Both games against archrival Harvard last year went down to the wire. Yale’s first game against the Cantabs this year was anything but a nailbiter.

Yale (12-5, 2-1 Ivy) shot just 31.7 percent on the way to a 65-35 drubbing by no. 23 Harvard (15-2, 3-0 Ivy). Forward Greg Mangano ’12 said that the Elis were disappointed in their performance.

“It’s embarrassing,” Mangano said. “That’s the word for it… we got embarrassed on our home court.”

In the first half, the Crimson showed why they are the fourth-best in Division I in points allowed per game. They held the Bulldogs to 6-20 shooting for 19 points before the break.

Perhaps more telling were the shots that weren’t taken. Guard Austin Morgan ’13 was held to only one shot and no attempts from beyond the arc, where he is a .442 percent shooter.

The Bulldogs held the Crimson starters to only 15 points, but Harvard’s bench contributed 15 first-half points to open up the lead. Freshman forward Steve Moundou-Missi led the way with eight points and two steals.

“We talk about the two “B” words for us thus far that have been outstanding for us — our bench and our balance” Amaker said. “That’s the key for us if we can continue to get solid contributions from our younger players and have balance out on the floor.”

The Cantabs played stifling defense to keep the Bulldogs at bay, but Yale helped Harvard on several occasions.

Mangano said that the team was “lackadaisical” on offense. The Bulldogs committed 22 turnovers.

“There were several turnovers that I still don’t know how we lost the ball,” Jones said. “We just fumbled it out of our hands with no pressure at all.”

Despite Harvard’s high-energy defense, Mangano still scored 17 points, but he had a season-low four rebounds. No other Bulldog had more than four points, whereas six Cantabs scored five or more points. Guard Laurent Rivard led the Crimson with 18 points.

Tonight’s loss was Yale’s worst of the season.