Final Road Trip Of The Season
NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Two weeks after a pair of comeback losses in the Lee Amphitheater, the Yale women's basketball team has a chance for revenge when it travels north to play Harvard on Friday and Dartmouth on Saturday in the final road trip of the season.
The Bulldogs (11-16, 2-8 Ivy) tip-off with the Crimson at 7 p.m., a game that can be seen on ESPN3 and the Ivy League Digital Network. The next night, the Elis face the Big Green at 6 p.m. in the 2015-16 road finale, also available on ILDN.
The recent four-game home stand ended with two losses to Princeton and Penn, the Ivy League's top two teams. The Elis fell to the Tigers in a high-scoring bout on Friday, 94-81, and dropped Saturday's matchup to Penn, 77-59.
Sophomore guard Tamara Simpson (North Babylon, N.Y.) scored a career-high 28 points on 11-of-25 shooting in the loss to Princeton, while junior guard Lena Munzer (Highland Park, Ill.) netted a career-best 20 points (5-of-7 3FG) against the Quakers.
Simpson and Munzer provided the bright spots of the weekend, carrying the offensive load on both nights. The pair was named to the Ivy League Weekly Honor Roll on Feb. 22 for their performances.
Senior forward Nyasha Sarju (Seattle, Wash.) continues to be the team's leading scorer with 15.1 points per game, good for fifth-best in the Ivy League. She is averaging 12.7 points in Ivy League games, while Simpson has a team-high 14.6 points in league play.
Solid bench contributions were received this weekend from junior forward Katie Werner (Phoenix, Ariz.) and sophomore guard Mary Ann Santucci (Seattle, Wash.). Santucci dished-out a game-high five assists in the loss to Penn.
Werner had a breakout game with 14 points and nine rebounds in 30 minutes off the bench against the Quakers – including six offensive rebounds. She is averaging 2.3 offensive boards per game, fifth-most in the league.
In the first meeting with the Crimson and Big Green, the Bulldogs led by 20 or more points in each game. Second-half surges by the visitors led to two close finishes – a 68-63 loss to Dartmouth and a 72-69 loss to Harvard.
Yale looks to snap its current eight-game losing streak on the road this weekend when it gets a rematch with the two teams who earned comeback victories in the Lee Amphitheater. With just four games remaining on the schedule, every game counts.
Scouting the Harvard Crimson
The Crimson (12-11, 7-3 Ivy) are on a four-game winning streak after wins over Columbia and Cornell this past weekend, giving them momentum heading into Friday's game with the Bulldogs.
Forward AnnMarie Healy leads the team with 16 points per game, while guard Shilpa Tummala is second-best with 12.4 points per contest. Harvard leads the Ivy League in three-pointers made (6.8) and attempted (21.8) per game.
Harvard has won the last eight meetings with Yale. The last victory in the series for the Elis came on Jan. 27, 2012. In the first matchup this season, Healy scored 18 points and the Crimson had a 41-29 scoring advantage in the second half.
Report on the Dartmouth Big Green
The Big Green (11-15, 6-4 Ivy) have also won four straight games, picking up home wins over Cornell and Columbia this past weekend. After starting league play with a 2-4 mark, it now is 6-4 and in fourth place in the Ivy League.
Forward Lakin Roland leads the team with 16 points per game, while guard Kate Letkewicz is averaging 12.2 points per contest. Roland scored 15 of her 24 points in the fourth quarter against Yale on Feb. 12, leading Dartmouth's comeback efforts.
Defense has been the strength, as Dartmouth is ranked last in the Ivy League in scoring (54.8 per game), but is allowing the third-fewest points to opposing teams (59.9).
Bulldogs by the Numbers
Forcing Mistakes: Yale remains to be productive on defense, forcing opponents into 17.3 turnovers per game, the second-highest total in the Ivy League. Simpson leads the league with 3.2 steals per game.
20-Point Games: There have been 10 scoring performances this season of 20 or more points by Yale players. Sarju leads with six, and a season-high total of 30 points against Dayton, while Simpson has three and Munzer has one.
Ivy Recognition: Simpson is now a 10-time selection on the Ivy League Weekly Honor Roll this season, four more than Sarju, who has the second-most with six. Senior captain Whitney Wyckoff (West Chester, Ohio) has five.
Filed by Steve Lewis, Yale Sports Publicity
