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NCAA Lacrosse Tournament: Semifinal Saturday Open Thread

2013-05-25T17:57:06Z

There is no better day of games than Semifinal Saturday. Parking lots filled with tailgaters, a mosaic of fanbases coming together to watch college lacrosse's biggest moments, and four of the best teams in the nation smacking each other in the face for the right to play for a national championship on Memorial Monday. Take out the fancy bottle of bourbon today, pals and gal pals: These are the good times.

If you've missed anything this week, checking out College Crosse's NCAA Tournament hub (it's a window into your soul) is the best way to achieve total consciousness. If that's too much to handle, these are your necessaries:

Final Four Stategories: An illustration of what college lacrosse is going to shove in your face this holiday weekend.
The Look of a Champion: Which of the remaining teams look most like a national champion?
THE FACEOFF: Bill Tierney v. Syracuse.
THE FACEOFF: Revisiting Cornell-Duke 2007.
My favorite painting, and also what you can call Cornell's attack.
NCAA Tournament Final Four Tailing Recommendations: Enjoy yourself. You deserve it.

Otherwise, here are your highlights for today:

Cornell v. (7) Duke: Goalsplosion! There are likely two focuses here: (1) Which team will earn the highest volume of possessions (to turn the opposing goalkeeper into a pile of mush); and (2) How much defense will Duke play. The Red are the favorite, but the Devils are capable of denying Cornell their first championship since 1977. The undercard is just as interesting as the headliner this evening.
(4) Denver v. (1) Syracuse: Denver is chasing its first championship; Syracuse is chasing its 12th (11th, if you're the NCAA and believe in pretend reality). It's all about execution in the night cap, and Syracuse's ability to withstand pressure from the Pioneers' offense may dictate the outcome of the game.

**May 25, 2013: National Semifinals**
AWAY	HOME	TIME	LIVE STATS	VIDEO	NETWORK
Cornell	Duke	2:30	LIVE STATS	VIDEO	ESPN2
Denver	Syracuse	5:00	LIVE STATS	VIDEO	ESPN2

This is your open thread for Saturday's semifinals games. If you're not in Philadelphia, throw batteries at your television so that you can pretend to have the full Philadelphia sports fan experience. People will be around to yak about whatever is tickling their fancy.

Also, if you haven't yet, give a "like" to College Crosse over on Facebook and make sure to give a follow @SexyTimeLax.

College Lacrosse's Continuing Diversity Concerns

2013-05-25T16:23:58Z

Division I college lacrosse has a diversity concern, not necessarily a pervasive diversity problem. As the game continues to grow across the country -- not just at the highest collegiate level, but lacrosse as a whole (from youth to professional levels) -- lacrosse will start to look more and more like the nation in totem: A complex quilt of diverse backgrounds. In a crowded scene of athletic pursuits (is there a nation that is as athletically diverse as the United States?), the domestic iteration of lacrosse is slowly moving away from its East Coast, predominantly white history to a game that represents a wider swath of the American experience.

That's why the revelation in The New York Times that only 1.9 percent of Division I men's lacrosse players are of African American heritage isn't necessarily a problem. As lacrosse-oriented people -- such as the profiled Kyle Harrison -- continue to bring the game to non-white youth players and fold them into the fabric of lacrosse, the collegiate game's percentage of African American (and any other ancestral heritage) players will grow (hopefully) at the same rate as overall participation in the game. This is more of a function of getting young people to put down their baseball gloves or basketballs or football helmets and pick up a lacrosse stick. Providing playing opportunities for individuals and regions that haven't had the opportunity to play the game in the past is the functional building block to achieving the game's goals. It's initiatives like City Lax that become so important for the growth of lacrosse and the game's diversity; the potential impact of pursuits like City Lax are relevant to the future look of Division I lacrosse. College lacrosse simply hasn't felt the impact of these efforts yet, but it will hopefully come in the near future. The concern is being addressed.

The piece in the Times, however, does note that diversity problems still exist. Lelan Rogers, Syracuse's defensive coordinator, is the focus of an issue that arises not only in lacrosse, but throughout the nation as a whole:

Woodson, who played at Brown from 2002-5, said a racial epithet had been directed at him three times during his collegiate career, once by an opposing player and twice by teammates. He said he chose to tell no one at the time, revealing the instances only in an editorial he wrote for Lacrosse Magazine in December criticizing a viral marketing campaign by a sports equipment company that some felt had racial overtones.

As one of the most prominent black players of the last decade, Woodson said he regularly received e-mails from children, teenagers and parents asking for advice or simply thanking him for being a role model. And though he is always conscious of race as it relates to his sport, Woodson said he was still shocked each time he heard of a new incident in which it played a role.

That was the case when Woodson was made aware of an instance earlier this season in which an assistant coach at Syracuse, Lelan Rogers, used the word “colored” to describe an opposing player.

Drew Jenkins, a junior midfielder for Syracuse who is black, said the defense was going over scouting reports when Rogers used the word. Jenkins said he considered boycotting the next game and asking the two other black players on the roster to join him before ultimately deciding against it. He did, he said, demand an apology from Rogers.

