In the team’s first appearance in the Ivy League Women’s Basketball Tournament since 2017, the women’s basketball team (16-11, 8-6 Ivy) saw its season come to a close on Friday. Despite a comeback effort in the second half that briefly swung momentum in Brown’s favor, the team fell 65-51 to No. 23 Princeton (26-3, 12-2 Ivy) in the semifinal in Ithaca.
After narrowly clinching the last seed in Ivy Madness, Bruno took the trip to Ithaca for a tough matchup against the nationally-ranked and first-seed Princeton.
“We certainly understand that it’s going to be a battle, a game of runs,” Head Coach Monique LeBlanc said in a pre-game press conference. “We certainly want to come out swinging.”
Despite the sentiment, it was the Tigers who landed the first blows early on.
Brown won the opening tip, but Princeton capitalized on a sloppy turnover with crisp perimeter passing that freed up space beyond the arc for a three.
The Bears struggled to find rhythm on offense in the opening minutes. Missed opportunities piled up, including a layup attempt in the paint and a missed three. While Brown created moments of defensive energy — including a quick steal by guard Olivia Young ’27 and a strong defensive block by forward Ada Anamekwe ’26 — the Bears were unable to convert effectively on the offensive end.
Following a three-pointer by Young, Princeton steadily extended its lead with strong ball movement and multiple screens. This allowed the Tigers to knock down another three and convert an offensive rebound into a short jump shot.
For 14 Tiger points, Bruno was unable to break through Princeton’s defensive wall in the paint, and the Tigers continued to build separation in dominant fashion. A transition steal led to an easy bucket, and another Princeton three forced the Bears to call a timeout as Princeton led by a whopping 21-3 late in the first quarter.
Brown finally broke a lengthy scoring drought when forward Beth Nelson ’26 drained a three-pointer to end Princeton’s 16-0 run. But immediately after, the Tigers responded with a mid-range jumper, closing the quarter ahead 23-6.
Princeton carried that momentum into the second quarter, scoring back-to-back threes that shut down any Bruno hope coming out of the locker rooms. By that point, Princeton had connected on five of their first seven attempts from beyond the arc.
Despite the deficit, Bruno continued to battle and scoring on both sides of the court slowed. Guard Grace Arnolie ’26 created space off of the dribble for a smooth layup followed by a four-minute scoring drought. The Tigers restarted scoring, which was matched by Anamekwe’s full court attack ending in a foul and conversion of both free throws.
But the Bears struggled to capitalize on Princeton’s mistakes, unable to generate points even during a stretch of sloppy possessions from the Tigers midway through the quarter.
Just when all seemed grim, Brown found a small spark late in the half. Guard Charlotte Adams-Lopez ’29 had a steal with just 31 seconds remaining, and Arnolie knocked down a three-pointer to close the half. Even so, Princeton entered the break with a 36-14 lead.
Facing an uphill battle, Bruno refused to give up.
“We kind of just went at it with the sentiment of, we have nothing to lose right now,” Arnolie said in a post-game press conference.
Princeton opened the third quarter with a turnover, and Arnolie quickly took advantage by drilling a three-pointer. Although the Tigers briefly halted Brown’s push with an and-one that propelled an 8-0 run, the Bears soon caught fire from deep.
Nelson knocked down a three before Princeton answered with one of its own. Arnolie responded with another, and moments later, Nelson intercepted a pass to assist Arnolie for yet another three. Catching the Tigers on their heels, the momentum continued to swing towards Bruno. Young added two threes, both assisted by Adams-Lopez.
This scoring frenzy — which trimmed the Bears’ deficit to 47-32 — electrified the Brown bench as Princeton called a timeout.
The Bruno defense continued to apply pressure, forcing errant passes and rushed possessions. At one point, Princeton even had to launch a desperate half-court heave as the shot clock expired.
The Bears’ run eventually stretched to 14 unanswered points before Princeton finally broke through with a jump shot. Nonetheless, Brown finished the third quarter strong, outscoring Princeton 22-17 in the period.
Brown’s momentum carried briefly into the fourth quarter, with Nelson scoring her third three-pointer of the game off of an assist from Arnolie.
After both teams threw a series of missed baskets, Bruno sank two baskets with two free throws by Young to keep Brown within striking distance. Princeton answered immediately with a driving layup before extending the lead again from the free-throw line late in the game.
But Brown still refused to give up. Arnolie knocked down another three after a quick inbound play, and Young finished an and-one opportunity, though the free throw rimmed out.
Despite Brown’s best efforts, the final seconds were all orange and black, and Princeton sealed the game at the line as Bruno’s late three-point attempts fell short.
Isabella Wesley ’29 provided one final highlight with a buzzer-beater layup to end the game 61-51.
Princeton claimed the Ivy League title on Saturday after defeating third-seeded Harvard (18-11, 10-4 Ivy) 63-53.
“I believe the future of our program is really bright,” LeBlanc said in a post-game press conference. “I’m looking forward to continuing to compete to bring this team back to Ivy Madness.”
Harry Guo is a senior staff writer and on the vertical video and design teams. He is from Andover, Massachusetts, and plans on concentrating in Business Economics and International and Public Affairs. In his free time, he enjoys writing poetry and playing poker.
