On a weekend when it seemed likely that the Columbia men’s basketball team was going to settle for a split, Kevin Bulger’s high arching, one-handed floater dropped with only 4.2 seconds left and the Lions earned an impressive home sweep against Harvard and Dartmouth.
“I knew the clock was running down, and I just tried to get in the lane and make a play,” Bulger said. “I was fortunate enough that it worked out.”
Before the last-second heroics, the Lions (10-12, 5-3 Ivy) struggled out of the gate on Friday night against Dartmouth (6-16, 4-4), as they saw themselves trail for the final 16:14 of the first half.
Despite the poor shooting (37 percent from the field) and six costly first-half turnovers, a K.J. Matsui pump-fake three-pointer from the corner fell as time expired, giving Columbia a 29-27 halftime lead—one it would not relinquish.
A halftime adjustment saw Asenso Ampim and Patrick Foley enter the lineup alongside Jason Miller, Noruwa Agho, and Bulger. This change allowed the Light Blue to go on a 17-2 run over the first seven minutes of the second half, which culminated in a 30-5 run over a nearly 18-minute stretch.
“I thought we had the best team on the floor at that time,” head coach Joe Jones said of the second-half run. “We hadn’t been able to practice with that group so I felt we were able to play with our best team, the best defensive team and the best offensive team, and once we did that we were able to go on a little run.”
Yet, following the Light Blue’s run, the Big Green mounted an impressive 11-0 run of its own with a flurry of three pointers, forcing Columbia to call a time out and regroup, which is exactly what the Lions did.
Over the final 10 minutes of the game, balance on the offensive end and a stifling defense allowed the Lions to end the game strong, pulling out the 65-52 victory. Agho played a phenomenal all-around game, scoring 20 points on 8-for-16 shooting, grabbing nine rebounds, forcing two steals, and blocking two shots.
“[Agho’s] a machine,” Foley commented. “When he comes out like he did tonight it gives us a tremendous boost. We’ve got all the confidence in the world in him. I’m throwing the ball knowing he’s going to get a good shot and score.”
Miller also had a solid evening, scoring 19 points and grabbing eight rebounds, while having a career-high four assists. But it was Miller’s ability to establish position down low that allowed the offense to truly flow against the Big Green.
Despite playing without fourth-leading scorer Niko Scott (out with the flu), Columbia got Ampim back after he hurt his ankle against Princeton and Joe Bova after he missed five games due to a back injury. Despite their inability to practice with all their parts, Columbia was still able to stick to its game plan of maintaining the pace and keeping Alex Barnett from single-handedly beating them. Barnett did finish with 20 points on 8-for-17 shooting and nine rebounds in the defeat.
After the grueling second half against Dartmouth, a let-down could have been expected against the very talented but young Crimson (10-12, 2-6). But the final stretches on Saturday proved that the Lions had the wherewithal to handle it.
Trailing 57-49 with 6:21 to go, Columbia controlled Harvard down the stretch, holding the Crimson to no field goals (only two free throws) and four turnovers as they ground out a 60-59 victory.
“I thought they really picked us apart in the zone early on,” Jones said. “We got spread out, and I thought that really hurt us. We were able to play some zone and got them out of rhythm a little bit offensively.”
After a missed Bulger jump with nine seconds to go, the Lions were fortunate to get one last opportunity underneath their own basket with no timeouts. That was when Bulger redeemed himself (and his 2-for-11 night) with the game-winner.
“We tried to run a back screen and lob it up for [Jason]. Kevin was actually supposed to screen for Pat and forgot and popped out,” Jones commented. “Kevin is very good at driving and spinning back. That’s kind of his shot and he nailed it.”
The second-half heroics followed a seesaw battle in the first half that saw Matsui sink five three-pointers en route to 15 points, as the senior guard nearly carried the Lions by himself to a one-point halftime lead.
“Jason sets great screens for me and then Kevin and Pat gave me great passes,” Matsui remarked. “So I just let it fly when I was open. I made the first shot and it felt good so I just kept shooting and they went in, get the momentum.”
Miller again had a great game, scoring 19 points on 7-for-9 shooting, including seven after picking up his third foul with 17:46 remaining. The center also finished with eight rebounds. Agho also scored in double figures, finishing with 11 points and five assists.
With the two victories, the Lions pulled into a mathematical tie for second place with Princeton, only two games behind Cornell for the Ivy lead. With consecutive road trips on tap, Columbia will learn their fate fairly soon.
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