The Storyline
The Harvard men’s basketball team will open the New Year by hosting Saint Rose Monday, Jan. 5 at 7 p.m. The game can be seen live online via the Ivy League Digital Network.

Monday’s matchup will serve as Harvard’s final tune-up before beginning Ivy League play on Saturday, Jan. 10 at Dartmouth. The Crimson will return to non-conference action for a pair of games at Boston College and Bryant following its first matchup with the Big Green, and will start the “14-Game Tournament” in earnest Jan. 24 at home against Dartmouth. Additionally, Harvard will be looking to extend its home-court winning streak to nine games dating back to last year.

What To Watch For
• Harvard boasts a 125-38 (.767) record since 2009-10, good for the 13th highest win percentage in the country in that time (as of games played Jan. 2). This includes a 66-5 record at home and a 59-33 mark away from Lavietes Pavilion (50-28 road, 9-5 neutral).

• Harvard has won eight straight games at Lavietes Pavilion dating back to last year, including six games this season. The Crimson is 55-3 (.948) at home since 2010-11, representing the third highest home-court win percentage in the NCAA over that time.

• At 8-3, Harvard is assured to finish non-conference play with a winning record for the seventh consecutive season. The Crimson is 75-32 away from the Ivy League since 2008-09, and posted a program best 14 non-conference wins in 2011-12 and 2013-14.

• Harvard currently ranks 32nd in the NCAA in scoring defense (as of games played Jan. 2), having allowed 58.2 ppg. The Crimson has held nine of its 11 opponents to fewer than 60 points this season. Harvard has allowed fewer than 60.0 ppg just once before under head coach Tommy Amaker; 55.6 ppg in 2011-12.

• Harvard ranks 11th in the NCAA in blocked shots per game (as of games played Jan. 2) at 6.1 bpg. The program record for blocked shots in a season stands at 4.8 bpg, set by last year’s squad.

• Harvard is 7-2 this season when Wesley Saunders scores at lesat 15 points, and is 32-9 when he has done so in his career. Harvard is 6-1 this season when Siyani Chambers dishes out at least five assists, and is 34-7 when he does so in his career.

• In 11 games, Harvard has had more than two student-athletes score in double-figures only four times. Seven Crimson are averaging at least 4.0 ppg, but only one is averaging double-figures (Wesley Saunders, 17.7).

Last Time Out
The Harvard men’s basketball team closed out 2014 in emphatic fashion last Tuesday night, defeating Grand Canyon, 72-59, in front of the largest crowd in GCU Arena history.

Siyani Chambers scored 16 points and dished out four assists to lead the charge while Steve Moundou-Missi turned in his second double-double of the year with 12 points and 10 boards. Wesley Saunders added 15 points, six rebounds and six assists, with Corbin Miller contributing 12 points.

The Crimson shot 52.1 percent (25-48) on the night, including a 6-of-12 clip from long-range, and owned a 38-24 advantage on the glass.

Creating a Winning Culture
Harvard has posted a 125-38 (.767) overall record since the start of the 2009-10 season, ranking as the 13th highest win percentage in the country over the last five-plus seasons (as of games played Jan. 2).

Home is Where the Wins Are
Harvard has posted a 55-3 (.948) record at Lavietes Pavilion since the start of the 2010-11 season, ranking the Crimson behind only Duke (70-3, .959) and Kentucky (75-4, .949) for the third highest home-court win percentage in the country over the last four-plus seasons (as of games played Jan. 6).

Harvard is 6-0 at home this season and has won eight straight at Lavietes Pavilion dating back to last year. Since 2010-11, the Crimson has enjoyed two home win streaks of at least 20 games; 28 games (Feb. 20, 2010 to Feb. 25, 2012), 20 games (Dec. 1, 2012 to Feb. 7, 2014).

Starting Fast
Harvard has started 8-3 or better five times under head coach Tommy Amaker; 24-3, 2011-12; 18-3, 2013-14; 15-3, 2010-11; 14-3, 2009-10, 8-3, 2014-15.

