“Hoops Showdown: Men’s Basketball Faces Fairfield Before Battling Rutgers!”

NEW YORK — Columbia men’s basketball makes its return from break to host Fairfield on Saturday at 4 p.m. in Schiller Court at Levien Gymnasium, followed by a game at Rutgers on Monday at 5 p.m. in Jersey Mike’s Arena.

You can follow Saturday’s contest between the Lions (10-1) and Fairfield (5-7, 1-1) via live stats or watch it live on SNY or ESPN+. Lance Medow (play-by-play) and Barry Rohrssen (analyst) will provide commentary. Click here or call 888-LIONS-11 to secure tickets.

You can also follow Monday’s game against Rutgers (7-5, 1-1) through live stats or watch it live on the Big Ten Network. Ed Cohen (play-by-play) and Austin Johnson (analyst) will provide commentary.

Opening Tip-Off

Columbia resumes competition after a 19-day hiatus.

The Lions began the season 8-0, marking the first time since the Columbia team of 1969-70 that they started a season with 10 successive victories, concluding with a 20-5 record (11-3). This eight-game winning streak is the first for Columbia since February 1982.

Columbia returns over 78 percent of its scoring output for the second consecutive season. The team also retains at least 79 percent of its rebounds, assists, and steals from 2023-24. The Lions currently hold the second-highest KenPom continuity rating in the nation (70.9), with the average continuity mark in the country standing at 34.2.

On Saturday, Columbia aims for its eighth straight home victory to initiate a season for the first time since 1981-82.

News/Notes

Last Time Out

Columbia exhibited dominance during a 92-46 win over Sarah Lawrence on December 9 at Schiller Court in Levien Gymnasium.

Kenny Noland achieved a game-high of 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting. Josiah Cunningham contributed 12 points and three steals. Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa and Blair Thompson rounded off the double-digit scorers, with each obtaining 10 points. Zine Eddine Bedri achieved a season-high nine rebounds along with five assists, tying his career-high.

In The Polls

Columbia has received votes in the AP Top 25 Poll on three occasions this season. The Lions are positioned at No. 10 in the most recent T3Bracketology Poll and at No. 16 in the latest collegeinsider.com poll.

Rubio De La Rosa Dominance

Senior guard Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa is having a phenomenal start to the season, averaging 18.9 points per game (43rd in the nation) through the first 11 games of 2024-25. He boasts a shooting percentage of 53.7 from the field and 46.6 percent from beyond the arc, ranking him 21st in the nation.

Rubio De La Rosa was included in the Lou Henson Award Early-Season Watch List on November 19 and was also named to the initial Bracketeer.Org Non-Power Conference All-American Watch List on October 31. He exhibited a strong all-around performance over 25 appearances (24 starts) in 2023-24 and earned All-Ivy League Honorable Mention. Rubio De La Rosa has consistently been the team’s top scorer this season, averaging 14.4 points per game for the second consecutive season and leading Columbia in minutes per game (30.8), field goals made (116), three-pointers made (57), and steals (41). He ranked within the top ten among Ivy League players in scoring, three-point percentage, three-pointers per game, and steals. The guard has scored in double figures in 20 games and carries a four-game streak of double-digit scoring into the 2024-25 season.

In February, Rubio De La Rosa became the 30th Lion in program history to surpass 1,000 points, being the 16th to achieve this in his first three seasons.

Historic Performance by G

On November 23 against Stony Brook, Rubio De La Rosa scored a career-best 37 points and climbed to 11th place on Columbia’s all-time scoring leaderboard. He set a Levien Gym record and achieved a personal best with nine three-pointers made. Additionally, he matched the Levien Gym record for points scored by a Lion, equalling the 37-point performances of Mike Smith, Buck Jenkins, and C.J. Thompkins. Rubio De La Rosa shot 14-18 (.778) from inside the arc and 9-13 (.692) from long range. He accounted for 24 of the Lions’ 38 points in the first half.

Rubio De La Rosa was the first Lion to reach 37 points in a game since Mike Smith on February 22, 2020, against Yale.

Noticing Noland

Junior guard Kenny Noland has been a significant contributor to Columbia’s offense, averaging 12.5 points and playing 27.2 minutes per game. His 38 assists lead the team and are ranked seventh in the Ivy League.

