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Princeton University Athletics
Princeton University
Syracuse
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Another Big East Team Deals Women's Hoops Close Loss as Syracuse Wins 77-75
December 16, 2007 | Women's Basketball
PRINCETON ? It was another close call against another Big East squad Sunday afternoon for the Princeton women's basketball team, and the Tigers ended up just short once again.
Princeton fell to Syracuse 77-75, but the Tigers kept the outcome in doubt until Syracuse picked up a key offensive rebound on a free throw in the final seconds and made one last trip to the line to seal the game.
Syracuse left Jadwin Gym at 8-1 with its only loss to North Carolina, and the Tigers are 3-9 after the near-miss against the Orange compounded the five-point loss to No. 6 Rutgers earlier in the week.
Tied at 75-75 after Ali Prichard canned a three-pointer with 21 seconds left, Whitney Downs fouled Chandrea Jones with five seconds left to create a one-and-one foul shooting situation instead of giving up a basket, and the choice appeared to pay off.
Jones made the first but missed the second, giving the Princeton the chance to grab the rebound and draw up a play for a potential game-winning basket. But Princeton didn't get the rebound, Syracuse's Fantasia Goodwin did when it bounced high off the back of the rim, and Addie Micir had to foul Goodwin for any hope of getting the ball back.
"I'm disappointed for our kids," Princeton head coach Courtney Banghart said. "We fought all the way back from being down 10 points in the second half, but I think we all know that what we're looking for is progress. The kids know not to get too excited or too down with any one result."
Goodwin missed the first and made the second, probably the best outcome for the Tigers with only 2.5 seconds left and the struggle for a live rebound sure to run out the clock. But Syracuse didn't let the Tigers get the deep ball necessary in those final couple seconds, and Caitlin O'Neill threw up a desperation three-pointer from half court that was off the mark.
Syracuse outrebounded Princeton by 10, 46-36, and committed only seven turnovers. The Tigers committed 12 or fewer giveaways for the third straight game with 11 against Syracuse.
"Turnovers and free throws are things we've been working on," Banghart said. "I'm pleased to see us making progress in those areas."
The Tigers shot 80 percent (12 of 15) against Rutgers and bettered that by making 13 of 15 against Syracuse. Princeton had been shooting 56.3 percent from the line before that game and is now hitting at a 60.9 percent clip on the season.
Micir had a career-high 18 points with the freshman besting her previous high by six. She co-led Princeton with Meagan Cowher, who had 18. Cowher still stands fifth on the all-time Princeton list with 1,348 points.
The contest was back-and-forth for most of the first half with no team leading by more than four until the Tigers went on a 10-0 run to turn a four-point deficit into a six-point lead at 27-21 with 4:31 before the break.
Syracuse closed the half ahead 34-32 and went on a 10-2 run to start the second half. Still, Princeton clawed all the way back, tying the game at 55-55 on a Caitlin O'Neill three-pointer with 10:41 left.
The Orange relented the lead only once from that point when two Cowher free throws pulled Princeton ahead 58-57, but Syracuse soon led by seven at 69-62 until Princeton closed the gap with Prichard's three-pointer in the final minute.
Princeton will look to snap its three-game losing streak, all against major-conference schools in California, Rutgers and Syracuse, Saturday at Sacred Heart for a 2 p.m. tip.