It didn’t have the feel of a seven-point game. It was all Blue, until it almost wasn’t.
The Yale women defeated Brown, 79-72, at home Friday to move to 11-3 on the season, marking the best start in program history.
Yale (1-0 Ivy) built a 20-point lead in the third period and was up 61-43 at the end of that frame.
Brown (6-8, 0-1) clawed back in the last stanza on the strength of some scorching three-point shooting to cut the lead to three with a minute remaining, but Yale regained its composure to hold on to the lead in its initial Ivy contest.
Ellen Margaret Andrews led Yale’s balanced scoring with 19 points and Roxy Barahman and Camilla Emsbo each had 17. Barahman chipped in with a Yale season-high eight steals. She leads the Ivy in steals and is the main reason that Yale sits on such a lofty perch.
The Elis were only 15-for-27 from the charity stripe, but they were a strong 8-for-17 from three.
Coach Allison Guth emphasized defense as one of the major reasons for the win to start Ivy play.
Brown was led by junior guard Dominique Leonidas with 16 points on 5-for-10 shooting from the field.
The Bears get another shot at Yale Saturday at noon at Pizzitola Sports Center.