CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — For the third consecutive meeting between Columbia and Harvard, 40 minutes was not enough. Mike Smith posted a career-high 38 points, but the Lions fell to the Crimson, 77-73, in double overtime Saturday night.
 
Smith's point total is most for a Columbia player since Buck Jenkins' school-record 47-point game accomplished 29 years ago to the day against the Crimson. The senior made 17 field goals, the second highest single-game total in program history and took 37 shots to break the previous mark of 33 that was set by Chet Forte in 1956.
 
With the score deadlocked after intermission, Harvard (16-7, 5-3) started second half on 8-0 run to go in front 40-32. The Crimson held off the Lions for much of the period until a late surge, kick-started by a pair of buckets from Ike Nweke, brought the Lions (6-18, 1-7) all the way back.
 
Columbia came up with a pair of key stops with under three minutes on the clock and a pair of Jake Killingsworth free throws drew Columbia within 53-51 with 57 seconds left. Harvard then missed the front end of a one-and-one and Smith sliced his way down the lane for an easy deuce with 22 seconds and the Lions got a clutch stop to force the second extra session.
 
The Crimson jumped out to a four-point lead to start the extra session, however, the Lions rallied yet again thanks to more heroics from Smith. His layup and assist on a Nweke layup brought Columbia within 60-59 with 58 seconds showing. After a missed 3-pointer by Harvard, Smith stepped back behind the arc from the left wing to put the Lions in front, 62-60 with 24 ticks to go.
 
However, a second-chance bucket from Christian Juzang gave the Crimson new life with 10 seconds remaining. Smith had a decent look from the right corner, but his shot was off the mark, and a Nweke tip-in was waved off after replay showed it was after the horn.
 
In the second overtime, the Lions led by as many as three after a Nweke 3-point play and a Smith floater with 2:11 to play. Chris Lewis provided a basket and was fouled to tie things up, 69-69, for the final time. Noah Kirkwood provided the go-ahead 3-pointer at the 1:11 mark and Columbia missed a pair of triples on its next possession. With the shot clock off, the Lions were forced to foul and Harvard knocked down 5-of-6 from the line to seal the win.
 
Lewis and Kirkwood each posted double-doubles for the Crimson. Lewis had 16 points, 11 boards, three blocks and four steals in 44 minutes. Kirkwood finished with a team-high 22 points and 10 boards.
 
Harvard won the battle of the boards, 59-45, and rejected 10 shots for the game.
 
Smith put the team on his back in the first half, scoring 19 of Columbia's 32 first-half points. Harvard tried to inch away, leading 17-11, but Smith netted seven in a row to pull the Lions within one with 7:30 remaining in the period. The Crimson restored the six-point cushion just over a minute later before Columbia worked its way to the foul line, knocking down six attempts coupled with a Smith triple to go in front 29-27 at the 3:22 mark.
 
Harvard answered with some free throws of its own to regain the lead briefly. However, Smith took the last shot and drained a floater to knot things up, 32-32, at the midway point. Columbia did a strong job defensively to close the half, limiting the Crimson to just one field goal over the final 5:11.
 
The Lions are back in Levien Gymnasium to host Brown on Friday, February 21, to kick off Alumni Weekend. Tickets are available by visiting gocolumbialions.com/tickets or calling 888-LIONS-11. For those who cannot make the game, it can be seen live on ESPN+.

For the latest on the Columbia men's basketball, follow @CULionsMBB on Twitter and Instagram, and the web at GoColumbiaLions.com.