“I didn’t mean it in a derogatory way,” Rogers said. “I made a comment — an inappropriate comment. It was wrong at the time. I apologized there, on the spot. I apologized again to the team later. I didn’t mean it in a bad way. I meant it in a good way. But obviously it came across not in a positive way.”

Syracuse Coach John Desko, who has been a member of the Orange coaching staff since 1980, sat next to Rogers for an interview in Desko’s office. He acknowledged that he was not always sure what was or was not acceptable language when it came to race.

“Sometimes I think you find it confusing if you have to call someone an Afro-American or have to describe somebody,” Desko said. “I am sometimes myself confused on what is appropriate and what isn’t.”

Rogers' comment is unacceptable, not just in the context of the atmosphere that college lacrosse is seeking to develop but in life in general. Epithets that are associated with hate or nonacceptance -- in the context of race, sexual orientation, creed, or any other delineation that seeks to create inequality -- are without the bounds of acceptable behavior. Noting that a player is of African American heritage should not matter -- Desko's comment regarding the appropriateness of describing the background of a player confuses the issue: it should only matter that "Number 12" has specific skill attributes or playing tendencies, not that he is African American or Latino or whatever -- in how any of us go about our business, lacrosse-related or otherwise. It's 2013. Using epithets from the 1950's -- an era wrapped in intolerance and hate -- simply has no place in our society.

Drew Jenkins deserves praise for demanding an apology from his head coach and understanding that comments such as what Rogers uttered are unacceptable in any context. Rogers' immediate apology does indicate a recognition that what he said was unacceptable, but his rationalization for saying what he said makes absolutely no sense and does not absolve him for spouting the epithet. It will be interesting to see how Syracuse's Director of Athletics, Daryl Gross (an African American), deals with this situation.

It's a shame to hear that these kinds of things are still happening in college lacrosse, but it's also heartening to know that players and others will not tolerate these circumstances and are doing something about it. The more we all -- players, coaches, fans, and interested parties -- continue to have discussions about building a culture of acceptance, the easier it is to eradicate incidents like these. The game's health is dependent upon lacrosse embracing an atmosphere that shuns exclusion.

Lacrosse the Internet: May 25, 2013

2013-05-25T14:40:46Z

This is obviously your favorite site, but other people actually write important stuff sometimes. Now is that sometimes.

Syracuse's Dominic Lamolinara Living The Dream
Dominic Lamolinara never expected to find himself starting in goal at Syracuse University, let alone at the helm of an elite defense and with a chance to lead the team into the NCAA Final Four, a chance to play in front of tens of thousands of fans in an NFL stadium.

NCAA Final Four Anonymous Scouting Reports
With the promise that their names wouldn't be attached to their comments, here's some unvarnished opinion of what we might see this weekend.

As Lacrosse Grows, the Diversity of Players Remains Largely Unchanged
“People kind of like to brush it under the table and say that kind of thing never happens or there’s none of that in this sport,” said Chazz Woodson, a midfielder for the Ohio Machine of Major League Lacrosse. “But there is. It’s still very much alive.”

Cornell's 16 seniors all play key roles in run to the Final Four
Call them the Sweet Sixteen.

Duke seniors hope to finish lacrosse career like they started: with NCAA title
Duke midfielder Jake Tripucka played plenty during his freshman season, one the Blue Devils finished with a national championship.

ESPNU to Show Title Game Entirely via SkyCam
In past years, when ESPN lacrosse producer John Kettering has stood in a production truck outside an NFL stadium on Memorial Day, looking across a bank of camera feeds, he's often found himself transfixed on the SkyCam view, although his job entails to keep tabs on much more. The cable-suspended camera hovering above the field is his favorite.

The Lighter Side of Lax: Tournament BINGO
The NCAA Tournament is upon us. The cream of the crop will take the field this weekend in Philly as we settle onto our couches to watch. Undoubtedly, the cream of the crop will also be in the broadcast booth. That means Quint Kessenich, former Johns Hopkins All-American goalie, will provide the color commentary. If your hometown teams have been eliminated and you need extra incentive to pay close attention, we’ve got just the ticket card for you.

Syracuse men's lacrosse focused on shutting down Denver's unorthodox Canadian midfielders
The Syracuse men's lacrosse team does not have much experience this year playing against an offense like Denver's.

Louisville native lacrosse player Chase Carraro plays in pain for final shot with seniors
When St. Xavier graduate and University of Denver lacrosse player Chase Carraro strained a ligament in his right knee during the preseason, he didn’t think much of it. He was young and unbreakable and there was no way he would miss his senior year.

Men's Lacrosse Announces 2013-14 Team Captains
The Providence College men's lacrosse program announced on Friday, May 24 that seniors Sean Wright (Silver Spring, Md.), Andrew Barton (Timonium, Md.), Zach Rogers (Rolling Hills Estates, Calif.) and junior Greg FitzMaurice (Huntington, N.Y.) have been named team captains for the 2014 season.

