Hometown crowd to see out basketball seniors

The women’s basketball team will hit the floor for its final doubleheader this season when it takes on Yale (12-14, 7-5 Ivy) and Brown (7-19, 4-8 Ivy) this weekend.

Columbia’s Friday game against Yale might be the Lions’ most important game of the season. The two teams are tied for third in the Ivy League and a win for either school would give its team the edge.

The last time the two teams played, Yale stormed ahead early, leading by as many as 18 in the second half. From there, Columbia locked down defensively and trimmed the lead down to one with just under two minutes remaining. However, the furious second—half comeback wasn’t enough, and the Bulldogs eventually prevailed 81-74.

Those 81 points were the most the usually tenacious Light Blue defense had allowed on an Ivy opponent since 2007. One reason for the defense’s poor performance can be attributed to guard—forward Kathleen Barry’s injury, which kept her out of the game.

“She’s definitely one of our two best defenders,” head coach Paul Nixon said. “The player that she’s guarding typically does not have a great offensive night.”

Barry’s defense could be especially helpful in tonight’s game because of her presence on the perimeter. In the two teams’ last meeting, Yale was 10 for 15 from 3-point range. Yale’s two guards, freshman Megan Vasquez and junior Yoyo Greenfield, had 19 and 20 points, respectively. With Barry likely to be assigned to one of those guards, Columbia’s defense may be strong enough to prevail this time.

Barry’s return will also help the Light Blue on the boards. She is the team’s second leading rebounder, and averages 5.4 boards per game. In the Yale game, Columbia was outrebounded 38-34 against Yale, and Judie Lomax, the nation’s leading rebounder, was held to just eight rebounds. This time, Barry’s contributions in that area may be enough to win the rebounding battle.

Still, even without Barry in the February loss, Columbia almost completed the comeback.

“We made some in-game adjustments after we were down by 18 that allowed us to get back in the ballgame,” Nixon said. “We’ll be looking to do a lot more of those things than what we did the first 35 minutes of the game.

The rematch looks optimistic and, with a third place finish potentially on the line, the game should be very closely contested.

The next day, Columbia will complete its best season ever when it faces off against Brown on Senior Day and on SEAS Night. A win against Yale or against Brown would also give Columbia’s senior class of Danielle Browne, Caitlin Stachon, and Sara Yee the title of winningest class in school history.

“Certainly this senior class has meant a great deal to the program,” Coach Nixon said. “They’ve been through a lot of highs and lows with the program. And certainly I think they’re leaving on a high note. …They came into a team that the year before they got here was 6-21 overall, 2-12 Ivy, and they’re leaving as one of the better teams in the league.”

The game will also be Columbia’s first ever SEAS Night, and will be senior SEAS student Sara Yee’s final game.

“We had talked for some time the last couple of years about adding a SEAS night … to do it on Sara’s senior night is the most logical thing. I think she’s a tremendous representative of [SEAS],” Coach Nixon said. “… I hope that the SEAS community will come out and support her in her final home game, because she deserves that.”

The two teams’ last meeting was a close match in which the Lions escaped with the win by a score of 65-60. Turnovers were the name of the game, with Columbia committing 30 and Brown not doing much better with 28. A bright spot from this game came from Columbia’s Lomax, who scored 23 points and grabbed 18 rebounds in an otherwise-sloppy game.

If Lomax can post another monster performance, and Columbia can cut down on its turnovers, the Light Blue will have a good chance of ending its superb season on a positive note.

Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. tonight against Yale and 7 p.m. tomorrow, March 6, against Brown.