National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Harvard 68, New Mexico 62
When: 9:50 PM ET, Thursday, March 21, 2013
Where: EnergySolutions Arena, Salt Lake City, Utah
Officials: # Sean Casady, # Jeb Hartness, # Tony Padilla
Attendance: 14345

Harvard 68, New Mexico 62: Wesley Saunders scored 18 points and the 14th-seeded Crimson shocked the third-seeded Lobos in an NCAA Tournament second-round game in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Laurent Rivard made five 3-pointers and scored 17 points, Christian Webster finished with 11 points and Kenyatta Smith had 10 points and seven rebounds in leading Harvard (20-9) to its first NCAA Tournament win in program history. The Crimson advanced to play sixth-seeded Arizona on Saturday.

Alex Kirk, a 7-foot sophomore center for New Mexico, used his size advantage to record 22 points and 12 rebounds and 6-9 junior forward Cameron Bairstow finished with 15 points and nine rebounds for New Mexico (29-6), which is still seeking its first Sweet Sixteen berth.

Rivard’s fifth 3-pointer gave Harvard a 55-53 lead with 6:16 remaining and the Crimson tacked on four more points to go ahead by six. The Lobos got back within four on two occasions, but Harvard shot 5-for-8 from the free throw line in the final 56 seconds to hold on.

New Mexico got off to a rough start, missing 11 of its first 12 field-goal attempts. The Lobos came back to tie the score twice in the first half, but Harvard ultimately took a 31-27 lead into the break.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Harvard is the 17th No. 14 seed to knock off the No. 3 seed, the last was Ohio’s win against Georgetown in 2010. New Mexico coach Steve Alford was a guard on the 1986 Indiana team that was upset by 14th-seeded Cleveland State in the opening round. … Rivard made his first 3-point attempt of the game to give him 75 on the season and break the program record set by Kevin Rogus in 2003-04. … Harvard improved to 15-1 this season when leading at halftime.
Top Game Performances
 
Harvard   New Mexico
Wesley Saunders 18 Scoring Alex Kirk 22
Siyani Chambers 7 Assists Chad Adams 2
Kenyatta Smith 7 Rebounds Alex Kirk 12
Wesley Saunders 8 Free Throws Made Cameron Bairstow 7
Laurent Rivard 2 Steals Jamal Fenton 3
Kenyatta Smith 2 Blocks Alex Kirk 1
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Harvard 68 52.4 8-18 16-20 11 25 3 3 13
New Mexico 62 37.5 3-14 17-24 8 31 1 12 11