“We lost [our] composure,” Amaker said. “You could tell they were ready to go. Unfortunately they knocked us on our heels and really had us in a hole early. We’ve got to get better.”

NORTH BY NORTHWES

One of the few bright spots on the evening for the Crimson was the play of Saunders, who tied his career-high with 18 points and snagged nine rebounds.

The sophomore finished 8-of-11 from the field and was one of the only players on the roster who was able to get to the basket against a rangy St. Joseph’s defense led by talented shot-blocker C.J. Akin.

“They’re very athletic and very quick and have great size and length, so it was very difficult to [penetrate],” Amaker said. “When we did have opportunities early, we didn’t finish.”

Saunders scored seven straight points for the Crimson near the end of the first half on a short jumper, a layup, and a nifty and-one, but by then Harvard was already down 18.

Nonetheless, it was the second time this season that Saunders scored 18 on the road in the face of a rowdy student section, as he did the same a week ago against the Minutemen. Saunders’ 14.3 points per game now leads the squad.

“Wesley made some plays for us,” Amaker said. “But it’s hard to judge a positive performance out of any one player from our team, given the way the team played and the margin of victory.”

—Staff writer Scott A. Sherman can be reached at ssherman13@college.harvard.edu.