Maybe, in the long run, this weekend was a step forward.

The Harvard men's basketball team, traditionally a squad that plays better on the road than at home, might have reversed that trend with its loss to Cornell in Ithaca, N.Y., 73-50, Saturday night.

Now, the Crimson has problems on the road just like any other team.

And oh, what problems it had.

Exhausted from the long road trip, particularly running up and down the court with Columbia the night before, the Crimson showed all the symptoms of a team that needed rest but wasn't getting any.

No defense. No rebounding. No trips to the free-throw line. Low shooting percentage. And lots of outside shots.

Cornell (4-15 overall, 2-6 Ivy), euphoric after its first Ivy league win the previous night against Dartmouth, had no problem stampeding the weary Crimson (4-16, 3-5).

The Big Red starters all scored in double figures while shooting 60 percent from the floor. Cornell dominated the Crimson on the boards, outrebounding Harvard, 36-29.

More Shots

Harvard actually took more shots than Cornell (59-53), but shot a paltry 39 percent. It took an unprecedented number of treys (15) but nailed only three.

Perhaps the most devastating statistic was the two teams' free throw shooting. The Crimson, a low post team, went just 1-for-4 from the charity stripe despite 11 team fouls by the Big Red.

In contrast, Cornell shot 15-for-21 on 15 fouls as the Crimson tried to prevent the easy baskets from falling.

Junior forward Tyler Rullman was the top scorer for Harvard with 13 points, followed by Captain Ron Mitchell with 12 points (5 rebounds) and Peter Condakes with 11.

Point guard Jared Leake turned in the Crimson's best allaround performance with two assists, no turnovers, five steals and three rebounds in 35 minutes of play.

It was the first game without a turnover for the freshman guard.

But although Leake's ballhandling was solid, his shot was not. Leake was just 2-for-7 from the floor.

Freshman James White saw 23 minutes of action, contributing three rebounds and six points on 3-for-6 shooting.

Like Leake, though, White still needs work on his three-point shot. White was O-for-2 form downtown.

Junior forward Arturo Llopis is had an off night. In nine minutes of play, Llopis had just two points and one rebound, and missed two free throws.

It was just that kind of a night for the Crimson.

IVY MEN'S BASKETBALL STANDINGS School  Conf.  Overall Princeton  8-0  18-3 Yale  4-4  14-6 Dartmouth  4-4  9-11 Columbia  4-4  6-13 Penn  4-4  11-9 Harvard  3-5  9-11 Brown  3-5  9-11 Cornell  2-6  4-15

Saturday Night's Games

Princeton 46, Yale 35

Penn 86, Brown 67

Columbia 74, Dartmouth 54