Pannell aims for record
One Cornell student-athlete, wrestler Kyle Dake, finished a record-breaking career in March with his fourth NCAA title at a fourth different weight class. Another who wears the red of Cornell, lacrosse star Rob Pannell, will try to wrestle the “big man on campus” title away from Dake this weekend in Philadelphia.

Lyle Thompson Earns NCAA Division I Best Attackman Award
Forget about a sophomore slump. University at Albany men’s lacrosse attackman Lyle Thompson, a member of the Onondaga Nation, has earned the 2013 United States Inside Lacrosse Association Lt. Col. J.L. (Jack) Turnbull Award on Friday, May 24. Lyle became the first Great Dane in program history to be honored with a major USILA award. The Jack Turnbull Award is given to the top attackman in Division I Men’s Lacrosse.

DU Pioneers glad to have junior midfielder Jeremy Noble back in action
As one of the University of Denver's most distinguished lacrosse players, little Jeremy Noble could make a big impact Saturday when the Pioneers play Syracuse in an NCAA Final Four men's semifinal at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.

Local Product Jordan Wolf Stars For Duke In Final Four
Jordan Wolf is shutting it all down. No cell phone. No tweeting. No texting. No communication with anyone or anything outside the world of lacrosse.

Surging Syracuse set to shoot for national title
Syracuse star midfielder JoJo Marasco couldn't dodge the question as the one-goal games during the regular season began to mount, and neither could his fellow seniors.

Orange Watch: NCAA Lacrosse Tournament Notebook
“Sorry, stuck in traffic,” an apologetic John Desko announced upon walking down the tunnel to the field. Minutes later, Desko could be heard on his cell phone directing the SU equipment truck driver to the stadium, sharing the traffic misery.

It's All About the Benjamins: Why the University of Georgia Can Succeed as a Lacrosse School
This brings us to lacrosse.

Top seed Syracuse into Final Four, aiming for lacrosse national title
Syracuse star midfielder JoJo Marasco couldn't dodge the question as the one-goal games during the regular season began to mount, and neither could his fellow seniors.

John Desko & Lelan Rogers Sounds Stupid in Defending Insensitive Comments
I’ve always respected John Desko.

Offense Leads Way For This Year's Final Four
“Defense wins championships.”

Today's beats: Tell 'em, Stan Kenton.

Lacrosse the Internet: May 24, 2013

2013-05-24T18:55:35Z

This is obviously your favorite site, but other people actually write important stuff sometimes. Now is that sometimes.

Best friends off the field, Cornell's Rob Pannell and Steve Mock have become the best scoring duo in the country | syracuse.com
Cornell men's lacrosse star Rob Pannell has dished out 202 assists in his storied career. Since the end of his sophomore year, the senior has had one favorite target: fellow senior attack Steve Mock.

It’s not over until it’s over
Yogi Berra’s “it ain’t over til it’s over” certainly applied during a fantastic two days of lacrosse last weekend.

Rob Pannell and Greatness: A Final Four Story
If the headline space on InsideLacrosse.com were longer, the headline of this post would be a Stanley Kubrick-esque “How a Team's Success Affects a Player's Legacy, or Can Rob Pannell's Greatness Change This Weekend?”

Law Reigns in Denver
Eric Law gained the most recognition of his Denver career this past weekend, as the Pioneers defeated UNC, 12-11, in their NCAA Quarterfinal bout.

Quint: Final Four Strengths, Weaknesses and Matchups to Watch
Lacrosse players don't dream of the beach on Memorial Day weekend.

Western Pride For Final Four Bound Pioneers
Denver's roster boasts nearly 30 players from areas that are considered “nontraditional” and roughly 20 players come from “the West.”

Faus, Half of Pios Goalie Tandem, Back in Final Four
Denver goalie Jamie Faus still has one more year left to play the amateur game he loves, although the Pioneers' junior already has packed enough experiences into his college years to fill out a career.

Danowski, Pannell Talk NCAA Record Chase
The man Rob Pannell is chasing for the NCAA's all-time points lead will be on the sideline at Lincoln Financial Field on Saturday, as part of the coaching staff that has game-planned all week to beat Pannell and the Big Red.

NCAA Lacrosse Semifinals: A Brief Tale of the Statistical Tape
The conclusions/predictions? Please draw your own.

Biggest Team Improvements and Declines from 2012 to 2013
Changes in computer ratings and rankings were computed for teams in NCAA men's and women's Divisions I, II, and III.

Conference Computer Ratings for the 2013 Lacrosse Season
The top-ranking conferences in men's Divisions I, II, and III were the ACC, East Coast, and Centennial, respectively. The ACC has finished in the top spot since 2002, the first year the analysis was done.

Nike Collegiate Lacrosse Teams Outfitted in Unique Innovative Uniforms
This weekend the best collegiate lacrosse teams will take the field in highly innovative Nike uniform systems, with select uniforms featuring inspirational designs that pay homage to the sport’s ancient roots.

