Women's Basketball: Princeton hopes to run streak to 17

Saying that the women’s basketball team can win a game is like saying that Michael Jordan can make a free throw. Princeton (21-2 overall, 9-0 Ivy League) returns to Jadwin Gymnasium after a successful weekend in which it beat both Yale and Brown by more than 20 points. The Tigers face Cornell (6-17, 1-9) tonight at 7 p.m. and will host Columbia (15-9, 6-4) on Saturday at 6 p.m.

This year’s team has started out strong and has grown even stronger. Princeton’s 9-0 Ivy League record is unprecedented in program history — its previous best start was in the 1998-99 season, when the Tigers started off with a Ivy 6-0 record. Not only are the Tigers undefeated in the Ivy League, but they also are now one in just five Division I teams that have allowed only two losses, along with national powerhouses No. 1 Connecticut, No. 2 Stanford, No. 3 Nebraska and No. 4 Tennessee.

The Tigers are not just content with winning their games. They have set out on a record-setting season and have not turned back.

Princeton has now won 16 games in a row, beating its previous record of nine wins in a row, set in the 1977-78 season. The Tigers just tied the program record for most wins in a season with their 21st win of the year against Brown on Saturday. Princeton received 13 votes in the latest ESPN/USA Today poll and sits at No. 49 in the RPI.

The Tigers top the statistical charts in the Ivy League, leading in scoring offense, scoring defense, scoring margin, field goal percentage, rebounding margin, assists and turnover margin.

Princeton averages 70.8 points per game and has allowed an average of 51.3 points per game, for a scoring margin of 19.6. Princeton also shoots 44.8 percent from the floor.

Freshman forward Niveen Rasheed, who averages a team-high 15.6 points per game, leads the Tiger offense. Junior guard Addie Micir and sophomore guard Lauren Edwards are close behind Rasheed, averaging 12.9 and 12.3 points per game, respectively. The Tigers’ stellar defense is led by Rasheed, who has 53 steals, sophomore center Devona Allgood, who leads the team with 34 blocks, and Edwards, who has 29 steals and 26 blocks.

“This weekend is a very important weekend for us,” Allgood said. “It’s a continuation of the separation that we need to remain at the top, so it’s key that we enter these games mentally prepared. We certainly look forward to playing at home and hope that we can continue executing our game plan in front of our home crowd.”

The Tigers beat Cornell 72-49 last time the two teams played. Cornell has gone 1-14 in their last 15 games and currently sits in seventh place in the Ivy League. The Big Red averages 58.0 points per game and has shot 36.5 percent from the floor for a scoring margin of -11.2.

Cornell is led in scoring by Allie Fedorowicz, who averages 11.9 points per game. Allie Munson, who averages 5.4 rebounds per game and a team-high 13 blocks, leads the Big Red defense, along with Laura Benson and Fedorowicz, who both have recorded 24 steals.

Columbia currently shares the third-place spot in the Ivy League with Yale.

The last time the Lions played Princeton, the Orange and Black won 77-55. Columbia averages 66.0 points per game and is shooting 40.7 percent from the floor, for a scoring margin of +4.2.

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The Lions are led in scoring by Judie Lomax, who averages a league-leading 18.6 points and 13.8 rebounds per game. Lomax is also the nation’s leader in double-doubles and has a team-high 59 steals.

Last time the teams met, Princeton’s strong defense limited Lomax to just 11 points and nine rebounds.

Guard Kathleen Barry and center Lauren Dwyer have the next-highest scoring averages, contributing 11.2 and 10.6 points per game, respectively. Columbia is most likely to pose the stronger challenge for the Tigers this week.

With two more wins this weekend, Princeton can move within striking distance of the Ivy League title.