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Richard Kent Yale men’s basketball dispatched preseason MAAC favorite Quinnipiac (1-2) in Hamden, Conn. last night, 97-60. Yale (2-0) was down early and grabbed a 24-23 lead over the hosts (1-2) and the Bulldogs were off to the races.
“It was a great team performance. Our kids played really well together,” said coach James Jones.
Tip of the hat to the graduated John Poulakidas and Bez Mbeng. BUt Nick Townsend and Riley Fox are now Yale men’s basketball’s leaders, and the rest of the Ivy League should be warned that the Bulldogs are still the team to beat after their 97-68 road trouncing of Navy to open their 2025-26 campaign.
If you were one of the 46 people tuned into the Ivy League’s men’s media day hosted by the Field of 68 and Rob Dauster and Jeff Goodman Tuesday, then you learned a lot on certain topics.
You know the difference between Boston and Cambridge. You are schooled in the athletic prowess of Goodman. You have a good feel about 2K games. You certainly know who the best dunkers are on most of the teams. You might be able to bet on Mitch Henderson winning a one-on-one basketball game. You were told that James Jones was once a great card player and was known as the professor. You even heard about a guard at The Palestra.
When a team loses arguably two of the top 10 players in its basketball history in John Poulakidas and Bez Mbeng, it is tough to believe that it would be the overwhelming favorite to win the Ivy League.
But don’t tell that to James Jones. You see, Yale merely reloads each season.
Call it what you want, leaderless or rudderless. That’s what some Ivy League coaches, alumni and donors are saying right now in droves. And it is spot on. Those terms apply to the recent Ivy mandate further restricting the ability of its student-athletes to receive NIL compensation.
Nothing exemplifies this more than the recent Ivy mandate further restricting the ability of its student-athletes to receive NIL.
Yale doesn’t rebuild. It reloads.
It is trite but true. Yale and Princeton have been the premier Ivy programs since 2015. But it looks as if Yale will hold that mantle this year, as it has the last two regular seasons.
Incoming frosh will be vastly better than their recruiting rankings, and sophomores will become contributors and then ultimately stars. It always happens for Yale.
Ivy basketball is at a crossroads.
There is no other way to say it. Could the Ivy be Division III in five years? Although it’s highly unlikely, it’s not impossible like it was 10 years ago.
The triple whammy of no sanctioned NIL, opting out of revenue share and no graduate transfer eligibility has cast a shroud over the league – one which is perceptible on the recruiting trails and on the court.
After a series of player and coach interviews, it is clear that there is no consensus on the direction of Ivy athletics but a clear consensus that the Ivy presidents and some athletic directors are clueless about the current landscape of college athletics.
Call it ignorance. Call it arrogance. It is both and more.
The Yale women’s basketball team took a cultural and basketball trip to Barcelona, Spain and Nice, France last week.
The Bulldogs likely were more successful with the cultural activities, dropping both games played.
The golden era of Yale men’s basketball has taken place over the last decade under the tutelage of longtime head coach James Jones.
Playing no small part in such excellence has been associate head coach Justin Simon, who was named the head coach at Division III Carnegie Mellon University Wednesday.
“I am really fortunate to have been surrounded by so many extraordinary people during my tenure at Yale,” Simon said.
Dear Ivy League presidents:
I have tried to warn you for almost three years.
The warning signs were there. The arrogance was pervasive. The lack of understanding of the current landscape of college athletics on your part was mind-boggling.