Final Four Preview: D1 Lacrosse on Saturday
Lincoln Financial Field will host a lot of lacrosse this weekend, and two of the five games go down on Saturday, in the men’s lacrosse NCAA D1 semifinals. We’ve got Syracuse – Denver, and Duke – Cornell. Both should be excellent games. So let’s break down what we can expect from each match up.

English content to just contribute to Cornell men's lacrosse success
The box score from Cornell’s NCAA Tournament victory against Ohio State last weekend shows only two shots for Connor English.

Syracuse's lacrosse teams share bond
Now, Murray, Gait and the Syracuse women's team are part of the school's lacrosse tradition, where they are on equal footing with the men. Both the men and women will compete in the NCAA final four this weekend. The women will play in Villanova, Pa., on Friday and Sunday and the men in Philadelphia on Saturday and Monday.

Former Syracuse midfielder Woolford enjoying switch to Denver
Colin Woolford said he always saw himself playing college lacrosse in Colorado. But when he was rising through the ranks of the nation’s top high school recruits, he was never given the chance.

Q&A with Syracuse legend Casey Powell
Casey Powell is one of the greatest players in lacrosse — specifically Syracuse lacrosse — history.

Stone Bridge’s Dylan Maltz hopes for another Syracuse men’s lacrosse title
The last time the Syracuse men’s lacrosse team played in the NCAA men’s lacrosse Final Four, Dylan Maltz sat with his older brother Derek at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass., and breathlessly watched an historic comeback.

Lacrosse championship to net region $25M
The NCAA Men’s and Women’s Lacrosse Championships, taking place here beginning Friday, are expected to generate $25 million for the region’s economy.

Ridgefield's Bubblewrap Brothers playing their roles for Denver lacrosse
They're two of the most accomplished lacrosse players from southwest Connecticut. They're both former captains of Ridgefield state championship teams, both chasing an NCAA title this weekend.

Dillon Ward is Bellarmine's first lacrosse All-American
Bellarmine University goalkeeper Dillon Ward was named an NCAA Division I third-team All-American by the U.S. Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association. He’s Bellarmine’s first All-American in the program’s nine-year history.

Brand Lacrosse Takes Center Stage
This weekend not just the college lacrosse world, but all of the sport of lacrosse has its version of the Super Bowl. Over 50,000 fans, will descend on Lincoln Financial field to see the all three levels of college lacrosse,…Divisions I, II and III…crown their champions. Countless thousands of others will come to town for the Memorial Day fan fests, as what is described as the fastest growing sport in America, even without a thriving professional league, takes center stage for what has become an annual ritual for lacrosse.

Heading to NCAA Men's Lacrosse Semis in Philadelphia
The following Monday, we woke up to a 63 degree day, a mist, and the first time Princeton had made the NCAA finals.

Rice, LoCascio named Lacrosse All-Americans
The United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association announced their 2013 All-Americans earlier on Thursday.

Four Syracuse Lacrosse Players Named as All-Americans
JoJo Marasco, Brian Megill, Luke Cometti, and Henry Schoonmaker have been named to the All-American teams heading into Memorial Day weekend.

Today's beats: I'll see you out there.

NCAA Lacrosse Tournament Semifinals: Cornell v. (7) Duke

2013-05-24T18:18:54Z

It's the 2013 NCAA Tournament! Take out the nice napkins and make sure that your kid doesn't have crap all over his face. College Crosse has this all under control, so feel safe, friends. If you missed anything -- and you really shouldn't because you're only hurting yourself if you do -- click this fancy highlighted text to get all caught up.

From 10,000 Feet

Date and Time: Saturday, 2:30 P.M.
Location: Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Broadcast: ESPN2
Game "Fun Factor" Rank: 1st (5.5590)
log5 Victory Probabilities: Cornell -- 71.86%; Duke -- 28.14%
First Round: Cornell d. (6) Maryland (16-8); (7) Duke d. Loyola (12-11 (OT))
Quarterfinals: Cornell d. (3) Ohio State (16-6); (7) Duke d. (2) Notre Dame (12-11)

From Right In Front Of Your Face

(7) Duke Blue Devils: ACC, At-Large

**DUKE BLUE DEVILS**
BIG STATS		PACE STATS
Record	14-5	Clearing Rate	88.36% (17)
Adj. Off. Eff.	37.86 (6)	Riding Rate	14.79% (25)
Adj. Def. Eff.	30.89 (31)	Faceoff %	62.48% (3)
Adj. Eff. Margin	6.97 (11)	Pace	68.57 (20)
Pyth. Win Exp.	65.26% (14)	Off. Opps./60 Min.	37.27 (6)
Opps. Margin	5.97 (3)	Def. Opps./60 Min.	31.30 (16)
Opps. Ratio	54.35% (3)

