Yale’s Flato Excels Despite Team’s Struggles

Eight games into the Ivy League schedule, Yale already has as many league losses as it did through all of Ancient Eight play last season. This is obviously a major change for the Bulldogs, but something that has remained constant for them has been the play of senior guard Eric Flato.

The 2005-2006 season was officially Flato’s coming out party as a top player in the Ivy League. As a sophomore, he scored 11.3 points per game, made over 40 percent of his three-point shot attempts, and was named Honorable Mention All-Ivy. En route to leading Yale to a second place finish in the league last season, Flato brought his game to the next level. He started every game for the Bulldogs, scored 15.3 points per game, and totaled 96 assists on the season, making him a unanimous first team All-Ivy selection.

This season, the Piedmont, Calif. native has continued to be one of the more threatening guards in the Ivy League. He is averaging 12.3 points per game, which is down from last year but still the ninth best in the Ancient Eight. His three-point shooting ability has continued to be strong, as he is averaging 2.43 three-point field goals per game, the third most in the league. Defensively, the Bulldogs’ captain is part of the team that has the most steals in the Ivy League. His contribution to that statistic has been 1.67 steals per game, which is the fifth most in the conference, trailing two of his teammates—Alex Zampier (first) and Travis Pinick (fourth).

In the last matchup against the Lions, Flato was frustrated by the Light Blue’s defense. In 34 minutes of play, the Bulldogs’ leading scorer was held without a field goal on 0-for-7 shooting, three assists, and four turnovers. He did score six points as he went 6-for-6 from the free throw line.

Despite their successes in stopping Flato last time these two teams met, the Lions will probably not be able to contain one of the top scorers in the Ivy League as well as they did in New Haven. Scorers like Flato know how to get good shots and usually aren’t stifled by the same team twice. In league play this season, Flato is averaging fewer points than in non-conference play, but not by much, as he has notched 11.4 points per game against Ancient Eight foes.

As the Bulldogs and Lions take the court on Saturday night, the matchup of Flato against Lions guard Brett Loscalzo will be one of the more interesting to watch. It will pit two seniors against each other for the final time, with Flato trying to prove that his performance three weeks ago was a fluke and Loscalzo attempting to suppress Flato for the second time this month.