CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – The Bowdoin College men's basketball team came within a whisker of knocking off Division I Harvard University on Sunday, falling in the closing moments of a 71-65 loss.
The Polar Bears, who were facing their first Division I opponent since the 1998-99 season, drop to 9-4 on the year while the Crimson improve to 5-8.
Game Highlights
- Bowdoin rode an outstanding first half to a nine-point halftime lead over the host school, 71-65.
- Ray Cuevas sparked the effort, scoring 17 first half points, knocking down five three-pointers, as the Polar Bears connected on eight trifectas in the half.
- The Polar Bears led 19-7 after five minutes of play, and led by as many as 14 points in the opening stanza.
- A buzzer-beating jumper by Liam McBride gave Bowdoin a 41-32 lead at the break, and the Polar Bears maintained their lead throughout most of the second period until the Crimson rallied to tie the score at 52 halfway through the frame.
- The teams traded the lead down the stretch, with Bowdoin claiming their last lead of the contest on consecutive jumpers by Chris Simonds and James McGowan to hold a 61-58 edge with 6:30 to go.
- The Crimson took over from there, however, closing the game on a 13-4 run to pull out the victory as Bowdoin went cold, missing seven straight shots as Harvard pulled away.
By The Numbers
- Ray Cuevas was outstanding, scoring 22 points on the day for the Polar Bears while James McGowan added 11.
- Afamdi Achufusi scored nine and Liam McBride added eight points and seven boards.
- Harvard finished at 48% shooting for the game while Bowdoin connected for 41% from the field.
Up Next
- Bowdoin will open NESCAC play on Friday night as they travel to Medford, Mass., to play Tufts at 6:00 p.m.
