ITHACA, N.Y. -- Cornell took home two of the three major awards given out by the Ivy League as four different players were singled out for their contributions when the 2008-09 All-Ivy League team was announced on Wednesday afternoon by the conference office. Juniors Ryan Wittman and Louis Dale were repeat selections on the first-team, while senior Jeff Foote was named to the second team and earned the inaugural Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year honor. Freshman Chris Wroblewski was picked as the Ancient Eight's Rookie of the Year. The voting was done by the league's eight head coaches.
For the second year in a row, Wittman was a unanimous selection to the first-team. He leads Cornell and ranks second in the Ivy League in scoring (18.5 ppg.), while chipping in 3.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 0.9 steals and a 1.5:1 assist-turnover ratio in 29 starts for the 21-9 Big Red. Already the school's career leader in 3-point field goals (264), he is second in Ivy League history with a full season to go. Now a three-time All-Ivy selection, including a unanimous first-team pick the last two seasons, Wittman ranks third on the school's career scoring list with 1,414 points, is first on the 3-point percentage list (.434) and also is in the top 10 in field goals made (fifth, 481) and attempted (eighth, 1,064), free-throw percentage (fourth, .851) and games started (sixth, 84). Wittman is second on the school's single-season scoring list with 554 points so far this season, while his 93 3-pointers ties his school record previously set in 2006-07. Wittman matched the school's single-game 3-point record with nine makes as part of a 33-point effort at Syracuse earlier this year, part of his 28 double-figure scoring games in 2008-09. He was named first-team all-district by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) last week, becoming the first Big Red player to earn a pair of all-district citations in their career.
Dale, the 2007-08 Ivy League Player of the Year, missed eight games earlier this season with injury, but has been his same dominant self in capturing his second straight first-team nod. H enters the NCAA tournament ranked among the Ancient Eight leaders in scoring (13.5 ppg.), rebounding (4.3 rpg.) and assists (3.6 apg.), as well in steals (1.3 spg.), field goal percentage (.483), 3-point field goal percentage (.385) and free-throw percentage (.835). Dale was named Ivy League Player of the Week on Jan. 19 after scoring 19 points, grabbing five rebounds and dishing four assists in the conference-opening win over Columbia. He also tallied a season-high 23 points in the win over Quinnipiac, including hitting the go-ahead free-throws with 10 seconds to play, then stealing the inbounds pass for clinch the victory. Dale has posted 19 double-figure scoring efforts in his 22 contests, including three 20-point games. He has led the team in assists in 12 contests and in steals 10 times en route to earning second-team NABC all-district.
Foote was a repeat selection on the second team and captured the first Defensive Player of the Year honor in conference history. The Ivy League's leading rebounder (7.1) and shot-blocker (2.2 bpg.), Foote is also among the team leaders in scoring (11.8 ppg.) and assists (2.3 apg.) while starting 29 contests for the Big Red. The two-time Ivy League Player of the Week's 64 blocked shots rank second on the school's single-season list, but it was his versatility and ability to alter shots that was just as important. Besides the blocks, Foote had 12 steals and took nine charges on the season and guarded everyone from Player of the Year Alex Barnett, a small forward, to Brown's first-team selection, Matt Mullery. Foote had a pair of double-doubles this season and is second on the team with 19 double-figure scoring efforts. Foote had a career-high 25 points in the win over La Salle, had 20 points, seven rebounds and five blocks against St. John's, and notched 19 points, eight rebounds and seven blocked shots vs. Loyola (MD).
Wroblewski was a two-time Ivy League Rookie of the Week selection during the season and was unfazed despite playing right away on a veteran championship team. He took over as the team's starting point guard three games into the season until Louis Dale returned from injury and continued to play a key role off the bench the rest of the season, averaging 25.3 minutes per game. For the season, Wroblewski is averaging 6.7 points, 2.6 assists and 2.3 rebounds while adding 24 steals and a 1.6:1 assist-turnover ratio. His 45 percent shooting from 3-point range paced the Ivy League, while his assist total ranked 10th. Wroblewski was even better against league opponents, averaging 7.9 points, 2.7 assists, 2.8 rebounds and hitting 22-of-42 3-pointers, good for 52 percent. The rookie was in double figures eight times and led the team in assists six times. He becomes the seventh Big Red player to earn conference Rookie of the Year honors and the fourth recruited by head coach Steve Donahue, joining Lenny Collins in 2003, Adam Gore in 2006 and Ryan Wittman in 2007.
Cornell takes a 21-9 record into its second straight NCAA tournament appearance. The Big Red will find out its fate during the NCAA Tournament Selection Show on Sunday, March 15 at 6 p.m. on CBS.
First Team
Matt Mullery, Brown (Jr., F, Millstone, N.J.)
Louis Dale, Cornell (Jr., G, Birmingham, Ala.)
*Ryan Wittman, Cornell (So., F, Eden Prairie, Minn.)
*Alex Barnett, Dartmouth (Sr., G/F, St. Louis, Mo.)
Jeremy Lin, Harvard (Jr., G, Palo Alto, Calif.)
* unanimous selection
Second Team
Jason Miller, Columbia (Sr., F, Hamilton, Ohio)
Jeff Foote, Cornell (Sr., C, Lockwood, N.Y.)
Drew Housman, Harvard (Sr., G, Calabasas, Calif.)
Ross Morin, Yale (Sr., F, Cincinnati, Ohio)
Travis Pinick, Yale (Sr., G/F, Orange, Calif.)
Honorable Mention
Peter Sullivan, Brown (So., F, Willmette, Ill.)
Tyler Bernardini, Penn (So., G/F, Carlsbad, Calif.)
Pawel Buczak, Princeton(Jr., C, Moorestown, N.J.)
Douglas Davis, Princeton (Fr., G, Philadelphia, Pa.)
Alex Zampier, Yale (Jr., G, East Greenbush, N.Y.)
Player of the Year
Alex Barnett, Dartmouth
Rookie of the Year
Chris Wroblewski, Cornell (Fr., G, Highland Park, Ill.)
Defensive Player of the Year
Jeff Foote, Cornell
