Ellie Mitchell: Taking Pride In Defense

"Communication, talk, talk, talk," said Ellie Mitchell.

Mitchell was describing the one principle that is harped on every practice by Carla Berube about a squad that sits tied for No. 3 in the NCAA in scoring defense (51.2 points per game).

"It builds a good sense of a trust that even if you miss a rotation, if we're talking about it, we know, I got beat, but Julia (Cunningham), will drop down, she will take mine and say, 'Ellie you're fine, bump somewhere else and we're going to be able to recover,'' said Mitchell. "We're all good enough defenders that we can match up to whomever we need to on the team."

It sure feels like the Tigers have not missed many defensive rotations during this nine-game winning streak. Princeton is allowing 43.8 points per game and a .304 shooting percentage to opponents while forcing 21.9 turnovers per game during this stretch.

One of the key cogs for the Tigers' defense has been Mitchell, who paces the team in rebounding (10.1 per game) and total steals (51). The sophomore was outstanding against Columbia, the No. 2 team in the Ivy League, on Saturday, grabbing 14 caroms and adding three steals as the Tigers took home an 18-point decision.

Columbia came into the game with the second-best scoring offense in the conference but failed to score more than 10 points in either the first or fourth quarters. The Lions' Kaitlyn Davis was the two-time reigning Ivy Player of the Week and was held to four points in 20 minutes of action. Abbey Hsu was the conference's second-leading scorer at 16.9 points per game, but only registered three points on 1-of-8 shooting in the loss.

"Everyone knows defense is what we take the most pride in," said Mitchell. "There are a lot of players and teams that can put up a ton of points, but defense is what sets us apart. If our shots aren't falling, we know we can take care of business if we're playing good defense because defense will lead to stops, frustrate the other team, and get them off their game and that feeds into our success."

Princeton sits at 16-4 overall and 8-0 in the Ivy League. The Tigers are on a 34-game conference winning streak which is the best in Ivy history and is the top current streak in the NCAA.

"We're having a lot of fun. It can be challenging to be in that spotlight as a team, but I don't think anyone would change it," said Mitchell. "I think it makes it more fun and we have to remember not to get complacent, not take any team lightly and continue to do what we do best."

For the season, the sophomore has been one of the best rebounders in the country. Her 79 offensive rebounds are 22nd nationally while her 201 total boards are 37th. She grabs over 18 percent of the rebounds when she's on the floor.

"Coming into this year, I was excited because it was a new opportunity," said Mitchell. "I spent my freshman season learning from the best in Bella Alarie and Taylor Baur, so I was excited to step into this new role. I realized I would have to adapt, so I wanted to focus on what I'm really good at, defense and rebounding."

Mitchell also made an impact as freshman in 2019-20, averaging 5.3 points and 6.3 rebounds in 17.3 minutes per game.

"College basketball is a big learning curve, especially for our team," said Mitchell. "All of my older teammates made it a lot easier, and they were very encouraging. They helped walk me through this. We had a lot of great team chemistry. We trusted each other and it made my life a lot easier. There wasn't any 'She's a freshman, she won't be able to help us.' Once we're on the court, I was just another one of the five. That was helpful."

Mitchell took a gap year during the 2020-21 academic campaign, living in an apartment with Maggie Connolly and Julia Cunningham. While working at a gym with Connolly that allowed her to improve her game, Mitchell also was an aide for a first grader on the autism spectrum at the Princeton Junior School.

"It was a great opportunity to do things I wouldn't otherwise do," said Mitchell. "I'm grateful I took my year off because I didn't want to lose a year at Princeton and the time here is so valuable both academically and on the basketball court."

This season, Mitchell has made the jump to starter where she has learned to be more relaxed and composed.

"There's going to be a lot of ups and downs in the game, but I need to learn to trust myself and my teammates," said Mitchell. "We spent so much time in practice working on what we want to accomplish. I've learned to trust the work we put in and not get overwhelmed by the adrenaline from the game."

The work that Mitchell and her teammates have produced has fabulous results so far. The Tigers continue their season on Saturday at Dartmouth. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.

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