NEW YORK — Columbia men's basketball travels to Brown on Friday and Yale on Saturday, with both games set to tip at 7 p.m.
Friday's matchup at Pizzitola Sports Center between the Lions (12-10, 1-8) and Bears (12-10, 4-5) can be followed via live stats or
watched live on ESPN+. Scott Cordischi (play-by-play), Russ Tyler (analyst), and Nick Coit (sideline) will have the call.
Saturday's matchup at John J. Lee Amphitheater between the Lions and Bulldogs (16-6, 7-0) can be followed via live stats or
watched live on ESPN+. Justin Gallanty (play-by-play) and Alexandra Maund (analyst) will have the call.
Opening Tip-Off
The Lions started 8-0 for the first time since Columbia's 1969-70 team, which started the season with 10 straight wins before finishing 20-5 (11-3). Columbia's eight-game winning streak was its first since Feb. 1982.
Columbia has the seventh-highest KenPom continuity rating in the country (67.7). The average continuity mark in the country is 33.8.
News/Notes
Last Time Out
Columbia fell at Harvard, 87-75, on Saturday night at Lavietes Pavilion. Blair Thompson led the Lions with a season-high 19 points on 8-12 shooting. He was 3-4 from three-point range and added five rebounds. The Lions shot just 33.3 percent from beyond the arc. Harvard shot nearly 60 percent from the field and 55 percent from downtown.
The Lions scored 46 points in the paint compared to Harvard's 26. Kenny Noland dropped 16 points, while Gerard O'Keefe and Zine Eddine Bedri each had 13.
Rubio De La Rosa Dominance
Senior guard Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa is off to a scorching start this season, averaging 18.0 points per game (third in the Ivy League) over 17 games. He is shooting 48.5 percent from the floor and 41.7 percent from three-point range, which ranks 36th in the country.
Rubio De La Rosa's 306 points this season are the seventh-most in the Ivy League. He also has the sixth-most three-pointers made (50) in the conference.
Rubio De La Rosa was named to the Lou Henson Award Early-Season Watch List on Nov. 19 and to the inaugural Bracketeer.Org Non-Power Conference All-American Watch List on Oct. 31. He played a strong all-around game over 25 appearances (24 starts) in 2023-24 and was tabbed All-Ivy League Honorable Mention. Rubio De La Rosa averaged a team-best in points per game (14.4) for the second straight season and led Columbia in minutes per game (30.8), field goals made (116), three-pointers made (57), and steals (41). Rubio De La Rosa ranked in the top ten among Ivy League players in scoring, three-point field goal percentage, three-point field goals per game, and steals.
Last February, Rubio De La Rosa became the 30th Lion in program history to score 1,000 points and the 16th to do so in his first three seasons.
Historic Performance by G
On Nov. 23 vs. Stony Brook, Rubio De La Rosa dropped a career-high 37 points and moved to 11th place on Columbia's all-time scoring list. Rubio De La Rosa set a Levien Gym record and a career high with nine three-pointers made. He also tied the Levien Gym record for points scored by a Lion, matching Mike Smith, Buck Jenkins, and C.J. Thompkins' 37-point performances. From the floor, Rubio De La Rosa was 14-18 (.778) from inside the arc and 9-13 (.692) from three-point range. Rubio De La Rosa had 24 of the Lions' 38 first half points.
Rubio De La Rosa was the first Lion to score 37 points in a game since Mike Smith did so on Feb. 22, 2020 vs. Yale.
Noticing Noland
Junior guard Kenny Noland has played a big part of Columbia's offense, averaging 13.4 points per game in 31.9 minutes per game. Noland has a team-leading 19 double-figure scoring performances this season. His 79 assists lead the team and are sixth in the Ivy League.
