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Princeton University
Penn
Players Mentioned
Perfect! No. 13 Women's Basketball Finishes Regular Season With 30-0 Record
March 11, 2015 | Women's Basketball
BOX SCORE
POSTGAME CELEBRATION/PRESS CONFERENCE
VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS (COURTESY OF CBS SPORTS NETWORK)
TIGERBLOG ON 30-0
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – Putting the finishing touches on an undefeated regular season, the 13th-ranked Princeton University women's basketball team pulled out a gritty 55-42 win over rival Penn in a historic night at the Palestra.
Improving to 30-0 (14-0 Ivy), the Tigers are off to the best start in Ivy League basketball history – men's or women's. Alongside the University of Kentucky men (31-0), Princeton is just one of two undefeated NCAA Division I basketball teams in the nation.
Headed to their fifth NCAA appearance in six seasons, the Tigers will learn of their tournament seeding and match-up when the full 64-team bracket is announced on Monday, Mar. 16. Earning the highest-ever national ranking for an Ivy program, the 2014-15 Tigers are the third squad eight-year head coach Courtney Banghart has led to an unbeaten 14-0 Ivy slate, joining the 2009-10 and 2011-12 teams.
Four different Princeton players finished in double figures, led by Alex Wheatley with 17 points and 12 rebounds. Annie Tarakchian also posted a double-double with 10 points and 12 boards, while Blake Dietrick had 11 points, seven assists and five rebounds in 39 minutes. Vanessa Smith chipped in with 10 points off the bench.
Down 4-2 early, Princeton reeled off six consecutive points. Sparking the Tiger run, Dietrick dumped it into Wheatley on the right block for an easy two. The next time down the floor, Dietrick took it all the way to the hoop to put the Orange and Black on top. Passing up an open three on Princeton's next possession, Tarakchian drove hard to her right to make it 8-4.
Battling back, Penn pieced together a 10-4 stretch, taking a 14-12 lead on a Sydney Stipanovich three-point play midway through the half. Quickly pulling the Tigers even, Smith knocked down a jumper from the right elbow at 9:42.
Driving hard to the hoop, Smith later drew a foul before hitting a pair of free throws that put the Tigers back in front. Cashing in on a Tarakchian offensive rebound, Smith buried another jumper in the lane to make it 18-14. After going 1-for-2 from the charity stripe, Wheatley finished with her left hand in the paint to cap off a 9-0 Tiger run that made it 21-14 with just over five minutes to go in the period.
Trailing 26-21 at the intermission, Stipanovich opened up the second half scoring with a pair of free throws. Drawing contact, Michelle Nwokedi went 2-for-2 from the charity stripe the next time down the floor to trim the Quaker deficit to one.
Putting the brakes on the Tigers' dryspell, Wheatley blocked a Stipanovich jumper with the shot clock winding down before racing to the other end and netting Princeton's first points with a lefty layup. With less than 15 minutes to go in regulation, Dietrick dialed one in from long distance to stretch the visitor's lead to 31-27.
Still up four approaching the 12-minute mark, Smith drove right before finishing at the rim to pad the Tigers' cushion. Getting a defensive stop following the media timeout, Dietrick quickly went coast-to-coast to help Princeton open up a 37-29 margin.
After a Nwokedi basket, Miller connected on a triple from the left corner to put Princeton up nine. Capping off an 11-2 run, Wheatley again converted inside to give the Tigers' their first double-digit lead at 42-31 with 8:54 to play.
With Penn closing to within seven, Tarakchian hit a three-pointer from the right wing to push the Princeton advantage back up to 49-39. Still up 10 with less than two minutes to play, Dietrick again went coast-to-coast before Wheatley put in her final field goal to make it 55-41.
Turning in another solid defensive effort, Princeton limited Penn to 29.6 percent (16-54) shooting, which included a 1-of-15 (6.7 percent) showing from behind the arc. The Tigers, who shot 39.3 percent (24-61) for the game, finished with a 42-34 rebounding edge.