Crimson Cagers Face Columbia, Cornell as Hoop Season Ends

The Crimson hoop machine is finally rolling smoothly as the basketball campaign draws to a close this weekend. The Crimson cagers, coming off three consecutive victories on the road, hope to transfer their winning magic to the IAB when they tangle with Columbia tonight and Cornell tomorrow night.

The three victories have boosted the Crimson Ivy slate to 7-5, assuring Harvard of at least fourth place in the league. A Crimson double dip of the Lions and the Big Red, coupled with Brown losses to front-running Penn and Princeton this weekend, would deadlock Harvard with the Bruins for an impressive third-place Ivy finish.

Harvard Stunned Lions

Tonight's contest pits a very erratic Lion squad against the improving Crimson. Earlier in the season, Harvard stunned the Lions in New York by rattling off the final 14 points of the game to eke out an 80-77 triumph.

Columbia has managed only four wins in 24 outings and is currently nestled with Yale in the Ivy cellar. But it showed some firepower against Penn last week, falling to the nation's tenth-ranked Quakers, 72-69.

Cornell, the perennial Ivy doormat, invades the IAB tomorrow night with a different look. In an effort to turn its basketball fortunes around, the Big Red hired a new coach this season, Ben Bluitt. Under his tutelage, Cornell has climbed to fifth in the Ivies this season with a 4-8 record.

The Big Red is spearheaded on the court by Maynard Brown. The big man is second in the Ivies in both rebounding and scoring. But Harvard held him in check earlier this year, cruising to an 80-67 thrashing of the Big Red.