Princeton Drops Close WNIT Battle To Villanova, 59-53

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November 9, 2PM

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PRINCETON, N.J. – The Villanova Wildcats advanced to the second round of the Women's National Invitational Tournament (WNIT) with a 59-53 victory over the Princeton Tigers on Friday evening.

Leslie Robinson recorded her seventh double-double of the season with a team-high 14 points along with 12 rebounds, three steals and two assists. Bella Alarie just missed her third consecutive double-double with nine points and a game-high 13 rebounds. In the final collegiate game of her career, Vanessa Smith scored 11 points, grabbed six caroms, dished out three assists and blocked a shot.

After Villanova began the contest with seven of the first nine points, the Tigers rolled off five straight to tie the game at 9-all at the 5:40 mark of the first quarter. Another five-point spurt including a trey from Kenya Holland gave the home team its first lead of the game, 14-12, two minutes later. Villanova ended the quarter with nine straight to take a 21-14 advantage. In the frame, Alarie broke the single-season record for blocks in a season here…

Congrats to Bella Alarie on breaking the single-season record for blocks (51). #GoTigers #TigerUp pic.twitter.com/QonI5Ewkzq
— Princeton WBB (@PrincetonWBB) March 17, 2017

The freshman broke Ellen Devoe's old mark (50) set during the 1984-85 season.

Another quick start for the Wildcats to begin a quarter saw them stretch their lead to 12, their largest of the game, 28-16, as the clock read 5:56 in the second. Princeton scored the last four points of the stanza to go into the intermission, trailing 32-26.

In the second half, a fast-break bucket from Robinson got the Tigers within two (36-34), their closest deficit since the 2:47 mark of the first quarter. The two teams exchanged baskets to set the score at 45-40 after three frames.

Villanova's Adrianna Hahn's long-distance basket put the road unit back in front by eight, 50-42, with 8:50 remaining. However, the Tigers made a push to get as close as three after a three-point play from Smith at the 4:55 point.

Princeton again got the game to one-possession, but Villanova's Jannah Tucker knocked down a deep three-pointer (55-49) as the WNIT contest ticked under three minutes. Two free throws from Smith made the score 55-53, but a three-pointer from the Wildcats' Kelly Jekot with 30 seconds left sealed the victory.

Alex Louin had a game-high 18 points while Tucker had 11 points, four steals, two rebounds, two assists and two blocks in the win for Villanova.

With the loss, the careers of Vanessa Smith, Taylor Brown and Jackie Reyneke came to an end. They finish with 90 wins, one Ivy League title and four postseason tournaments. The group was part of the 2015-16 squad that became the first Ivy League team to ever receive an at-large bid and the 2014-15 team that went 31-1 overall and 30-0 in the regular season.

Princeton finishes the season at 16-14 overall while Villanova improves to 17-14 this season. The 2016-17 campaign marks the eighth straight year that the Tigers have played in a postseason tournament.

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