Dartmouth Opens Ivy Play with Harvard on Saturday Night

DARTMOUTH (9-7, 0-0)
vs. HARVARD (6-6, 0-0)
Saturday, Jan. 12, 2019 | 7 PM | NESN+/ESPN+
Leede Arena (2,100) | Hanover, N.H.

• Coming off its most successful non-conference slate in 22 years, Dartmouth turns its sights on Ivy League foes with Harvard in town for the conference opener, which is being televised live on NESN-plus and online via ESPN+.
• The last Big Green team with a better record against teams outside of the league was the 1996-97 squad that was 8-4 en route to an 18-8 mark.
• Dartmouth would like to start conference play with a victory, something it has not done since the 2006-07 season.
• Dartmouth also will need a win to avoid losing back-to-back games for the first time since late November, having suffered a 73-59 loss at Vermont 10 days prior.
• Sophomore Chris Knight, who recorded his third double-double of the year with 19 points and 12 boards against the Catamounts, leads the team in scoring (15.3 ppg) and rebounding (7.8 rpg), which put him among the top five in the Ivy League in both categories.
• The Big Green feature a lethal outside attack with the nation's most accurate 3-point shooter in Brendan Barry (54-of-104, 51.9 pct.), who is also among the top 25 in 3-pointers per game (3.38).
• Barry isn't the only long-distance threat with juniors James Foye (32-of-65, 49.3 pct.) and Ian Sistare (28-of-58, 48.3 pct.) helping Dartmouth rank in the top 10 in threes per game (10.8) and accuracy (40.2 pct.).

Series vs. Harvard
• Dartmouth has a 96-90 advantage all-time, though the Crimson have won four of the last six.
• This is the 32nd consecutive year these two teams have opened Ivy play against each other with Harvard going 21-10 in those games, including wins the last 11 years.
• Last year the Crimson won the first game in Cambridge, 61-51, then had to rally to beat the Big Green in Hanover in overtime, 62-57.
• At Leede Arena, Dartmouth has an 11-20 mark against Harvard and has won just one of the last 10 games at home in the series, that being a 63-50 win three years ago.
• While Dartmouth dominated the first 60 years of the series with a 56-14 record through 1960, Harvard is 76-40 mark since then, including a 31-7 record this millennium.

Scouting the Crimson
• Harvard has split its first 12 games, including a pair of road wins at UMass and St. Mary's.
• Last time out, the Crimson suffered a 20-point loss at then-15th-ranked North Carolina.
• Harvard has been playing without its top two players all season in point guard Bryce Aiken and last year's Ivy Player of the Year, Seth Towns.
• Forward Chris Lewis is the team's leading scorer at 12.9 ppg while shooting 66.7 percent from the floor, though since missing three games has averaged 9.3 ppg over the last four contests.
• Justin Bassey and rookie Noah Kirkwood have both produced 10.0 ppg, while Bassey also leads the team with 7.1 rpg and 14 steals.
• As a team, the Crimson have shot well at 47.8 percent overall and 36.3 percent behind the arc, but just 64.1 percent at the foul line.
• Turnovers have been the Achilles' heel of this team, coughing the ball up an average of 17 times a game, which ranks among the bottom 10 in the nation.
• Tommy Amaker (Duke '87) is in his 12th season at Harvard's helm with a 217-125 record in Cambridge and a 393-264 mark in a career that has taken him to Seton Hall for four seasons (68-55) and Michigan for six (108-84).

Vermont Maintains Hold
The last time Dartmouth was on the court was 10 days ago in a 73-59 loss at Vermont, the Catamounts' 11th straight win in the series and 19th in the last 20 games. The Big Green loss came despite the hosts shooting just 1-of-14 from the perimeter and Chris Knight recording his third double-double of the season with 19 points and 12 rebounds. Granted, Dartmouth shot a season-low 34.8 percent from the floor, which probably had something to do with the outcome …

State Bragging Rights
Dartmouth defeated New Hampshire on Dec. 30 in the annual battle for state supremacy, 76-68. The two teams have been pretty evenly matched over the years with the last six contests being split evenly and the Wildcats holding the slimmest of margins with a 35-34 advantage in the series.

Nine Wins Outside of Ivy League
With the 76-68 victory over UNH, Dartmouth earned its ninth win in non-conference play, matching the program record (reached just twice previously — 1957-58 and 1975-76) since the Ivy League began formal play in 1956-57. The Big Green finished play outside of the conference with a 9-7 record, its best 16-game mark since the 1996-97 team was 11-5 en route to an 18-8 record. Dartmouth has not finished a season with a .500 winning percentage or better in 20 years (14-12 in 1998-99).

I'll Take Leede for 200, Alex
The 76-68 victory over New Hampshire was the 200th for Dartmouth at Leede Arena. The Big Green are now 200-186 (.517) on the court since it opened for the 1987-88 season (32nd season).

Free Throws Save the Day
While Dartmouth managed to hit just two field goals over a nearly 14-minute span against UNH, it was able to stay within striking distance thanks to its foul shooting. The Big Green finished the game 29-of-38 at the charity stripe, their most free throws made since going 37-of-44 against Lyndon State five years ago, and most against a Division I team since hitting 31-of-38 against Brown on Feb. 19, 2000.

Lighting It Up
• Dartmouth enters league play ranked eighth in the nation in 3-pointers made (10.8 per game) and 13th in percentage as a team (.402).
• Brendan Barry leads the country at 51.9 percent (54-of-104) behind the arc while James Foye (32-of-65, 49.2) and Ian Sistare (28-of-58, 48.3) are among the top five in the Ivy League (minimum 1.0 3-pointers per game).
• In nine of the first 16 games, the Big Green have hit at least 10 treys. The last season with at least that many games in double digits was the 2002-03 campaign (9) while the school record is 16 set the year prior (2001-02).
• The Big Green are well on pace to shatter the program record of 263 3-pointers made — set in that 2001-02 season — with 172 treys after just 16 games. At that rate, Dartmouth would finish the regular season with 323.
• Dartmouth started the year with four straight games with at least 10 3-pointers, its longest such streak since a six-game stretch in 2002.
• The Big Green hit 22 trifectas in the season opener, breaking the team record of 18 set in a win over Albany on Jan. 20, 2001.
• Dartmouth has had 15 or more 3-pointers in a game three times this season after reaching that total just four times previously since the 3-point line was instituted 32 years ago.

Schedules