Women’s basketball dominates in Nashville, beating Belmont 70–58

The Princeton Tigers (9–1 overall, 0–0 Ivy League) travelled down south this weekend and came home winners, taking down the Belmont Bruins (4–5 overall, 0–0 MVC) 70–58 in Nashville. The Tigers stood their ground the entire game and secured a seemingly effortless win.

The Tigers started off strong with a 15–8 lead thanks to two early three-pointers by junior guard Ashley Chea. Even with the Bruins’ seven turnovers in the first quarter and the Tigers’ strong start, the second quarter ended with the Tigers only five points ahead, leaving the game up for grabs.

This proved to be the spark the Tigers needed to pull ahead of the Bruins in the second half. Junior guard Madison St. Rose extended the Tiger lead with a three-pointer early in the third quarter to put the Tigers 13 points ahead.

“After halftime, I decided to stay confident and keep shooting while also increasing the intensity/energy that I was playing with,” said junior forward Olivia Hutcherson.

The Tigers began the third quarter with strong defense and held the Bruins from scoring for the first 5:52 of the third quarter. The Bruins fought back with back-to-back threes, bringing Belmont to an eight-point deficit at 53–45.

“I think that our transition offense allowed us to maintain the lead over Belmont,” Hutcherson said to the ‘Prince.’ “Although there were times that we had defensive lapses, we were able to push the ball up the court and find open teammates to get good shots.”

Hutcherson was essential going into the fourth quarter, scoring a basket and two free throws for a career-high 19 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. Some other key players in this game were St. Rose with 15 points and junior forward Fadima Tall with 14 points. Tall and Hutcherson both secured a double-double, with Tall also finishing with 11 rebounds.

“We’re led by great captains and upperclassmen. I think the team is having a lot of fun playing together, being with each other, whether we’re home or on the road and I think we’re taking steps each day to get better,” said Head Coach Carla Berube.

Support nonprofit student journalism. Donate to the ‘Prince’. Donate now »

For the remaining 6:45 minutes of the game, Belmont was only able to score one basket, and the Tigers maintained their lead. The Orange and Black finished the fourth quarter with an 11-point lead, bringing the score to 65–54.

“Looking ahead, I’m super excited for the rest of the season. I think we’ve had great energy and have stuck together through tough games, so I’m excited for the next few out-of-conference games and Ivy season,” Hutcherson told the ‘Prince.’ “The biggest factor in maintaining my success is being consistent with my attitude and effort.”

Princeton is set to play against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights (7–3 overall, 0–1 Big Ten) on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. Tiger fans will look to see the team continue the strong performance they’ve demonstrated this season.

“We’re not satisfied with where we’re at, we’re hungry for more,” said Berube.