NEW YORK – The Columbia men's basketball team fell to Yale, 83-73, Saturday night in the Lions' final home game of the season. Miye Oni scored 26 points to go with nine rebounds and eight assists to lead the Bulldogs, who improved to 14-14 overall and 7-5 in Ivy League play to clinch an Ivy League Tournament berth.

Columbia (8-17, 5-7) now sits in a tie with Cornell, also 5-7 in conference play, for the fourth and final Ivy League Tournament spot. The Lions currently hold a tiebreaker for the final position due to their victory over Harvard (12-2 Ivy), but with four teams jockeying for one spot, there are multiple tiebreaking scenarios based on next weekend's results. Columbia does control its own destiny and can clinch a postseason berth with two wins at Dartmouth and Harvard. Other tiebreaking procedures will be available on GoColumbiaLIons.com, IvyLeagueSports.com, IvyMadness.com and social media throughout the week.

Senior Nate Hickman came out firing on all cylinders, scoring four early points during an 8-0 run to give the Lions a five-point lead just under four minutes in. With the Lions holding a 16-15 advantage, Yale ripped off nine unanswered to take go in front 24-16 with 5:50 left in the half, a lead they would never relinquish.

Hickman cut the deficit to 27-25 with a triple with 3:42 before halftime, but the Bulldogs weathered the storm and went up by 10 at the break when Noah Yates drained a 3-pointer as time expired.

Oni, who was held in check in the first half, erupted for 24 of his 26 after the break including a stretch of 18 in a row for Yale. Columbia did find opportunities to get back into the contest and pulled within three on three occasions. However, the Bulldogs had the answer each time on their win to the victory.

Mike Smith paced the Lions for the second straight night with 21 points and five rebounds. Lukas Meisner registered his eighth double-double of the year with 11 points and 13 rebounds. Hickman recorded a season-high 17 points and added five rebounds. Kyle Castlin chipped in 12 points, three assists and three steals.

Yale capitalized on 16 Columbia turnovers, turning them into 23 points. The Lions outrebounded the Bulldogs, 44-30. Columbia shot a season-low 16.7 percent (4-24) from beyond the arc.

The Lions take on Dartmouth to begin the final weekend of the regular season on Friday, March 2 at 7 p.m. Fans can also watch the contest ESPN3/WatchESPN app and on the Ivy League Network, now available on Apple TV, Roku and the ILN app for Android and Apple devices.

POSTGAME TIP-INS
- Columbia's four 3-pointers bring its monthly total to 76 for the Coaches vs. Cancer 3-Point Challenge. Fans can pledge a dollar amount for every triple Columbia makes in February until the end of the regular season or make a one-time donation. All funds will the American Cancer Society. To donate, click here.
- The Lions fell to 5-2 on the year when Castlin scores in double-figures.
- Yale defeated Columbia for the sixth consecutive time and improved to 110-125 in the all-time series.