Yale at Columbia
Sat., Dec. 31 – Noon
New York, N.Y.
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NEW HAVEN, Conn. – The Yale men's basketball team will join nearly a million other out-of-towners and close out 2022 in New York City. The Bulldogs, though, won't be in the big city to watch the ball drop in Times Square. Instead, Yale will be a few miles away at Levien Gym to face Columbia in the Ivy League opener for both teams. Tipoff is at noon, 12 hours before the start of 2023.
 
2022 has been very good to the Bulldogs, who have a 23-7 record in the calendar year. That includes an 11-3 Ivy mark last season, two victories that resulted in another Ivy Tournament title in March and a 10-3 non-conference mark this season.
 
That success should not come as a surprise. Over the last seven seasons, Yale has posted a 74-24 (.755) Ivy League record, won four Ivy championships, two Ivy League Tournament titles and earned four NCAA Tournament berths, including notching the first NCAA victory in school history – over Baylor in 2016.
 
Last year, the Bulldogs earned the Ivy's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament for the third straight season before dropping a close game to Purdue in the first round.
 
In the league's preseason media poll this fall, Yale was picked to finish third, but the Bulldogs have a history of surpassing expectations. The last time they were picked third was in 2019-20 when they went on to win the Ivy championship. Yale has finished higher than projected in 11 of the last 16 seasons.
 
The Bulldogs, who last played on Dec. 22, a 76-44 victory at Monmouth, have certainly impressed in non-league play. They sit at No. 37 in the NCAA net rankings through games of Dec. 28 and are ranked No. 8 in the latest CollegeInsider Mid Major Top 25 poll. Seven of their 10 wins have been by double figures, and their only blemishes on the season are competitive losses at Colorado (65-62), at Butler (71-61) and at Kentucky (69-59). Yale had a lead in the second half against UK.
 
The Bulldogs are among the national leaders in several categories, including rebound margin (4th, +10.5), scoring margin (7th, +20.0), scoring defense (8th, 56.5) and field goal percentage defense (14th, .377).
 
A deep and talented roster has fueled the success. Nine different Bulldogs have scored in double figures at least once, seven have led the team in scoring and 10 have led in rebounding.
 
The trip to Columbia is the sixth straight road game for Yale, which didn't play in the friendly confines of the John J. Lee Amphitheater in the month of December. The Bulldogs' next home game is Jan. 6 vs. Dartmouth.
 
HISTORY LESSONS
 
The Bulldogs have won eight straight games over Columbia at Levien Gym and 11 of the last 12 meetings overall in the series. Last year in New York, Matt Knowling scored a then career-high 19 points in an 84-59 victory. John Poulakidas and EJ Jarvis each added 10 points as Yale outscored the Lions 45-29 in the second half. Columbia leads the all-time series 126-115. The first meeting came in 1902, a 48-3 Yale victory in New Haven.
 
SCOUTING COLUMBIA
 
The Lions (5-10) played their final non-conference game on Wednesday, falling 74-67 in overtime to Maryland-Eastern Shore at Levien Gym. First year Zine Eddine Bedri had 14 points, seven rebounds and two steals for Columbia, which features a number of talented newcomers. Blair Thompson and Avery Brown have each earned Ivy League Rookie of the Week selections this season. Sophomore Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa (12.6 ppg., 5.8 rpg.) leads the team in scoring and rebounding. There is a familiar face on the Columbia bench. Assistant coach Tobe Carberry spent three seasons on James Jones' staff at Yale, helping guide the Bulldogs to a 30-12 Ivy record and a pair of NCAA Tournament berths.