As any diehard fan will tell you, winter is not about bitter cold, snowmen and hot chocolate. It is all about basketball.
For the Princeton women's basketball team (1-4), that maxim rings true.
First on the Tigers' agenda this upcoming Winter Break is Hofstra (2-4 overall), a team coming off a 66-61 upset victory against Rhode Island on Tuesday.
To kick off their season, the Pride challenged nationally-ranked North Carolina. The Tarheels more than doubled their opponent's score, 92-45, but Hofstra was able to regain confidence with a 65-62 win over Quinnipiac. Between that contest the Rhode Island game, the Pride had been on a three-game losing streak, dropping games to Binghamton, Canisius and Columbia.
Princeton will have to shut down junior Amaka Agugua, who has put up strong performances in the last three games with point totals of 23, 20 and 27. Averaging 15.0 points and 8.5 rebounds per game, she leads the team in those two categories.
Freshman Cigi McCollin adds 11.3 points per game, while senior Staceyann Claxton — the sister of former Hofstra standout and NBA player Speedy Claxton — has dished out 31 assists on the season.
This contest is certainly winnable for the Tigers, especially if they can capitalize on Hofstra's 21.5 turnovers per game. Princeton will need to minimize its own giveaways, however — its 31 turnovers played a large role in its 71-47 loss last Saturday to Sacred Heart.
The Tigers hit the road this weekend for Hempstead, N.Y., the home of the Pride, in search of their second win of the season.
Home sweet home
A trio of home games after their game against Hofstra gives the Tigers the opportunity to earn their first win at Jadwin Gymnasium this season. Victory will certainly not be easy, however, as Princeton takes on two national powers, Wake Forest and Georgia Tech.
Before the Tigers take on those two challenges, Wagner comes to town on Wednesday, Dec. 17. The Seahawks (2-3) dropped games to South Florida and Colgate to open their season, but they boast wins over Iona and Lafayette. Most recently, Wagner was defeated by Marquette, 67-59.
The Seahawks have several players who can put points on the board — three players have been averaging over 10 points per game. Senior six-footer Carrie Walker leads the team with 18.4 points and an impressive 12.2 rebounds per game. It will prove a huge challenge for the Tigers to keep her off the boards. Joy Gallagher and Vanessa Wyffels have shown they can find the basket as well, racking up averages of 14.2 and 13.0, respectively.
Then the Demon Deacons (3-3) bring their talent northward to New Jersey.
Though their record is .500, it doesn't take into account that two of their three losses came to top-10 schools, Purdue and Duke. Consequently, Wake Forest is on a three-game losing streak. Still, the Demon Deacons have plenty of time to turn that streak around before they face Princeton on Dec. 19.
To attest to their depth, five players have led or coled the team in scoring on different occasions. Wake Forest spreads the ball around well, but two of the main people the Tigers have to stop are Liz Strunk and Erin Ferrell, with 11 and 10.5 points per game, respectively.
Two nights later, Princeton faces another powerhouse, Georgia Tech (5-1). The Yellow Jackets return most of the players from last year's NCAA tournament team.
Georgia Tech is not invincible, as it fell at the hands of West Virginia in its third game of the season. Since then, however, senior Fallon Stokes has been nearly unstoppable. She scored her 1,000th career point in her team's last contest against Georgia State while posting an average of 20.3 points per game.
Heading out West
After just a week-long break, the Tigers travel to Missoula, Mont., for the Montana Tournament. There awaiting them on Dec. 28 and 29 will be Montana, Idaho and Memphis.
In the tournament's 23-year history, Montana has won every year but three.
The Grizzlies (5-1) have three players scoring in double-digits — Julie Deming, Hollie Tyler and Crystal Baird with 14.7, 12.2 and 11 points per game, respectively.
The Tigers of the Memphis variety are a perfect 6-0 so far this season. They have dominated their competition in nearly every category, outscoring opponents by an average of nearly 18 points.
The Vandals are also perfect on the season. Sophomore Emily Faurholt boasts an average of 25.2 points per game, leading her team to a 5-0 record.
The Tigers' last game of the break comes on Jan. 3 against Lafayette (0-4), a beatable team provided that Princeton keeps its game together.
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