Stuffing the Stat Sheet
Wesley Saunders, the 2014 Ivy League Player of the Year, currently ranks among the Ancient Eight’s top 10 in eight statistcal categories. As a senior, Jeremy Lin ’10 finished ranked among the conference’s best in nine statistical categories.

Leading the Way
Wesley Saunders led Harvard in scoring in each of the team’s first eight games, becoming the first member of the Crimson to lead the team in scoring in eight straight games under head coach Tommy Amaker.

Saunders has led Harvard in scoring 37 times in his career, with the Crimson owning a 25-12 record in those games.

Born to Assist
Siyani Chambers has led Harvard in assists 46 times in his career, with the Crimson owning a 34-12 record in those games.

Chambers boasts 41 career games with five or more assists, including a stretch of eight straight games as a freshman (Dec. 11, 2012 - Jan. 26, 2013). Harvard is 34-7 in games Chambers reaches five assists.

Cleaning the Glass
Steve Moundou-Missi recorded a career-high 17 rebounds at Vermont, the most by a member of the Crimson under head coach Tommy Amaker.

Moundou-Missi has led Harvard in rebounding 30 times in his career, with the Crimson owning a 24-6 record in those games.

Grand Theft
Wesley Saunders recorded 12 steals against Northeastern and Vermont, including a career-high seven at Vermont to match Jeremy Lin ‘10 (vs. George Washington, Dec. 30, 2009) for the most steals by a member of the Crimson under head coach Tommy Amaker.

Saunders currently ranks 33rd in the NCAA with 2.3 steals per game (as of games played Jan. 2), while his 145 career steals are good for eighth in program history.

Double-Trouble
Wesley Saunders recorded three double-doubles in the team’s first four games, becoming the first member of the Crimson to post three double-doubles in a four-game stretch since Keith Wright ‘12 did it in four consecutive games in 2011-12.

Player of the Week
Wesley Saunders was named the Ivy League Player of the Week on Dec. 1 after averaging 25.5 ppg, 6.5 rpg and 3.5 apg in wins over Houston and UMass.

Saunders has earned nine player of the week awards in his career, matching Princeton’s Ian Hummer and Brown’s Earl Hunt for the most in Ivy history. Saunders garnered the honor five times in 2012-13, three times in 2013-14 and has one award in 2014-15.

Watch This
Wesley Saunders was named to the Naismith Trophy, Wooden Award and Lou Henson Award watch lists as one of the elite student-athletes in the country.

Saunders is the first Ivy Leaguer to be included on the Naismith Trophy Top 50, while he joined Jeremy Lin ’10 as the second member of the Crimson to be named to the Wooden Award Watch List. Saunders was also included on the 2013 Lou Henson Award Watch List.

Cousy Award
Siyani Chambers was named to the 2015 Bob Cousy Award Watch List, marking the third-straight year that the junior has been tabbed among the top point guards in college basketball. Chambers is one of just three individuals to have been included on the watch list in each of the last three years along with Duke’s Quinn Cook and Gonzaga’s Kevin Pangos.

Last year, Chambers was one of 23 Cousy Award Watch List finalists after being among the original list of 80 watch list candidates along with teammate Brandyn Curry ’13-14.

Moving on Up
Head coach Tommy Amaker continus to move up the ranks of the Ivy League’s winningest coaches. Amaker’s 147 wins at Harvard are the eighth most since the conference began competition in 1956, while his 67 Ivy League victories rank 14th.

Amaker has led Harvard to four-straight Ivy League championships, tying him with former Princeton head coach Butch van Breda Kolff and fomer Penn head coach Chuck Daly for the fourth most Ivy titles won.

On The Sidelines
With 147 victories under his belt, Tommy Amaker ranks second all-time in Harvard coaching annals.

Amaker's .665 win percentage (147-74), meanwhile, ranks first among Harvard coaches who have spent at least two seasons at the helm of the team.