NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Game 1 of 2020 between Yale and Harvard was an instant classic. Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, it was the Crimson that escaped Lee Amphitheater with a 78-77 victory before a raucous, sellout crowd.
 
Yale, which saw its six-game winning streak end, nearly pulled off a big comeback. The Bulldogs trailed by 13 with five minutes left but clawed their way back. Azar Swain was unstoppable down the stretch, scoring 11 points over the final five minutes, including knocking down an off-balance three-pointer from nearly 30 feet with less than three seconds left that pulled Yale within one and sent the crowd into a frenzy. Swain was fouled on the shot, but after a lengthy review to determine how much time should be left on the clock, he missed the ensuing free throw.
 
Swain finished with a career-high 33 points on 10-of-17 shooting from the field and 5-of-9 from three-point range. Twenty-seven of his points came in the second half as Yale rallied from a 13-point halftime deficit.
 
"We showed a lot of fight," said James Jones, The Joel E. Smilow, Class of 1954 Head Coach of the Bulldogs. "Tip of the hat to our guys, and tip of the hat to their guys."
 
Harvard (14-6, 3-2 Ivy) shot 54.4 percent from the field, the best by any Yale opponent this season. Noah Kirkwood paced the Crimson with 18 points, while Danilo Djuricic added 17.
 
"Defensively, we were definitely not as sharp as we needed to be," Jones said.
 
Paul Atkinson had another big game for the Bulldogs, finishing with a career-high 28 points, while adding six rebounds, five steals and two assists. Matthue Cotton scored six points, and Jordan Bruner contributed a team-high eight rebounds.
 
This was the latest in what has been a series of thrillers between the rivals in recent years. Last year, the Bulldogs knocked off the Crimson in the championship game of the Ivy League Tournament to earn a spot in the NCAA Tournament. Since 2017, there have now been three games decided by two points or less between the teams.
 
The loss drops Yale to 16-5 overall and 4-1 in Ivy play.
 
The Bulldogs are back home again on Saturday night, hosting Dartmouth. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m.