What a difference one year can make.

A season removed from suffering two disappointing losses at the hands of Cornell, the Harvard men’s basketball team took a step toward gaining retribution against the three-time defending Ivy League champions Saturday night at Lavietes Pavilion.

Led by its powerful front-court duo of junior co-captain Keith Wright and sophomore Kyle Casey, the Crimson (15-3, 4-0 Ivy) picked up a 78-57 victory against the Big Red (4-14, 0-4).

“They smacked us last year [on the road], and then we had a tough loss at home to them,” Casey said. “We all came in here with a little extra juice and a little extra fire, and I think we executed pretty well.”

After a disappointing first half in which Casey was held to just two points and one rebound, the forward exploded in the second half with 14 points and eight rebounds, helping Harvard extend its 10-point halftime lead up to 24.

But Casey wasn’t the only Crimson forward to put up big numbers.

Wright—Casey’s front-court mate in the starting lineup—picked up his seventh double-double of the season, finishing with 21 points and 11 rebounds, both game highs.

While Wright and Casey provided strong production in the post, also crucial to the Crimson’s success was its guard play.

Harvard combined for 17 assists while committing just four turnovers, a season-low.

Junior guard Oliver McNally and sophomore guard Brandy Curry led the way, handing out seven assists apiece.

Curry had the hot hand in the game’s opening minutes, connecting on two treys in the first five minutes of play to help Harvard establish an early 13-3 lead.

Cornell responded with a 7-0 run highlighted by a two-handed slam from Adam Wire to cut its deficit to three.

But sophomore forward Jeff Georgatos ended the Big Red run, nailing his first career three-pointer off a pass from Curry to put the Crimson up by six.

The Crimson continued to rely on the long ball throughout the first half, connecting on 8-of-16 deep attempts in the opening frame.

With six minutes to play in the first and Harvard up 30-22, Cornell cut another chunk out of Harvard’s lead, thanks to a run led by Big Red sophomore Errick Peck. Peck sparked the run by corralling a missed three-point attempt from teammate Drew Ferry and powering to the basket for the easy bucket.