Harvard’s first field goal—a Siyani Chambers three-pointer—did not come until 7:44 had elapsed, and by then, the Crimson was already down 17-2.

Amaker said the ice cold beginning—something Harvard had endured against Connecticut and Memphis earlier this season—was his worst nightmare.

“You’ve probably got to get off to a good start against a team like that, and we had our chances,” Amaker said. “We had some open opportunities early, and once we missed some, we kind of got our heads down, and they took advantage of it.”

Arizona responded to Chambers’ three by going on another 11-4 spurt to stretch its lead to 21 and in essence put the game away before the break, as Harvard had just three field goals in the game’s first 15 minutes.

“The shots we missed at the beginning were open,” co-captain Christian Webster said. “We should have made them. If we [had], maybe the game would have been different. But the [Wildcats’] length was a problem.”

THE LYON KING

Arizona was sparked by the superb performance of Lyons, who tied a career-high with 27 points on 12-of-17 shooting.

“Mark is filled with confidence,” Miller said. “When he gets his confidence going, it’s contagious on our entire team.”

Facing the potential final game of his career, the senior point guard put his team on his back, weaving through the Harvard defense and getting to the basket with ease throughout the night.

“[He] attacked the bigs, attacked the ball screens, trying to get to the paint,” Chambers said. “He did what most great guards do—tried to make plays for himself, get two people to guard him, and make plays for his teammates. That’s what he did that I thought was very, very effective.”

That was something Lyons also did in his first tournament game this year, against No. 11 Belmont, when he poured in 23 points.

In so doing, Lyons earned another berth to the Sweet Sixteen, a point in the tournament that he had previously reached three times with Xavier, for whom he played before transferring to Arizona before this season.

“Today my teammates got me great shots,” Lyon said. “It’s great to be back in the Sweet Sixteen and trying to advance.”

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