The women's basketball team played its final two home games of the regular season this weekend, hosting the Princeton Tigers on Friday and the Penn Quakers on Saturday. Sadiea Williams '11 came up big, totaling 24 points over the two games, but Brown (3-23, 1-11 Ivy) still finished the weekend with two losses.
In Friday's game, Princeton (12-12, 7-4 Ivy) grabbed a double-digit halftime lead on the way to a 61-38 rout of Bruno, and Saturday's game was a grind from beginning to end, with Penn (9-16, 5-6 Ivy) eventually pulling out a 55-48 overtime victory.
Princeton 61, Brown 38
Against the Tigers, Williams led the Bears with 13 points and seven rebounds. In the first half the Bears were able to stay competitive with the Tigers, who shot 55 percent from the field. Midway through the half the Bears trailed by nine points, 17-8, but back-to-back jumpers from Williams brought the Bears to within five with 8:58 left in the half. But the Tigers were able to regain control to close out the half with a 10-point lead, 29-19.
At the start of the second half, costly turnovers combined with a scoring drought for Brown enabled Princeton to build its lead to 41-19 just five minutes after
intermission.
"We didn't come out strong in the second half," said Head Coach Jean Burr. "They pushed the ball inside in the first five minutes. Then we started going for steals and they took advantage."
Princeton's 12-0 run to start the second half would prove to be the deciding factor in the game, as the Bears were unable to lift themselves out of the hole. Over the last 10 minutes of the half Brown pushed the ball more and was able to shave some points off the Tigers' lead, but it was too little too late. Brown would get to within 13 points with three minutes remaining, but the Tigers hung finished with a 61-38 win.
"We moved the ball too slowly on offense," Burr said. "A balanced attack is our strength. Moving the ball in and out of the post (to) open up the next shot. We needed to move the ball more to break down the defense and make them work harder."
Brown out-rebounded Princeton, 35-32, on the night. Co-captain Amy Ehrhart '09, a former Herald sports editor, had a game-high eight boards, chipped in six points and
helped to create turnovers at the defensive end.
Penn 55, Brown 48 (OT)
The final home game of the season, which the Bears lost in overtime, brought the Penn Quakers to the Pizzitola Center on Saturday evening.
Ehrhart played a strong defensive game, forcing consecutive turnovers midway through the first frame. Brown held a five-point lead until the two-minute mark of the first half, when Penn closed out the half on a 6-2 run to cut Bruno's lead to 20-19 at the half.
"We did a good job of defending in the post," Williams said. "We wanted to keep the ball out of their main scorers' hands. It was important to attack the key players."
The Bears made sure they would not have a repeat performance from the previous night, as they came out strong in the second half. Though Penn took the lead, the Bears kept the game within reach.
Midway through the second half, with Penn clinging to a 34-31 lead, Williams blocked a shot to start a fast break, leading to a lay-up by Courtney Lee '10 that brought the Bears to within one.
Just two minutes later, with Brown putting on a full-court press, Williams stole the ball, one of her four steals of the night, and handed it off to Karly Grace '11, who buried a three from the right side to give Brown its first lead of the half, 37-36.
"We definitely like to put on the press and force turnovers to create momentum, which leads to opportunities to score," Williams said. "We work well together on the floor to do that."
Penn came back with two quick buckets to grab a three-point lead, but Brown was able to slow down the tempo and stay within three. With just two minutes left, Williams was fouled on her way to the basket and converted a three-point play to tie the game at 44.
Williams then had a chance to win the game in the final seconds of regulation when she stole the ball and got off a last-second shot, but it just missed the mark, forcing the game into overtime, still tied.
Penn grabbed the lead early in the five-minute overtime session, but the Bears continued to fight, and with just 26 seconds remaining Lee was able to break the defense and cut to the rim to bring the Bears within two.
That would be as close as Brown would get, as a costly turnover created another basket for the Quakers, who then iced the game with good shooting from the charity stripe, leading them to a 55-48 win in overtime.
"Even with the loss we gave a lot of heart," Williams said. "Our team goal is to play 40 minutes and we did, just not 45 minutes. We worked really hard in honor of our seniors."
Williams once again led the Bears with 11 points, and added six rebounds and four steals, while Christina Johnson '10 added 10 points and six rebounds of her own. After the game the Bears honored seniors Ehrhart and Jaclyn Goldbarg '09 for their four-year careers for the Brown women's basketball program.
"It is going to be tough to lose our seniors, and (it) will change the dynamic of the team," Williams said. "They are both such good people on and off the court."
The Bears will head to Harvard and Dartmouth next weekend to face their final Ivy opponents and close out the season.
