Harvard Men’s Basketball Falls to George Washington 85-57

Harvard predates George Washington University’s namesake by nearly a century.

The head start didn’t account for much on Friday night. Though the Crimson men’s basketball team (2-2) led by seven points through the first few minutes, back-to-back runs fueled an advantage in the opposite direction by halftime, and the Revolutionaries (4-0) never looked back for an 85-57 victory.

Harvard made five of its 11 three-pointers in the first half, but went on to miss all but one of its 15 attempts in the second half — while the hosts got hot, shooting five of 11 from beyond the arc in the final 20 minutes.

Its dominance was also exemplified in the paint, outrebounding the Crimson 34-23, including 24-10 on defensive rebounds. Tight defense kept Harvard searching for perimeter options, while the Revolutionaries used their physicality to dominate the inside with a 10-point advantage in both points in the paint and free throws.

Four George Washington players finished the game in the double digits — led by 16 points apiece from senior guard Jean Arangure and sophomore guard and Pittsburgh transfer Omari Witherspoon — while its bench outscored the Crimson 28-16.

The only player to score more than 10 points for Harvard was junior guard Robert Hinton, who finished with 19 points on seven-for-13 shooting, two three-pointers, and two steals. Captain Thomas Batties II and freshman guard Jason Singleton followed with 10 and nine points, respectively.

The Crimson remains winless against Division I opponents so far this season, after erasing a 17-point halftime deficit but falling in overtime against Northeastern on Tuesday. Harvard kicked off its season with two commanding wins against Division III opponents: MIT and the University of Chicago.

Hinton drew a foul on his opening three-point attempt, converting two of three for the Crimson’s first points of the game. Utilizing back-to-back offensive turnovers by George Washington, patient passing from the Crimson set up a wide-open junior guard Ben Eisendrath to splash a three-pointer.

After the teams exchanged a pair of threes, Hinton scored his fourth point of the half — extending Harvard’s lead to five. A third turnover by the Revolutionaries provided a lane for Batties to drive through the paint for a layup.

George Washington’s physicality in the paint helped spark an 8-2 run. The Revolutionaries dominated inside all night, out-scoring the Crimson 40-30 in the paint and grabbing 11 more boards.

Defensively, George Washington found success defending the interior, finishing the half with four blocks. Three of those came from senior forward Dylan James, who transferred from the University of Georgia. The Crimson, meanwhile, finished the half with zero.

Both sides went scoreless over the following two minutes, as Harvard missed shots and struggled to generate separation before the shot clock expired. Singleton — who scored a career-high 16 points against Northeastern on Tuesday — and George Washington exchanged layups, but a three-point play allowed the hosts to tie it at 16-16.

Nearly a third of the Revolutionaries’ points in the first 10 minutes came from free throws, and two additional free throws enabled them to take their first lead at 20-19.

Continuing its 10-1 run, George Washington scored its second three-pointer, then won a steal which led to another and-one play for a six-point advantage. After a stretch of Crimson misses, junior guard Tey Barbour reignited his team’s cannon, firing a catch-and-shoot release — Harvard’s first point from the field in nearly four minutes.

The Crimson bounced back to regain some momentum over the remainder of the half, ultimately entering the locker room down 40-33

Both teams shot moderately well by the half, going 13-for-23 and 12-for-27 from the field respectively — including the Crimson’s shooting five-for-11 from three-pointers. However, the Revolutionaries gained the advantage from the charity stripe, where they made 11 of their 12 attempts, as opposed to Harvard’s four of seven.

Fortunately for the Crimson, George Washington then misfired with consecutive turnovers — allowing Hinton to intercept an inbound pass and drive coast-to-coast unguarded for a dunk.

Eisendrath’s jumper was sandwiched by three consecutive triples from the hosts, securing the Revolutionaries’ largest lead of the game at 62-43.

Though George Washington temporarily eclipsed a 20-point advantage, Singleton’s four points and assist to fellow freshman forward Julian Adigun kept the visitor’s hopes alive. Two of Harvard’s leading scorers, Singleton and Batties, were limited with four and three fouls, respectively, while Hinton recorded a three — the Crimson’s first of the half.

Despite the effort, the deficit progressed as junior Andrija Vukovic tallied two free throws and an and-one to tack on to the Revolutionaries’ 23-point lead. Harvard scored just three points in the final five minutes as part of its continued offensive struggles, and George Washington’s fifth three-pointer of the half was the dagger en route to its 85-57 victory.

After falling in its first two matches against Division I opponents, the Crimson will close out its four-game road trip with a match at American University (1-2) on Sunday at 1 p.m. EST.

Ahead of their home opener, the Eagles will certainly hope to continue their winning momentum after a buzzer-beater secured their 66-64 victory over Drexel on Wednesday. Harvard, meanwhile, will strive to secure its first Division I win of its 2026-27 campaign.

—Staff writer Uy B. Pham can be reached at [email protected] or on Signal at ubp.88. Follow him on X @uybpham.