Navy 73, Columbia 68: Déjà vu for the Lions

When Columbia jumped ahead of Navy 31-13 late in the first half, few at Levien Gymnasium felt the lead would be safe. In three of their previous four games (against UConn, Albany and Stony Brook), the Lions blew a double-digit lead in the second half; in the fourth (vs. Quinnipiac), they had a two-possession lead in the final five minutes but lost that as well.

Sure enough, the Midshipmen reeled off a 29-11 run that sandwiched halftime, tying the game early in the second period. Columbia went back ahead by as many as eight points, but a four-minute scoreless streak down the stretch cost the hosts the lead and the game. Continue reading “Navy 73, Columbia 68: Déjà vu for the Lions” →

Monmouth Meets Kentucky at MSG – Three Thoughts

Monmouth continued its daunting non-conference schedule with a Saturday matinee against powerhouse Kentucky in Madison Square Garden. While the Wildcats’ length and athleticism was too much for the Hawks to handle, King Rice and his squad continue to learn from these experiences. Continue reading “Monmouth Meets Kentucky at MSG – Three Thoughts” →

NEC Weekly Update – Parity Reigns Supreme

Nearly a month has been logged into the 2017-18 season and we’re starting to accumulate enough data to get a general feel as to where most NEC teams currently stand. With a lot of programs moving up in KenPom’s rankings (especially the perceived bottom tier), it most definitely will be a crap shoot come January. Let’s dive into some trends that are noteworthy within the league. Continue reading “NEC Weekly Update – Parity Reigns Supreme” →

MAAC Weekly Recap – December 6

Wednesday means MAAC Recap, and this week brought some solid wins and a few close calls. Manhattan represented the league in the inaugural Belfast Classic, while Monmouth traded blows with UConn, and Marist picked up its first win of the year. Continue reading “MAAC Weekly Recap – December 6” →

LIU Brooklyn gets by Stony Brook for second straight win

In a matchup of two three-win teams thus far, Stony Brook traveled west on the dreaded Long Island Expressway Monday night to Downtown Brooklyn to visit the Steinberg Wellness Center for the first time ever to play LIU Brooklyn in unexpectedly just the second-ever meeting between the two area schools.

In what turned out to be a tight affair pretty much throughout, LIU Brooklyn came away with a 75-71 victory behind the combination of Joel Hernandez, Raiquan Clark and a rather surprising career-high performance from Julius van Sauers. The three players combined for 59 out of LIU’s 75 points. Continue reading “LIU Brooklyn gets by Stony Brook for second straight win” →

Columbia Falls to Quinnipiac on Final Play

After losing games in the final minute at UConn and Albany to finish a season-opening seven-game road trip, the Columbia Lions returned home to Levien Gymnasium to play Quinnipiac. And lost in the final minute.

Rich Kelly’s layup with 4.4 seconds remaining on the clock gave Quinnipiac an 89-87 victory in a shootout over the Lions. Columbia is now 1-7 on the season, while the Bobcats are 3-6 in Baker Dunleavy’s first season.

Continue reading “Columbia Falls to Quinnipiac on Final Play” →

Ivy League Weekly Roundup: Winless Weekend; Lions Stir

Inside this week: The Ivy League went 0-7 on Saturday, including losses to nationally ranked Kentucky, Miami and TCU. Harvard’s up-and-down season continued, while Columbia took two strong opponents to the wire. And non-conference play is going much better for the Ivy women. Continue reading “Ivy League Weekly Roundup: Winless Weekend; Lions Stir” →