1985–86 Ivy League men's basketball standings
| Conf. | | | Overall |
| Team | W | | L | | PCT | | | W | | L | | PCT |
| Brown | 10 | – | 4 | | .714 | | | 16 | – | 11
| | .593 |
| Penn | 9 | – | 5 | | .643 | | | 15 | – | 11
| | .577 |
| Cornell | 9 | – | 5 | | .643 | | | 14 | – | 12
| | .538 |
| Princeton | 7 | – | 7 | | .500 | | | 13 | – | 13
| | .500 |
| Yale | 7 | – | 7 | | .500 | | | 13 | – | 13
| | .500 |
| Columbia | 6 | – | 8 | | .429 | | | 12 | – | 14
| | .462 |
| Dartmouth | 6 | – | 8 | | .429 | | | 11 | – | 15
| | .423 |
| Harvard | 2 | – | 12 | | .143 | | | 6 | – | 20
| | .231 |
|
| Rankings from AP Poll |
The 1985–86 Yale Bulldogs men's basketball team represented the Yale University during the 1985–86 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bulldogs, led by 4th year head coach Tom Brennan, played their home games at John J. Lee Amphitheater of the Payne Whitney Gymnasium and were members of the Ivy League. They finished the season 13–13, 7–7 in Ivy League play to finish in fifth place.