Cowher out for weekend pair

After suffering through a rigorous stretch of six games in 11 days, the women's basketball team travels to Cornell and Columbia this weekend in hopes of snapping a three-game losing skid.

"Without the chance to really practice, it seemed like our confidence was really shaken," head coach Richard Barron said. "However, there is a great deal we can learn from these games."

A lack of practice time isn't the only hurdle the Tigers (9-9 overall, 1-4 Ivy League) will have to overcome this weekend. They will be without freshman forward Meagan Cowher, who is incapacitated by a stress fracture in her foot.

Without Cowher, who has carried much of the scoring burden this season, junior forward Lauren Nestor will be called upon to take a larger role. With Cowher sitting out last weekend's losses to Dartmouth and Harvard, Nestor started both games and scored eight points in each contest, grabbing 11 rebounds in 37 minutes on Saturday night.

While Princeton's depth has been a strength this season, the team will have less room for error with Cowher sidelined. The Tigers will focus on moving the ball fluidly and at its own tempo, especially when employing its zone offense. They will also look to improve their field goal percentage, which is just 34.6 percent on the season.

Also in need of improvement is Princeton's consistency — the team has struggled to maintain its level of play for a full 40 minutes. After suffering two close losses to Brown and Penn, the Tigers have yet to prove that they can win tight games.

Cornell (2-17, 0-6) has had a rough season, and Princeton should be able to leave Ithaca, N.Y., with a win. But the Big Red roster is not without a few weapons. Freshman guard Lindsay Krasna has been named Ivy League Rookie of the Week six times.

Moving up

Columbia, the Tigers' Saturday night opponent, will pose a far more serious threat. The Lions (10-9, 3-3) are, like Princeton, vying to move from the middle of the league standings toward the top. Columbia beat Yale and lost to Brown last weekend, as the Tigers had done a week earlier.

Like Princeton, Columbia boasts several strong offensive threats, so the Tigers need to play good zone defense. On the other side of the court, Princeton's offensive sets need to be quick and purposeful, and the team must drain open shots.

"It was clearly a challenging stretch for our young team," Barron said. "We're trying to encourage our players to move more with the ball, especially on offense."

This weekend will be a gut-check for the young Princeton team, which will face two slightly more veteran squads. The games will test the Tigers' ability to bounce back from a disappointing losing streak and pick up their level of play. Although their confidence may be running low, the season is far from over.