CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Senior guard/forward
Chris Ledlum scored a game and career-high 30 points and tallied nine rebounds and five assists to lead Harvard University men's basketball past Loyola Chicago, 61-55, on Friday afternoon at Lavietes Pavilion.
Opening a stretch of five games in 10 days, including three of four against opponents from the Atlantic 10 Conference, the Crimson (5-1) never trailed in the game, held a 33-26 advantage at halftime, and built a lead as large as 14 points in the second half on its way to the victory over the visiting Ramblers (2-4) – a team that played in the 2018 Final Four. Ledlum crossed the 30-point barrier for the first time in his collegiate career.
Harvard Highlights
- Senior guard/forward Chris Ledlum scored a game and career-high 30 points on 11-of-17 field goals, 2-of-4 3-pointers, and 6-of-10 free throws, while adding a game-high nine rebounds and a career-best five steals. He also drew a game-best nine fouls in the contest.
- Ledlum reached the 30-point plateau for the first time in his career and scored over 20 points for the third time this season and the sixth time in his career. He posted a double-figure scoring effort for the sixth time this year and 28th time in his career.
- First-year forward Chisom Okpara tallied eight points and three assists.
- Senior guard Idan Tretout compiled seven points on 3-of-5 shooting.
- Senior guard Luka Sakota totaled six points, four rebounds, three steals, and two assists while junior guard Sam Silverstein added six rebounds and two assists.
- Sophomore guard Evan Nelson distributed a game-best five assists, and junior forward Justice Ajogbor registered a game-high three blocks.
- Harvard held advantages in fast break points (16-6), points off turnovers (21-16), and points in the paint (34-28).
Gallery: (11-25-2022) Men's Basketball vs. Loyola Chicago
How It Happened
- Harvard jumped out to a 16-4 lead with 12:35 to go in the first half behind eight early points from Ledlum. Tretout netted the final five points of that opening stretch, including a 3-pointer.
- The Crimson maintained a 10-point edge at 21-11 before the Ramblers scored eight straight points to pull within 21-19 with 6:03 left in the opening half.
- Harvard responded with six consecutive points to move ahead 27-19 at the 4:02 mark and brought a 33-26 advantage into halftime.
- Outscoring Loyola 13-6 to open the second half, Harvard extended its lead to 46-32 with 13:58 remaining. Ledlum scored the Crimson's first nine points of the second half before baskets from Silverstein and Ajogbor capped the stretch.
- After Loyola whittled the margin to 51-45 with 8:43 to play, the Crimson responded with a 6-2 spurt to push the advantage back to double figures at 57-47 with 5:43 left.
- Harvard brought a 59-50 lead into the final minute, and two free throws from Sakota with 10 seconds to play sealed the victory.
Postgame Quotes
- "It's good to come out on top in a game like that. That was a hard-fought, intense game – which we felt it was going to be. They're a really good, physical team. That was a great win for us. We knew it would be the kind of game that takes a lot of toughness." – Tommy Amaker, The Thomas G. Stemberg '71 Family Endowed Coach for Harvard Men's Basketball
- "I told our kids that I was really proud of them today. I thought we were warriors today, and we had to be. We fought hard, and I thought we played very smart. Obviously, Chris Ledlum was a man among boys at times with how physical and determined he was. He pus us on his back and carried us over the finish line." – Tommy Amaker, The Thomas G. Stemberg '71 Family Endowed Coach for Harvard Men's Basketball
- "It was a great win for us. We knew it would be a physical game. We knew we were playing a good opponent. We're just excited that we were able to come together and get a good win." – Senior guard/forward Chris Ledlum
Next Up
Harvard plays at Fordham on Sunday, Nov. 27 at 1:30 p.m. (ESPN+/SNY) in Bronx, New York.
