splitting their opening road weekend against Fordham and Seton Hall, there is much to be excited about for the basketball upcoming season. While the Rams are young (only two players who played significant minutes returned from last year) and thin on the front line, Columbia’s ability to overcome a five-point halftime deficit on the road, against an Atlantic-10 team was quite impressive. Six things in particular caught my eye.
1. The Lions’ determination—In the past couple of seasons, Columbia had been unable to close out some games, despite having a clear go-to player in John Baumann to carry the offense. But, on Friday night, a number of players were counted on to shoulder the load offensively with Jason Miller, Asenso Ampim, and Patrick Foley all setting or tying career highs in points.
2. Miller and Ampim’s improved play—With the loss of two-time all-Ivy forward Baumann and three-year starter Ben Nwachukwu, the presence down low is expected to be minimal this year. But both Miller and Ampim proved otherwise, combining for 28 points and 29 rebounds. In Miller’s three seasons with Columbia, he had a total of 102 points and 86 rebounds, or averages of 1.6 points and 1.3 rebounds. So, the output of Miller in the opening games was clearly a pleasant surprise.
3. Patrick Foley’s return—After only playing in nine games last year, I forgot how talented Foley truly is with the ball. His ability to get into the key on a regular basis against Fordham (and with some success against Seton Hall) will pay dividends once the Lions begin to hit their three pointers.
4. The play of the freshmen—Two freshmen particularly impressed me this weekend: Noruwa Agho and Issa Mase. Agho proved that he was a solid offensive player both down low against smaller guards and on the perimeter, demonstrating a similar type of offensive game as a healthy Justin Armstrong. Further, he is a solid defender on the perimeter against quicker guards and above the rim. Against Fordham, Agho had nine points on 3-of-8 shooting and four rebounds in 29 minutes.
Despite playing minimally on Friday, Mase showed a lot of potential against Seton Hall. In eight minutes of action, he had eight points and two rebounds. But it was more than just the stats. Mase’s touch from the perimeter and ability to get to the foul line proves that he has the potential to be an offensive asset. Additionally, his lean body and long arms may allow him to become a shut-down defender on the perimeter.
5. The Lions’ defense—Last year, Columbia ranked first in the Ivy League in three-point field goal defense (29 percent), and second in both field goal percentage defense (42.8 percent) and scoring defense (63.1 percent). With a younger squad, the Lions’ defense could have been expected to fall, but with an increased focus on off-the-ball help defense, the young players have picked up Jones’ defensive schemes quickly.
Against Fordham, Columbia held the Rams to only 62 points on 40 percent shooting—37 percent from three-point range—all similar to last season’s numbers. One clear difference in the defense now is communication. Rather than not knowing who should cover whom on a pick-and-roll, Columbia now knows to switch off on all of them (or at least flash as if to help). The renewed defensive intensity could allow the Lions to squeak out some grind-it-out games come Ivy League play.
6. Winning without Niko Scott—With the junior guard out with a knee injury for the first two games, Columbia was still able to defeat Fordham without the projected starting guard. Last season as a full-time starter, Scott finished second on the team in scoring (7.7 points per game) and was a solid perimeter defender. Without Scott, the Lions were missing a solid three-point shooter and an on-the-ball defender, but they still managed to defeat Fordham.
A lot of the positives in the opener (sans the defense) faded slightly against Seton Hall. But Sunday’s game will not be reflective of Columbia’s season, given the Pirates’ Big East-quality athletes. Columbia’s ability to close out the game at a rowdy Rose Hill Gymnasium really impressed me. Considering the sold-out crowd and a similar gym to those that it will see in the Ivy League, the experiences could prove invaluable come the Ivy League season.
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