Big Green Head to New York to Face Columbia and Cornell This Weekend

Friday, February 16

New York, N.Y. / Levien Gymnasium

7:00 PM

Dartmouth College

Columbia

Men's Basketball Team at Harvard Celebration

Photo by: Justin Lafleur

Big Green Head to New York to Face Columbia and Cornell This Weekend

2/15/2024 1:47:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Game Notes (PDF)Watch on ESPN+ (Friday)Live Stats (Friday)Watch on ESPN+ (Saturday)Live Stats (Saturday)International Stream

Dartmouth set to begin the second round of Ivy League play

By: Justin Lafleur

GAME 21
Dartmouth (5-15, 1-6 Ivy League) at Columbia (12-8, 3-4 Ivy League)
Date: Friday, February 16, 2024, 2024 – 7 p.m.
Location: New York, N.Y. – Levien Gymnasium
All-Time Series: Columbia, 116-107

GAME 22
Dartmouth (5-15, 1-6 Ivy League) at Cornell (17-4, 6-1 Ivy League)
Date: Saturday, February 17, 2024 – 6 p.m.
Location: Ithaca, N.Y. – Newman Arena
All-Time Series: Cornell, 115-110

Setting the Scene
The Dartmouth men's basketball team will look to get back on track when the Big Green travel to Columbia and Cornell for games on Friday (7 p.m.) and Saturday (6 p.m.) on ESPN+. Most recently, the Big Green dropped a 77-59 final at Harvard. Dartmouth led 14-13 eight minutes into the game, but the Crimson responded with a 9-0 run and wouldn't trail the rest of the way.

Against Harvard, senior Dusan Neskovic scored 20 points on 7-of-13 shooting, good for his fifth 20+ point performance of the season. It's the most 20-point games in a season for a Big Green player since Brendan Barry also had five in 2021-22. Senior Jaren Johnson finished with 10 points, five rebounds, two assists and a steal, without a turnover in 23 minutes of action. Johnson was 6-of-8 from the free throw line, tied for a career high in free throws attempted. It was his sixth game with double-figure points this season, third most on the Big Green.
Senior Izaiah Robinson added eight points off the bench. Sophomore Jackson Munro dished four assists, his fourth straight game leading the Big Green in helpers, as he's now had 20 assists in that span, the most by a Dartmouth player over a five-game stretch since late January / early February of 2018 when Barry also had 20 over four Ivy League games.

The Big Green finished with seven blocks on Saturday, second most this season (only behind their nine at UAlbany). Dartmouth has had seven games with five or more blocks this season, and have 25 over its last five games. Sophomore Brandon Mitchell-Day had four blocks Saturday, a career high, all coming in the first half. It was the first time a Big Green player tallied four blocks in a half since Dame Adelekun had four in the second half at Boston University on Dec. 13, 2022.

Columbia and Cornell will be familiar foes for Dartmouth, with the teams playing two weekends ago in Hanover. Against the Big Red, Dartmouth responded from down 19-0 to take an eight-point second-half lead, but Cornell was victorious in the end. The following day, the Big Green got off to a hot start against Columbia, but the Lions responded.

With a win on Friday (over Columbia)...
- The Big Green would snap a two-game losing streak against Columbia, but beat the Lions for the sixth time in their last eight tries.
- Dartmouth would win at Columbia for the third time in its last four tries.
- The Big Green would win their first road game of the season and snap a 14-game road losing streak dating back to last season.

With a win on Saturday (over Cornell)...
- The Big Green would snap a three-game losing streak against Cornell.
- Dartmouth would win at Cornell for the second time in its last four tries.
- (Should the Big Green also win on Friday) Dartmouth would win back-to-back Ivy League games for the first time since last Jan. 14 and 16 when it beat Penn and Harvard.

