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Harvard ekes out home sweep with double-overtime win over Columbia

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In a game in which they were favored by 14.5 points, Harvard struggled to pull away from Columbia and barely escaped with a victory in double overtime. Mike Smith scored 38 points, more than half of Columbia’s total output, and came very close to stunning the Crimson on the road. Harvard struggled badly to generate offense, attempting most of its field goals from beyond the three-point line and making only eight of 43, and contain Smith, who took 37 shots and made 17 in 49 minutes of play. Both sides made crucial plays to extend the game. Smith drove to the basket for an open layup to tie the game at the end of regulation, and Christian Juzang scored after a crucial offensive rebound by Justin Bassey to force double overtime.

Christian Juzang shot just 2-for-13 from three-point range but hit a second-chance bucket with 10 seconds to play in overtime to force a second OT period that resulted in a Harvard win over Columbia Saturday night. | Photo by Erica Denhoff

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Lions crush Crimson, 89-64, to get back into Ivy Madness race

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Columbia used 12-0 and 18-3 first half runs to open up a 26-point halftime lead and cruised to a 89-64 victory over Harvard on Saturday night at Levien Gym.

Harvard took an 11-10 lead right after the first media timeout, but that would prove to be the highlight of the night for the Crimson as Columbia (13-8, 4-4 Ivy) dominated the last 34 minutes.

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Big Green blow out Big Red as Boeheim is injured

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Cornell suffered its second 22-point loss in as many days, falling to Dartmouth, 75-53, in Hanover Saturday night. Even worse for the Big Red, Jimmy Boeheim went down with an injury just six minutes in and never returned.

The junior made the first four for the visitors, then got tangled up on a foul call under the basket on defense. He landed funny and had difficulty walking. Boeheim hobbled on one foot to the trainer station where he was looked at. He finally returned to the bench, taped with ice, and stayed there for the remainder of the game.

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Harvard dominates at home against Cornell

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In their return to Lavietes Pavilion after a harrowing five-game road trip, the Crimson turned in a thoroughly dominant performance against an overmatched Cornell squad. When the dust settled at halftime, Harvard was leading 42-15 and had long since dispelled any suspense about the game’s final outcome. The easy win came at a perfect time for Harvard after a four-game stretch in which each contest was decided by three points or fewer.

Harvard’s frontcourt pressed its athletic advantage throughout the game, with Chris Lewis, Chris Ledlum, and Danilo Djuricic combining for 41 points while shooting an astounding 75% from the floor. Harvard also outrebounded their opponents 40-30, creating a number of easy second-chance points. Freshman Idan Tretout took advantage of increased playing time in the second half to contribute nine points and was one of seven Harvard players to score at least seven.

Chris Lewis slams one home during Harvard’s win over Cornell Friday at Lavietes Pavilion. Lewis was the KenPom game MVP, shooting a perfect 5-for-5 from the field and 3-for-3 from the foul line for 13 points in 24 minutes of play. | Photo by Erica Denhoff

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Cornell falls at home to hot-shooting Harvard, 73-58

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ITHACA, N.Y . – The Crimson and Red are on divergent paths.

Cornell never led against Harvard Friday at Newman Arena, losing 73-58 after digging a hole too deep in the first half to drop its fourth straight game as Harvard notched a third straight win.

The Crimson (14-6, 5-2 Ivy) started off scorching the nets, leading 23-15 after the first quarter. They hit eight of 10 shots in the first 10 minutes, and first-year guard Lola Mullaney hit three of them, all from downtown.

“They switch a lot, and it created some mismatches,” said Cornell coach Dayna Smith. “We didn’t take care of the basketball on the perimeter against those mismatches … A couple of people early on were too focused on the Harvard players instead of what we needed to be doing.”

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Brown dominates in the second half to take down Penn, 75-63

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Senior guards Brandon Anderson and Zach Hunsaker combined for 51 points, including 39 in the second half, to lead Brown over Penn, 75-63, at the Palestra on Friday night.

Despite playing without All-Ivy wing Ryan Betley, who is weekend-to-weekend with a sprained left ankle, the Quakers (12-8, 4-3 Ivy) ran out to an 21-10 lead over the first 10:30 of the contest.  The Red & Blue maintained an 11 point advantage, following a Max Martz layup with a minute to go, but a Hunsaker three and Anderson layup cut the Penn lead to 35-29 at the half.

The Bears (12-8, 5-2) came out of the locker room a different team.

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Cardiac Crimson suffer last-second loss at Brown

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Live by the opponent’s last-second free throw, die by the opponent’s last-second free throw.

Harvard concluded a wild four-game road stretch with a 72-71 loss when Brown’s Tamenang Choh finished an “and-one” in the waning seconds, a night after Yale’s Azar Swain failed to convert a similar opportunity. On the back of Choh’s heroics and a dominant performance from Brandon Anderson, the Bears (11-8, 4-2 Ivy) picked up a crucial home win against the rival Crimson (14-7, 3-3) and proved that they can play with the best of the Ivy. The Crimson go home disappointed after four straight tight contests with surviving optimism about their ceiling but with urgent questions about their ability to finish games. The thrilling conclusion lent some excitement to a game that was otherwise difficult to watch, thanks to overzealous refereeing and occasional difficulties with clock management.

Tamenang Choh and Zach Hunsaker walk off the Pizzitola Sports Center court victorious after Choh completed a three-point play at the foul line with 0.5 seconds remaining. | Photo by Erica Denhoff

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Harvard women give Yale its first conference loss of season

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Harvard handed its archrival its first defeat in Ivy League competition Friday, pulling away in the fourth quarter to notch a 66-57 win over Yale at Lavietes Pavilion.

Yale (14-4, 4-1 Ivy) overcame an 18-8 deficit after one quarter to claim a 31-29 halftime lead, but the Crimson ended the game on a 15-5 run over the final 7:12, attacking the Bulldogs inside down the stretch.

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Princeton women control the inside, defeat Harvard for weekend sweep

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Princeton used its inside strength to outrebound Harvard by 15 and score 18 more points in the paint to cruise past Harvard, 60-46, Saturday night at Lavietes Pavilion.

With the game tied after the first five minutes, the Tigers (15-1, 3-0 Ivy) closed out the frame on an 8-0 run to finish with a 17-9 advantage.  Princeton stretched the lead to 14 at the three-minute mark of the second quarter before Jeannie Boehm, Maggie McCarthy and Maddie Stuhlreyer led the Crimson (11-6, 2-2) on a 7-0 run.  With one possession left in the half, Carlie Littlefield got the ball to an open Bella Alarie, who calmly hit a three from the top of the key to make it 32-22.

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Yale overcomes 16-point second-half deficit to push past Cornell, 74-67

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ITHACA, N.Y. – The Cornell Big Red led by as many as 16 points in the third quarter, but Yale stormed back to avenge last season’s Big Red sweep of the Bulldogs and remain undefeated in Ivy League play, escaping Newman Arena Saturday with a 74-67 win.

“A really disappointing second half,” Cornell coach Dayna Smith said. “Their top two leading scorers stepped up when they needed to.”

Those two would be Roxy Barahman and Camilla Emsbo. Each ended the first half with six points but finished with 26 points and 24 points, respectively.

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