W. hoops falls to Bears, tops Elis

For three years, even as her team struggled mightily, Becky Brown has been a pillar of consistency in the middle of the women's basketball lineup.

The junior center turned in three more stellar performances over the past week, surpassing 1,000 points for her Princeton career and leading the Tigers (9-6 overall, 1-1 Ivy League) to two victories in three games.

With the victories, Princeton exceeded its win total of last year and matched its total of two seasons ago, with nearly half the season still left to be played.

The Tigers traveled to Easton, Pa., to face Lafayette (3-17) on Jan. 25 for their first game in 20 days. Yet Princeton showed no signs of rust from its time off, handily defeating the Leopards, 82-72, for its eighth win of the season.

Brown scored a game-high 24 points, and the Tigers shot 54 percent from the field as a team to overwhelm the home-standing Leopards. Princeton led by as many as 23 points before Lafayette closed the gap in garbage time.

Brown didn't win the game alone, however. As has been common this season, Princeton received key contributions from multiple players, including several off the bench. Junior guard Katy O'Brien was strong from behind the arc, hitting four-of-eight attempts, and freshman forward Meghan Cowher continued the high level of play she has demonstrated all season, sinking 15 points.

The performance of sophomore forward Casey Lockwood was another bright spot for the Tigers. In her first game since tearing her ACL last spring, she came off the bench to score nine points in just 11 minutes.

Although Princeton dominated the game and was always a step ahead of the Leopards, the Orange and Black experienced some defensive difficulties containing Lafayette's Lindsay Myers, who scored 22 points. Just as importantly, she grabbed seven rebounds, three of them offensive. For the night, Lafayette outrebounded Princeton, 34-30.

"We still need to work on rebounding," junior forward Ali Smith said, "which is where we got outworked this weekend."

But despite the minor flaws, the Tigers sailed past Lafayette and recorded their sixth consecutive victory — the program's longest winning streak since the 1998-1999 season.

Elevated and optimistic after the win, the Tigers hoped to match that year's streak when they traveled to Providence, R.I., to open their Ivy League season Friday night.

But the Bears (11-6, 3-1), traditionally a strong presence in the Ivy League, had other plans. After the lead bounced back-and-forth for much of the night, Brown eeked out a 63-62 win.

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With two seconds left in the fourth quarter, sophomore forward Katy Digovich sank two free throws, tying the game at 62. However, as soon as the ball was inbounded, Brown's Andrea Conrad was fouled and sent to the line, giving the Bears their winning shot.

For the night, Brown scored 19 points and grabbed eight rebounds. O'Brien and Cowher chipped in 12 and 11 points, respectively. Colleen Kelly led the Bears with 21 points.

Despite the tough loss, Princeton's energy and intensity over 40 minutes was a testament to how far the program has come this year. After losing a number of games earlier in the year because players could not keep up with their opponents for the entirety of the game, head coach Richard Barron wanted to improve the stamina of his team's intensity. So far, it seems to have proven a successful goal and strategy.

"I think we came out with a lot of energy this weekend, much more than we have the past two years I've been here, which is exciting," Smith said.

This was especially evident when the Tigers instantly rebounded from their loss at Brown to defeat Yale (3-14, 0-4) the following night, 56-52, in New Haven, Conn. Although it was another close game that again game down to the final minutes of competition, this time Princeton had the privilege of sinking the last basket.

The Tigers led by double-digits half way through the second half, but a 12-2 run brought the Elis back into the game. Down the stretch, Princeton won the game with defense.

Once again, Brown led the way offensively, scoring 16 points and adding six rebounds. Cowher and Digovich each also grabbed six boards, while chipping in 13 and 10 points, respectively.

Princeton returns to action Tuesday night, welcoming traditional Ivy League heavyweight Penn (9-6, 2-0) to Jadwin Gym at 7:30 p.m.