Women's Basketball: Tigers fall in NCAA opener

TALLAHASSEE, FLA., MARCH 20 — On Dec. 5, the women’s basketball team hosted a Big East school and lost by 10 points. Princeton hung with Rutgers in a physical game but made just 30 percent of its shots in the loss.

Then, for more than three months, the Tigers could not be beaten. Snowfall came and went, a decade began anew, Ivy League play started, and through it all, Princeton kept winning. After 21 consecutive victories, each one by double digits, the Tigers had earned the conference championship and the first NCAA tournament bid in program history.

But on Saturday, the magical ride ended the same way it had begun.

The venue was much different: the Tucker Center at Florida State University, almost a thousand miles south of Jadwin Gymnasium. The stakes were much higher: the first round of the NCAA tournament. But once again, No. 11-seed Princeton (26-3 overall, 14-0 Ivy League) battled hard but could not buy a bucket against a Big East team in red, ending its season with a 65-47 defeat at the hands of No. 6-seed St. John’s (25-6).

Princeton battled the Red Storm to a draw on the boards, only turned the ball over four more times and made more free throws than its opponent. But the Tigers made just 28.3 percent of their field goal attempts and hit just one of 10 three-pointers, both season lows. Meanwhile, St. John’s shot 45.8 percent from the floor, pulling away late in the first half and not letting up.

“If you would have told me that we would shoot 17-for-60 from the field, I would have certainly not believed you,” head coach Courtney Banghart said. “I have not seen them shoot that poorly in a practice or a game all year.”

The Tigers notoriously open games well — they outscored opponents 270-136 in the first five minutes of regular-season games — and got off to a promising start in their biggest game yet. They led the Red Storm 10-9 after five minutes, behind a pair of baskets each from two first-team Ivy League all-stars, freshman forward Niveen Rasheed and sophomore guard Lauren Edwards.

But that would be the last lead Princeton would hold. Speedy point guard Nadirah McKenith carved up the Princeton defense in transition, drew a foul and made the basket. She missed the free throw, but forward Coco Hart got the rebound and scored for a four-point possession. McKenith and Hart finished with 10 points each.

Some turnover woes enabled the Red Storm to add to its cushion, but with seven minutes left in the period, the game was still very much in doubt. From that point until the end of the half, however, Princeton made just one field goal, missing nine shots and two free throws. The dry spell enabled the Red Storm to go on a 13-2 game-deciding run and take a 16-point lead into the break.

Perhaps most frustrating was the fact that Princeton was generally getting the shots it wanted. St. John’s played tougher defense than any of the Tigers’ Ivy League opponents and forced a few low-percentage attempts, but for the most part, Princeton was getting the same looks it had been seeing all year: shots from a good position in the post, three-pointers with time and quality midrange chances. But all too often, the ball would go halfway down and pop right back out.

“One of my coaches when I was younger told me that if the ball hits the rim twice, it’s a good miss,” junior guard Addie Micir said. “We had a lot of good misses that just didn’t fall.”

Star forward Da’Shena Stevens scored seven consecutive points early in the second half, extending the Red Storm lead to 23 and just about ending any remaining uncertainty about the game’s outcome. Stevens finished with a game-high 19 points. The deficit hovered around 20 for most of the second period as St. John’s cruised to the 65-47 victory.

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In just about every aspect of the game besides shooting, Princeton played St. John’s very close. Ivy League teams generally have a reputation for being soft, but the Tigers proved otherwise. They battled the Red Storm tooth-and-nail for every loose ball and rebounded at the same rate as their Big East foes. Edwards in particular was very effective on the glass, pulling down a career-high 13 boards.

“We rebounded with a Big East team, and we’re tough,” Micir said. “A lot of people think Ivy League students wouldn’t do that. We banged and we battled. Things just didn’t go our way.”

The Tigers were also able to control the tempo. The Red Storm likes to push the pace and get transition baskets, but this game featured just 66 possessions, seven fewer than St. John’s season average.

Up and down the lineup, Princeton couldn’t get shots to fall. Rasheed (5-14 from the field), Edwards (3-14) and sophomore center Devona Allgood (3-10) shot well below their usual averages — each ranked in the top four in the Ivy League in field goal percentage — and sharpshooter Micir went just 1-10 and missed all five of her three-point attempts.

But the future looks very bright for the Tigers. All five starters will return next season, and only two players off the Princeton bench will graduate. Banghart is known to be a great recruiter, so more talent will likely be entering the program. With the program on its strongest footing ever, the Tigers seem poised for another chance at playing in the postseason.