Harvard Falls to Boston College Despite Strong Showing from Barbour

In the final leg of a grueling five-game road stretch, Harvard men’s basketball (4-4, 0-0 Ivy) came up short against crosstown foe Boston College (4-4, 0-0 ACC), falling 73-60 on Wednesday night at Conte Forum. Despite staying within striking distance for most of the contest, the Crimson were undone by a decisive second-half run from the Eagles that turned a two-point game into a double-digit deficit.

Sophomore guard Tey Barbour continued his breakout stretch and matched a career high with 15 points while grabbing a career-best nine rebounds, both game highs. The 6’3” guard was active on both ends, hitting 5-of-9 from the field and 2-of-5 from deep, while his physical rebounding set the tone early.

“We really fought and competed hard,” said head coach Tommy Amaker after the game. “Their athleticism and length really affected us and bothered us in stretches. Obviously, we cut the lead to two, and then they were able to go on a big run — a 22-4 run that kind of doomed us there. Really pleased with the effort of our kids with certain players like Robert and Tey getting nine rebounds apiece in a game like this really is a positive sign for us going forward.”

The Crimson opened strong and traded buckets with Boston College in the early minutes. Junior forward Thomas Batties II scored Harvard’s first four points. A confident corner three by Barbour kept it close at 10-9. Senior guard Chandler Piggé, coming off a clutch performance against Marist, sparked a short Crimson run midway through the half. Piggé nailed a pair of inside finishes that cut the deficit to 20-18.

But an 11-0 Eagles stretch widened the margin and forced Harvard to play from behind. Late threes from Batties and Barbour trimmed the gap to 34-28 before Boston College took a 38-30 edge into the break.

Coming out of halftime, Harvard looked ready to turn the corner. The Crimson outscored the Eagles 14-8 in the first five minutes, slicing the lead to 46-44 after a three-point play from Barbour and a steal-and-score from sophomore Robert Hinton. Batties drilled his third triple of the night to punctuate the surge, and Harvard’s bench roared as the two-point game hinted at a momentum shift.

But that energy was short-lived. Boston College responded with a 22-4 run over the next eight minutes, fueled by transition scoring and second-chance points that highlighted their size advantage inside. Harvard’s shots went cold, and the Eagles’ length on the perimeter disrupted passing lanes.

“Their athleticism and length really affected us,” Amaker said. “We had stretches where we defended well, but they made us pay on the boards and in transition.”

Even with the game slipping away, Harvard’s effort didn’t waver. Piggé hit a midrange jumper to halt the Eagles’ surge, and Hinton followed with a fast-break dunk off a steal to pull within 14. In the closing minute, first-year guard Frankie Mannino and junior Xavier Nesbitt added late buckets to improve the final score.

Four Crimson players finished in double figures. Barbour led the way with 15 points and nine boards, while Batties contributed 13 points on efficient 4-of-7 shooting, including 3-of-4 from beyond the arc. Hinton added 12 points, nine rebounds, and three steals, continuing his strong all-around play, and Piggé chipped in 12 points and three assists. Sophomore Ben Eisendrath also dished out a game-high four assists, helping orchestrate the offense against BC’s pressure.

Despite the loss, Harvard found small victories within the details. The Crimson held advantages in fast-break points (8–3) and second-chance points (8–5), while continuing to show resilience against high-major opponents. For Barbour, who has now scored in double figures in seven of eight games this season, the performance marked another step in his growing confidence as a two-way leader.

The setback concludes Harvard’s early-season road tour, which featured four matchups against Massachusetts-based teams. The Crimson now return home to Lavietes Pavilion on Saturday at 2 p.m against Bryant looking to regroup after a long November stretch away from Cambridge. With balanced scoring, rebounding from the backcourt, and emerging depth, the group will aim to turn Wednesday’s lessons into progress as Ivy play approaches.