CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – The Harvard men's basketball team won for the third time in four games this season, defeating crosstown foe MIT, 98-52, Saturday afternoon at Lavietes Pavilion. The Crimson never trailed in a contest where all 10 of its available players found the scoring column.
 
Harvard got off to a slow start as the game was tied at 13 with 13:25 left in the first half and enjoyed a single-digit lead with just under eight minutes to play (26-17; 7:47). The Crimson, however, closed the frame in dominant fashion, outscoring the Engineers, 18-7, the rest of the way to take a 44-24 advantage into the locker room.
 
During the first period, Harvard shot a blistering 63 percent from the floor and was 5-for-11 from three-point distance. Between Kale Catchings, Chris Ledlum and Noah Kirkwood, the trio was 12-for-18 from the field (all three were 4-for-6) en route to 29 points.
 
In the opening minutes of the second half, Harvard received back-to-back-to-back threes from Ledlum, Idan Tretout and Kirkwood to turn a 22-point game into a 59-28 cushion. From that point on, MIT never got closer than 26 points.
 
At the final horn, six Harvard players reached double figures in scoring, something not seen since Dec. 28, 2013. Leading the way was Ledlum and first-year Samuel Silverstein, who each scored 16 points. Catchings had 15, Kirkwood finished with 12, and Luka Sakota and Tretout both turned in 11.

Harvard Highlights

• Kale Catchings had his best performance of the season, recording 15 points on the strength of a career-high-tying five field goals. The 15 points were one shy of matching his career best.
• Luka Sakota assist numbers matched his career high with five assists, while reaching double figures in scoring for the third straight game.
• Chris Ledlum and Noah Kirkwood both reached double figures in scoring for the fourth straight game, finishing with 16 and 12, respectively. Ledlum also had seven rebounds to lead the team for the third time in 2021-22.
• Samuel Silverstein set a career high in scoring for the second straight game. The first-year scored 16 points (6-6 FG, 2-2 3FG, 2-2 FT) to log his first career double-digit effort. He also had three assists and tied for game-high honors with three steals (Ledlum).
• Six players reached the double-figure scoring plateau, marking the first time it has happened for Harvard since Dec. 28, 2013, against Fordham (Siyani Chambers – 19, Kyle Casey – 17, Agunwa Okolie – 17, Wesley Saunders – 14, Steve Moundou-Missi – 11, Laurent Rivard – 10).
• First-year Tyler Simon scored the first points of his career when he connected on a layup with 5:39 left in the second half. He finished with five points on 2-of-3 shooting.
• Idan Tretout equaled his career high with 11 points behind a career-high three treys. The junior also set personal records with five assists and four blocked shots.
• Tommy O'Neil set career highs in points (5), assists (1), blocked shots (1) and minutes played (10).

Game Notes

• Harvard improved to 3-1 for the second straight competitive season (2019-20).
• The Crimson has won 10 of its last 12 outings and 11 of its last 14.
• Harvard improved to 13-1 at Lavietes Pavilion over the last two seasons (2019-20, 2021-22).
• The Crimson improved to 55-10 against MIT and has now won 17 straight meetings (11-0 vs. Engineers under Tommy Amaker).
• Harvard has scored at least 85 points in three of four games this season. 

What's Next?

The Crimson heads to Siena for a Monday night date, which is set for 7 p.m. ET on ESPN3.