NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Another Ivy League game, another nailbiter at Lee Amphitheater.
August Mahoney scored 20 points, including a clutch three-pointer that ignited a late 9-0 run that lifted Yale to a thrilling 81-78 victory over Brown.
The Bulldogs' three Ivy home games have all been decided by four points or less.
Mahoney finished 7-of-9 from the field and 4-of-5 from three-point range. His 20 points were a new career high.
Isaiah Kelly added 14 points off the bench, while
Matt Knowling and
Bez Mbeng each scored 10.
Trailing 75-72, Mahoney's final trey of the night was the most important, tying the score with two minutes to play.
"The defender went under, and I just stepped back and shot it," said Mahoney. "It was a big shot, but at that point in time we just needed to keep getting stops."
And they did. Brown didn't score on its next six possessions. The Bulldogs, meanwhile, got to the free throw line.
EJ Jarvis' two freebies with 46 seconds left snapped the tie.
Yassine Gharram made one-of-two foul shots with 26 seconds remaining to increase the lead to four, and
John Poulakidas hit two with 11 seconds left to push the advantage to six, 81-75.
Kino Lilly Jr pulled the Bears back within three by making a three-pointer.
After missing two free throws with five seconds remaining and leading by three, the Bulldogs intentionally fouled with two seconds left. Kimo Ferrari missed the front end of the one-and-one, Jarvis secured the rebound and Yale had a much-needed victory.
Yale is now 12-6 overall and 2-3 In Ivy play, while Brown falls to 9-9 and 2-3.
Both teams shot well from the field. The Bulldogs were 8-of-12 from three-point range. The Bears shot 60 percent in the second half and 49.2 percent for the game.
"They made a more concerted effort to drive the ball in the second half," said
James Jones, The Joel E. Smilow, Class of 1954 Head Coach of the Bulldogs. "They were able to get to the rim and get easy shots because we did a poor job at containing penetration."
Lilly finished with 25 points to lead the Bears, while Paxson Wojcik added 13 points and nine rebounds.
Yale outrebounded Brown 43-34. The Bulldogs also had 18 assists on their 29 field goals. Gharram and Mbeng each had four assists.
Jack Molloy contributed seven points off the bench.
The Bulldogs close out the month of January with two more home Ivy games. Yale hosts Penn on Saturday at 6 p.m. and Princeton on Jan. 28 at 7 p.m.
