FAN ATTENDANCE PROTOCOLS | GAME DAY CENTRAL
 
Vassar at Yale
Nov. 9, 2021 – 7 p.m.
Lee Amphitheater
ESPN + Video | International Video | Live Stats
 
NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Yale men's basketball is in the midst of the most successful era in the long history of the program. Over the last six seasons, Yale has a remarkable 63-21 Ivy record. During that stretch, the Bulldogs have won four league titles and earned three NCAA Tournament berths, including notching the first NCAA victory in school history. Despite the 2020-21 season being canceled due to the pandemic, there is every reason to believe that success will continue in 2021-22.
 
The Bulldogs, the back-to-back Ivy League champions, hit the court for the first time on Tuesday night when they host Vassar at the John J. Lee Amphitheater. The opening tip is slated for 7 p.m. and ESPN+ has the video.
 
Yale, which was ranked No. 19 in the CollegeInsider Mid Major preseason top-25 poll, features a deep and talented roster led by seniors Jalen Gabbidon and Azar Swain, who both earned postseason Ivy League awards in 2019-20. Gabbidon was the league's defensive player of the year. He was one of only two Bulldogs to start all 30 games in 2019-20 and also contributed offensively, shooting 41.4 percent from three-point range.
 
Swain was a first-team All-Ivy selection in 2020. He enters the season with 201 career three-pointers, the third most in school history and only 28 shy of Ed Petersen's all-time school record. Swain also is approaching another milestone. With 935 career points, he is just 65 away of 1,000. Swain set a Yale single-season record with 93 three-pointers in 2019-20 and finished 10^th in the nation in three-point field goals made (3.21 per game).
 
Two other seniors should be valuable contributors as well. Jameel Alausa shot 51.2 percent from the field in 2019-20 and was the recipient of the team's Bill Madden Toughness Award, while Eze Dike has appeared in 30 games in his career, including 20 in 2019-20.
 
There also will be a host of newcomers in the mix. Nine Bulldogs will be suiting up for the first time on Tuesday.
 
Yale will be busy in the early portion of the season. The Bulldogs are back in Lee Amphitheater on Friday to host UMass at 8 p.m. and then hit the road for three games in six days starting Sunday at Seton Hall.
 
HISTORY LESSONS
 
The Bulldogs are playing Vassar for the first time. Yale has won its season opener in four of the last five seasons. Over the last eight seasons, the Bulldogs are 80-20 in the friendly confines of Lee Amphitheater. Their last loss to a non-conference opponent at home came on Dec. 22, 2017, vs. Monmouth. Yale has won its home opener in each of the last 10 years.
 
SCOUTING VASSAR
 
Like Yale, Vassar is returning to the court after its 2020-21 season was canceled due to the pandemic. The Brewers finished 11-15 in 2019-20 and advanced to the Liberty League postseason tournament. Ryan Mee is in his fourth season as the head coach at Vassar. He had served as an assistant coach at Davidson College under legendary head coach Bob McKillop.