PRINCETON, N.J. — Columbia women's basketball went into Jadwin Gymnasium Friday night and beat Princeton at their own game.
Led by senior
Kaitlyn Davis' 13 points and 13 rebounds, the Lions rallied back from an 11-point first-half deficit to take down the Tigers in overtime, 58-55. The victory extended Columbia's program-record winning streak to 10 games and ended a string of 27 consecutive losses to Princeton.
The Lions, who entered as one of the top-25 scoring offenses in the country, showed they can also hang with the best defensively. Columbia came away with the win despite being held 25 points below their scoring average. They also held Princeton to its second-lowest scoring output of the season, limiting the Tigers to 30 percent shooting (21-70) and forcing them into a season-high 19 turnovers.
Trailing by seven at the half, Columbia (13-2, 2-0 Ivy) burst out of the locker rooms with a 10-0 run to take its first lead of the night.
Jaida Patrick and
Kitty Henderson each drained a three. Patrick's forced Princeton (8-5, 0-2 ivy) to call for time just 2:11 into the half with the Lions on top, 33-30.
It remained a one-possession game entering the fourth quarter. As they did all night, the Lions locked down on defense, outscoring the Tiger 10-3 over the opening seven minutes to lead by nine. However, the defending champions weren't done yet, rallying over the final minutes and using a Grace Stone triple with 18 seconds remaining to force overtime.
It was the
Kaitlyn Davis show in the extra period. The Norwalk, Connecticut native scored five of Columbia's six points, adding two steals and two rebounds in the final five minutes. Her last board came off Princeton's final shot before sprinting the length of the court as time expired on the Tigers.
Davis notched her 15th career double-double to go with two assists, two steals and a block.
Abbey Hsu and
Kitty Henderson scored a team-high 15 points apiece. Henderson was 6-of-11 from the floor and 2-for-4 from distance, adding eight rebounds, two assists and two steals.
For Princeton, Kaitlyn Chen scored a game-high 20 points, albeit on 8-of-25 shooting. Ellie Mitchell grabbed 22 rebounds but the two sides ended the night even on the glass, 49-49.
The Tigers threw the first punch and led 13-4 after six minutes thanks in part to getting
Kaitlyn Davis in foul trouble. Davis was forced to sit after picking up her second on the offensive end at the 3:29 mark of the first period.
The Lions closed the deficit to six by the start of the second quarter. Two free throws by Maggie Connolly and a bucket inside by Mitchell briefly pushed the Princeton lead to 11 before Davis answered on the other end. Hsu's first points of the night followed by way of the 3-ball. She would go on to hit one more in transition and score Columbia's final eight points of the half.
Head coach
Megan Griffith's halftime speech left an impression, as Columbia opened with the first 10 points of the second half. Davis, Henderson and Patrick all scored on the run. The Tigers would retake a 38-37 lead with 2:54 left in the third but a fast-break opportunity by Lauder pushed Columbia back in front heading to the fourth.
Despite needing overtime to close it out, the Lions never trailed again.
Columbia takes its 10-game winning streak to Philadelphia to complete their back-to-back weekend at Penn (9-5, 2-0 Ivy). Saturday's tip-off at The Palestra is scheduled for 5 p.m. ET.
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