DEFENSIVE STATS		OFFENSIVE STATS
Save %	48.92% (50)	Sht. %	32.19% (9)
Saves/100 Def. Opps.	30.43 (47)	Opnt. Save %	48.33% (11)
Shts/Def. Opp.	1.09 (33)	Saves/100 Off. Opps.	34.55 (36)
Opnt. Sht. %	29.14% (42)	Shts/Off. Opp.	1.15 (20)
Def. Assist Rate	17.56 (36)	Off. Assist Rate	21.21 (10)
EMD/100 Def. Opps.	13.71 (58)	EMO/100 Off. Opps.	8.01 (58)
EMD Conversion %	39.02% (46)	EMO Conversion %	36.84% (22)
EMD Reliance	16.84% (58)	EMO Reliance	7.98% (61)
Opnt. T/O per 100 Def. Opps.	51.67 (8)	T/O per 100 Off. Opps.	38.76 (9)
Opnt. Unforc. T/O per 100 Def. Opps.	28.26 (2)	Unforc. T/O per 100 Off. Opps.	24.58 (45)
Caused T/O per 100 Def. Opps.	23.41 (21)	Opnt. Caused T/O per 100 Off. Opps.	14.19 (1)

Key

One piece of incredibly important information from my brain to your eyes via your Internet computing machine:

I've already written words on this Internet computing website about Duke's proclivity for committing penalties and playing in man-down postures (and what that may or may not mean about the Devils' chances against Cornell), so I'm going in a different direction today with respect to an interesting aspect of Duke's profile -- if the Devils get into a scoring war with the Big Red (and I think that's the best way for the Devils to win given the potential circumstances of the game), will the rate of execution for Duke (dictating the team's success ceiling) turn on the team's ability to limit giveaways? Duke's offensive turnover rate this season has been low (albeit tainted with a high rate of unforced turnovers relative to the rest of the country), but Cornell has been annihilating opponents with caused turnovers. Valuing the ball, especially for the Blue Devils, is especially important if Duke hopes to move on to Memorial Monday: (1) A scoring war -- by its very nature -- tends to crown the team that values and converts on its functional offensive possessions at the highest rate (and Duke has the snipers and overall offensive unit to efficiently can the bean if it maintains possession of the ball); (2) Limiting Cornell's ability to go in transition -- from a giveaway -- mitigates exposed postures for Kyle Turri (an uneven keeper at this stage in his career) and doesn't require him to stand on his head and make stops in difficult circumstances; (3) If Duke values possession it necessarily keeps the ball out of Rob Pannell's crosse; and (4) Any possession margin that Duke is potentially able to generate through Brendan Fowler's work at the dot -- Cornell's Doug Tesoriero will change Fowler all day -- is blown to smithereens if Duke pitches possessions away with turnovers. Turnovers are momentum killers, instances of lost focus that ruin the notion of manifest destiny. If Duke wants to make the scoreboard blink against the Red and keep pace with what Cornell may do against the Devils' questionable defense, Duke needs to value the ball.

Cornell Big Red: Ivy, At-Large

**CORNELL BIG RED**
BIG STATS		PACE STATS
Record	14-3	Clearing Rate	86.98% (30)
Adj. Off. Eff.	39.06 (4)	Riding Rate	17.20% (9)
Adj. Def. Eff.	23.56 (4)	Faceoff %	55.90% (12)
Adj. Eff. Margin	15.51 (1)	Pace	74.33 (3)
Pyth. Win Exp.	82.75% (1)	Off. Opps./60 Min.	38.31 (2)
Opps. Margin	2.29 (15)	Def. Opps./60 Min.	36.02 (56)
Opps. Ratio	51.54% (15)

DEFENSIVE STATS		OFFENSIVE STATS
Save %	52.27% (35)	Sht. %	32.46% (8)
Saves/100 Def. Opps.	26.22 (63)	Opnt. Save %	42.86% (2)
Shts/Def. Opp.	0.90 (1)	Saves/100 Off. Opps.	28.48 (4)
Opnt. Sht. %	26.53% (16)	Shts/Off. Opp.	1.17 (14)
Def. Assist Rate	13.84 (7)	Off. Assist Rate	20.21 (15)
EMD/100 Def. Opps.	10.10 (24)	EMO/100 Off. Opps.	7.81 (61)
EMD Conversion %	22.58% (4)	EMO Conversion %	39.22% (14)
EMD Reliance	9.52% (15)	EMO Reliance	8.06% (60)
Opnt. T/O per 100 Def. Opps.	51.30 (9)	T/O per 100 Off. Opps.	39.82 (10)
Opnt. Unforc. T/O per 100 Def. Opps.	23.29 (30)	Unforc. T/O per 100 Off. Opps.	22.97 (31)
Caused T/O per 100 Def. Opps.	28.01 (7)	Opnt. Caused T/O per 100 Off. Opps.	16.85 (7)

Key

One piece of incredibly important information from my brain to your eyes via your Internet computing machine:

