General

Quakeaways from Penn men’s basketball’s 70-69 loss at Rutgers

by

PISCATAWAY, N.J. — Penn’s first game against Rutgers in 50 years should have been a statement win.

It wound up becoming a collapse right up there with the worst losses of the Steve Donahue era.

Plagued by a toxic combination of fouls, turnovers, mental mistakes and poor free throw shooting, the Quakers frittered away the 66-59 lead they held with 2:24 to play against the Scarlet Knights at Jersey Mike’s Arena Saturday night.

The coup de grâce in a 70-69 loss came when junior forward TJ Power missed two free throws with eight seconds left that would have effectively iced the game. After the second miss, Rutgers (6-6) guard Tariq Francis capped off a career-high 34-point evening by draining a pull-up game-winning three-pointer with 0.9 seconds to play over a good contest from freshman guard Jay Jones.

For Penn (6-5), the only saving grace about the loss is that it occurred in nonconference play and means nothing for the team’s Ivy and postseason ambitions. It’s better for this young team to learn a harsh lesson like this now when it can still be used as a learning experience.

So, about that learning experience. What did fans learn on Saturday night?

Read more

Yale men’s basketball throttles UIC to improve to 10-1

by

Yale men’s basketball played out the second leg of a rare home-and home series with an out-of-conference mid-major at John J. Lee Amphitheater Sunday, 13 months after the Bulldogs fell at its opponent, Illinois Chicago, by a 91-79 tally.

But on Sunday, the Bulldogs evened the score by running all over UIC, 80-66.

“It was a really good win over them,” coach James Jones said. “They try to slow you down.”

Read more

Yale men’s basketball notches tough road win over Vermont

by

The last time Yale men’s basketball defeated Vermont in Burlington, Barack Obama was president. (It was 2014.)

Burlington was a house of horrors for Yale two years ago, when a Vermont four-point play with .7 seconds left downed the visitors.

But Yale exorcised those demons with a tough 77-74 victory over the Catamounts Sunday in a heavyweight mid-major battle.

“We just played together and stuck in there,” Yale coach James Jones said. “Vermont is a really good team. Just makes you feel good about us going forward.”

Read more

Yale men’s basketball holds off Akron to win Paradise Jam Tournament

by

22-for-22.

You read that right. Yale men’s basketball (6-1) was 22-for-22 from the free-throw line and held off a furious Akron (5-2) charge to win the U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam Tournament, 97-94, Monday night.

“I thought our guys were really connected against a really difficult opponent,” Yale coach James Jones said.

Read more

Nick Townsend powers Yale men’s basketball to Paradise Jam Tournament final

by

It was the Nick Townsend show Sunday evening at the Paradise Jam Tournament in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The senior forward posted a career-high 32 points plus eight rebounds to lead Yale into the tournament final with a decisive 74-63 win over the College of Charleston.

“They let him (Townsend) go one on one, and he took advantage of it,” coach James Jones said.

Read more

Kent: Does Ivy League hear alarm bells with another departure?

by

With the news that Alexander Lesburt Jr. is pulling a Caden Pierce at Brown men’s basketball, sitting out his senior season and entering the portal, the alarm bells are getting louder and louder.

First, as to Lesburt. He was expected to be a key player for Mike Martin after averaging 10.3 points and 3.6 rebounds per game last season and is a skilled three-point shooter. But he is no longer on the team, Brown announced Tuesday, noting he left the program to preserve his final year of eligibility.

Numerous Ivy players in basketball and other sports are exploring this three-year graduation route to obtain a coveted Ivy League degree and get another payday year elsewhere.

Read more

Yale men’s basketball takes first season loss after Rhode Island second-half surge

by

Yale men’s basketball took its first loss of the 2025-26 season Tuesday night at John J. Lee Amphitheater, squandering a 10-point second-half lead and falling tamely to KenPom No. 102 Rhode Island, 86-77.

The Rams (4-1) went on a 17-6 run to grab a 57-56 lead and hold off the Bulldogs (3-1). The visitors were more physical than Yale in the second half and outscored them, 46-31, in the frame.

“We did a poor job of getting back [on defense],” Yale coach James Jones said. “They have some quickness there [at guard].”

Read more

Quakeaways from Penn men’s basketball’s big Big 5 win over Saint Joseph’s

by

PHILADELPHIA — With 15:51 to play last night, Penn held a 48-46 lead at the Palestra on Saint Joseph’s and former coach Steve Donahue. The Quakers entered Monday as a six-point underdog, but the small lead clearly wasn’t enough for Penn coach Fran McCaffery — or anyone on the bench, for that manner.

One benefit of my seats behind the scorer’s table is that I can pick up bits and pieces of what’s said on the Penn bench or in the huddle. You can see players get coached up as they come off the floor, or hear an assistant demanding someone on the court cut or help.

I didn’t pick up a ton of what McCaffery was saying during that timeout, but one sentence aimed at the Hawks came through perfectly clear.

“They ****ing can’t defend!”

A few minutes later, Penn proved its new coach right. A 5-0 Penn run — capped by a wing three from Ethan Roberts in transition — would force Saint Joseph’s into a timeout and help lift the Quakers to a thrilling 83-74 win.

Penn (2-2, 1-0 Big 5) was physically overwhelmed by Saint Joseph’s (2-2, 1-1) on the same floor last year, the first big red flag in a season that got Donahue fired. Not so on Monday. The Quakers put up 1.11 points per possession and played at times brilliant offense against an ostensibly superior opponent.

Where do they go from here?

Read more

Yale men’s basketball steps past Stony Brook

by

Yale men’s basketball was finally tested but survived a Stony Brook scare and hung on for an 86-79 win Saturday at John J. Lee Amphitheater.

The Bulldogs (3-0) held a narrow 40-38 halftime lead over the Seawolves (3-1), who went 8-for-14 from three-point range in the stanza.

Yale was up 46-43 and then went on a 15-6 run, keyed by two threes by senior forward Nick Townsend.

Stony Brook cut the score to 74-70 at the 2:12 mark. Then junior guard Trevor Mullin hit a key trey and Yale never looked back.

Read more