Brown at Yale
Monday, Jan. 16 – 5 p.m.
John J. Lee Amphitheater
ESPN+ Video | International Video | Live Stats | Tickets | Yale Game Notes
 
NEW HAVEN, Conn. – The Yale men's basketball team begins an important stretch of three straight home games by hosting Brown on Monday. Tipoff at the John J. Lee Amphitheater is slated for 5 p.m.
 
The Bulldogs are playing on MLK Day for the third straight season. In 2019-20 Yale traveled to Washington, D.C. and posted an 89-75 victory over Howard. Last year, the Ivy League started playing on the holiday and the Bulldogs won at Brown 66-63.
 
Yale (11-6, 1-3 Ivy) is coming off a 94-82 loss at Cornell. The Bulldogs had the lead for most of the first 30 minutes, but the Big Red used a 17-0 run midway through the second half to seize control.
 
Bez Mbeng scored a career-high 21 points to pace the Bulldogs. He was 7-of-7 from the field, including knocking down a pair of three-pointers. John Poulakidas added 12 points and Matt Knowling scored 11.
 
The Big Red, one of top offensive teams in the nation, shot 51 percent from the field and made 13 three-pointers. Yale matched the high-powered Big Red for much of the game. The Bulldogs shot nearly 59 percent but committed 16 turnovers, which led to 17 Cornell points.
 
The 94 points allowed were the most by Yale this season. The Bulldogs have been among the nation's stingiest teams for a majority of the season. They are 17th in scoring defense (60.4 ppg.) and are 14th in field goal percentage defense (.384). In addition, Yale is seventh in rebound margin (+8.4).
 
Three Bulldogs average double figures in scoring, led by Knowling at 15.5 ppg. Poulakidas (10.5 ppg.) and EJ Jarvis (10.4 ppg.) are the others.
 
Balance has been a key to Yale's success this season. Nine different Bulldogs have scored in double figures at least once, seven have led the team in scoring and 11 have led the team in rebounding.
 
Friday was Yale's only road game in January. Following Brown, the Bulldogs host Penn on Jan. 21 and Princeton on Jan. 28.
 
HISTORY LESSON
 
The Bulldogs have won six straight games over Brown, including a 74-65 victory in the regular season finale last year in New Haven. Isaiah Kelly scored 14 points and grabbed nine rebounds for Yale. It was a milestone victory for head coach James Jones, the 350th overall of his career and the 191st Ivy League victory, which moved him past former Penn coach Fran Dunphy into second place all-time in league history. The Bulldogs have an 11-game winning streak over the Bears at Lee Amphitheater. Yale leads the all-time series 114-53 with the first meeting coming in 1905.
 
SCOUTING BROWN
 
The Bears (9-8, 2-2 Ivy) are coming off an emotional 72-70 win over Princeton on Saturday in Providence. Kino Lilly Jr. hit the game-winning basket in the final seconds as Brown handed Princeton its first league loss. Lilly finished the day with a game-high 26 points on a 10-for-15 shooting performance, including 4-for-7 from three. Paxson Wojcik contributed 14 points, five rebounds and four assists. Lilly and Wojcik, who have both started all 17 games, are the team's leading scorers at 15.7 ppg. and 12.7 ppg. respectively. Nana Owusu-Anane (10.3 ppg.) also averages doubles figures.