The early Ivy League returns are in, and it doesn't look good for the Harvard men's basketball team.

While the Crimson (1-11, 1-1 Ivy) is tied for second place, the competition is the stiffest the league has seen in years. Harvard is near the bottom of nearly every statistical category.

Individually, there are a few highlights for the Crimson. Captain Ron Mitchell is third in rebounding (6.5 rpg), and Tyler Rullman is fifth in scoring (14.6 ppg) and fifth in rebounding (6.1 rpg).

But as a team, Harvard is seventh in field-goal percentage, sixth in free-throw percentage, sixth in overall scoring, and last in three-point shooting.

In two games against Dartmouth, Harvard has taken only five shots from downtown and missed all of them.

These numbers are partly due to the low-post style of play Harvard Coach Frank Sullivan prefers, but also illustrate Rullman's reluctance to take the long shot.

Rullman is one of the most accurate guns in the Ivies. Last year, Rullman nailed 47 percent of his three-point bombs. This year, it's been .000 for the team's leading scorer.

It's easy to ignore statistics in favor of the all-important bottom line: a 1-1 record in Ivy League play. But the numbers tell a sad story.

While Harvard has struggled to find its footing, Brown and Columbia have shed their images as Ivy League doormats.

Columbia is 2-9 (1-0 Ivy), but their record is due more to a murderous opening schedule than a lack of talent. The Lions acquired junior college transfer forward Par Downing, and the junior has carried his team to legitimacy.

Downing, who averages 16.6 points and 5.2 rebounds per game, has opened the floor for All-Ivy guard Buck Jenkins, who scored 25 in the Lions' victory over Cornell, and Ivy League Player of the Week Russ Steward, who has tallied 61 points and 23 rebounds in Columbia's last three games.

Brown (6-6, 1-0 Ivy) is enjoying a sensational season. After nearly knocking off Boston College in its opener, the Bears have stunned Providence (71-69 in overtime), upset Holy Cross and Creighton, and come from behind to take Yale, 65-59.

Three's Company

The secret to Brown's success is no mystery: the troika of guards Rick Lloyd and Chuck Savage and bruiser Kirk Lowry cleaning the boards.

Lloyd pumped in 21 against Yale, including a clutch three-point bomb to tie the game at 59, and the winning basket with: 36 to go. Savage averages 13.3 points per game, and Lowry hauls in 6 rebounds a night.