Men’s basketball (10-9, 2-4 Ivy League) split their two games this weekend, using a late push to hold off Penn (6-13, 2-4) 88-79 on Friday before falling to Princeton (15-6, 4-2) 69-49 on Saturday. Kino Lilly Jr. ’25 shined in the victory over Penn, scoring a career-high 34 points while making eight three-pointers.
On Friday, Lilly came out of the gate scorching, knocking down five threes before the ten-minute mark of the first half and leaving Penn scrambling to adjust. With 8:26 to play in the half, Lyndel Erold ’25 grabbed an offensive rebound between two defenders before kicking it out to Alexander Lesburt Jr. ’26, who knocked down the open three to give Brown a 14-point lead. Led by Lesburt and Lilly, Bruno shot an incredible 80% from three in the first 20 minutes.
In an email to The Herald, Lesburt wrote that the team’s outside shooting success stems from having complete confidence in each other.
“We do a phenomenal job letting each other know that, which leads to great success shooting the ball and success in other areas of the game,” he added.
With just under three minutes remaining until halftime, Penn fought back, cutting the Bears’ lead down to seven. But the Quakers had no answer for Lilly, who responded with back-to-back threes. His seven first-half threes tied a single-game career-high and sent Brown into halftime with a 48-38 advantage.
Penn came out of halftime with renewed intensity. Honing in on Lilly defensively, the Quakers opened with a 12-0 run that quickly erased Brown’s cushion. In need of a second offensive spark, the Bears turned to Lesburt, who scored 13 of his 19 points after halftime as they fought to regain control.
With Penn mounting a late-game push, Erold again came up big. With just under four minutes to play, he blocked a Penn layup attempt and grabbed the rebound. Pushing the ball up the floor, the Bears turned to Lilly, who sank his eighth three-pointer of the night and pushed the lead to six. After hitting clutch free throws, Brown was able to close out the Quakers on the road, 88-79.
“Against Penn, we did a great job executing our game plan, especially on the defensive end,” Erold wrote in an email to The Herald. “We were locked in, communicated well and controlled the boards, which helped us dictate the pace. Offensively, we moved the ball well and got high-quality shots.”
Spearheading Bruno’s efforts to control the boards, Erold grabbed 11 rebounds — five more than any other player.
Against Princeton, the Bears could not muster the same offensive firepower. Despite draining 15 three-pointers on Friday, they shot just 9-for-27 from beyond the arc on Saturday, including a combined seven threes from Lilly and Erold.
Overwhelming Bruno offensively, the Tigers jumped to a 14-point lead by halftime. Playing from behind, Brown did not quit, slicing the deficit to four points early in the second half and raising fans’ hopes for a weekend sweep.
But ultimately, the Bears were unable to complete the comeback, and Princeton controlled the final ten minutes, handing Brown a 69-49 loss.
“Against Princeton, we didn’t play to our standard for a full 40 minutes,” Erold explained. “They took advantage of our mistakes, and we know we have to be more disciplined and consistent, especially on defense.”
Lilly was a bright spot in the loss, tallying 18 points. He currently ranks second in the Ivy League in points per game at 19.1 as he continues a stellar senior season. Erold and Aaron Cooley ’25 were the only other Bears to finish in double-figures this game.
With “big man” Landon Lewis ’26 fighting through an injury — whose 13.5 points per game rank second on the team — Brown has started slowly in Ivy League play. However, the Bears remain only one game behind Dartmouth for a spot in Ivy Madness with eight games left.
“Right now, our mindset is simple: one game at a time,” Erold said. “We know every Ivy League game is a battle, and our focus is on controlling what we can get better at each day.”
Erold and Lesburt have been especially key in keeping the Bears in playoff contention, with both having career-best seasons.
Lesburt, who is currently shooting a blistering 41% from three-point range, explained that “really diving into the mental side of the game” in the offseason has been the key to his big breakout.
“For me, I think this season is just a good example of preparation meeting opportunity,” he wrote. “Earlier in my career at Brown, I didn’t play much, and even when I did, my role wasn’t what it is now. But I always kept my head down and worked, knowing that if I stayed ready, my time would eventually come.”
Lesburt emphasized the importance of preparation if the Bears are to right the ship after a tough start to conference play. “Our mindset right now is to win every day, not just game days,” he wrote. “We know what we want to accomplish and what we need to do to achieve that.”
Brown now shifts their focus to a Saturday afternoon date with Columbia in New York City.
Correction: A previous version of this story stated that these games were played at home. Both games were away. The Herald regrets the error.
Gus Bailey is a senior staff writer covering the sports beat. He is a sophomore studying applied math-economics. His interests include data analytics, marketing, social media and of course, sports.
