NEW YORK — After 54 years, Yale is finally dancing again.
The Bulldogs defeated Columbia, 71-55, at Levien Gym to win the Ivy League and earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1962, the second-longest drought among teams that have made it to the Big Dance before. The Ivy League has no postseason tournament and the Bulldogs advanced by virtue of winning the regular-season title.
The last time Yale went dancing, John F. Kennedy was in the White House and The Beatles had yet to invade American soil.
“You look up in the gym and see the last time you made the tournament was in 1962, and it motivates you,” said senior Brandon Sherrod, who finished with 13 points and six rebounds. “It’s a great time for our school. It’s a great time for our team. It’s surreal. I can’t put it into words.”
Yale led Columbia from start to finish, outrebounding the Lions 39-24. Sophomore Makai Mason led all scorers with 22 points, while forward Nick Victor added 12 points and 12 rebounds. Four players scored in double-digits for the Bulldogs.
Yale enters the postseason as one of the hottest teams in the nation, winning 17 of its last 18. Although Yale doesn’t have any eye-popping wins this season, they have shown they can at least compete with some of the best teams in the nation.
On Nov. 22, Yale took SMU to the wire before losing 71-69. SMU is now ranked No. 23 by the Associated Press. The following game, Yale lost to Duke, 80-61, but led for all but 90 seconds in the first half. A 30 percent shooting performance in the second half would spoil Yale’s hope for an upset.
“Over my four year career, I’ve seen it all,”said senior Justin Sears, a New Jersey native. “I played Florida. I played Duke. We played Illinois. I’ve seen it all: big gyms, small gyms, back-to-back games – everything. So the NCAA Tournament is just another step. It’s going to be fun.”
The Bulldogs are a senior-led team that won’t be afraid of a high major team in the tournament. Last season, Yale knocked off UConn, then the defending national champions. The core of that team still remains this season.
If there is anything that makes Yale a team to watch in March, it’s their control on the glass. Yale has a +10.9 rebounding margin, which is good for third-best in the nation.
“We do three things,” Yale head coach James Jones said. “We defend our behinds off. We block out – we rebound like it’s nobody’s business, and we share the ball. Those three things are what Yale basketball is made of right now, and when we stick to that, we’re really dangerous.”
The interior presence of Sears and Sherrod creates an abundance of second chance opportunities and points in the paint. Yale’s adjusted defensive efficiency is 20th best in the nation, according to KenPom.
The Bulldogs are also led by four seniors and three juniors, which will make Yale even more dangerous come tournament time.
But it is their sophomore, Mason, who is averaging 16.2 points per game, and creates the most havoc on offense. Yale’s adjusted offensive efficiency of 108 places them 92nd in the nation, but Jones believes that Mason could give opponents trouble in March.
“He’s a bad man,” Jones said. “He’s a little dude, but I’ll tell you, what’s great about him – whoever we’re going to play, someone is going to try to push-up on him, and [Mason’s] going to go right by him.”
The Bulldogs will have to move on without senior and team captain Jack Montague. Montague was suspended and later withdrew from school, according to the Yale Daily News. The senior sharpshooter averaged 9.7 points per game.
In a game against Harvard on Feb. 26, Yale players wore T-shirts that read Montague’s nickname, “Gucci” on the back, and “Yale” written backward on the front to show support for their teammate. Posters then showed up outside of the Yale gym that read, “I stand with Yale women,” “End rape culture,” and “Don’t Support Rapists,” according to the Yale Daily News.
“We have strict orders from our lawyers,” Jim Montague, Jack Montague’s father, told the New Haven Register.. “Soon enough, I’d love to tell the other side of the story. It’s ridiculous why he’s expelled. It’s probably going to set some sort of precedent. We’re trying to do things the gentleman’s way, so we’re sorry keeping things close-knit. But you guys will get a story.”
Jones said he wanted to remain focused on basketball after winning the Ivy League.
“Its not something that we talk about,” Jones said. “We coach basketball. We play basketball, and we deal with the guys in the room and do the best we can.”
Yale entered the game with an RPI of 55 and a 13 seed on Joe Lunardi’s Bracketology.
The team will find out whom they match-up with in the NCAA Tournament during Selection Sunday on March 13th.
“We’re not satisfied. This team right here is the best team I’ve ever coached,” said Jones, who’s coached for 26 years. “So I’m excited for whoever we have to play.”
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