Early scoring leads to easy victory

It is certainly a truism that size matters in basketball, perhaps more than in any other game. Size, after all, is the reason Shaquille O'Neal is one of the richest athletes in the world. It is why an otherwise anonymous youth born in Shanghai was forced to play basketball by his nation's government and went on to become arguably the NBA's best pivotman.

The women's basketball team (3-3 overall) came into its matchup against the New Jersey Institute of Technology (2-4) last night knowing that the two teams measured up equally in the only statistic that truly matters: wins. In taking this game, 75-51, the Tigers clearly formulated a strategy that relied on their size advantage over the Highlanders.

The offense started sluggishly, with only five points in the first four minutes. Size, however, came to the rescue in the form of six-foot-one junior forward Meagan Cowher. Coming out of a timeout with 15 minutes, 45 seconds remaining in the first half, Cowher responded with two consecutive baskets in the paint — the first on a difficult turnaround jumper and the second on a layup — to put the Tigers up 9-2.

The Orange and Black, unable to find its rhythm in the perimeter game early in the contest, relied on their size and pounded NJIT in the low post. Besides Cowher, who provided a stable presence for the team in the block, junior center Ariel Rogers presented a difficult matchup for the Highlanders.

NJIT clearly did not have anyone who could counter Rogers' combination of size and speed. On one fast break, Rogers took the ball down the court against three NJIT defenders. Despite being outnumbered, Rogers forced the Highlanders to foul her, earning two easy shots from the charity stripe.

As the defense keyed in on defending the basket, the three-point line suddenly became friendlier territory. Sophomore guard Jessica Berry nailed two straight shots from downtown — from the exact same spot, in fact — to put the Tigers up 29-15 at one point. Both shots came off passes from the post.

This trend, which began in the first half, continued as Princeton opened up the second with a veritable rain of threes. Sophomore forward Whitney Downs and junior forward Ali Prichard both nailed shots that gave the team a 45-23 margin.

The Tigers would end up shooting 11 for 23 from beyond the arc, a number made possible by all the attention Princeton's post players commanded down low.

The Tigers' one persistent issue on offense was turnovers, a problem that has plagued the Princeton offense this year. Against Northwestern and Cincinnati last weekend, the team suffered from a 43-29 turnover deficit that played a decisive role in the Tigers' two losses. The story was no different in this game, as Princeton suffered from several errant passes and traveling violations.

This game, the team gave up 18 turnovers, a number that head coach Richard Barron saw as unacceptable.

"That happens when you rush," he said. "It happens when you don't hold onto the ball."

The Tigers' defense, however, was outstanding throughout the game. Good communication — and a few inches of wingspan that the Highlanders weren't expecting — allowed Princeton to accumulate several steals in the first half which the team successfully translated into fast-break points.

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The Tigers play several players who are at least six feet tall, a group that includes Cowher, Rogers and senior captain Casey Lockwood. For the women of NJIT, passing the ball across court was as easy as throwing it through a chain-link fence.

Rogers, who notched two steals in the game, saw the thefts as a result of defensive pressure.

"It's about being aggressive," she said. "So we dictate what they do, rather than reacting to what they do."

Ultimately, it is qualities like aggression and intensity that will determine Princeton's fate. Though the team was able to exploit its size advantage here, Barron stressed that the team will not always dominate in that arena.

"We have some big wings," Barron said. "But when we were playing well, we were playing well because of intensity."

Barron will likely repeat these lessons again and again until they become second nature for the Tigers. Then, and only then, will Princeton be able to see how it truly sizes up.