NEW YORK — Dartmouth's Isalys Quinones hit two free throws with 4.7 seconds left and Columbia junior Janiya Clemmons' drive at the buzzer came up empty as the Lions dropped a heartbreaker, 70-69, Saturday evening in Ivy League women's basketball action at Levien Gymnasium.
Columbia (6-13, 2-4 Ivy), which led by as many as 11 in the second half, retook the lead when first-year Madison Hardy was fouled on a 3-point attempt and converted all three at the charity stripe with 13.4 seconds remaining. Dartmouth's Cy Lippold found Quinones down low on the ensuing possession, who missed her shot under the basket but earned a trip to the line as the officials called first-year Sienna Durr for a foul sliding over. Quinones made both and finished the night with a team-high 21 points.
The Lions had one last chance to win the game as they called for time and advanced the ball to the frontcourt. First-year Mikayla Markham found Clemmons up top, who drove left with time winding down but was met by three Big Green defenders trying to get a shot off. The attempt hit the bottom of the backboard as the buzzer sounded.
"We were completely undisciplined, which happened a little bit yesterday too, but we had a big enough lead in that game and held onto it," Columbia head coach Megan Griffith stated. "We lost our heads in this game and I was disappointed … Dartmouth has three kids that can hit some pretty big shots down the stretch and full credit to them on coming away with the win."
A day after scoring a career-high 21 points in a win over Harvard, Clemmons continued to impress with a new career-high of 23 points on 8-of-11 shooting. She started the game 6-for-6 from the field to help the Lions go up by as many as a dozen, 28-16, in the second quarter. Durr scored 15 points while Hardy tallied 14 off the bench and Casey added 13.
Dartmouth (10-9, 3-3 Ivy) tied the score for the first time entering the fourth quarter and took its first lead of the night with 9:18 to go. The Lions entered the final five minutes down by six but back-to-back triples by Hardy and sophomore Riley Casey tied things at 61 with 3:39 remaining.
Quinones answered with an old-fashioned 3-point play and hit a crucial 3-point shot with just over two minutes to go and the shot clock winding down to give the Big Green a four-point lead.
Columbia chipped back and found itself down two, 68-66, as Dartmouth inbounded with less than 30 seconds left. The Lions came up with a timely steal that resulted in Hardy's three free throws to take the lead.
"We really wanted to try and get into our transition game but we didn't execute that as well as we would have wanted," said Hardy, who has recorded all seven of her double-figure scoring games this season off the bench. "We also really wanted to win the boards this game and we didn't do that either. We've got to get back to practice, lock into those details and get a different outcome next time."
Columbia was outrebounded, 38-22, as Dartmouth turned 14 offensive rebounds into 11 second chance points. Paula Lenart gathered a game-high 14 and completed a double-double with 11 points. Quinones (21) and Lippold (20) were Dartmouth's leading scorers.
The Lions raced out to a 9-0 lead, scoring all nine points off four Dartmouth turnovers. The Big Green turned it over 18 times on the night and Columbia took advantage of it, outscoring the visitors 26-10 in points off turnovers.
After playing its last five games at home, Columbia hits the road for four straight, beginning with a trip to Yale and Brown next Friday and Saturday. Friday's tip against the Bulldogs is set for 6 p.m., followed by a Saturday night showdown against the Bears at 7 p.m. Both games are available on ESPN+.
POST-GAME NOTES
- The game was the first decided by one point between the two teams since Feb. 9, 2002, when the Lions come away on top, 67-66, in Hanover.
- First-year Mikayla Markham had five assists to register her 13th game of the season with at least five.
- Columbia made 10 threes (10-25) in a game for the sixth time this season.
- Janiya Clemmons extended her double-figure scoring streak to five games. Riley Casey extended her streak to nine.
- The game was Columbia's annual Play4Kay game. The Lions wore pink headbands and warm-ups in support of the Kay Yow Cancer Fund and its mission is to extend and improve the lives of those who are battling cancer.