Cornell is better than Duke, and the Red are probably the strongest team left in the tournament. This doesn't mean that the Red can play with a cup of Starbucks in their off hand on Saturday -- it is a tournament after all, and tournaments have a weird way of twisting reality for its own purpose -- but Cornell, if it plays to its potential, is a notable favorite entering their semifinal date with the Devils. If Cornell is able to accomplish what it does best (the functional aspects that build into the Red's success this season), a Memorial Monday adventure should appear on their itinerary. That means: (1) Cornell plays smart, aggressive defense in the box and on their ride, forcing tough shots, potentially putting the ball on the ground, and creating a web of terror for the Devils' myriad of offensive weapons and the various ways that they attack opposing defensive units; (2) The Red dominates loose balls -- tough against a Duke team that is in virtually the same territory as Cornell in terms of run-of-play groundball margin -- thereby killing defensive opportunities and potentially springing transition to attack the Devils' defense in a preferential posture; (3) Cornell values and shares the ball in the offensive end, running the offense through Rob Pannell -- big players in big moments need to make the biggest plays -- and taking quality shots against a questionable keeper; and (4) Cornell takes advantage of extra-man opportunities, making the opposition pay for sins and potentially creating a gap on the scoreboard. These are the kind of things that the Red have been doing all season; deviation from these performance aspects is the biggest concern for Cornell.

NCAA Lacrosse Tournament Semifinals: (4) Denver v. (1) Syracuse

2013-05-24T17:00:03Z

From 10,000 Feet

Date and Time: Saturday, 5:00 P.M.
Location: Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Broadcast: ESPN2
Game "Fun Factor" Rank: 2nd (4.8651)
log5 Victory Probabilities: Syracuse -- 56.94%; Denver -- 43.06%
First Round: (1) Syracuse d. Bryant (12-7); (4) Denver d. Albany (19-14)
Quarterfinals: (1) Syracuse d. Yale (7-6); (4) Denver d. (5) North Carolina (12-11)

From Right In Front Of Your Face

(1) Syracuse Orange: Big East, Automatic Qualifier

**SYRACUSE ORANGE**
BIG STATS		PACE STATS
Record	15-3	Clearing Rate	91.67% (4)
Adj. Off. Eff.	35.52 (9)	Riding Rate	12.16% (46)
Adj. Def. Eff.	25.15 (9)	Faceoff %	42.82% (54)
Adj. Eff. Margin	10.37 (3)	Pace	66.01 (35)
Pyth. Win Exp.	74.47% (3)	Off. Opps./60 Min.	32.76 (37)
Opps. Margin	-0.50 (34)	Def. Opps./60 Min.	33.25 (35)
Opps. Ratio	49.62% (33)

DEFENSIVE STATS		OFFENSIVE STATS
Save %	51.26% (40)	Sht. %	31.63% (11)
Saves/100 Def. Opps.	27.03 (60)	Opnt. Save %	48.79% (14)
Shts/Def. Opp.	0.97 (8)	Saves/100 Off. Opps.	33.84 (33)
Opnt. Sht. %	26.59% (17)	Shts/Off. Opp.	1.12 (27)
Def. Assist Rate	12.77 (4)	Off. Assist Rate	22.39 (6)
EMD/100 Def. Opps.	10.12 (25)	EMO/100 Off. Opps.	9.26 (47)
EMD Conversion %	40.98% (53)	EMO Conversion %	38.18% (18)
EMD Reliance	16.13% (54)	EMO Reliance	9.95% (49)
Opnt. T/O per 100 Def. Opps.	45.27 (27)	T/O per 100 Off. Opps.	36.70 (5)
Opnt. Unforc. T/O per 100 Def. Opps.	24.38 (21)	Unforc. T/O per 100 Off. Opps.	20.37 (14)
Caused T/O per 100 Def. Opps.	20.90 (40)	Opnt. Caused T/O per 100 Off. Opps.	16.33 (5)

Key

One piece of incredibly important information from my brain to your eyes via your Internet computing machine:

It's not like Syracuse hasn't seen offenses with HULKSMASH! qualities this season: The Orange's schedule ranks 12th in opposing offenses faced, notably running with Albany, St. John's, Princeton, and Cornell this year (three of those four games were wins for Syracuse). However, the Orange haven't seen anything quite at the level of Denver's offense this season -- the Pioneers boast the most efficient offensive unit in the country, scoring goals on about 42 percent of their offensive opportunities, sharing the ball at a rate that ranks among the nation's elite, and embarrassing opposing goalies as if the act were a special kind of sporting endeavor. Denver is a crushing offensive force, a Panzer tank in shorts and shoulder pads, and how Syracuse functions on the defensive end dealing with the Pioneers' offensive approach may dictate the outcome of the game for two reasons: (1) In order to neutralize Denver's expected possession margin advantage due to Chase Carraro's exceptional work at the dot, the Orange are going to need to generate stops at the defensive end -- either through saves from Dominic Lamolinara or through forced and unforced turnovers against/from the Pioneers -- to provide Syracuse's offense with complementary offensive possessions; and (2) Syracuse's defense is going to need to push through physical and mental fatigue due to the patience of Denver's offense and the volume of opportunities that unit will have to detonate the Orange's defensive efforts, performing at a high level for 60 minutes to ensure that Syracuse's offense doesn't need to try and score 40 goals on 30 offensive opportunities. Specifically, the Orange are going to need a strong showing from Lamolinara in the crease -- Denver has abused opposing keepers throughout the 2013 season -- and the field defense, in totem, to keep their head on a swivel and fervently limit ball-watching. If Denver is able to dominate possession, whip the ball around the attack box to find teammates in preferred shooting locations, and Lamolinara isn't on point, it could be curtains for Syracuse.

