The game was close throughout a back-and-forth first half that was tightly officiated and defensively dominated.

But the Crimson was able to open up a lead as the period wound down. After a Fran Dougherty layup put the Quakers ahead, 17-14, Harvard responded with an 11-0 run highlighted by a Moundou-Missi baseline jumper, a Miller transition three, and a long Casey jumper from the top of the key.

“We’ve talked a lot this season of our bench and our balance being the keys for our ball club,” Amaker said. “[Miller and Moundou-Missi] coming off the bench gave us incredible production.”

Meanwhile, Rosen missed two threes at the other end—he would finish 6-for-21 from the floor on the night—and the Harvard run was not halted until a Marin Kukoc three cut the Penn deficit to 25-20 with 1:52 to go.

Bernardini, the senior who came in averaging over 15 points per game, did not score in the first half and finished with just two points on 0-of-5 shooting from the field. Meanwhile, Wright, Rivard, and Curry—three of Harvard’s top four scorers—were a combined 1 of 15.

“It was one of those games where the shooting wasn’t there for either team,” Amaker said.

Harvard’s win, combined with Yale’s loss to Cornell, gives the Crimson a two-game cushion in its quest for its first outright Ivy championship in team history.

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