The Columbia Lions and New Haven Chargers will play in a Friday matinee in college basketball. New Haven is in its first year of Division I competition and this is their first home game as a Division I program. They will try to get their first win at this level over a Columbia team that is playing its first game of the 2025-26 campaign. Here, I break down this non-conference matchup and give you my Columbia vs New Haven prediction.
Our Columbia vs New Haven Pick
- Pick: New Haven +5.5
- Confidence: ★★★☆☆
Game Snapshot
- Matchup: Columbia Lions @ New Haven Chargers
- Date & Time: Friday, November 7, 2025, 1:00 PM ET
- Venue: Jeffery P. Hazell Athletics Center, West Haven, Connecticut
- Broadcast: NEC Front Row
Key Storylines
- Columbia enters the season under first‑year head coach Kevin Hovde. They are looking for a fresh start after a 12‑15 overall record and a 1‑13 conference finish in the Ivy League last season. The Lions will try to get the Hovde era off to a good start.
- New Haven is making the jump into Division I and the NEC this season. The Chargers opened with a 79‑55 loss to the UConn Huskies. That wasn’t a bad showing considering they were 40-point underdogs against UConn. The Chargers will try to get their first Division I win against a much more beatable opponent.
- New Haven faces structural disadvantages as they transition to Division I basketball. They are still developing coaching continuity, roster depth, and experience at this level. But there are certainly worse opponents they could have faced in their home opener.
- KenPom is not high on New Haven this season. The Chargers are ranked in the bottom 10 in the overall KenPom rankings going into Friday’s game. They are expected to struggle on both ends of the floor this year and will try to prove the models wrong starting with this game.
Head‑to‑Head & Betting Trends
- These programs have never faced each other in college basketball and they have no head-to-head history to lean on.
- New Haven covered the spread in their Division I debut against UConn this week.
- New Haven went under the total in their season opener.
- Columbia went 3-9 on the road last season.
Columbia vs New Haven Model Projection
Score Projection: Columbia 78 – New Haven 75
Win Probability: Columbia 68%, New Haven 32%
Final Thoughts
I am very interested to see what kind of atmosphere there is at New Haven for this game. The Chargers don’t have a huge gym to fill, but those that do go to this game will likely have some energy given what this game means for New Haven’s athletic program. I also think that New Haven should cover the spread as an underdog again this year as it should be another long year for Columbia and they should be taken to the wire here.
