Monday, November 7
Memphis, Tenn.
8:00 P.M.
Columbia
at
Memphis
Seniors Lilian Kennedy, Madison Hardy, Sienna Durr and Hannah Pratt all entered Columbia together in 2018.
Photo by: Columbia University Athletics/Mike McLaughlin
Women’s Basketball Returns Monday Night at Memphis
11/6/2022 6:41:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Lions set to open 2022-23 season on the road
NEW YORK – Coming off its best season in program history, the Columbia women's basketball team returns for its 2022-23 season opener Monday night when it takes on Memphis. Opening tip from Elma Roane Fieldhouse is set for 7 p.m. local time, 8 p.m. ET.
GAME COVERAGE
Monday's season opener will be streamed live on ESPN+. Fans can also track live stats courtesy of gotigersgo.com. Live updates will also be posted to the Columbia women's basketball team's Twitter account (@CULionsWBB).
TICKETS
Fans in the Memphis area can purchase tickets ahead of time by clicking here. Tickets can also be purchased on-site at the game.
WHAT TO KNOW:
A SEASON TO REMEMBER:
• Columbia is coming off its best season in program history in 2021-22, putting together a record of 25-7, 12-2 Ivy, to shatter the program records in both wins and Ivy League wins. Its 25 wins accounted for seven more than its previous best NCAA Div. I campaign (18-10 in 2009-10), and were four more than the 21-6 record the 1985-86 New York State AIAW champions had at the NCAA Div. III level.
• The 2021-22 Lions played in the postseason for the first time in 36 years. Last year's team blew out Yale, 67-38, in the Ivy League Tournament semifinals, lost a tough battle to nationally ranked Princeton in the tournament championship and went on to win three games in the WNIT. Columbia's run to the WNIT Quarterfinals was the deepest by any team in Ivy League history.
BRINGING IT ALL BACK
• The 2022-23 Lions return over 96 percent of their total scoring, rebounding and minutes from last season. To be specific, they return 98.3 percent of their scoring, 97.6 percent of their rebounding and 96.7 percent of their minutes. Last year's lone graduating senior was Mikayla Markham, who is now playing a grad year at St. Francis Brooklyn.
BUILDING A RESUME
• Seven potential games against 2022 NCAA Tournament teams, three Postseason WNIT qualifiers, eight matchups against opponents that finished inside the top 100 of last year's final NET rankings and seven 20-win teams await the Columbia women's basketball team this upcoming season.
• All of the games against NCAA Tournament opponents on Columbia's vigorous non-conference slate will come on the road. The test includes 2022 CAA Tournament Champion Delaware (Nov. 10), NCAA Sweet 16 participant Iowa State (Nov. 20) and 2022 Atlantic 10 Tournament Champion Massachusetts (Dec. 10). A fourth potential game against an NCAA qualifier from last year will come at the Miami Thanksgiving Tournament (Nov. 25-27), where Columbia could meet the Hurricanes that Sunday in the four-team, bracket-style event. Miami advanced to the second round of last year's NCAA Tournament, falling to eventual national champion South Carolina.
38TH SEASON OF COLUMBIA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
• Columbia is set to begin its 38th season after playing under the umbrella of the Columbia-Barnard Athletic Consortium for the first time in 1984. Columbia became a Div. I program two years later for the 1986-87 season.
• The Lions are 17-20 overall in season openers, including 16-19 at the Div. I level. Columbia has won three of its last four openers, including a 78-56 victory over Hampton to start last year's historical campaign. This will be the Lions' first road opener since 2019, when it fell to Albany in overtime, 82-78. However, Columbia won back-to-back season openers on the road in the Megan Griffith era, defeating Providence, 73-64, in 2017 and Hofstra, 65-63, in 2018.
MONDAY'S OPPONENT
• Memphis, who finished last season 16-12 overall, saw a complete turnaround in the first year of the Katrina Merriweather Era. The Tigers would go on to quadruple their win total from the 2020-21 season, record the program's first 15-plus win season since the 2015-16 season and went their entire non-conference schedule without a blemish on their home court.
