Homestand could turn season for women's hoops

Heading into the final third of its season, women's basketball hosts Columbia (9-9 overall, 3-3 Ivy League) and Cornell (8-11, 3-3) this weekend. The Tigers hope to recover from last week's devastating losses and capture a pair of wins that will set the tone of the rest of the season more effectively than Mizner set the tone for Palm Beach architecture.

This weekend, Princeton (5-13, 2-3) will look to take back some of the momentum it gained from its two-week-old wins over Brown and Yale and redeem itself after losses to Dartmouth and Harvard. With the prospect of a four-game losing streak hanging over their heads, the urgency of the situation could be no clearer to the reeling Tigers.

"At home against Brown and Yale we played with a lot of energy and excitement," head coach Richard Barron said. "We lost that on the road, especially at Harvard, and we really need to get that back this weekend."

In that spirit, Princeton has been meticulously preparing both on and off the court, hoping to turn the Fort Wilderness-esque massacre suffered to the Crimson into the motivation and mental determination that they have lacked in the past.

"Harvard was pretty desperate to get a win, and we didn't respond at all," Barron said. "That was very disappointing — not the loss, but the lack of competitiveness. We've been watching a lot of film of us playing at a level that is upsetting for us all. I think this is something that can be eyeopening. We can really use last weekend to grow as a team and a program."

On Valentine's Day, Princeton will face off with Columbia. The Lions will provide their usual challenge after two wins last weekend.

"Columbia has had our number," Barron said. "In my time here we have never beaten them. That's really disappointing because I have always felt that they were a team that was not really better than we were. They have really frustrated me as a coach because I feel as a team we should be able to beat them."

But before the Tigers even begin to worry about their rumble in the jungle with the Lions, they will first have to take on an impressive Cornell team, currently third in the Ivy League standings. An early loss to Cornell could be damning for Princeton's prospects this weekend.

"A lot of how we play the first game determines how we play the second game," Barron said. "That's one of the toughest things about the Ivy League."

Challenging match-ups

Though the Big Red suffered its third league loss last weekend to Brown, it also captured an important win against Yale the next day and should prove to be an opponent more challenging than matching linens and tweeds.

"Cornell is a blue-collar team," Barron said. "They just scrap and don't always look pretty, but they are often successful because of their aggressiveness and intensity."

In trying to realize these victories, Princeton will look not to a few standouts that have been carrying the team, but to its entire roster for the energy needed to pull off two wins.

Get the best of the ‘Prince’ delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe now »

"We are a team relying on only ten healthy bodies," Barron said. "We have to rely on everybody and have everyone give us as much as they can. Right now we're a team where we need everybody to contribute and lead."

With the tone of the season at stake, Princeton will try to build from its failures and move back into a competitive spot in the Ivies.

"I think that our kids will respond well to the challenges our coaches have given them this week," Barron said. "I expect them to play with a lot of energy and urgency, and I certainly think we're capable of winning these two games."