NEW YORK – The Columbia men's basketball team knocked off Dartmouth, 73-54, with a superb defensive effort and a balanced scoring attack. The Lions (19-8, 8-2) held the Big Green (9-14, 3-6) to just 28.1 percent shooting in the second half to turn a four-point halftime lead into a convincing victory.
Grant Mullins, who was battling flu-like symptoms, led the way with 17 points on 7-of-7 shooting from the foul line. He also added four rebounds and four assists. Maodo Lo did not connect from long range for just the third time this season, but was able to penetrate into the lane and finished with 14 points and seven rebounds.
Dartmouth's Evan Boudreaux and Miles Wright teamed up to score 17 of their team's first 24 points as they led by nine with 8:15 remaining. However, the Lions' defense stepped up, forcing the Big Green to miss on nine of their final field goal attempts. On the offensive end, Rosenberg took over, scoring seven points in those final eight minutes to help Columbia take a 32-28 advantage into the intermission.
For the second consecutive night, the Lions saved their best for last. After Boudreaux converted on a layup to cut the margin to two, Lo sparked an 8-0 run with a devastating crossover, followed by a steal and layup to help Columbia extend the lead to 40-30 less than three minutes into the half.
A free throw at the 14:09 marker pulled Dartmouth within 42-39, but that would be as close as they would get. A 9-1 spurt, capped by a baseline drive from Nate Hickman, gave the Lions a 51-40 cushion with 12:08 to go and Columbia never looked back.
Luke Petrasek had a strong night with 11 points, going 3-of-4 from beyond the arc, and added six boards and two blocks. Jeff Coby helped limit Boudreaux to 2-of-10 shooting in the second half aand finished with eight points and seven rebounds.
The Lions will make the short trip to Jadwin Gymnasium to take on Princeton next Friday, February 26 at 6 p.m. The contest will be broadcast on the American Sports Network and the Ivy League Digital Network.
NOTES: Columbia has clinched a winning Ivy League season for just the fourth time since the 1991-92 season… The Lions remain in third place in the conference standings, one game behind first-place Yale (9-1) and a half-game back of the Tigers (8-1).
