CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - Harvard will look to rebound from a loss in its only game last week as it is set to face Brown on Friday night at 7 p.m. ET in Providence, Rhode Island. The contest is a rematch of the Crimson's Ivy League opener that occurred nearly a month ago on Jan. 7.

What to Know

- The Crimson have dropped two games in a row for the second time this season after it let a 13-point first-half lead get away against Penn last Friday evening. Harvard, which trailed by 11 in the second half, cut its deficit to two points twice inside 13 seconds, but could not complete the rally, falling to the Quakers, 78-74.

- Harvard and Penn put up nearly identical numbers when the dust settled, but the difference was at the free-throw line. Both teams made 28 baskets, Harvard made two more threes (7-5), each had seven assists, Penn had one more turnover (10-9), both had one blocked shot, and Penn had one more steal (4-3) and six more rebounds (38-32). At the charity stripe, however, the Quakers were 17-for-20 and the Crimson made 11-of-20. Harvard entered the game shooting 72.4 percent from the line.

- Ivy League Player-of-the-Year candidate Noah Kirkwood led Harvard in points (27), rebounds (8), assists (2, tied), steals (3) and minutes (37) against Penn. The senior made 12-of-19 from the field, setting a single-game career high for buckets. From two-point range, Kirkwood was deadly, making 11 of his 12 attempts.

- Kirkwood has reached double figures in scoring in every game this season, but his last six games have been particularly good. He has led the team in scoring and assists in each of those outings, and was Harvard's team leader in rebounding four times. Over his last six games, he is averaging 22.3 points on 52-of-98 shooting (.531), 7.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists. He has also eclipsed the 20-point mark three times in his last four games (24.3 ppg).

- Despite missing his junior campaign due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Kirkwood nearing closer to the 1,000-point career milestone. Aiming to become the school's 37th member of the club, the senior is at 966 points coming into the Brown game. He is on pace to reach the 1,000-point plateau, if he keeps his 18.1 scoring average, on Feb. 5, at Yale.

- Junior Luka Sakota fell one point shy of matching his career high when he finished with 18 points against Penn last week. The guard was a career-best 7-for-7 from the charity stripe and added a trio of three-pointers, including one with 10.9 seconds left in regulation to bring the Crimson to within two of the Quakers. Sakota comes into the Brown game having made six of his last 13 from three-point range (.462).

- Harvard was expected to begin the year by starting its three seniors in Kirkwood, Kale Catchings and Mason Forbes. Injuries, however, got in the way and the vision was not realized until Game 17, against Penn. Outside of Kirkwood's production, Catchings finished with 10 points and four rebounds, and Forbes added six points and three boards in his first start of the campaign (second appearance of 2021-22). The trio was a combined 19-for-31 from the field (.613) and 16-for-18 from two-point distance (.889).

- Harvard has been a resilient group over the last few seasons, posting a 16-4 record in the game following its last 20 defeats. Two of those four losses, however, have come this season as the Crimson is 4-2 in responding to losses. Harvard will be looking to avoid its first three-game losing streak since 2017-18.

- Following the game at Brown, Harvard will head to New Haven, Connecticut to face Yale. The Crimson and Bulldogs will clash Saturday night before seeing each other four days later on Feb. 9 in Cambridge. The second contest is a rescheduled game from Jan. 9 due to COVID-19 concerns within the Yale program.

At the Helm

Tommy Amaker, The Thomas G. Stemberg '71 Family Endowed Coach for Harvard Men's Basketball, is in his 15th season at Harvard. He is the winningest coach in Crimson history with 261 victories and has led the program to seven Ivy League titles and eight postseason appearances.

Up Next

The Crimson continue its road trip on Saturday when it plays at Yale. The game will air on ESPN+, beginning at 7 p.m. ET.