NEW YORK – Columbia women's basketball (10-5, 1-1 Ivy) returns home for the opening of Ivy League back-to-backs, hosting Yale (12-3, 2-0 Ivy) and Brown (6-9, 0-2 Ivy) this weekend at Levien Gymnasium. Friday's game against the Bulldogs begins at 7 p.m., followed by Saturday's game against the Bears at 5 p.m. Both games will be televised live on SportsNet New York (SNY).

Fans looking for this weekend's game online can access them on ESPN+. Live stats will be provided by GoColumbiaLions.com. You can also receive live updates by following @CULionsWBB on Twitter.

NATIONAL GIRLS & WOMEN IN SPORTS DAY CLINIC
• The Lions will host a National Girls & Women in Sports Day Clinic on Saturday in the Blue Gym of Levien Gymnasium. The clinic begins at 2:30 p.m., prior to the 5 p.m. tip against Brown. Click here to register and for more information on the clinic.
  
OPENING TIPS
• The Lions are coming off an overtime defeat last Saturday at Cornell. Columbia led for nearly 29 minutes but a seven-point lead slipped away over the final 2:30 to force overtime. A shot at the buzzer by Abbey Hsu to force double overtime came up just short, handing the Big Red an 80-77 victory.

 • Columbia has won seven straight at home, tying the longest home winning streak in program history, last set in 1987-88. In their last game at Levien Gym, the Lions outscored the Big Red 28-15 in the final period to extend the streak to seven. It also marked the Lions' fifth fourth-quarter comeback of the year. 

• Over the course of its seven-game home winning streak, Columbia is outscoring opponents by an average 21.4 points per game and holding them to less than 52 points per game. The Lions have shot over 46 percent and held the opposition to under 35 percent. Additionally, they are outrebounding the opposition by 9.3 per contest. 

• Abbey Hsu scored a career-high 25 points last Saturday in Ithaca and is averaging 21.0 points over her first two league contests. The rookie ranks fourth in scoring in league play and is also top 10 on the season in scoring overall (13.2). Two weeks ago, she netted 17 in her Ivy League debut, the most by a Lion since Brianna Orlich scored 21 in her debut in 2011, helping Columbia defeat the Big Red, 61-54

QUICK NOTES
• Hannah Pratt ranks No. 4 in the Ivy League with 17 blocks (1.1/game).
• Kaitlyn Davis (12) and Sienna Durr (10) are also top 15 in the league in blocked shots.
• Hsu (13.2) and Durr (12.5) rank 10th and 12th, respectively, in the Ivy League in scoring.
• The Lions rank No. 26 nationally in 3-point defense (.269).
• Janiya Clemmons is No. 3 in the Ivy League in steals (31) and top five in steals per game (2.1).
• Columbia has shot better than its opponent in 12 of its 15 games.
• Columbia is 10-0 when holding the opponent to fewer than 70 points and 0-5 when opponent scores more.
• Columbia is 9-2 in day games and 6-2 on the weekend.
• Eight of Columbia's 10 wins have come when holding the opponent under 40 percent shooting.
• Saturday's game against Brown will mark the 100th game for head coach Megan Griffith.
 
EXTRAS FROM ITHACA
• Abbey Hsu's 25 points were second-most by a Lion this season (Sienna Durr: 31 at Buffalo).
• Hsu made five threes for the second straight game and marked her 10th game scoring in double figures.
• Janiya Clemmons scored in double figures for the 30th time in her career.
• Kaitlyn Davis came up with a career-high five assists.
• The overtime game marked Columbia's first in Ivy play since Jan. 27, 2017, when it went to quadruple overtime in a 91-88 victory at Dartmouth.
• Columbia had 20 or more assists for the fourth time this season, including three consecutive games.
 
BALANCED EFFORT
• Columbia ranks among the NCAA's top 100 in 10 statistical categories, including scoring offense (70.5), scoring margin (+8.1), field goal percentage (.432), field goal defense (.376), 3-point percentage (.332), 3-point defense (.269), rebounds per game (40.47), rebounding margin (+4.1), blocks per game (4.1) and assists per game (15.7).
 
• Columbia is the only team in the Ivy League that has four players rank inside the top 25 in scoring (Durr, Hsu, Clemmons, Pratt).
 
SCOUTING YALE
• The Bulldogs (12-3, 2-0 Ivy) have won six straight and are off to their best 15-game start in program history. Their six-game winning streak is the team's longest since 2016. Yale opened league play with a close 79-72 win over Brown at Lee Amphitheater, but dominated the Bears in the rematch in Providence, 73-40. Roxy Barahman leads the team in scoring and ranks No. 3 in the league at 16.1 ppg. Camille Emsbo (15.0) and Ellen Andrews (14.9) are also top 10 in scoring. Emsbo is No. 2 in the Ivy League in rebounding (8.7) and leads the league in field goal percentage (.560) and blocked shots (35). Barahman heads the league in steals (35).
 
SCOUTING BROWN
• Brown (6-9, 0-2 Ivy) has lost three straight, including its first two league games against Yale. The Bears' last win came at the end of December, defeating FIU by 15 in Miami. The win over the Panthers capped off a three-game winning streak. Justine Gaziano heads the team in scoring at 16.4 points per game and is second in 3-point field goal percentage (.408). Four Bears rank among the top 15 in the league in blocked shots, led by Haley Green with 13 total.
 
INSIDE COLUMBIA BASKETBALL PODCAST
• The Inside Columbia Basketball Podcast is back for second season. Columbia Athletics debuted the new podcast last season, which features weekly interviews with coaches and members of the men's and women's basketball programs. New episodes are available weekly on iTunes and SoundCloud.

THE IVY LEAGUE ON ESPN+
All home Columbia games and most Ivy League road contests will air on ESPN+ as part of The Ivy League's partnership with ESPN. ESPN+ is a new, subscription-based service that offers monthly ($4.99) and yearly ($49.99) plans. Click here to subscribe to ESPN+ and start your free trial! Click here for frequently asked questions about the Ivy League on ESPN.  

#ROADTOIVYMADNESS
• This year's Ivy League Men's and Women's Basketball Tournaments will be hosted by Harvard at Laveites Gymnasium. The top four men's and women's teams will earn berths to the tournament with the women's semifinals on Friday, March 13, and the championship on Saturday, March 14. All games will be broadcast live on ESPN's networks. For tickets and more information please visit IvyMadness.com.