Princeton continues winning streak, dominates Yale and Brown

This past week in Ivy League women’s basketball, many early season questions were answered. Princeton (15-2, 3-0 Ivy) showed that its rampage through its nonconference schedule was no fluke, demolishing Yale and Brown 69-48 and 75-44 respectively. Those matchups featured a balanced Princeton attack with four players reaching double-figures in both games.

Freshman Niveen Rasheed has paced the Tigers all season, averaging 15.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game, and this team currently stands clear first in the Ivy League with a 3-0 record.

The team is currently riding a ten-game winning streak and, perhaps even more impressively, has won every game by double digits. For their strong start, the Tigers recently even garnered votes in the Associated Press poll. The next two weeks will determine if any team in the Ivy League can catch Princeton when the Tigers embark on the difficult part of its schedule, facing a doubleheader against perennial powerhouses Harvard and Dartmouth before traveling to Manhattan to face Columbia.

Penn’s performance (1-16, 0-3 Ivy) has been the exact opposite of Princeton’s thus far. The Quakers are the only Ancient Eight team not averaging over 50 points a game and they have lost by an average of 16 points a game. This weekend, they fared little better, losing at home to Brown 61-47 and to Yale 58-51.

As has been the case all season, the Quakers had a hard time putting points on the board. In the Yale matchup, Penn was down by 10 at the half. However, behind senior guard Sarah Bucar, Penn climbed to within four points with 6:13 remaining in the game. This was still not enough, and the Bulldogs pulled away to achieve their win. Guard Kim Adams led the Quakers with 16 points in a losing effort.

Up against the Brown Bears, the Quakers did even worse, failing to have a single player score more than 10 points and shooting 29 percent for the game. Defensively, Penn couldn’t stop Brown’s Hannah Passafuime, who scored 21 points in 23 minutes off the bench. It’s not looking any better for the Quakers next week as they face Dartmouth—the reigning Ivy League champions—and then Harvard, the champions the year before.

Brown (5-13, 2-2 Ivy) has already surpassed last season’s conference win total and has been better than expected this season. The team was thrashed against Princeton, failing to stop the Tigers’ scorers and failing to get a single player of its own into double digits. The next game, though, the Bears rebounded to defeat the Quakers. Next up for Brown are Columbia and Cornell— the Bears hope to steal a win when they visit.

Dartmouth (7-10, 2-1 Ivy) followed its pattern of close wins all season last Friday, defeating Cornell 55-53. Big Green forward Margaret Smith hit two free throws at the end of the game to secure the win. That dramatic finish versus the Big Red marked the third consecutive game the Big Green won by two points or less.

The day after had little dramatics, though, as Dartmouth was walloped by Columbia 72-59. Reigning Player of the Year Brittney Smith got into early foul trouble and that was all the Lions needed to surge ahead in the first half. Columbia forward Judie Lomax posted game-highs of 26 points and 16 rebounds. The Big Green is currently tied for third in the Ivy League.

The other team in third place is Harvard (11-6, 2-1 Ivy). The Crimson had a good weekend, defeating the Columbia Lions 73-55 and the Cornell Big Red 69-53. Versus Columbia, Harvard’s Emma Markley dominated the game, scoring 19 points, securing eight rebounds, and patrolling the paint with seven blocks. Christine Matera also played well, scoring 14 points and shooting a perfect 4-4 from 3-point range.

The game against Cornell proved another strong showing by Harvard, out-rebounding the Big Red by 12 and getting four players into doubledigits. These victories by the Crimson allowed Markley, a forward, to win the Player of the Week award.

The Crimson looks to improve its record when it plays games at Penn and Princeton this week.

Yale (7-11, 2-2) defeated Penn 58-51 on Friday before getting flattened by Princeton 69-48. Against Penn, guard Megan Vasquez scored 16 points and had 4 assists. Yoyo Greenfield had 11 points the next day against the Princeton Tigers.

Cornell (5-12, 0-4 Ivy) has struggled of late and is currently on a nine-game losing streak. It had a solid showing against Dartmouth, losing 55-53. The next day it started out well versus Harvard but faltered late in the game and lost 69-53. One bright spot for the Big Red has been the play of freshman forward Clare Fitzpatrick, who scored 25 combined points in both games.

Lastly, Columbia (12-6, 3-1 Ivy) had a mixed showing the past weekend. It started slow in the first half versus Harvard, but the next day used the first half to spring the team to a win over Dartmouth. Columbia currently stands clear second in the Ivy League and travels next week to Brown and Yale.