PRINCETON, N.J. – Yale improved to 7-0, while Columbia, Dartmouth and Princeton picked up big Ivy League men’s basketball wins this weekend.
 
At the midway point of Ivy play, Yale (7-0) has a two-game cushion over Cornell (5-2) and Princeton (5-2) in the standings. Dartmouth (4-3) has a two-game advantage over Brown (2-5), Harvard (2-5) and Penn (2-5). Columbia (1-6) picked up a much-needed win to stay in the race. The top four teams will earn a spot to Ivy Madness. The Ivy League men’s and women’s basketball tournaments will be held at Brown’s Pizzitola Sports Center in Providence from March 14-16. Full information is available at IvyMadness.com. 
 
FRIDAY, FEB. 7
PRINCETON 61, PENN 59
Princeton (16-6, 5-2 Ivy) escaped the Palestra with a win over Penn (6-14, 2-5 Ivy). Jackson Hicke knocked down a pair of free throws with .6 seconds remaining. CJ Happy posted a team-high 13 points. The Tigers were 12-of-13 from the line. Xaivian Lee, who hit the 1,000-point milestone, finished with 11 points. Penn’s Sam Brown and Nick Spinoso each scored 12 points.
 
SATURDAY, FEB. 8
YALE 103, CORNELL 88
The game that featured two of the top offenses in the nation lived up to its billing. Yale (14-6, 7-0 Ivy) shot 62.5 percent from the floor and 47.6 percent from beyond the arc to top Cornell (13-7, 5-2 Ivy) and extend its winning streak to eight games. Yale guard John Poulakidas dropped a career-high 32 points, shooting 12-of-18 from the field and 6-of-10 from 3-point range. Bez Mbeng recorded the program's second-ever triple double with 15 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds to go along with a game-high five steals and a block. Forward Nick Townsend scored 25 points, shooting 11-of-13. Cornell shot 47.1 percent from the field and hit 15 triples. Cooper Noard tallied a career-high 28 points, hitting six 3-balls and was a perfect 6-of-6 at the line. This was Yale’s fifth double-digit win in league play.
 
COLUMBIA 74, BROWN 72
Blair Thompson’s putback with eight seconds left lifted Columbia (12-8, 1-6 Ivy) over Brown (10-10, 2-5 Ivy). The Lions, which trailed by as much as 15 points in the second half, closed the contest on a 17-3 run to notch their first Ivy win. Thompson finished with 11 points and 16 rebounds. The Lions had 16 second chance points. Kenny Noland finished with a team-high 13 points. Brown was led by Malcolm Wrisby-Jefferson’s 16 points, shooting 7-of-9 from the field. After missing the last three games due to injury, Landon Lewis notched 14 points, shooting 6-of-10.
 
DARTMOUTH 76, HARVARD 56
Dartmouth (10-10, 4-3 Ivy) outscored Harvard (7-13, 2-5 Ivy) 43-25 in the second half to earn the win. Big Green forward Brandon Mitchell-Day scored a game-high 21 points, shooting 10-of-12 from the field. Ryan Cornish had 19 points and knocked down three of the Dartmouth’s 10 triples. Romeo Myrthil had nine points and 12 rebounds. Harvard guard Robert Hinton tallied a team-high 20 points, shooting 9-of-16 from the field.