Last Time Out
BOSTON (2/10/24) — Harvard staged a 14-2 to turn a one-point Big Green lead into an 11-point Crimson advantage, as the Dartmouth men's basketball team could never recover in a 77-59 loss on Saturday afternoon inside Lavietas Pavilion. Senior Dusan Neskovic led the offense with 20 points, his fifth 20+ point effort of the season.

Scouting Columbia
Columbia is 12-8 on the season and 3-4 in the Ivy League, standing tied for fourth in the standings. The Lions have won three of their last four games: home vs. Penn (84-81) then at Dartmouth (72-56) and at Brown (83-69).

The Lions are led by Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa, who averages 13.6 points per game and has dished a team-leading 52 assists. He leads the Ivy League in free throw percentage (87.0). Avery Brown is second in points (11.0) and total assists (50). Blair Thompson comes in at 8.7 points and a team-leading 5.4 rebounds per game, with Zavian McLean posting 8.3 per contest. As a team, Columbia leads the Ivy League in 3-point percentage (38.0), which is good for 17th in the nation. The Lions are also first in the league (44th nationally) in 3-point percentage defense (30.7).

All-Time Against the Lions
Dartmouth has won five of the last seven meetings against Columbia and seven of the last 10 to pull within 116-107 in the all-time series. In the first meeting this season, the Big Green led for the first 11 minutes, but Columbia used a 27-7 run to take a 13-point lead. Last season saw Dartmouth win at home on Jan. 28, 2023 in a game which saw Dame Adelekun tie a Leede Arena record with 41 points. Columbia avenged the loss by beating the Big Green on Feb. 18 in NYC. The year prior, the Big Green swept the season series with a 76-63 road victory followed by a 79-50 win at home. Dartmouth won the first-ever meeting between the two sides, 16-10 on Dec. 13, 1905. Columbia was victorious in the next meeting, 21-7 on Jan. 20, 1908.

Scouting Cornell
Cornell stands 17-4 on the season, including 6-1 in the Ivy League and 7-0 at home. A seven-game winning streak was snapped last time out with an 80-78 loss at Yale, in a game that went down to the very end.

The Big Red lead the Ivy League and are 17th nationally in scoring offense (83.7), featuring a balanced attack with six players averaging between 8.4 and 12.2 points per game. Chris Manon leads the way at 12.2 followed by Nazir Williams (10.9) and Isaiah Gray (10.6). Guy Ragland Jr.'s 4.9 rebounding average is tops on Cornell. The Big Red lead the nation in bench points (37.33 per game). They're also second in effective field goal percentage (58.4), sixth in field goal percentage (50.2), eighth in assists per game (18.2) and 10th in 3-point attempts per game (29.0).

All-Time Against the Big Red
Cornell has won four of the last seven meetings, three straight and four of the last five. The Big Red's last three wins have all been competitive, including 56-53 this season and 95-83 in overtime last year in Ithaca. Overall, Cornell holds a 115-110 edge in the all-time series. After Dartmouth swept the season series in 2019-20, the teams split in 2021-22, with each winning on its home court. Dartmouth won the first three and five of the six all-time meetings vs. Cornell. The first meeting came in the first season of Dartmouth men's basketball, a 26-12 win on Jan. 18, 1901.

Taking Down the (BU) Terriers
Dartmouth beat Boston University, 63-54, on Wednesday, Dec. 13.

- The Big Green held the Terriers to their fewest points in the all-time series since a 64-53 Dartmouth win on Jan. 27, 1962 —19 games ago.
- Junior Romeo Myrthil was the story offensively for the Big Green, scoring a career-high 18 points on just seven field goal attempts (making five). He was 3-of-4 from 3-point range, including two 3-pointers as part of Dartmouth's 9-0 run to turn a 39-39 tie into a 48-39 lead. Thursday (Dec. 14) was Myrthil's birthday, but his home country of Sweden is six hours ahead of the Eastern time zone, so Myrthil's career performance came on his birthday… in Sweden.
- Dartmouth's 54 points allowed marked a season best.
- The win snapped Dartmouth's three-game losing streak against the Terriers and marked only the Big Green's second victory in their last six tries in the series.

