Men’s Basketball Topples Brown 80-67 for First Ivy League Win

Harvard men’s basketball (6-9, 1-1 Ivy) earned its first Ivy League win of the season over Brown (8-7, 0-2 Ivy) in a dominant 80-67 fashion, providing a much-needed boost after the team dropped a heartbreaking conference opener to Princeton, the current league favorites.

Powered by a strong defensive effort that forced 21 turnovers from the Bears, the Crimson jumped out to a quick start in the second half and never looked back after a tight first period.

Co-captain Chandler Piggé led the team with 17 points and 11 rebounds, tallying another double-double. Alongside Piggé, freshman guard Robert Hinton, senior forward Thomas Batties II, and senior forward Louis Lesmond all put together double digit performances, marking Harvard’s second consecutive game with four starters eclipsing 10 points.

In a post-game interview on ESPN+ Piggé explained that the win was particularly important to the team.

“The best win you can get is a win on the road in-season,” Piggé said. “We came in and took care of business. I’m proud of us.”

Out of the gate, the offense initially struggled to find momentum. The team found itself down 16-21 at the 10:20 mark, having trouble guarding Brown’s shifty guard and offensive facilitator Kino Lilly Jr., who ended the night with 22 points.

Several layups and easy buckets brought the score back to 24-24 before threes from senior guard Evan Nelson and Piggé put Harvard up 30-24 with 5:38 left in the half.

Down 33-24 with 3:49 remaining, the Bears swung back into the game with shots from A.J. Lesburt and Aaron Cooley Jr.. Entering the locker room, the score stood at 35-34 in Harvard’s favor, with the Crimson shooting a mere 40% from the field and going two for five from the free throw line.

Still, according to Piggé, the team’s focus never wavered.

“For us, the whole season we’ve been trying to improve on the first four minutes of the first half and the first four minutes of the second half,” Piggé said. “We know that basketball is a game of runs.”

Coming out of the locker room, the Crimson found a new fire to hold off the Bears. On the first possession of the half, Hinton sank a three pointer to put Harvard up by four. In the following three and a half minutes, Harvard made five close-range shots to take a commanding 48-39 lead with 16:12 left in the game.

From that point on, the team never let the Bears back into the game. Strong defensive pressure coupled with a will to attack the basket saw the Crimson take a 19 point lead with just 5:28 remaining in the game.

The road test proved to be an important experience for the young team, with freshmen Hinton, Tey Barbour, and Austin Hunt all receiving significant minutes.

“Our young guys came out with a lot of energy. They were tight and they were together,” Piggé said.

Throughout the second half, Harvard continued to capitalize on Brown’s mistakes, ending the game with 25 points off turnovers. Despite running a smaller than typical rotation, the Crimson physically overpowered the Bears in the paint, outscoring Brown 42-24 at the glass.

Harvard looks to carry over its momentum to Monday, where they will face off against Penn at home in search of their second Ivy League victory.

—Staff writer Praveen Kumar can be reached at praveen.kumar@thecrimson.com.