Oh Yeah O'Keefe
First-year guard Gerard O'Keefe has dropped double-figures scoring in his last three games, including a 22-point showing in the comeback win vs. Brown. Last weekend he recorded 13 points in each game at Dartmouth and Harvard. O'Keefe collected Ivy League Rookie of the Week on Feb. 10. He is 20-31 from the field in the last three games.
Spreading The Wealth
The Lions are putting together well-balanced numbers on the stat sheets this season. Junior Blair Thompson leads the team and ranks in the top ten in the Ivy League in rebounds per game (6.3). The New York City native's 44 offensive boards are the third-most in the conference. Thompson has posted two double-doubles this season, including an 11-point, 16-rebound performance Feb. 8 vs. Brown. It marked a career-high in boards for Thompson.
Jake Tavroff recorded the first double-double of his career on Jan. 31 vs. Harvard with a career-high 10 points and 10 rebounds.
First-year Mason Ritter leads the team with 13 blocks in just 12.3 minutes per game this season. Junior Avery Brown has chipped in, averaging 11.7 points per game with double-figure scoring in 12 games. He is second on the team in assists (65). The Beacon Falls, Conn. native is also tied for the league lead in free throws made (81).
Among the Nation's Leaders
Columbia ranks 11th in the country in assists per game (17.5) and 13th in assist/turnover ratio (1.6).
Record Book Watch
- Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa (1,380 points) sits eighth on Columbia's all-time scoring list. He recently passed Gary Raimondo '99CC and is 50 points away from tying Alex Rosenberg '16CC for seventh place.
- Rubio De La Rosa is second all-time in program history in three-pointers made (225). Maodo Lo (277) is the all-time leader in three-pointers made for the Lions.
- Rubio De La Rosa is second all-time in program history in three-pointers attempted (601). Maodo Lo (692) is the all-time leader in three-pointers attempted for the Lions.
- Rubio De La Rosa's .843 free throw percentage ranks third all-time in program history. He trails Brian Barbour (.897) and Chet Forte (.841).
- Rubio De La Rosa is fourth all-time in program history with 143 steals. He is 13 steals away from tying Sean Couch for third place.
Series History - Brown
The Lions are 78-75 all-time against the Bears. On Feb. 8, Columbia overcame a 15-point deficit over the final eight minutes to earn a fashionable comeback victory over Brown, 74-72, inside a boisterous Schiller Court at Levien Gymnasium. Columbia broke off a 17-3 run over the last 5:08 to storm back and steal the win.
Series History - Yale
The Lions are 127-119 all-time against the Bulldogs and look to snap a four-game losing streak in the series.
Fast Break Points
- The Lions return more than 78 percent of their scoring for the second straight season. Columbia also brings back at least 79 percent of its rebounds, assists, and steals from 2023-24.
- The 26-point win on Nov. 25 against New Hampshire (83-57) was the largest margin of victory against a D1 opponent at Levien Gymnasium since Dec. 7, 2018 vs. Bryant (90-68 win). The Lions have had four double-digit home wins this season.
- Columbia has received votes in the AP Top 25 Poll three times this season.
- It's likely the first time Columbia has gotten an AP Top 25 vote since 1970.
- On Nov. 25, Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa was named Ivy League Player of the Week, ESPN Dick Vitale National Player of the Week, and CollegeInsider.com Lou Henson National Player of the Week. On Nov. 26, he was named an Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week.
- Jim Engles was named National Coach of the Week by legendary ESPN analyst Dick Vitale on Nov. 11.
- On Nov. 11, Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa was the first Lion to be tabbed Lou Henson National Player of the Week. He was also tabbed Ivy League Player of the Week and Mid-Major Madness Men's Player of the Week.
- Columbia had the third-biggest KenPom rating jump in the country during the first week of the season (209 to 148 – +61).
-Was their highest KenPom rating since Nov. 16, 2019 (147).
Up Next
Columbia returns home for a back-to-back next weekend. The Lions host Princeton on Friday at 7 p.m. and Penn on Saturday for Senior Night at 6 p.m.
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