Spreading The Wealth

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The Lions are compiling impressive statistics this season. Junior Blair Thompson is at the forefront of the squad and ranks among the top ten in the Ivy League for rebounds per game (6.6). The native of New York City has accumulated 28 offensive rebounds, placing him fourth in the conference. Thompson achieved his first career double-double during the victory over Delaware State on Nov. 9, contributing 12 points along with a personal-best 11 rebounds.

First-year player Mason Ritter is leading the team with seven blocks while only playing 10.8 minutes per matchup this season. Junior Avery Brown is providing valuable support by averaging nine points each game, including double-digit scoring in four separate outings. He ranks second on the squad for assists with a total of 35.

Record Book Monitor

– Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa (1,282 points) is in 10th position on Columbia’s historic scoring chart. He has recently surpassed Heyward Dotson ’70CC and is just 16 points shy of tying John Baumann ’08CC for ninth place.

– Rubio De La Rosa ranks second in the program’s all-time history for three-pointers made (209), with Maodo Lo (277) leading the way in that category for the Lions.

– In terms of attempts, Rubio De La Rosa is also second all-time in the program’s history for three-pointers taken (554), with Maodo Lo (692) holding the overall record.

– With a free throw percentage of .840, Rubio De La Rosa is third in the program’s all-time rankings, trailing behind Brian Barbour (.897) and Chet Forte (.841).

– He stands fourth all-time in program history with 132 steals, only 24 steals away from equaling Sean Couch for third place.

Analyzing the Numbers

Columbia holds a KenPom rating of 148. The Lions’ NET ranking stands at 98, the highest among Ivy League teams.

Series History – Fairfield

Columbia and the Stags have clashed only once before, on Nov. 27, 2015 at Fairfield, where the Stags secured an 82-81 victory at home.

Series History – Rutgers

Columbia has a historical record of 26-23 against Rutgers. The latest encounter between the two teams was tijdens the opening game of the 2022-23 season in Piscataway.

Columbia Versus Big Ten Rivals

The Lions hold an all-time record of 32-42 against teams that are currently part of the Big Ten. Rutgers is their most frequent opponent, and the latest triumph over a Big Ten adversary was an 85-75 victory in Piscataway. The Lions’ last win against a traditional Big Ten competitor occurred on December 3, 1969, against Northwestern, with a score of 83-68.

Fast Break Updates

– The 26-point triumph on Nov. 25 against New Hampshire (83-57) marked the largest victory margin over a D1 opponent at Levien Gymnasium since December 7, 2018, against Bryant (90-68 win). The Lions have successfully achieved four double-digit home victories this season.

– Columbia has received votes in the AP Top 25 Poll on three occasions this season.

– This is likely the first instance of Columbia receiving an AP Top 25 vote since 1970.

– On Nov. 25, Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa was honored as Ivy League Player of the Week, ESPN Dick Vitale National Player of the Week, and CollegeInsider.com Lou Henson National Player of the Week. The following day, he was recognized as Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week.

– Jim Engles received the title of National Coach of the Week from the esteemed ESPN analyst Dick Vitale on Nov. 11.

– On Nov. 11, Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa became the first Lion ever named Lou Henson National Player of the Week. Additionally, he was awarded Ivy League Player of the Week and Mid-Major Madness Men’s Player of the Week.

– Columbia recorded the third-largest KenPom rating increase in the nation during the initial week of the season (209 to 148 – +61).

-This figure represents their highest KenPom rating since Nov. 16, 2019 (147).

Upcoming

Columbia is preparing for Ivy League competition as the new year approaches. The Lions will face off against Cornell on Jan. 11 at 2 p.m.

Preseason Ivy League Forecast

In the preseason Ivy League prediction conducted by select members of the media, the Lions were forecasted to place fifth. This is the highest predicted finish for the Lions since 2017 when they were also expected to finish fifth. For the past three seasons, Columbia had been projected to finish eighth.

Stay Updated on The Lions

For the latest updates on Columbia men’s basketball, follow @CULionsMBB on X, Instagram or check the web at GoColumbiaLions.com.