ROUNDBALL DAILY

Ivy Roundup: Brown edges Yale, 81-80, in Providence

Brown Junior Obi Okolie

Junior Obi Okolie hit the game-clinching free throws for Brown on Friday night. (Photo courtesy: BrownBears.com)

Home court continued to be a charm in the Ivy League as Brown edged Yale 81-80 before 1,553 at its Pizzitola Center in Providence, the only Ivy game scheduled Friday night (Jan. 19). In all eight league contests this young season, the hosts have come out on top.

Two more games will be played Saturday, with first place Penn (3-0, 12-5) going out of conference to face city rival Temple in the afternoon.

The loss dropped the Bulldogs (1-1, 8-10) into a fourth-place tie with the Bears (1-1, 8-7). Yale had beaten Brown in New Haven a week ago.

The game was tied 77-77 with 4.4 seconds to go when Obi Okolie made a pair of free throws and Brown hung on. Yale’s Alex Copeland made a 3 as time ran out as the Bulldogs fell one point short.

Copeland, off the bench, finished with 26 on 10-of-13 to lead both teams. Yale’s Trey Phills had 19.

The match-up, as are most of the opening clashes, was between travel partners and weekend hosts. It was the first time Brown has won over the Elis since Yale swept the series for three consecutive years, but the Bulldogs could have made it four with a win tonight.

This was the second straight season Yale and Brown have played a one-point game in Providence. Last year it was Yale that came out on top, 75-74.

Related: A connection from heaven—Trey Phills’ career high at Yale last week came exactly 18 years to the day when tragedy took the life of his dad

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