Sophomore Jonah Travis—who finished the game with seven points on three-of-eight shooting—led the way down low, collecting a game-high eight rebounds, four of which came on offense.

ROLE PLAY

Although sophomore wing Wesley Saunders leads the Crimson in scoring with 15.8 points per game, he stayed off the scoreboard until 4:58 to play in the opening frame and added just five points in the first half of Saturday’s contest.

But according to Harvard coach Tommy Amaker, Saunders’ focus heading into Saturday’s matchup was on the defensive end, where he was matched up with Crabbe, the Pac-12’s leading scorer.

“We told him it might not be a game where he was going to be a big scorer for us,” Amaker said. “His assignment was to be on Crabbe…. We told him we weren’t going to be concerned with the offensive production, but we needed to see the defensive efficiency and concentration on that end, and I thought he set the tone for us there.”

Despite the slow start, Saunders found his offensive stride in the second half, leading his team with 13 points in the frame to finish the game with 18—the second highest Crimson total. Crabbe ended the contest with a game-high 27 points, including 17 in the second half.

“I was pleased with [the team’s] effort defensively,” Amaker said. “We had some breakdowns, but that’s to be expected against a good offensive team like Cal.”

“Our plan was to try to make them take tough, contested shots,” freshman point guard Siyani Chambers added. “I think, over the course of the game, we were able to do that.”

Harvard’s second leading scorer, Chambers, was quiet from the field for the duration of the game. But although the rookie point guard shot just 2 of 15 including one of seven from three-point range, the freshman found other ways to contribute.

“Siyani’s penetration and his ability to find people was sensational,” Amaker said.

Chambers tallied a season- and game-high nine assists and two clutch free throws to increase Harvard’s slim lead to three points, 65-62, with 17 seconds remaining in the game. Two more free throws from Rivard pushed Harvard’s total to 67, where it stayed as the clock winded down.

—Staff writer Catherine E. Coppinger can be reached at ccoppinger@college.harvard.edu.