The Columbia women’s basketball team came back from last weekend’s road trip with one impressive win and one tough loss. Columbia will look to enhance its Ivy League record when it faces off against Penn and Princeton at home this weekend.
The Quakers come to New York with one of the most effective shooters in the league—Carrie Biemer. The senior forward is currently the leading scorer in the Ivy League, averaging 17.7 points per game. Head coach Paul Nixon is well aware of the threat that Biemer poses.
“She really had her way with us last season,” Nixon said. “If you don’t pay special attention to Carrie Biemer, she is likely to put 30-plus on you on the board.”
In last week’s matchups against Yale and Brown, Columbia focused on shutting down the opposing offense as a whole, but this weekend it will have to pay specific attention to Biemer to keep her from getting open looks from the field. The Quakers have other able shooters on the court, however, which could cause trouble for the Lions if they focus solely on Biemer.
“It makes it difficult in terms of the planning because you can’t simply run a double at her,” Nixon said. “The person you are doubling off of can probably shoot the ball as well.”
Columbia’s second matchup this weekend is against Princeton, which has improved greatly from last season. According to Nixon, Princeton’s recent improvement can be largely attributed to its freshman class.
“Princeton is now relying on some impact freshman,” said Nixon. “They just had their starting center, who is a freshman, named Ivy League Rookie of the Week.”
In addition to center Devona Allgood, top recruit Lauren Edwards has also been extremely beneficial to the team this season. Edwards is currently second on the team in scoring, averaging 10 points a game.
In addition, improved health has allowed Princeton head coach Courtney Banghart, now in her second year at the helm, to get more out of her team.
“This season they are at full strength,” said Nixon. “They have Addie Micir, who missed most of last season with a stress fracture. This season you are seeing more of the team that coach Banghart envisioned when she took over the program.”
Regardless of its opponent, Columbia’s chances at victory will depend on how well the team can execute the fundamentals that Nixon has stressed all season—rebounding, getting the offense out in transition, and trying to spread the ball around to find open looks. The Lions have dominated on the glass and are the Ivy League’s best rebounding team, thanks in large part to the effort of the nation’s leading rebounder, Judie Lomax. But the Lions are in the middle of the pack when it comes to assists and assist-to-turnover ratio, and will need to improve their passing to pick up wins against the Quakers and Tigers.
Columbia will face off against Penn on Friday and Princeton on Saturday, with both games beginning at 7 p.m. in Levien Gymnasium.
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