Denver Pioneers: ECAC, At-Large

**DENVER PIONEERS**
BIG STATS		PACE STATS
Record	14-4	Clearing Rate	93.07% (2)
Adj. Off. Eff.	41.62 (1)	Riding Rate	5.59% (63)
Adj. Def. Eff.	32.24 (34)	Faceoff %	52.04% (23)
Adj. Eff. Margin	9.38 (5)	Pace	60.01 (59)
Pyth. Win Exp.	68.81% (10)	Off. Opps./60 Min.	30.86 (51)
Opps. Margin	1.71 (20)	Def. Opps./60 Min.	29.15 (2)
Opps. Ratio	51.42% (18)

DEFENSIVE STATS		OFFENSIVE STATS
Save %	56.17% (11)	Sht. %	34.13% (3)
Saves/100 Def. Opps.	42.08 (6)	Opnt. Save %	44.66% (5)
Shts/Def. Opp.	1.25 (57)	Saves/100 Off. Opps.	32.80 (29)
Opnt. Sht. %	26.17% (14)	Shts/Off. Opp.	1.19 (8)
Def. Assist Rate	18.68 (42)	Off. Assist Rate	22.82 (3)
EMD/100 Def. Opps.	9.43 (15)	EMO/100 Off. Opps.	12.12 (17)
EMD Conversion %	30.00% (17)	EMO Conversion %	35.29% (28)
EMD Reliance	8.62% (10)	EMO Reliance	10.53% (45)
Opnt. T/O per 100 Def. Opps.	35.47 (63)	T/O per 100 Off. Opps.	40.46 (11)
Opnt. Unforc. T/O per 100 Def. Opps.	16.79 (63)	Unforc. T/O per 100 Off. Opps.	20.68 (17)
Caused T/O per 100 Def. Opps.	18.68 (47)	Opnt. Caused T/O per 100 Off. Opps.	19.79 (17)

Key

One piece of incredibly important information from my brain to your eyes via your Internet computing machine:

An interesting focus point for Denver is how they operate in attack box postures. Specifically, how well will the Pioneers (1) limit turnovers, and (2) maintain intelligent shot selection. Denver has done a good job this season valuing the ball (both in the overall and in attack box situations), but the combination of the Pioneers' first half effort against North Carolina last week -- a turnover extravaganza for Denver -- and the rate at which Syracuse's opponents commit giveaways (not an exceedingly high value, but notable) creates a little bit of concern about what Denver may do when the curtain lifts for showtime. As for shot selection, it's not necessarily that the Pioneers have a reputation for chucking the ball into the seats because the entire offense is afflicted with walleye vision (in fact, that's just about the opposite of reality); rather, Denver is facing a goaltender that, for the Pioneers' purposes, is beatable -- if Denver can refrain from putting savable shots on net and bolstering Lamolinara's confidence, they do themselves a huge favor that will require Denver to simultaneously send itself "Congratulations!" and "Thank You!" cards. There are four important residues if Denver is able to limit its turnovers and make Lamolinara work: (1) The Pioneers should play with possession margin in their favor, and efficient efforts in the offensive end -- buoyed by make-it-take-it action -- could allow Denver to build a cushion on the scoreboard; (2) Limiting turnovers and forcing Lamolinara to make tough saves controls Syracuse's ability to get in transition and attack in preferable circumstances (like North Carolina did over the first 30 minutes of Denver's quarterfinals match); (3) Twofold value in these facets of play allow the Pioneers to control the pace of the game; (4) It allows Denver to possession-starve Syracuse's offense and grind down the Orange's defense; and (5) It limits the exposure of Denver's defense -- the team's weaker field unit -- to a highly profitable Syracuse offense. Intelligence and value: These are the keys to the Pioneers' success against the Orange.

Pannell Named USILA Player of the Year; Kaut, Durkin, Thompson, and Schreiber Earn Other Individual Honors

2013-05-24T15:02:42Z

The USILA announced the winners of its major individual Division I awards today and Rob Pannell -- Cornell's esoteric attack, a man that derives his offensive power from Big League Chew, and a noted Seventeen Magazine dreamboat -- took home the big prize: The Lt. Raymond J. Enners Award. While the USILA's naming of Pannell as its player of year theoretically bodes well for the Cornellian to win the Tewaaraton Award in just under a week, that's not necessarily the case (although Pannell is an overwhelming favorite to add the big, fancy doorstop to his already deep collection of big, fancy doorstops). Since the introduction of the Tewaaraton in 2001, in only seven seasons -- 2001, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, and 2012 -- has the Enners Award winner mirrored the eventually Tewaaraton honoree.

