Harvard Stuns Yale, Ending Its Undefeated Ivy League Streak

Updated February 28, 2025, at 8:05 p.m.

The Harvard men’s basketball team (11-15, 6-7 Ivy) handed an undefeated Yale (19-7, 12-1 Ivy) its first loss on Saturday in a 74-69 win at Lavietes, in an upset that leaves the Crimson in contention for postseason play in Ivy Madness.

The loss ends the longest win streak in the nation and hopes for an undefeated Ivy season for the Bulldogs, whose star senior guard John Poulakidas was held to just 12 points on a night he shot five-for-16 from the field.

Following a tough loss against Brown on Friday, which saw Harvard give the Bears the lead with just seven minutes left in the game, Harvard fended off continuous attacks from a talented Yale team — the heavy favorite heading into the matchup — to hold a steady single-digit lead.

“It’s not easy against a team as physical and as tough as they are, and that’s their game plan, which is to kind of assault us in the paint,” said Harvard coach Tommy Amaker. “We had different plays and players to step forward to make tough plays, and we had to kind of keep scoring.”

Up by two with a minute left, freshman guard Austin Hunt held the ball at half court searching for an opening. With the shot clock expiring, Hunt drove in and heaved up a three against Yale junior forward Nick Townsend. Banking in the shot at the buzzer, Hunt shifted momentum back to the Crimson to extend their lead to five with 21 seconds left in the game. After a foul during Harvard’s next attack, Hunt sank both his free throws.

“I saw a little space and just let it go,” said Hunt in a postgame interview with ESPN. “It’s the confidence that I get from my guys around me.”

“We’ve been grinding it out, and we’ve got some ups and downs all year, but just us coming together for this game right now means a lot,” he added.

In a game marked by physical play on both ends of the court, Harvard battled in the paint down the stretch, with strong defense from junior guard Chandler Piggé and free throws from Hunt that extended Harvard’s lead in the final seconds.

A packed home crowd — featuring Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray — exploded as the clock ran out and Harvard pulled away with the victory.

With their sixth win in conference play, the Crimson stays in the race for one of the final seeds in the Ivy Madness tournament, needing a couple of league games to go their way heading into the final weekend of conference play to ensure a path stays clear. They are tied with Brown for fifth place in the conference, with the top four invited to Ivy Madness.

Following conference play today, each team will have one more game next weekend — for Harvard, one more prayer that they can make their way to the top four seeds.

The Crimson finished the first half up 38-27, following strong interior defense from freshman guard Tey Barbour and senior guard Evan Nelson who had two steals each. Senior guard Louis Lesmond held Yale’s Poulakidas — who has averaged 19 points per game this season — to seven points and a net minus five on the court in the half.

After a slow start from Harvard, two baskets from Piggé and Lesmond tied the game at nine apiece. The Crimson continued to play physically while shooting well from the floor, amassing a 30-19 lead midway through the first half after a couple of made threes from freshman guard Ben Eisendrath and Barbour.

In the final minutes of the half, Harvard continued to play tough inside, getting key steals from Barbour and Piggé to add to the 10 points off turnovers the Crimson scored in the first period. Harvard ended the half shooting 15-for-28 from the field and four-for-eight from three en route to a 38-27 lead over the regular season Ivy League champions.

The second half opened with missed shots on both ends followed by a quick five points from sophomore forward Thomas Batties II, setting the tone for a half marked by stretches of missed shots and electric scoring. Piggé continued to produce on the offensive and defensive ends, with crafty footwork around Yale defenders and physical defense in the paint despite Harvard’s smaller size.

After threes from Hunt and Nelson, Yale fired back with a steady stream of jumpers and layups, cutting the lead to five with seven to go. Both teams had trouble shooting down the stretch, but rebounding from freshman Robert Hinton and tough layups through contact from Nelson kept Harvard’s lead steady.

On Yale’s end, senior Bez Mbeng led the Bulldogs’ attack in the paint, finishing with a game-high 20 points. Meanwhile, Townsend continued to penetrate, knocking down much-needed jumpers for 18-points.

Throughout the game, guidance from veterans Nelson and Piggé allowed cooler heads to prevail, preventing a repeat of last night’s collapse as Harvard held the ball steady and avoided fastbreak play. While 49 of Yale’s 69 points were made by three players, Harvard saw balanced scoring across the board, having five players in double-digit scoring.

Wrapping up with Hunt’s pair of clutch plays, the Crimson finished the game strong, breathing a sigh of relief as they completed the upset against Yale.

“Composure and confidence is what carried us through here this afternoon,” Amaker said.

Harvard hosts Dartmouth next Saturday, with a win necessary to keep postseason hopes alive for the Crimson.

—Staff writer Akshaya Ravi can be reached at akshaya.ravi@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @akshayaravi22.