HAMILTON – Colgate (6-7) erased a 10-point deficit to lead by as many as five in the second half, but Harvard (7-7) caught fire from the three-point line to seal a 78-69 decision Sunday afternoon in the non-league finale at Cotterell Court.
Jalen Cox led the Raiders with 19 points along with eight assists. Andrew Alekseyenko and Ben Tweedy both scored 17 and Sam Wright put four Raiders in double-figures with 10 points. Defensively Josh Ahayere led Colgate with four of the team's nine steals.
Harvard finished 13-of-24 from behind the arc, including 6-of-9 in the second half, and was led by 22 points from Thomas Batties II. Tey Barbour and Chandler Pigge contributed 18 apiece.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Colgate's best run came early in the second half fueled by Alekseyenko. He scored seven unanswered in a 10-0 Raider burst, including a go-ahead 3-pointer from the wing to give Colgate a five-point lead, 48-43, five minutes into the final stanza.
After starting the second half 3-of-4 from behind the arc, Colgate missed its final four attempts down the stretch. Batties II connected from long range in a 7-0 response by the Crimson, who took the lead for good 52-50 on a driving layup by Pigge with 12:02 remaining.
With back-and-forth action, Colgate was trading two-pointers for 3-pointers and couldn't quite catch the Crimson. Long range connections from Austin Hunt, Xavier Nesbitt, and Batties helped Harvard establish a 67-61 advantage with 5:33 to go.
The Raiders cut the deficit to two, 69-67, on an Alekseyenko layup with 2:49 to go, but Harvard answered with another 3-pointer from Hunt – and it was never a one-possession game again.
Colgate led by as many as seven in the first half, 18-11, after
Cooper Wright's layup capped a 10-0 Raider burst.
Sam Wright scored four points and Colgate had four different scorers during the surge. The defense held Harvard to 0-7 during that stretch.
Harvard immediately responded with an 11-0 surge, which turned into an extended 17-2 scoring drought for the Raiders, who trailed 28-20 with five minutes remaining in the first half.
The Crimson extended their lead to double-digits, 36-26, before Colgate closed the half on a 7-0 burst with a dunk by Alekseyenko and a 3-pointer by Tweedy trimming the halftime deficit to 36-33.
Colgate shot 47.5 percent overall (28-59) including 27.8 percent from behind the arc (5-18). The Raiders were 8-10 from the free throw line. Harvard connected on 60 percent in the second half and 50.8 percent overall (30-59) along with 54.2 percent (13-24) from the perimeter.
NOTES
- Harvard has now won nine consecutive head-to-head games to lead the series, 13-12.
- Colgate's last win in the series came during the 2003-04 non-conference slate.
- The Raiders have led in the second half in 11 of 13 games this season. They are now 6-5 in those contests.
- Colgate finishes non-league play with six wins for the third time in four years, matching its most since the 2019-20 Raiders were 9-4.
- Josh Ahayere (4) and Sam Wright (3) both set career-highs in steals.
- Jalen Cox has now scored in double-figures and had at least eight assists in three different games this season.
- Ben Tweedy's 17 points were his most since pouring in a Colgate career-high 23 against St. John Fisher.
UP NEXT
Colgate heads to Lafayette for a 3 p.m. tipoff on New Year's Eve, beginning the 18-game Patriot League regular season slate.
