PRINCETON, N.J. — Columbia women's basketball's furious second-half rally fell just short as Princeton held on, 65-59, Saturday night in Ivy League action at Jadwin Gymnasium.
Columbia (7-16, 3-7 Ivy) trailed by as many as 24 points in the first half before outscoring Princeton (15-9, 7-2 Ivy) 25-12 on 65-percent shooting in the third quarter. They came within a possession of tying the score in the fourth quarter after a 3-point play by first-year Sienna Durr capped a 35-14 stretch of play and made the score 59-56 with 5:51 remaining.
The Tigers, which went 0-for-11 shooting as Columbia made its run in the fourth quarter, did just enough to hang on as Columbia could only score three points the rest of the way.
"A comeback like that doesn't happen on accident when you play with as much fire and intensity as we did in the second half," Columbia head coach Megan Griffith said. "The players started steering the ship again – it wasn't me or the staff. It was nice to see us playing our way."
Janiya Clemmons led the way, posting a game-high 20 points on 10-of-21 shooting. Riley Casey added 15 points while first-year Sienna Durr finished with eight points and a game-high nine boards.
The Lions turned a 21-point halftime deficit to a 57-49 game by the end of the third quarter. Columbia went on a 16-2 run, sparked by five-straight points from sophomore Andrea McCormick to pull within single digits for the first time since the first quarter. Bella Alarie registered the Tigers' first field goal of the quarter to stop the rally, but the Lions were able to keep the margin eight off a 3-pointer by Stephanie Flynn and jumper off the hands of Clemmons heading to the fourth.
Clemmons continued to carry the offensive load, scoring the first two baskets of the final period. An old-fashioned 3-point play from Durr pulled the Lions within 59-56 at the 5:51 mark.
Carlie Littlefield ended a 5:57 Princeton scoring drought and Columbia stalled on offense to prevent creeping any closer. Gabrielle Rush sank a pair of free throws with 25 seconds to play to seal the win.
Columbia held Alarie to 14 points on 5-of-16 shooting after she scored an Ivy League-record 45 points when the two teams met earlier this season in New York.
"We challenged our kids to step up and threw some different coverages at her to get the ball out of her hands early," Griffith added. "It really came down to our bigs playing some solid one-on-one defense, which is a major growth point for us."
Mikayla Markham's 3-pointer with 6:34 to go in the first made it 8-8 before Princeton broke away. The Tigers shot 61.8 percent and scored eight points off eight Columbia turnovers to race out to a 25-14 lead after one quarter.
A 13-2 run capped by a Rush 3-pointer put Princeton in front by 24 with 1:34 left before the half. Casey ended the rally with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from just inside half court to make it 45-24 at the break.
The Lions look forward to their final two home games next Friday and Saturday at Levien Gymnasium. The weekend begins against Brown Friday night at 7 p.m. Senior Night will be celebrated Saturday against Yale prior to the 5 p.m. tip.
"We have a lot to play for still," Griffith said. "It's not just for the Ivy Tournament, it's for our program. That's something that they need to be proud of and that's what we talked about in the locker room."
POST-GAME NOTES
- Janiya Clemmons registered her fourth 20-point game in her last six outings.
- Riley Casey tallied her 30th career double-figure scoring game.
- The Lions matched Princeton, 32-32, in the paint after the Tigers outscored them 50-24 on Feb. 1 in New York.
- Columbia is two games back of an Ivy League Tournament spot heading into its final four games.
- Princeton won its 22nd consecutive series meeting. The margin of victory was the slimmest since Princeton won by five at Jadwin Gymnasium in 2009.
