NEW YORK (Interstat) — Kenny Noland scored 23 points and Connor Igoe recorded a double-double as Columbia pulled away in the second half to defeat Brown 80-62 in an Ivy League men’s basketball game Friday night at Levien Gymnasium.

A tightly contested first half gave way to a dominant Columbia performance after halftime. The Lions, who led by just a single point at the break, outscored the Bears 49-30 over the final 20 minutes, using a decisive run fueled by three-point shooting and defensive pressure to secure the victory before a crowd of 1,504.

The most important part of the game was Columbia’s explosive start to the second half, which turned a narrow 31-30 halftime lead into a commanding advantage. The Lions opened the period on a 14-5 surge, capped by a three-pointer from Miles Franklin at the 18:18 mark that pushed their lead to 38-35. Brown never recovered, as Columbia’s offensive efficiency, which registered a rating of 120.0 points per 100 possessions, overwhelmed the Bears’ struggling attack.

Noland, a 6-foot-4 guard from Apex, North Carolina, led all scorers and added six assists in 39 minutes of action. Igoe, a 6-foot-7 forward from Brooklyn, New York, was instrumental with 15 points and 10 assists. Blair Thompson, a New York native, contributed 17 points for the Lions, who improved to 16-10 overall.

Brown, which fell to 8-16, was led by Landon Lewis with 18 points. Luke Paragon added 14 points and Isaiah Langham finished with 12. The Bears were hampered by poor shooting, particularly from beyond the arc where they made just 2 of 14 attempts. Their 16 turnovers also proved costly against a Columbia defense that recorded 10 steals.

The game was a reversal of fortune from the teams’ previous meeting on Jan. 17, when Brown won an overtime thriller 86-80 in Providence. This time, Columbia controlled the tempo and the glass, outrebounding Brown 13-10 on the offensive end and converting those into second-chance opportunities.

The Lions set the tone early in the second half. After a Brown turnover, Noland found Franklin for a three-pointer. Following a missed layup by the Bears, Noland assisted on another three, this time by Hampton Sanders, to extend the lead to 46-38. Columbia’s ball movement was exceptional, with Igoe at the center of it, and the Lions finished with 10 assists on 30 made field goals.

Brown’s offense, which managed an offensive rating of just 89.3, could not find a consistent rhythm. The Bears shot 41.5 percent from the floor overall but were repeatedly stymied by Columbia’s defensive adjustments. A Langham dunk with 15:17 left brought Brown within 38-40, but the Lions responded with a 13-3 run over the next four minutes, featuring three-pointers from Thompson and Noland, to take a 53-41 lead and effectively put the game out of reach.

Columbia continued to apply pressure, building its lead to as many as 21 points in the final minutes. The Lions shot 11 for 26 from three-point range, a stark contrast to Brown’s icy performance from deep.

The first half was a back-and-forth affair featuring six lead changes. Brown opened the scoring with a Paragon three-pointer on the game’s first possession and held an early lead. Columbia took its first advantage at 17-16 on a Leland Coleman jumper midway through the period. The Bears’ last lead came at 28-26 after a pair of Landon Lewis free throws, but Columbia closed the half on a 5-2 spurt, including a Connor Igoe three-pointer at the buzzer, to take a 31-30 edge into the locker room.

With the win, Columbia maintains its position in the upper tier of the Ivy League standings. Brown will look to regroup quickly as it continues its conference schedule.