On Tuesday, December 7, WPI's Division III Men's Basketball team will face Division I Harvard. The game will be played at Harvard's historic Lavietes Pavilion at 7:00 p.m. The last Men's basketball game played by WPI and Harvard was in 1989.
Both teams enter Tuesday's matchup with strong records this season. WPI has won three straight games and sports a 5-1 record. The Engineers were also just ranked in the Top 25 of D3hoops.com. Harvard dropped a tough 66-63 decision on the road this past Saturday at Michigan. All told, the Crimson are 5-2 this season, boasting wins over Colorado and Holy Cross.
"In this era it is rare for a Division III program to play a Division I program and we welcome the challenge," said WPI Men's Basketball Coach Christopher J. Bartley. "Harvard is one of the top Ivy League teams and has proven this season they can compete with teams from the top conferences in the country. At WPI we are proud of the program we have built the past decade and we view this game as a reward for the hard work of our past and present student-athletes."
The last time WPI played a Division I opponent was in 2002 versus Dartmouth. All told, Harvard and WPI have met 22 times, with Harvard enjoying a 16-6 edge in the series. Harvard has won the last six meetings between the two programs, with WPI claiming three wins in 1944 and 1945 and three additional victories in 1921 and 1922.
Harvard last traveled to Worcester to face the Engineers in 1966, their last full season in Alumni Gym. Track and Field coach Merl Norcross filled in that day on the WPI bench as head coach and fellow Hall of Famer Charles McNulty was ill. WPI invites Harvard to come to Worcester in the near future and play in its "new" Harrington Auditorium.
