Yale earned the conference’s automatic bid when the Bulldogs forward Matt Knowling hit a short jumper at the buzzer, sending the Yale bench into a frenzy.
Brown came into the game with a 13-18 record and had a six-point lead with 2:56 left, and also held the same lead with 27 seconds remaining at 60-54.
But as Yale crawled back into the game, Brown missed three free throws down the stretch that could have put the game out of reach.
Yale’s John Poulakidas hit a three-pointer with 14 seconds left and fouled Malachi Ndur after the ball was inbounded. Ndur missed both free throws, setting up Yale for the game-winner.
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Yale inbounded the ball in the frontcourt, and Dylan Wolf caught it at the top of the key and then handed it off to Bez Mbeng. Mbeng drove down the lane and spotted Knowling to his left, and he hit the clincher at the buzzer.
Yale, the No. 2 seed in the conference tournament, will be dancing for the first time since 2020 and denied Brown, which was seeking its first tournament appearance since 1986.