M. Hoops | 'Core of the defense

Just think of Rob Belcore as the Scottie Pippen to Zack Rosen's Michael Jordan.

That is, if your Scottie was a slightly scruffy college freshman with a penchant for video games, and your Michael is his six-foot, carrot-top roommate from North Jersey.

Yes, the analogy isn't a perfect fit for Belcore and the red-headed Rosen. Belcore plays more two-guard than small forward and Rosen is the team's point, not shooting, guard. And of course these freshmen haven't won any awards or championships. But while Rosen is clearly the big-name freshman, Belcore is making his noise the same way that Pippen did for the Chicago Bulls in the 90's: with tough, solid, personal D.

With Ivy eyes on Rosen as Penn's freshman phenom, Belcore has silently earned his minutes on the court with something that no other player on Penn's squad - which is ranked second-to-last in the Ancient Eight in defense - can really provide.

"He's covered our opponent's best perimeter player in almost every game," Penn coach Glen Miller said.

Those nemeses include the fish from both the big pond - like the Big 5's premier guard, Dionte Christmas - and those from the smaller Ivy pond, such as Harvard's Jeremy Lin.

Miller, who has been slowly increasing Belcore's minutes, gave the 6-foot-6 shooting guard his first meaningful Ivy assignment in Lin when Penn opened its conference season against the Crimson on Jan. 30. Harvard's one-man show had lit up then-No. 17 Boston College for 27 points - clearly, Penn would have to work true magic to overcome a Lin hot streak.

But Belcore relieved the offense that night, holding Lin to a mere 13 points, six assists and a trip to the bench when the Harvard star fouled out late in the game.

"[Miller] put me in a position to do just what I did," Belcore said. "Coach isn't going to put you in a position to do something that you can't do."

In regards to attaining the ultimate intangible honor - the proverbial team "stop" - Belcore is easily afforded the superlative by his teammates.

"I think he's definitely established himself as our best perimeter defender," Rosen said. "He's recognized that that's his role, and he's embraced it and done well. If that's what's going to keep him on the court . he will do whatever it takes."

Although Belcore hopes to expand his role as an offensive factor - he averages a fair 4.0 points a game - his defensive forte leaves far more room for creative aggression.

"I like offense, but I feel like defense is a lot more personal," Belcore said. "Whenever the opposing team has a name player . that brings out a lot of me. You really take things personally."

"I want guys to look at me and not want anything to do with me," he added.

Going into this weekend's matchups at Brown and Yale, Belcore, who notched his 11th start against Cornell Saturday, will most likely be part of a revamped starting lineup that provided an early spark against the Big Red.

For Belcore, Brown forward Peter Sullivan and Yale guard Ross Morin, both strong backcourt presences who average 14.6 and 13.4 points per game, respectively, will have bulls-eyes painted on their backs.

And no, Belcore doesn't care if he's a Pippen or an MJ - just getting onto the hardwood is the icing on the cake.

"I'm living my dream right now," he said. "Playing here is everything I ever wanted."

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