NEW HAVEN, Conn. — Junior Janiya Clemmons and sophomore Riley Casey each scored 20 points but it wasn't enough to carry the Columbia women's basketball team to victory. Yale used a 9-0 fourth-quarter run to take control and hang on, 69-61, Friday night at Lee Amphitheater.

Columbia (6-14, 2-5 Ivy) took a two-point lead with less than 6:00 remaining but Yale (15-7, 5-2 Ivy) scored the next nine points and held the Lions to 1-of-10 shooting the rest of the way. Casey was fouled on a 3-point attempt with 31 seconds left and cut the deficit to four points by making all three free throws. However, the Bulldogs added four free throws in the last 21 seconds to bring the game to its final margin.

"These close games come down to the aggregate of all the small stuff," head coach Megan Griffith stated. "We've gotten a lot better at playing late and have started to execute like a veteran team. We just keep harping on all the small things throughout the game … When a team sticks to a game plan – I though Yale did a good job of playing the scout – that's when you win games."

Casey and Clemmons were the highlight for the Lions. Casey finished with a team-high 23 points and hit 6-of-12 attempts from 3-point range, including back-to-back 3-balls to bring the Lions back from seven points down in the third quarter. Clemmons recorded her first collegiate 20-10-5 game with 21 points, a game-high 12 rebounds and five assists. She tied her career-highs in both rebounds and assists while registering her third consecutive 20-point performance on a 10-of-20 shooting night.

"Janiya was excellent today," Griffith added. "I thought she came out hungry and came out firing. The big thing I've seen with Jay and Riley is that they are playing offensively free and not getting into foul trouble. They're staying in the flow of the game while some of our younger players are struggling with foul trouble. When you're not staying on the floor it's hard to get into a rhythm."

First-year Sienna Durr tallied seven points and six boards but was limited to 23 minutes due to foul trouble. First-year point guard Mikayla Markham also picked up seven points while fellow rookie Sydney Brown was the lone Lion to score off the bench with three.

Yale was led offensively by junior Roxy Barahman, who went for a game-high 25 points along with 10 rebounds and five assists. Barahman entered the weekend averaging an Ivy League-best 19.6 points per game. First-year Camilla Emsbo had 17 points and eight rebounds while first-year Tori Andrew rounded out the double-figure scorers with a dozen. Andrew added a game-high six assists.

Columbia continued its recent trend of starting hot, scoring the first 10 points Friday night in New Haven. After both teams took a few shots to find the basket, first-year Mikayla Markham hit a triple and the Lions were off and running. Clemmons scored four of the run's final seven points around a Riley Casey 3-pointer to make it 10-0 three minutes into the action.

Yale turned it over three times and had taken just two shots before getting on the board at the 6:41 mark on a Tori Andrew triple. The Bulldogs found their rhythm and held Columbia to just two points over the final 5:10 of the quarter to tie it up at 16.

Clemmons turned it up with nine second-quarter points, including a jumper through contact to tie the game at 23. She scored five of Columbia's final eight points on her way to a 15-point half. She and Casey (11) were each in double figures with Columbia down just a point at the break.

Both sides came out firing in the second half. Yale hit back-to-back threes off the hands of Barahman and Megan Gorman to score 15 points in less than five minutes and take a seven-point lead. The Lions held them off the scoreboard over the next 4:30, pulling back within one off two Casey triples before tying things up on Sydney Brown's fourth 3-ball of the season heading into the fourth quarter.

The game played to two more ties and three lead changes over the opening five minutes of the fourth quarter. However, Yale delivered one last 9-0 blow that carried it to the finish line.

Columbia looks to bounce back Saturday as it heads to Providence to take on Brown (9-14, 1-6 Ivy). The Bears are coming off a 12-point loss against Cornell Friday night. Saturday's tip is scheduled for 7 p.m. with the game set to be televised on NESN and streaming live on ESPN+.

POST-GAME NOTES

- Riley Casey registered her 10th consecutive double-figure scoring game which includes five 20-point performances.

- Casey's six triples marked the third time this season she has made at least five in a game.

- Clemmons recorded her first 20-10-5 game and has scored 20 points in three consecutive games after never scoring 20 points in her first 68 collegiate games.

- Clemmons has scored double figures in six straight games and seven of her last eight.

- Clemmons went 10-of-20 from the field, becoming the third Lion this season to make 10 field goals in a game.