Nasi Simmons

No. 4 Columbia women’s basketball smothers No. 3 Wisconsin to punch WBIT title game ticket

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In like a lamb, out like a Lion. Right?

That’s how March has played out for Columbia women’s basketball. After two losses to Harvard, including a nail-biter in the Ivy League semifinal, the Lions entered the WBIT as a team on a mission.

Steamrolling St. John’s and North Dakota State and escaping against California, they earned their way to the semifinal in Wichita, Kan.

In their final game of March, the Lions continued their postseason winning ways. Never trailing, Columbia suffocated Wisconsin defensively while doing just enough offensively to earn a comfortable win and punch their ticket to the WBIT final by a score of 67-50.

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Columbia and Harvard women’s basketball cruise over St. John’s, Navy in WBIT opening round

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After two straight losses to Harvard women’s basketball derailed Columbia from regular and postseason Ivy League titles, senior guard Perri Page made her feelings known moments after being knocked out of the Ivy League Tournament.

“We all got to be bought in and go all into whatever we do,” the First Team All-Ivy and Defensive Player of the Year told assembled media last Friday night. “We are winning the WBIT. I can tell you that right now.”

Page and her teammates put the rest of the tournament on notice Thursday night, jumping out to a quick lead and cruising to a 74-26 rout of St. John’s at Levien Gymnasium.

The opening-round win improves the No. 4-seeded Lions record to 21-8 (11-4 Ivy League) on the season and a game on the road at North Dakota State, the No. 1 seed in their quadrant, on Sunday at 2 p.m. on ESPN+.

For its part, Harvard notched a comfortable WBIT opening-round home win of its own simultaneously Thursday night, dispatching Navy, 73-52. The win for the Crimson (19-11, 10-4) over the Midshipmen (22-9, 15-2 Patriot) set the victors up for a second-round matchup hosting Eastern Kentucky at a time to be determined Sunday.

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Columbia women’s basketball escapes Brown in physical battle

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Completing an undefeated February, Columbia women’s basketball endured a tough defensive battle at Brown to defeat the Bears, 59–56, Saturday night in Providence. The two were never separated by more than six points in a likely Ivy Madness semifinal preview.

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Weiss scores school-record 40 points as Columbia women’s basketball routs Dartmouth

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NEW YORK — Riley Weiss 40, Dartmouth 32.

Saturday’s contest between Columbia and Dartmouth was a historic victory on both ends of the court for the Lions.

Star junior guard Riley Weiss scored 40 points, a program record, and the Lions held Dartmouth to just 32 points, the fewest Columbia has ever allowed against a Division I opponent, in an 89-32 shellacking of the Big Green.

“It was a great team effort tonight,” Columbia coach Megan Griffith said. “Riley shined really bright.”

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