The Tigers return notable starters Jamirah Shutes, Emani Jefferson and Maddie Griggs while bring in a slate of new faces to the Bluff City. Memphis would make it to the quarterfinal round of the American Athletic Conference tournament after receiving the program's highest AAC Championship seeding in seven years.
FOLLOW THE LIONS
For the latest on the Columbia women's basketball, follow @CULionsWBB on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, or on the web at GoColumbiaLions.com.
GAME COVERAGE
Monday's season opener will be streamed live on ESPN+. Fans can also track live stats courtesy of gotigersgo.com. Live updates will also be posted to the Columbia women's basketball team's Twitter account (@CULionsWBB).
TICKETS
Fans in the Memphis area can purchase tickets ahead of time by clicking here. Tickets can also be purchased on-site at the game.
WHAT TO KNOW:
A SEASON TO REMEMBER:
• Columbia is coming off its best season in program history in 2021-22, putting together a record of 25-7, 12-2 Ivy, to shatter the program records in both wins and Ivy League wins. Its 25 wins accounted for seven more than its previous best NCAA Div. I campaign (18-10 in 2009-10), and were four more than the 21-6 record the 1985-86 New York State AIAW champions had at the NCAA Div. III level.
• The 2021-22 Lions played in the postseason for the first time in 36 years. Last year's team blew out Yale, 67-38, in the Ivy League Tournament semifinals, lost a tough battle to nationally ranked Princeton in the tournament championship and went on to win three games in the WNIT. Columbia's run to the WNIT Quarterfinals was the deepest by any team in Ivy League history.
BRINGING IT ALL BACK
• The 2022-23 Lions return over 96 percent of their total scoring, rebounding and minutes from last season. To be specific, they return 98.3 percent of their scoring, 97.6 percent of their rebounding and 96.7 percent of their minutes. Last year's lone graduating senior was Mikayla Markham, who is now playing a grad year at St. Francis Brooklyn.
BUILDING A RESUME
• Seven potential games against 2022 NCAA Tournament teams, three Postseason WNIT qualifiers, eight matchups against opponents that finished inside the top 100 of last year's final NET rankings and seven 20-win teams await the Columbia women's basketball team this upcoming season.
• All of the games against NCAA Tournament opponents on Columbia's vigorous non-conference slate will come on the road. The test includes 2022 CAA Tournament Champion Delaware (Nov. 10), NCAA Sweet 16 participant Iowa State (Nov. 20) and 2022 Atlantic 10 Tournament Champion Massachusetts (Dec. 10). A fourth potential game against an NCAA qualifier from last year will come at the Miami Thanksgiving Tournament (Nov. 25-27), where Columbia could meet the Hurricanes that Sunday in the four-team, bracket-style event. Miami advanced to the second round of last year's NCAA Tournament, falling to eventual national champion South Carolina.
38TH SEASON OF COLUMBIA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
• Columbia is set to begin its 38th season after playing under the umbrella of the Columbia-Barnard Athletic Consortium for the first time in 1984. Columbia became a Div. I program two years later for the 1986-87 season.
• The Lions are 17-20 overall in season openers, including 16-19 at the Div. I level. Columbia has won three of its last four openers, including a 78-56 victory over Hampton to start last year's historical campaign. This will be the Lions' first road opener since 2019, when it fell to Albany in overtime, 82-78. However, Columbia won back-to-back season openers on the road in the Megan Griffith era, defeating Providence, 73-64, in 2017 and Hofstra, 65-63, in 2018.
MONDAY'S OPPONENT
• Memphis, who finished last season 16-12 overall, saw a complete turnaround in the first year of the Katrina Merriweather Era. The Tigers would go on to quadruple their win total from the 2020-21 season, record the program's first 15-plus win season since the 2015-16 season and went their entire non-conference schedule without a blemish on their home court.
The Tigers return notable starters Jamirah Shutes, Emani Jefferson and Maddie Griggs while bring in a slate of new faces to the Bluff City. Memphis would make it to the quarterfinal round of the American Athletic Conference tournament after receiving the program's highest AAC Championship seeding in seven years.
FOLLOW THE LIONS
For the latest on the Columbia women's basketball, follow @CULionsWBB on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, or on the web at GoColumbiaLions.com.
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