Princeton University Athletics
Bring On Round Two
February 18, 2004 | Women's Basketball
Princeton, Brown and Yale all split last weekend, including an upset win by Yale over Harvard in New Haven. Brown enters the weekend with momentum from a 10-point win over Dartmouth, who is second in the Ivies at 5-2, but first faces Penn (13-7, 7-0) before tackling the Tigers.
The Tigers come off an overtime loss to Columbia and are without freshman Casey Lockwood, but other players have quickly picked up the slack. Becky Brown had back-to-back games of over 20 points against Cornell and Columbia last week while Katy Digovich (11.3 ppg, 6.6 rpg) and Katy O'Brien (10.0 ppg, 3.1 apg) remain strong.
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Princeton (6-14, 3-4) vs. Yale (4-17, 1-7) - Friday, Feb. 20 at 7 p.m.
The Last Time They Met - Princeton used an early lead to defeat Yale 66-58 in their first meeting this year. The Tigers led 33-25 at halftime and four players scored in double-digits for Princeton. Brown and Lockwood both had double-doubles while O'Brien and Smith added 12 and 10 points each. Dangerous Momentum - Yale comes off its biggest win of the season, upsetting Harvard 62-59 in New Haven last weekend. Morgan Richards and Christina Phillips each had 13 points for the Bulldogs, who never trailed after 11:39 in the second half.
Phew - Yale has not won consecutive games this year.
Almost A Sweep - A day before they upset Harvard, the Bulldogs lost 59-53 to Dartmouth despite 12 points and 10 rebounds from Brynn Gingras. Yale led 42-23 at the break but the Big Green opened the second half with a 24-3 run.
Mixing It Up - Gingras, a senior captain and point guard, is the only player to start in all 21 games for Yale. Phillips started in 19 games while no other Bulldog started in more than 16. Nine Bulldogs play at least 14.0 minutes per game.
Rookie Sensation - Freshman Erica Davis leads Yale in points (10.7 per game), rebounds (4.8 per game), blocks (1.7 per game) and field goal percentage (.525). Five other Bulldogs add between six and nine points per game.
Silver Medal - Morgan Richards averages 4.5 rebounds per game, second-best on her team, and shoots 40% behind the arc, also second-best for Yale.
Tory's Story - Tory Mauseth shoots a team-high 44% from long range, hitting 38 of 87 attempts. She led Yale in scoring for the first two games but only once since then.
Keep 'Em Off The Line - Julie Cohen is Yale's best free-throw shooter with a .848 percentage (28 of 33) while Phillips averages .815 (44 of 54) from the line.
Dirty Work - Gingras leads the Bulldogs in assists (2.8 per game) and steals (2.0 per game). She is fifth in the conference in steals per game.
Sloppy Play - Yale is last in the Ivies in turnover margin, committing 21.1 turnovers while forcing just 15.6 by its opponents. The Bulldogs have a 0.67 assist/turnover ratio, second-to-last above Columbia.
Princeton vs. Brown (11-10, 4-4) - Saturday, Feb. 21 at 7 p.m.
The First Time - In the first meeting this season, Princeton defeated Brown 66-53 with four Tigers scoring in double-figures. O'Brien had 21 points including four three-pointers, Lockwood had 14 points and 11 rebounds, Brown had 11 points and Smith had 10. Digovich added seven points, 14 rebounds and five assists. Princeton led 37-25 at the half.
Where They Stand - Brown lost to Harvard and then defeated Dartmouth last weekend. The Bears led 34-26 over the Crimson at intermission but were outscored 44-30 in the final half. Nyema Mitchell scored 16 points while Holly Robertson and Sarah Hayes also finished in double-digits for Brown.
Hot Hands - The following day, all five Brown starters scored in double figures for the 78-68 win against Dartmouth. Robertson and Mitchell had 20 and 18 points for the Bears, who shot 94% (16 for 17) from the foul line.
Clean Bears - Brown leads the Ivies in turnover margin with just 18.8 turnovers per game compared to 2.14 by its opponents.
Second Chance Points - The Bears top the conference charts in offensive rebounds with 15.52 per game. Princeton grabs 13.25 offensive boards per game, good for fourth in the league.
Defense Wins? - Brown is the best defensive team in the league, allowing opponents just 63.1 points per game and a .395 field goal percentage. Princeton, however, averages just 59.6 points and shoots .394 from the floor.
Scoring Threat - Nyema Mitchell, who dropped 19 points against Princeton earlier this season, is sixth in the Ivies in scoring at 15.6 points per game.
Best Helper - Tanara Golston leads the league in assists with 6.4 per game, which is 1.6 more than the next conference player and more than twice the amount of Princeton's leading passer (O'Brien, 3.1 assists per game).
Steal And Score - Golston and Sarah Hayes stand at No. 1 and No. 3 in the Ivies in steals, combining for 4.7 per game (Brown averages 10.48 steals per game, second in the league behind Harvard). They are also the second- and third-highest scorers for Brown with 11.0 and 10.2 points per game.
Princeton Team Notes
The Time Is Right - Princeton won consecutive games only once this season, and that occurred against the same two opponents it plays this weekend.
Man Down - Casey Lockwood is out for the remainder of the season with a knee injury that occurred early in the Cornell game. She was averaging 31.9 minutes, 11.4 points and 8.3 rebounds per game and shooting a team-best 76% from the foul line.
At Her Best - Becky Brown had her two highest scoring games of the season last weekend when she dropped 25 against Cornell and 22 against Columbia. Before then, her season-high was 20 points against Samford. Brown's career-high is 31 points against Columbia in the second-to-last game last year.
Offensive Strength - Brown leads Princeton with 13.4 points per game and a .491 field goal percentage. She stands ninth in the league in scoring and sixth in shooting percentage.
Stepping Up - Katy Digovich improved to Princeton's second-highest scorer after Lockwood was sidelined last weekend. She averages 11.3 points with 25 three-pointers, second behind Katy O'Brien's 50 threes.
Long Range - O'Brien currently shoots 44% from three-point lead, good for third in the Ivy League. She averages 2.5 three-pointers and 10.0 points per game. The Tigers are third in the Ivy League in three-point shooting with a .351 percentage, hitting 113 of 322 attempts behind the arc.
Floor Leader - O'Brien also leads Princeton in assists (3.1 per game) and steals (1.8 per game), and is the only Tiger to start and play in all 20 games. Lockwood shared that statistic until she was injured.
Get Out Of Their House - Brown and Digovich have 18 and 16 blocks apiece.
Sticking With Smith - After shuffling the lineup early this season, Richard Barron has used Ali Smith as the fifth starter in the last six games. She averaged 6.7 points in those games after chipping in just 3.6 points per game before she started.
New Hole - Now Barron must replace Lockwood, who started the first 19 games. Lauren Nestor is the most likely replacement, starting in five games this year. Nestor averages 2.6 points and 2.6 rebounds in 17.0 minutes this season. She is the only Tiger with more assists (23) than turnovers (22)
Picking Up The Pieces - Elyse Umeda came through big-time as the first sub for Lockwood when she was injured. Umeda had a career-high 10 points and added two rebounds and three assists as Princeton defeated Cornell.
Shutting Them Down - Princeton is second in the conference in scoring defense and three-point field goal defense. Opponents average just 64.6 points and shoot just 31% from long range against the Tigers.
Looking Ahead - Three high school seniors committed early decision to play at Princeton. Meagan Cowher (Pittsburgh, Pa.), Ali Prichard (Apple Valley, Minn.) and Ariel Rogers (Evanston, Ill.) join the Tigers in 2004-05.