This is the second time that Pannell has earned the Enners Award (2011 and 2013) and marks the sixth instance in which the USILA has named a Big Red player as its player of the year -- 1976 (Mike French), 1977 (Eamon McEneaney), 1987 (Tim Goldstein), 2009 (Max Seibald), and Pannell's two wins. Interestingly, in five of the six seasons that Cornell has claimed the USILA's national player of the year, the Red have advanced to the national championship game (the outlier season was 2011, a year that saw Cornell exit the NCAA Tournament in the quarterfinals after a 13-9 loss to Virginia (the eventual national champion)).

The rest of the award recipients from the USILA are as follows:

Lt. Col. Jack Turnbull Award: Lyle Thompson (Albany). Thompson finished the season one point shy of tying the record for single-season point generation (Steve Marohl set the record in 1992 with UMBC (113)) despite missing a game due to the birth of his child. Thompson, who converted from Albany's midfield to attack this season, was nonstop combustion for the Great Danes, pushing Albany to the NCAA Tournament and dual America East titles this season -- regular season and tournament. Just a sophomore, Thompson joins Rob Pannell (2010), Matt Danowski (2005), and Mike Powell (2001 and 2002) as the only underclassmen to win the award since 2000. Thompson is the first Albany player to win the award and just the second America East player -- John Grant, Jr. (Delaware, 1999) -- to earn the honor of being named the nation's top attackman.
Lt. Donald McLaughlin, Jr. Award: Tom Schreiber (Princeton). The Human Weapon -- 190 pounds of tactical destruction -- earned the USILA's nod as the nation's most outstanding midfielder. The junior becomes just the second Princeton midfielder to win the award, following in the footsteps of former Tiger great Josh Sims (1998 and 2000). The race for the honor this season was especially tight with both Schreiber and Syracuse's JoJo Marasco making strong cases to the USILA for the honor (both were named the USILA's first team All-American list). In the end, Schreiber's overall production -- a campaign that put the midfielder just outside the top 10 in offensive value -- earned him the nod.
William C. Schmeisser Award: Tucker Durkin (Johns Hopkins). Durkin, the 2012 Schmeisser Award winner, continues his reign as the nation's most outstanding defenseman. A rock on a defense that finished the year ranked fifth in adjusted defensive efficiency, Durkin continues Johns Hopkins' tradition of developing top notch defensemen -- this is the 17th time that the USILA has given the Schmeisser award to a Blue Jays defenseman. Durkin -- while not a stat sheet stuffer but a disciplined and intelligent player -- will finish his career at Hopkins as one of only eight players to ever win multiple honors as the nation's top defenseman -- Fred Allner, Jr. (Cornell, 1944 and Princeton, 1947); Hank Kaestner (Johns Hopkins, 1966 and 1967); Chris Kane (Cornell, 1977 and 1978); Mark Greenberg (Johns Hopkins, 1979 and 1980); Tom Haus (North Carolina, 1984, 1986, and 1987); Dave Pietramala (Johns Hopkins, 1988 and 1989); and Dave Morrow (Princeton, 1992 and 1993).
Ensign C. Markland Kelly, Jr. Award: Austin Kaut (Penn State). Kaut's designation as the nation's top goalie is not a surprise to anyone with eyeballs and a brain that hasn't leaked out of their nose. The Blonde Satan was second in the nation in individual save percentage (61.0 percent) and ended somewhere around 38 percent of Penn State's defensive opportunities with a save. Kaut becomes the first Penn State player to ever win an individual USILA award.

NCAA Lacrosse Tournament: Final Four Infographic -- Revisiting Cornell-Duke 2007

2013-05-24T13:27:16Z

The Cornell Big Red and the Duke Blue Devils will take on each other for a spot in the national championship game. It's sure to be an exciting game with all the offensive firepower both teams possess. Today, however, we won't be looking ahead to the very near future, but rather we'll be taking a trip to the not so distant past.

In 2007, the Cornell and Duke locked horns to determine which team would advance to Memorial Monday. What started off slowly ended up becoming one of the craziest finishes of a lacrosse game that I remember and arguably one of the most exciting national semifinal games ever played. After trailing for most of the game, the Big Red tied the game with only 17 seconds left in regulation. Everyone was prepared for a gripping overtime. Cornell had taken over the momentum of the game with four unanswered goals and Duke had not scored in over 11 minutes.

Then, with just three seconds left, Zack Greer scored for Duke to put the Devils up 12-11. Cornell's hopes and dreams of a national championship were shattered. The Red's undefeated season was no more. And the Blue Devils, who were just a year removed from having their season cut short due to the scandal that hit the program, were on their way to facing Johns Hopkins to try and win their first national championship under then first year head coach John Danowski. (SPOILER ALERT: They had to wait another three years to pull that off.)

Now, with both teams facing off again against each other in the national semifinals, the memories of 2007 are sure to linger. Cornell would suffer through another Final Four heartbreak two years later, and with Syracuse on the other side of the bracket, the Big Red are looking to exorcise two demons in one weekend and win their first title since 1977. On the other hand, the Blue Devils would like nothing more than a repeat of what happened Memorial Day Weekend six years ago.

Here's a graphical flashback to the epic battle between Cornell and Duke the last time they met on Semifinals Saturday:

(Click to make it HAM-ier than the HAM-ish nature of the game.)