Double Trouble
Sophomore Brandon Mitchell-Day has four double-doubles this season.

- at Saint Louis (Nov. 25): 17 points, 10 rebounds
- at Vermont (Nov. 29): 10 points, 10 rebounds
- vs. Brown (Jan. 27): 22 points, 10 rebounds
- vs. Cornell (Feb. 2): 10 points, 10 rebounds

At Vermont on Nov. 29, Mitchell-Day recorded his second straight double-double, becoming the first Dartmouth player to do so since Chris Knight in February of 2020. Knight actually did so in three straight games, posting 27 points and 13 rebounds vs. Princeton (Feb. 22), 17 and 13 at Cornell (Feb. 28) and 19 and 10 at Columbia (Feb. 29). Against Brown on Jan. 27, Mitchell-Day's 22-point, 10-rebound double-double marked the first of his career in Ivy League play and first 20-point, 10-rebound double-double in just under a year (since Dame Adelekeun's 41-point, 10-rebound double-double vs. Columbia on Jan. 28, 2023). Mitchell-Day went on to post another double-double one game after Brown, tallying 10 points and 10 rebounds against Cornell on Feb. 2.

Granite State Supremacy
On Wednesday, Dec. 6, Dartmouth took as much as a 23-point second-half lead over UNH, easily cruising past the Wildcats, 76-64. Sophomore Jayden Williams led the offense with a career-high 28 points, knocking down eight 3-pointers on just 10 attempts; it marked Dartmouth's fifth straight game with a 20-point scorer.

The win came over a UNH team that entered 6-3 and without the Big Green's top two scorers due to injury, senior Dusan Neskovic and sophomore Brandon Mitchell-Day. Williams' eight 3-pointers were just one from tying a program record and tied for the fifth most made threes in the nation this season. It was the most made triples by a Dartmouth player since Brendan Barry knocked down eight on Dec. 14, 2018 against Boston University. Williams also set career highs in rebounds (5), assists (4) and blocks (2) to help him earn Ivy League Player of the Week honors.

As a team, the Big Green knocked down a season-high 14 3-pointers. Dartmouth did not turn the ball over until 5:41 into the second half, finishing with just five, which were its fewest since also having five on Dec. 19, 2021 at Cal. UNH had just seven turnovers, as both teams took care of the basketball. The Big Green finished with 19 assists, a season high and most since last season's finale vs. Harvard.

Block Party
The Big Green tallied nine blocks on Dec. 2 at UAlbany, their most since Dec. 21, 2013 when they also had nine against Longwood. Juniors Nikola Dimitrijevic and Romeo Myrthil each posted a career-high four blocks, while senior Jaren Johnson recorded the other. The Big Green have seven games with 5+ blocks this season, including seven at Harvard. Sophomore Brandon Mitchell-Day tallied a career-high four swats in that game.

20-Point Notables...
- Senior Dusan Neskovic became the first Big Green player with 20 points in back-to-back road games since Brendan Barry in February of 2022. Barry had 25 at Yale (Feb. 4) followed by 21 at Brown (Feb. 5).
- Prior to Neskovic, the previous time a Big Green player scored 20 in back-to-back non-conference road games since Alex Barnett in 2008. Barnett scored 28 at Providence (Nov. 18) and 32 at Vermont (Dec. 2).
- As a team, the Big Green had a 20-point scorer in three of the first four games of the season (Neskovic 23 at Duke, sophomore Brandon Mitchell-Day 20 vs. Westfield State and Neskovic 24 at Saint Louis), the first time that's happened since the 2008-09 season. That year, Barnett had all the 20-point games, posting 28 at Providence, 24 vs. Colgate and 24 against Furman.
- Dartmouth had a 20-point scorer in five consecutive games (vs. Westfield State, at Saint Louis, at Vermont, at UAlbany and vs. New Hampshire). It marked the first time since at least the turn of the century that the Big Green have had a 20-point scorer in six of the first seven games of the season.
- Against New Hampshire (Dec. 6), Jayden Williams' 28 points marked a season high for a Dartmouth player and the most by a Big Green player since Dame Adelekun scored 41 last Jan. 28 against Columbia.
- Mitchell-Day scored 22 points while Neskovic added 20 in Dartmouth's comeback win over Brown on Jan. 27, marking the first time since Jan. 21 of last season that two Big Green teammates scored 20+ in a game, when Ryan Cornish had 31 and Neskovic netted 24 at Princeton.
- Neskovic scored 20 points at Harvard, his fifth 20+ point effort of the season, the most 20-point games since Brendan Barry in 2018-19.

