Women's Basketball: Tigers come close but return empty-handed

On Saturday, Princeton lost 75-53 to the No. 3 Golden Bears. Though the Tigers did not prevail against Cal, senior guard and captain Whitney Downs recorded a personal-best 24 points, a team-best six rebounds and five steals. She was also named to the all-tournament team, scoring a total of 39 points in two games. Downs is a former staff writer for The Daily Princetonian.

“Whitney Downs was outstanding both nights, on both ends of the ball. It’s the best I’ve ever seen her play,” head coach Courtney Banghart said in an e-mail. “She led the team in scoring and was the defensive catalyst both nights as well. Whitney always plays well in big games, as she’s not afraid of anybody and doesn’t back down from a challenge.”

The Tigers remained competitive during the first half. Both teams struggled in the first few minutes, but once they found their groove, they traded baskets until the end of the half. With 13 minutes left in the opening period, the Tigers and Golden Bears were tied at eight.

Cal took a double-digit lead with less than eight minutes left in the half, ahead 20-10. Princeton responded with five points, yet the Golden Bears scored seven more points to make the score 27-15. The Golden Bears entered halftime with a 39-22 lead.

“There were points in the game when they went on runs,” Downs said in an e-mail. “We had the toughness and poise to answer back and keep the game competitive down the stretch.”

Princeton’s offense brought a significantly different look in the second half, with the Tigers upping the aggression and taking more risks. Though Cal started with four points, Princeton narrowed the gap with 13 minutes left to 11 points.

The teams exchanged baskets until the Golden Bears went on a 16-point rally to cap their 75-53 win. Cal center Ashley Walker scored 23 points and pulled down a team-leading eight rebounds. Overall, the Golden Bears shot 55 percent, while the Tigers managed a respectable 50 percent from the field.

Senior guard Jess Berry and senior forward Julia Berger were both standouts for Princeton, with Berry contributing seven points and six assists. Berger and sophomore guard Addie Micir each tallied six points.

“The greatest challenge in playing a top-ranked team is that there is a very small margin of error on both ends of the floor,” Banghart said. “We have to take care of the basketball on the offensive end … so as to not allow easy baskets on the defensive end. And defensively, we have to be solid every possession. We believe strongly in the phrase ‘nothing easy.’ We executed that really well against Cal.”

On Sunday, the Tigers faced off against St. Louis in their second and last game of the tournament, losing a 53-51 contest.

At the start of the game, both teams had difficulty scoring, with Princeton going zero for seven and St. Louis one for five. The Billikens then rallied, bringing the score to 11-4 before Princeton responded. Freshman forward Lauren Edwards and Micir helped the Tigers narrow the gap, with Edwards shooting a basket and Micir making a jumper and a three-pointer.

With seven minutes left in the half, St. Louis marched to a 23-11 lead. Princeton then began closing the gap with the help of Downs, who hit a three-pointer to end a 12-0 St. Louis run.

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

Sophomore guard Krystal Hill made a layup with seconds left in the first half, tying the score at 25. St. Louis guard Katie Paganelli, however, hit a basket with one second remaining to give the Billikens a two-point halftime lead.

“Coming into the tournament, the biggest challenge was being able to stay focused and execute for back-to-back games, especially after facing the No. 3 team in the country on Saturday,” Downs said. “While we showed toughness on the defensive end and created variety and clean looks on offense, we need to continue to grow and knock down more shots when we are open.”

In the second half, the Tigers earned their first lead of the game thanks to Downs, leading by two with 13 minutes remaining. The game was neck-and-neck until the last few seconds, when Billiken guard Alisha Goodwin made a basket to give St. Louis the win.

“This weekend gave us an opportunity to play back-to-back games, a format we need to get used to before Ivy League play starts,” Downs said. “I think we learned that we can defend and execute offensively against high-quality opponents, so that should give us confidence.”