HAMILTON, N.Y. – Sophomore forward
Chisom Okpara led four Crimson in double-figures with a season-high 21 points as Harvard University men's basketball beat Colgate University, 76-70, on Wednesday afternoon at Cotterell Court, improving to 5-1 on the season, including three road victories.
Playing in the third game of a four-game road swing, the Crimson (5-1) led 36-30 at halftime, remained ahead 61-48 with 8:09 to play and 67-56 with 2:57 left, and held off a late rally from the host Raiders (3-3) – a team that has made four straight appearances in the NCAA tournament.
Okpara scored his 21 points in 23 minutes, hitting 8-of-13 field goals and adding six rebounds. First-year guard
Malik Mack tallied 16 points and a career-high eight assists, senior forward
Justice Ajogbor posted a career-best 15 points alongside five rebounds, three assists, and three blocks, and junior guard
Louis Lesmond registered 11 points and three 3-pointers.
Harvard Highlights
- Sophomore forward Chisom Okpara scored a team and season-high 21 points on 8-of-13 field goals, 3-of-5 3-pointers, and 2-of-3 free throws, while grabbing six rebounds. He scored over 20 points for the second straight game and eclipsed the 20-point plateau for the third time in his career.
- First-year guard Malik Mack tallied 16 points and a career-high eight assists, while making 7-of-8 free throws. He has scored in double figures in all six games this season and dished out six or more assists for the fourth time in the last five games.
- Senior forward Justice Ajogbor posted a career-high 15 points on 7-of-11 shooting alongside five rebounds, three assists, and three blocks. He scored in double figures for the third time this season and eighth time in his career. He tallied three of more blocks for the fifth time this year.
- Junior guard Louis Lesmond netted 11 points on 4-of-8 field goals and 3-of-7 3-pointers. He scored in double figures for the third time this season and 10th time in his career. He connected on three or more 3-pointers for the fourth time this year.
- Junior guard Denham Wojcik netted a career-best eight points, making 2-of-3 3-pointers and 2-of-2 free throws.
- Sophomore guard Chandler Piggé grabbed a game-high nine rebounds with three assists.
- As a team, Harvard limited Colgate to 36.8 percent shooting. The Crimson has held its opponent below 40 percent shooting from the field in five of six games this year.
Gallery: (11-22-2023) Men's Basketball at Colgate
How It Happened
- Neither team held a lead larger than two possessions over the first 13 minutes of the game with the Raiders maintaining a 19-15 lead midway through the first half. During that opening stretch, Okpara scored the Crimson's first seven points, Lesmond and Mack each hit 3-pointers, and Ajogbor threw down a dunk.
- The Crimson then used an 18-2 run to pull ahead 33-21 at the 3:28 mark of the first half. A layup from Mack prior to a 3-pointer from Okpara gave Harvard a 20-19 lead it would not relinquish. Ajogbor scored Harvard's next five points before a pair of 3-pointers from Wojcik capped the run.
- Harvard brought a 36-30 lead into halftime.
- After Colgate pulled within 40-38, Harvard responded with seven straight points, including a 3-pointer from Okpara to gain a 47-38 edge with 15:54 left. The stretch started a larger 14-3 burst in which Harvard pulled ahead 54-41 with 13:25 left. A dunk from Ajogbor and 3-pointer from Lesmond keyed the streak.
- The Crimson maintained a 13-point advantage at 61-48 with 8:09 remaining following a layup from Ajogbor. The Raiders then cut the margin to 62-56 before a 3-pointer from Lesmond and layup from Ajogbor pushed the margin back to 67-56 with 2:57 to play.
- After the Raiders pulled within 69-66 with 29 seconds left on a 10-2 run, the Crimson made 7-of-8 free throws inside of the final 30 seconds to seal the win.
Baseball Hall of Fame Visit
During its Tuesday travel day out to Hamilton, New York, the Crimson stopped at the Baseball Hall of Fame in nearby Cooperstown for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take a private, after-hours tour of the hall thanks to the orchestration efforts of Jon Shestakofsky at the Hall of Fame and Jon Morosi '04.
Next Up
Harvard plays at Indiana on Sunday, Nov. 26 at 4:30 p.m. (BTN) at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
