Yale vs. Harvard
Saturday, Jan. 25 – 2 p.m.
John J. Lee Amphitheater
New Haven, Conn.
ESPN+ | Live Stats | International Stream | Tickets | Game Notes
 
Yale men's basketball is set to continue conference action at home, hosting Harvard in its Whiteout Game on Saturday, Jan. 25. The Bulldogs are riding a four-game winning streak and enter with a 10-6 record (3-0 Ivy).
 
Last Time Out

• Bez Mbeng broke the program all-time record for steals, and the Bulldogs continued their winning ways with an 83-67 victory at home against Dartmouth.
• With his three steals in the game, Mbeng now has 170 for his career, surpassing Alex Zampier (2006-10), who originally held the record at 167.
• After Dartmouth led 37-32 with 3:26 to go in the first, the Bulldogs countered with a 9-0 run capped off by a John Poulakidas three to take a 41-37 advantage into halftime.
• Yale then came out firing to start the second with another 9-0 run to take a 50-37 lead. The Bulldogs took their biggest advantage of the game at 20 (81-61) with 2:08 to go, and didn't look back the rest of the way.
• Five Bulldogs tallied double-figures with Samson Aletan pacing the squad with 17 points on 6-of-10 shooting, with five rebounds, and tied a career-high with four blocks.
• Mbeng shot 7-of-12 from the field with 16 points, five rebounds, seven assists, and three steals.
• Nick Townsend had 12 points on 5-of-10 shooting with four rebounds and four assists.
• Poulakidas added 12 points and three rebounds.
• Casey Simmons notched 10 points and four rebounds.
• The Bulldogs were dominant in the paint, recording 50 of their points.

Bulldog Notes

• Five Bulldogs are averaging at least 8.0 points per game, with Poulakidas leading the way with 19.8 points, which ranks 19^th in the nation.
• Poulakidas is also ranked 10^th in the NCAA in three-pointers per game (3.46), and 28^th in free throw percentage (89.4)
• Townsend is second on the team in scoring (14.0 ppg), and first in rebounds (6.8)
• Mbeng ranks 23^rd in the nation in assists per game (5.9), which ranks first in the Ivy League.
• As a team, the Bulldogs rank 13^th in the NCAA in assists per game (17.8), eighth in rebound margin (9.3), 24^th in rebounds per game (40.13), and 24^th in three-point percentage (38.3).
• Yale is 6-0 at home for the first time since 2019-20.
• Mbeng sits at 989 points for his career. 

 Season Notes

• Mbeng became the all-time program leader in career steals on Jan. 20.
• Head Coach James Jones picked up his 400th career win in the Yale's 91-66 showing over Fairfield on Nov. 23. Jones is in his 26th season with Yale.
• Poulakidas scored his 1,000th career point against Delaware on Nov. 24.
• Mbeng played his 100th career game for Yale against Vermont on Dec. 7.
• Poulakidas and Mbeng were named to the 2024-25 Lou Henson Early Season Watch List. The award is presented annually to the top player in mid-major college basketball.
• Poulakidas and Mbeng are two of six Ivy League players on the list. They join Princeton's Xavian Lee and Caden Pierce, Brown's Kino Lilly, Jr., and Columbia's Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa.

 A Look at History Against Harvard

• Yale has 127 victories against the Crimson, the most against any opponent.
• The Bulldogs have not lost to Harvard since 2019-20.
• The first meeting between the teams was a 41-16 Yale victory in 1901.
• Last time the two teams met, Yale won by a score of 80-60 on Mar. 2, 2024.
• In the victory, the Bulldogs shot 51.6% (32-of-62) and had 25 assists.

 Scouting the Crimson

• Harvard enters the matchup with a 6-10 record, 1-2 in Ivy action.
• The Crimson is coming off an 82-67 loss to Penn on Monday.
• In the defeat, Chandler Piggé paced Harvard with 15 points.
• The Crimson is averaging 67.7 points per game.
• Robert Hinton paces Harvard on offense, averaging 13.8 points per game.
• Harvard is 3-4 on the road this season.

Up Next
Yale will hit the road to face Princeton on Friday, Jan. 31 and Penn on Saturday, Feb. 1.