PROVIDENCE, R.I.--The Harvard football team's defense put forth its most impressive effort of the season Saturday, holding the Brown offensive attack--believed to be almost unstoppable--to its lowest offensive production of the season by far.

Because Harvard struggled so much offensively, it fell short and fell a game behind in the Ivy race, 17-10.

Six Harvard turnovers, four of which were Brad Wilford interceptions, were just enough to allow the Bears (7-1, 4-1 Ivy) to stay in a tie for first with Yale (7-1, 4-1) despite having its lowest point total of the season by 10 and its lowest yardage total by 162 yards against the Crimson (5-3, 3-2 Ivy).

The fifth turnover, an interception returned 44 yards by Brown sophomore cornerback Melvin Justice, was enough to break the game open for Brown.

Early in the fourth quarter, after the Bears mounted their first effective drive of the day to tie the game 10-10, consecutive sacks of Wilford pinned the Crimson deep in its own end. On the ensuing third-and-30 play, Wilford looked to make something happen for the Crimson.

Wilford tried to throw a bomb down the left sideline but overthrew his receiver by a mile. It was a fairly low-percentage play, as the Brown secondary had the Harvard receivers outnumbered.

Justice caught the ball on the Brown 38, with no Crimson player within five yards of him.

"I told [Wilford] that a long pass interception would be just as good as a punt," Harvard Coach Tim Murphy said. "We tried to throw it to the outside, but I guess it drifted in."