Women's basketball relies on consistency to defeat Centenary

The women's basketball team came within one basket of scoring 100 points last night in its 97-69 triumph over Centenary, bringing its record to an even fifty-fifty with three wins and three losses.

The Tigers made almost 50 percent of their three-point attempts, belittling their opponent's measly 22 percent. And from the free throw line, Princeton put in 80 percent of its first-half foul shots while Centenary managed only 53 percent.

But saying the team scored 100 points and listing impressive shot percentages does not do justice to the other aspects of the game in which the Tigers excelled.

The Tigers were all over the court, running fast breaks off Centenary's baskets without giving the other team time to see the ball fly over their heads and into the hands of an orange player waiting patiently for it underneath the hoop.

Or else Princeton was grabbing the defensive rebounds and setting up its offense at the other end, with four players spread apart around the perimeter and a post ready for a quick pass to the inside or a double screen from her teammates.

The patience and consistency that this team displayed last night is something remarkably new to the women's basketball program, which two seasons ago finished the year with two wins and 12 times that many losses.

Senior captain and point guard Allison Cahill, who led the team with 28 points and four rebounds, said, "We were way more efficient than last year. We usually make purposeless cuts to the hoop and run around aimlessly trying to make plays. But tonight we had a different mind set and played consistently well from start to finish." Perhaps one of the reason's for the team's consistency was the fact that the offense is designed to open up shots for all players from all parts of the court, irrespective of that person's position. Cahill, for example, who usually plays point guard — a position that typically stays at the top of the key to run the plays — scored several points by posting up under the basket.

After one wing player passes the ball to either side, she and the weak side wing will cut from opposite sides of the court and set a double screen for the player standing in the paint, which opens up several options.

The playerl who now has the ball can either pass to the one cutting off the screen for an easy layup, or she can wait for a few seconds and then pass to either of the two screeners as they roll out of their pick.

Or she can wait for the rest of the team to re-spread itself on the perimeter, which opens up the inside for a drive to the hoop and a short jump shot.

Minutes into the second half Kelly Schaeffer did just that — waited for the team to spread out and made a knifing drive to the inside — but instead of shooting it she dished the ball off to freshman post Becky Brown, who added two points with an easy layup.

The offense is effective and dynamic, but only when the players have patience to wait for the open pass and enough court-sense to expect where the lane will open up. And what gives patience is confidence. That is something the team lacked last year and the year before, which made the play look like a mayhem of pointless cuts and hasty passes.

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Although it is hard to say how the match-up last night will compare to opponents the Tigers will face farther down the line, the fact that this team beat Centenary by only eight points last year is an early and undisputable sign of improvement that bodes well for Princeton.

"We played at the top of our game," Cahill said.

The Tigers have two more home games in the next week, against Sacred Heart this Saturday and against Hofstra on Wednesday.