The 2024 2024 Ivy League Tournament Championship Game will take place from Levien Gymnasium in New York City this afternoon as the No. 4 Brown Bears will battle the the No. 2 Yale Bulldogs. Tipoff is set for noon ET and the game will air on ESPN2.
The winner will receive the Ivy League’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Brown is seeking its first Ivy League title and trip to the Big Dance since 1986. Meanwhile, Yale is seeking out its second NCAA bid in three years. These two teams split both of their matchups in the regular season.
We’ll take a look at the two teams below and make a pick for the championship.
Brown: 13-17 (8-6 Ivy League), 193 NET, 193 KenPom
Brown is trying to complete a Cinderella run by booking reservations to the Big Dance, something that seemed inconceivable one month ago. Sitting at 6-17 on February 17, rattled off six straight victories to end the regular season and secure a spot in the Ivy League tourney. On Saturday, the Bears were able to pull off a massive upset over No. 1 Princeton in the semifinals to reach today’s title game.
Brown has been very efficient on offense in Ivy League play. The Bears have excelled at creating second-chance opportunities for themselves, boasting a league-best 32.8% offensive rebounding rate as well as just a 6.7% block rate on offense.
Yale: 21-9 (11-3 Ivy League), 83 NET, 81 KenPom
Yale is back in the Ivy League title game for a third year in a row and is aiming to cut the nets this time around after being sent home by Princeton last year. The Bulldogs were dominant throughout Ivy League action, but an overtime loss to Brown in the regular season finale prevented them from claiming at least a share of the regular season title. They were able to down No. 3 Cornell in Saturday’s semis to reach today’s title game.
Yale takes it time with a slow pace on offense and has done a good job at taking care of the ball with just a 14.2% turnover rate. Defensively, the Bulldogs have had the most efficient unit in the entire league as they have limited Ivy League foes to just 49.7% shooting in eFG%.
How to watch the Ivy Tournament Championship Game
When: Sunday, March 17
Where: Levien Gymnasium, New York City
TV: ESPN2
Livestream: WatchESPN.com, ESPN App
Odds for Ivy League Championship Game from DraftKings Sportsbook
Spread: Yale -7.5
Moneyline: Yale -325, Brown +260
Total:
The Pick: Yale -7.5
Yale is understandably the favorite here and after falling in last year’s title game, it will be motivated to finish the job this time around. In these situations, I’m inclined to lean towards the team that is stronger on the defensive end of the floor and I think the Bulldogs can dictate the terms of this contest. Give me Yale to cover and punch their ticket to the NCAA Tournament.