Columbia women’s basketball opened its defense of its Ivy hoops title Saturday at home with a solid 79-66 win over Penn.
As if to underline that this isn’t the same Lions team as last year’s, the game’s standout player wasn’t even playing in Manhattan until the fall. Bucknell junior transfer Cecelia Collins had 19 points, five rebounds and seven seriously nifty assists. On a subpar day for senior guard and leading scorer Abbey Hsu (a mere 14 points on 5-for-14 shooting), Collins frustrated the visitors on both ends of the court.
Having kept Hsu relatively quiet, Penn can consider its missed opportunity. Penn played ahead of Columbia, or kept the game close, as long as it slowed the pace and prevented the Lions from unleashing their fast-paced transition. Penn held the lead into the last minute of the first quarter and came within four points a few minutes into the second, but a 14-2 run for Columbia put Penn into too deep a hole. The Quakers got within seven points of the Lions early in the fourth quarter, but that was it.
For the day, Columbia had 17 points off the fastbreak, to seven for Penn. And fastbreaks paid off in free throws, too: Columbia picked up 13 points at the line, to Penn’s four.
In an ESPN+ interview after the game, Columbia coach Megan Griffith called this squad the deepest she’s ever had, with the balance to win when Hsu goes cold. And though she said she was disappointed by the defense in the second half, she said it followed the gameplan of not sending Penn to the foul line.
This Penn team cannot win against a team of Columbia’s caliber without a strong game by its senior leader, forward Jordan Obi. She had an early three as the Quakers ran to a quick 8-2 lead, but from there on out shot just 2-for-9 to finish with seven points, nine rebounds and four assists. Point guard Mataya Gayle showed a few flashes of the brilliance that has made her a top contender for Ivy Rookie of the Year, finishing with 16 points on 7-for-17 shooting. And Stina Almqvist had another solid game on both ends, with 17 points (8-for-19 shooting) and seven rebounds while drawing four of the five offensive fouls called against Columbia players.
Two Penn guards created excitement (and something of a comeback) off the bench: freshman Ese Ogbevire and sophomore Simone Sawyer. Ogbevire’s outside touch and lightning moves to the hoop combined for 12 points with four rebounds and a pair of assists, and Sawyer had two baskets for the highlight reel for six points in her five minutes.
For Columbia, junior Kitty Henderson had another solid game: 13 points, 6-for-11 shooting, six rebounds and four assists. Griffith also singled out the play of senior guard Nicole Stephens (eight points, six rebounds): “She played like a senior. She played like, ‘I have an Ivy League championship on the line.'” And in the battle of the imported bigs, Columbia junior Noa Comesaña of Spain beat Penn’s Floor Toonders of the Netherlands.
Columbia (10-4, 1-0 Ivy) will host Cornell (6-7, 0-1) on Saturday afternoon. Penn (8-6, 0-1) hits the road again Saturday, this time against Dartmouth (5-7, 0-1). The Quakers will have their chance for revenge against the Lions Jan. 27 at the Palestra.