Curry’s success was not limited to the final minutes. He scored a total of 15 points and was perfect from the field, including 2-of-2 from three and 3-for-3 from the foul line.

His biggest hoop of the night might have come with four minutes left in regulation. Trailing by three, Curry had the ball at the top of the key. The rookie started right, switched directions by dribbling behind his back, and drove all the way to the hoop. Curry banked home a layup as Bulldog forward Greg Mangano fouled him, and the guard hit the ensuing free throw to tie the game.

“Bradyn was tremendous throughout the evening,” Amaker said. “He’s playing with a great deal of swagger and confidence.”

COMING UP BIG

The big concern going into the game for the Crimson was the matchup in the frontcourt. With three of its top five forwards out of the game, Harvard was very thin on the frontline and needed good minutes from Casey and Miller.

Both players delivered.

Casey started the game by hitting three straight three pointers in the first eight minutes. The freshman saw 41 minutes of action and finished as the Crimson’s leading scorer with 20 points and its leading rebounder with seven boards.

Miller logged 34 minutes and tallied six points and three blocks, but his biggest contributions were buried beneath the stats. The co-captain grabbed three offensive rebounds, and each time he found an open teammate on the perimeter that knocked down a three.

“These kids are exhausted from the [number of] minutes they’re playing,” said Amaker of his big men. “Certainly we needed them out there.”

—Staff writer Timothy J. Walsh can be reached at tjwalsh@fas.harvard.edu.