The economy grew at the fastest rate since you’ve been in college last quarter. (NYT)

Sophomore basketball star Noruwa Agho is leading the NCAA in 3-point shooting percentage, and he’s from Jersey. (NJ.com)

The White House requests that the 9/11 trial be moved out of Manhattan. (Daily News)

Urban Outfitters is still not moving in on Broadway. (Spec)

UPDATE: Nick Sprayregen, last of the Manhattanville holdouts, has an Op-Ed in the Times. (NYT)

- Columbia University Athletics

Tough luck in Levien tonight, as Penn’s Kevin Egee sank a three with time expired to down Columbia 51-50. The game was close the entire way through, with both teams shooting less than 40%, and neither team had a larger lead than 8. After taking 8-point lead with 6 minutes to go, though, the Lions failed to capitalize, and missed crucial free throws down the stretch. Kevin Bulger was the only Columbia player in double figures, while Jason Miller  had 9 rebounds.

Columbia finishes the season 12-16 overall, and 7-7 in the Ivy League, tied for fourth. This was also the last game for Miller and fellow seniors K.J. Matsui, Dan Trepanier, and Joe Bova. They leave Columbia with a record of 53-59 overall, and 25-31 in the Ivy League.

- Via Columbia University Athletics

The weekend just gets worse for Columbia basketball, as men’s and women’s both lost their games against Dartmouth.

The men’s team once again was unable to hold off a second-half surge, being outscored 42-22 in the second half to fall 67-53. Despite the loss, guard K.J. Matsui and forward Jason Miller each had 19 points.

The women’s team led for much of the game, but were unable to hang on in the end, falling 63-61. Guard Danielle Brown led all scorers with 19 points.

On the bright side for Columbia athletics, the fencing team had a successful Intercollegiate Fencing Association Championships, winning several individual gold medals. Junior Jeff Spear won in men’s sabre, while sophomore Nicole Ross and first-year Neely Brandfield-Harvey won in women’s foil epee, respectively. The women’s team also had the most victories overall. 

- Columbia University Athletics

A tough night on Friday for Columbia’s basketball teams: the men’s team fell to Harvard 71-63, while the women lost as well to Harvard, 71-58.

The men’s team went into the night holding teams to a 41% field goal percentage, but Harvard shot 60% from the field in the second half, and at one point led by 15. 4 Harvard players were in double figures, including guard Jeremy Lin (14 points, 9 rebounds, and 5 assists). For Columbia, guard Nourwha Agho led the way with 13 points.

The women’s team lost in remarkably similar fashion, with Harvard again shooting 60% in the second half to pull away. Columbia’s forwards did their best to keep the Lions in the game, though, with Lauren Dwyer providing 18 points and Judie Lomax providing yet another double-double (15 points, 16 rebounds).

Both teams fall to 6-5 in the Ivy League, and take on their Dartmouth counterparts (the women at home, the men in Hanover) tonight at 7.

- JCD

- Columbia University Athletics

With a chance to make a real statement about contending for the Ivy League title, the men’s basketball team stumbled in New Haven earlier tonight, falling 57-49 to Yale.

Ahead by 9 early in the second half, the Lions immediately allowed a 20-4 run, and were unable to close the gap at the end. Junior guard Patrick Foley led the team in scoring for the second straight night, this time with 17 points.

The loss drops the Lions (6-4) into a tie for second with Dartmouth (whom the Lions play next Saturday) and Yale. Cornell’s win over Brown most likely puts the NCAA bid out of reach, though a stumbling Cornell could still lead to a joint league title (and an NIT berth). In addition to Dartmouth on the 28th, the Lions play Harvard next Friday, and then close out the season at home a week later against Penn and Princeton.

- Columbia University Athletics

Looking better each weekend, the Columbia men’s basketball team won its third game in a row (and sixth in seven), holding off Brown 70-57. Junior guard Pat Foley scored a career-high 21 points, and freshman guard Noruwa Agho added 17 more, including 14 in the second half, to lead the team to an important victory at the start of a four-game, two-weekend road trip.

