NEW HAVEN, Conn. – The Yale men's basketball team opened Ivy League play with a 79-58 victory over Brown at home. The Bulldogs improved to 8-6 (1-0 Ivy), and Brown fell to 8-6 (0-1 Ivy).

Turning Point
After a back-and-forth first half, the Bulldogs pulled away in the second. Yale led by eight points through the first few minutes of the frame before Brown trimmed it down to three at the 10:37 mark. The Bulldogs then countered with a 21-4 run capped by four straight points from Nick Townsend to take a 20-point advantage with 2:55 to go. Yale didn't look back the rest of the way.  

Notable Performances

• Four Bulldogs scored in double-figures with Townsend and Casey Simmons leading with 18 points apiece.
• Townsend shot 6-of-15 from the field, had a team-high eight rebounds, three assists, and tallied 10 of his points in the first half.
• Simmons shot 7-of -11 from the field, grabbed seven rebounds, and recorded 12 of his points in the second half.
• Samson Aletan added 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting with five rebounds.
• Bez Mbeng had 10 points with a team-high four steals and four assists.
• The Bulldogs only had four turnovers, marking a season-low for the team.  

Bulldog Notes

• 19 of Yale's points came off turnovers compared to Brown's six.
• 46 of the Bulldogs' points were in the paint.
• Yale tied a season-high with 10 steals.
• Townsend has tallied double figures in his past nine games.
• For the 10^th time in 14 games, Yale outrebounded its opponent. The team picked up 40 on the glass compared to Brown's 33.
• With the win, the Bulldogs improved to 119-54 all-time against the Bears and are 10-1 in their past 11 Ivy League openers.
• Mbeng sits at 166 career steals, which is second place all-time by a Yale player. He is just one away from tying the program record held by Alex Zampier who registered 167 between 2006-10.

Hear from Coach Jones
"Really good team win by us," said James Jones, Joel Smilow '54 Head Coach. "We got contributions from everybody that got to play today. I thought our guys fought hard. Casey [Simmons] and Nick [Townsend] did a great job of rebounding, scoring, and playing together. It was fun to watch and be a part of."

Looking Ahead
Yale will play its next game on Saturday, Jan. 18 at Columbia. Tip is slated for 2 p.m.