McRae III and Myrthil Named Captains
Dartmouth head men's basketball coach David McLaughlin announced that senior Robert McRae III and junior Romeo Myrthil will serve as the Big Green's team captains in 2023-24. The two will look to lead an experienced group that features seven returning players who led the team in scoring at least once this past season.

History in Cameron Indoor Stadium
In the season opener at Duke on Monday, Nov. 6, the Big Green were led by junior Dusan Neskovic, who scored 23 points for a second straight season opener (also 23 last Nov. 7 at Fordham). He scored 15 of those points in the second half at Duke, shooting 7-of-11 over the final 20 minutes. Neskovic finished 11-of-19 for the game, which included knocking down a second-half 3-pointer.
- Neskovic's 23 points were the most scored by a Duke opponent in the Blue Devils' home opener since Davidson's De'Mon Brooks scored 24 on Nov. 8, 2013.
- It was also the most scored by any non-conference opponent at Duke's Cameron Indoor Stadium since Kevon Harris of Stephen F. Austin had 26 on Nov. 26, 2019.

Scoring Output
Eight different Big Green players have led the team in scoring this season.

Dusan Neskovic: 10 - at Duke (11/6), at Saint Louis (11/25), at Vermont (11/29), vs. UAlbany (12/2), at Sacred Heart (12/21), at Vanderbilt (tied) (12/30), vs. Yale (1/20), vs. Cornell (2/2), vs. Columbia (2/3), at Harvard (2/10)
Brandon Mitchell-Day: 4 - vs. Westfield State (11/15), at Vanderbilt (tied) (12/30), at Princeton (1/15), vs. Brown (1/27)
Jaren Johnson: 2 - vs. UMass Lowell (11/10), at Le Moyne (tied) (12/16)
Ryan Cornish: 2 - vs. Marist (12/9), at Penn (1/6)
Jayden Williams: 1 - vs. New Hampshire (12/6)
Romeo Myrthil: 1 - vs. Boston University (12/13)
Connor Christensen: 1 - vs. Thomas College (12/18)
Nikola Dimitrijevic: 1 - at Le Moyne (tied) (12/16)

Sustained Success
Since Feb. 17, 2022, the Big Green are tied for the fourth best record in the league in Ivy League games (regular season or postseason).

Yale: 22-6
Princeton: 21-7
Cornell: 15-11
Dartmouth: 11-15
Penn: 11-15
Confirmed / Done
Brown: 10-15
Harvard: 10-16
Columbia: 5-19

International Experience
Four members of the Big Green hail from outside of the United States — Dusan Neskovic (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Romeo Myrthil (Sweden), Nikola Dimitrijevic (Serbia) and Ben Brown (England). Neskovic is the first Big Green player from Banja Luka since Vedad Osmanovic '02, who scored 697 points. The four international players are tied with the 2021-22 team for the most international players on a Dartmouth men's basketball roster.

Follow Along
Both Friday and Saturday night's games can be seen live on ESPN+.

What's Ahead?
Following this weekend, the Big Green return home next weekend to host Penn on Friday (7 p.m.) and Princeton on Saturday (6 p.m.). Saturday night's game against the Tigers will be Senior Night.