Princeton Holds Off Brown, 81-75

Saturday, February 18

Providence, R.I.

3:30 p.m.

Princeton University

13-9, 7-2Ivy

Brown

14-9, 5-5Ivy

Princeton

Brown

Photo by: Kobus Reyneke

February 18, 2017 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The Princeton Tigers used a well-balanced offensive attack to hold off the Brown Bears, 81-75, at the Pizzitola Sports Center on Saturday afternoon.

Leslie Robinson had a team-high 17 points while Gabrielle Rush, Taylor Brown and Bella Alarie also reached double-figures. Alarie amassed her fifth double-double of the season with 12 points and 10 rebounds along with three blocks and two steals. Rush added 15 points along with four three-pointers off the bench in the victory.

After the Bears registered the first basket, the Tigers rolled off seven straight points including this sparkling steal and coast-to-coast layup from Alarie.

End of the 1st: Alarie with the steal and runs by everyone for the hoop. Tigers up 22-17 after 10 mins. #GoTigers #PathToThePalestra pic.twitter.com/5o47Y6Qson
— Princeton WBB (@PrincetonWBB) February 18, 2017

Brown got as close as two on two occasions in the frame, but Princeton pushed in front by eight (20-12) following a free throw from Taylor Brown with 2:18 to go. The Tigers led 22-17 after the first quarter led by Brown's nine points.

As the second stanza rolled on, the Tigers scored on four consecutive possessions to set the contest at 32-24 with 7:22 remaining. Trailing by 10, Brown rallied off a 13-3 spurt to tie the contest at 37-all as the clock ticked near two minutes (2:19). A layup from Caroline Davis put the Tigers ahead, 41-39, at the intermission.

Out of the break, the Tigers sprinted out with an 11-2 jump to go in front, 52-41, with 5:38 to remaining in the third frame. During that stretch, Brown could only muster one basket on seven attempts while turning the ball over three times. The Bears got the score within seven before Princeton settled with a 61-50 advantage after 30 minutes.

Down by 13 as the fourth quarter ticked under seven minutes (6:52), Brown made one more push, running off eight straight, to climb within five (69-64), forcing Princeton use a timeout with 4:54 left. Smith snagged a loose ball and laid in to keep Brown at bay, but six free throws from the Bears set the Ivy matchup at 74-72 with 2:05 to go.

This layup from Jordan stemmed the Bears' comeback as it put the Tigers back up five.

FINAL: Jordan's big layup stems a Brown comeback as Princeton wins 81-75. #GoTigers #TigerUp #PathToThePalestra pic.twitter.com/iapaqnxTUw
— Princeton WBB (@PrincetonWBB) February 18, 2017

A trey from Brown's Shayna Meta made the score 77-75, but four free throws sealed the victory for Princeton. Brown's Justine Gaziano contributed a game-high 24 points on 6-of-12 from the floor. Shayna Meta had 21 points in the loss. Princeton shot a season-best 53.8 percent from beyond the arc (7-of-13). The Tigers also stole 13 passes and blocked six shots in the victory.

Head coach Courtney Banghart's team won its seventh straight game, improving to 13-9 overall and 7-2 in the Ivy League. Brown dropped to 14-9 this season and 5-5 in the conference. It's Princeton's 43rd Ivy League weekend sweep in its last 47 chances. The Tigers will welcome Columbia (Feb. 24) and Cornell (Feb. 25) to Jadwin Gym. Tip-off for the Columbia game will begin at 7:00 p.m.