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When hostilities got underway in the first Ivy League Tournament action in three years, it was obvious that the Crimson were inspired by the gravity of the situation. They gave the Tigers all they could handle.
In the end, however, the Tigers held on in the closest Ivy game in Carla Berube’s two-season career at Princeton, 72-67. The Tigers needed six straight free throws from Kaitlyn Chen and Grace Stone in the closing moments.
Jaida Patrick scored a season-high 20 points and Abbey Hsu set the program record for three pointers in a season, as the Columbia women (18-4, 9-1 Ivy) held off a determined Harvard (12-11, 6-5 Ivy), 74-70, to earn a spot in the 2022 Ivy League Tournament.
The victory not only ensured the Lions their second straight ticket to the league’s postseason party, but it also tied the school record for wins in a Division I season and an Ivy League campaign (2009-10).
For the first time in the calendar year, the Lions welcomed the general public to Levien Gymnasium and 1,000-plus members of the campus community came out to cheer them on in the team’s annual Play4Kay game to support the Kay Yow Foundation’s fight against cancers that affect women.
The Harvard women were fighting for a win at home for their legendary coach on Kathy Delaney-Smith Day.
In a game that had the feel of a battle for third place in the Ivy League and a chance to avoid Princeton in the first round of the conference tournament, Harvard outlasted Yale, 65-59.
As the calendar moves into February, we have reached the midpoint of the Ivy season. While this weekend brings the first back-to-back games of the season, Saturday night looks to be the more pivotal evening for the women’s division. Each game pits teams from the four tiers of the conference against one another.
The Princeton Tigers opened the defense of their 2020 Ivy League title Sunday afternoon at Jadwin Gym against the Harvard Crimson. This was the final appearance at Princeton of legendary Harvard coach Kathy Delaney-Smith, who is closing her 40-year coaching career at Harvard at the end of the season. The Ivy League is a much better place because of her presence in it.
Sunday will mark the first Ivy League conference basketball since March 7, 2020, even if two of the eight games in the opening slate (the Princeton at Harvard and Columbia at Yale men’s matchups) have been postponed due to COVID-19 concerns. Here’s what to watch for:
Down four with 2:40 to go in regulation, McKenzie Forbes and Lola Mullaney led the Crimson on a 7-2 run to pull out a 73-70 win over St. Joseph’s at Hagan Arena on Tuesday afternoon.
Harvard (6-6) was originally scheduled to take on Norfolk State in the opening round of the Hawk Classic, but COVID-19 issues within the Spartans’ program forced the cancellation of the four-team tournament. Despite the absence of Norfolk State and North Alabama, the Hawks (4-8) and Crimson decided to meet in the final nonconference game for both programs.
The Harvard women and men hosted a pair of cross-town rivals on Saturday. Things didn’t look so great for the home teams early, but strong second-half performances gave both teams big wins and sent the crowd home happy.