Even more impressively, the Lions remain in strong contention for the Ivy League title. Tonight’s win, combined with Cornell’s loss at Yale, puts the Lions (6-3) only one game behind Cornell (7-2)  in the standings, with five games left in the season. Although Cornell holds the tiebreaker by virtue of having beaten Columbia twice to start the year, the Big Red have lost two of their last three away games, and could easily stumble down the stretch.  

For the Lions, tomorrow night’s game at Yale (5-4) will be critical; last time, at home, Columbia won 53-42 behind strong 2nd half defense and a double-double from forward Jason Miller. You can watch (yes, watch!) the action on the YES network tomorrow night at 7.

- JCD

Against the predictions of the preseason pundits, the men’s basketball team continues to rack up the Ivy League victories, defeating Harvard 60-59 on Kevin Bulger’s last-second jumper. 

The Lions again used a K.J. Matsui three-pointer (one of five in the first half) to take a one-point lead into the half. Harvard, though, led for almost the entire second half, until freshman guard Noruwa Agho hit two free throws to give Columbia a 58-57 lead with 50 seconds left. After Harvard retook the lead, Bulger missed an open jumper with nine seconds left, but Columbia got the ball back, and Bulger made up for the miss to give the Lions their 5th win in 6 conference games. The team now has a 5-3 Ivy record, good for 3rd in the conference.

In other news, meteorologists expressed fear over the changing temperatures in hell.

- JCD (photo by Columbia University Athletics)

The men’s basketball team won again last night, dominating Dartmouth in the second half on their way to a 65-52 victory. K.J. Matsui’s 3-pointer at the end of the first half gave the Lions a two-point lead heading into the half, and they opened the 2nd with a 17-2 run in the first seven minutes. Freshman guard Noruwa Agho had 20 points and 9 rebounds, while senior forward Jason Miller had 19 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 assists. 

The win took the men to a 4-3 Ivy League record. Tonight, Columbia takes on Harvard in the Levien Gym at 7 p.m. The game can also be heard on WKCR and on Sirius Satellite Radio. (Photo: Columbia University Athletics)

- JCD

Not content with two wins in a row, the Columbia men’s basketball team made it three in a row last night, winning 74-63 at Penn in Philadelphia. It was the first win at Penn in seven years, and the first double digit win at Penn in two decades.

Key contributions came from guards K.J. Matsui (three first-half threes) and Pat Foley (ten second-half points), but the star was forward Jason Miller, who had an absolutely brilliant game with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Much of the game was a see-saw battle, until the Lions defense stepped up about halfway through the 2nd half and gave the team a 8 point cushion. Down the stretch, the Lions also made 12 of their last 14 free throws to ensure the win.

In other Ivy League games, Dartmouth squeaked by Brown, 63-61 in overtime, Yale beat Harvard 87-66 in Cambridge, and, tonight, Columbia (now 3-2 in the league) heads to Princeton to take on a Tigers team that just beat Cornell 61-41. Tip-off is at 6 p.m., and can be heard on WKCR or 970AM.

The Columbia men’s basketball team defeated Yale 53-42 Friday night, ending the Bulldog’s five-game winning streak that had them tied for the lead in Ivy League play.

It wasn’t a graceful win, but after whittling away a 9-point halftime deficit, the Lions surged late in the second half on a 14-3 run to keep the Bulldogs at bay. Defense was the key factor in giving the Lions an edge, and combined with a strong presence at the free throw line, Columbia turned Yale’s 23% second-half field goal percentage into the opening it needed to take the win.

Senior Jason Miller led the Lions with 16 points and 11 rebounds, followed by junior Patrick Foley’s 12 points and freshman Noruwa Agho’s 10.

The Lions are now 1-2 in the Ivy League and host Brown tonight at 7:00 in Levien Gym.