Ivy Friday Roundup

Harvard 72, Columbia 68

All season long, Ivy pundits (including myself) questioned the Crimson’s ability to rely on outside shooting to win tight games down the stretch. So it’s ironic that Harvard dismissed that doubt – if just for tonight – against one of the most potent three-point shooting teams in the league, Columbia. Wesley Saunders and Siyani Chambers combined to go 6-for-10 from beyond the arc, and Corbin Miller went 2-for-5 as well for a healthy 40 percent clip. The Lions overcame a 48-31 halftime deficit to tie Harvard at 68-68 with eight second left with a Jeff Coby trey, but Siyani Chambers responded with the game-winning jumper, an indication that he may be ready to shake off the slump he’s been working through all season. This is Harvard wins – it teases us, it allows big runs, it struggles with lineup groupings. But it always comes through in the big games.

Yale 75, Penn 48

Penn keeps falling fast. The Quakers’ loss to Yale marks their second straight defeat by 27 points, and Penn has now lost to Harvard and Yale at the Palestra by a combined 52 points this season, with the Quakers averaging just 43 points per game in those matchups. Darien Nelson-Henry went just 2-for-8 from the field for seven points and five turnovers. On the flipside, Yale boasted seven players with at least seven points. Who led all players in scoring? Yale freshman guard Makai Mason, who notched 14 points on 5-for-7 shooting. Justin Sears? Just seven points but six assists and five blocks, but the Elis obviously don’t absolutely need his scoring alone to be successful.

And could Justin Sears have had more blocks? Justin Sears thinks so.

Cornell 81, Dartmouth 72 (OT)

Shonn Miller played like five seconds in the first half with foul trouble (two fouls) but Cornell stuck around to win a game the Big Red had to have. Still, the Big Green led most of the second half, and freshman guard Miles Wright’s 19-point performance on efficient 7-for-11 shooting has established him as here to stay for Dartmouth – he’s averaging 20 points per contest in the last three games and is making a late run for Ivy Rookie of the Year. Can’t go wrong with Wright!

Princeton 75, Brown 64

The Tigers had this one pretty much all the way, save for the latter portion of the first half, when Cedric Kuakumensah was having his way in the paint. Otherwise, Princeton dominated, with four starters cracking double figures, including Spencer Weisz, who posted 13 points. Princeton has won the last seven games in which Weisz scores at least 10 points. The Tigers have lost the last five games in which he doesn’t. Meanwhile, Brown shot just 34.8 percent from the field. Bears fans can take solace in the fact that their team committed just five turnovers. At the very least, this young team is improving in the turnover category, one it struggled with previously throughout this season.