Columbia University
San Francisco
Women's Basketball Returns Thursday at San Francisco
12/27/2023 3:17:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Lions visit the Bay Area for the first time in nine years
SAN FRANCISCO – Following a break for fall exams, the Columbia women's basketball team (7-4) competes for the first time in 18 days when it takes on San Francisco (3-8) at historic War Memorial Gym. Tip-off on Thursday is scheduled for 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT.
TICKETS
• Fans in the Bay Area can click here to purchase tickets ahead of time or visit USFDons.com for ticket information.
GAME COVERAGE
• Thursday's game will be broadcast live on ESPN+. Fans can access live stats courtesy of Stat Broadcast. Lions fans can also follow the team on social media (@CULionsWBB) for live updates.
WHAT TO KNOW:
OPENING TIPS
• The Lions are spending a week in Northern California. The team arrived Tuesday, December 26 to prepare for USF. After facing the Dons on Thursday, they'll head to Stockton on Friday to prepare for a New Year's Eve showdown against Pacific. Columbia flies back to New York on New Year's Day, Monday, January 1.
• The Lions are riding a season-long five-game winning streak. Over that span, Columbia is outscoring opponents by 21.8 points per game, shooting 45.6 percent from the field and outrebounding opponents by an average of 10.4 per contest. The streak includes back-to-back wins against the Big East's Providence, 77-52, and Villanova, 77-75. Abbey Hsu converted a game-winning and-1 with 8.7 seconds left to defeat Villanova.
• Wooden & Naismith Trophy Award Watch List honoree Abbey Hsu averages an Ivy League-leading 21.5 points per game, which ranks No. 13 in the NCAA. She is also top 25 in the country in total field goals (89) and top 50 in 3-pointers per game (2.82), total threes (31) and total points (237).
• Columbia enters the contest leading the Ivy League in 12 NCAA-ranked statistics, which includes scoring offense (74.6), scoring margin (+9.8), field goal percentage (.437), 3-point percentage (.336), 3-pointers made per game (8.5), assists (17.3), bench points per game (21.6) and assist/turnover ratio (1.07).
• The Lions are looking for their first win away from home this season. They are 7-1 at home, where they score 76.4 points per game, have allowed just 59.0 points per game and shoot over 45 percent from the field. In comparison, they are 0-3 on the road (Stony Brook, Georgia, Florida), where they have allowed 80.3 points per game, are shooting less than 40 percent from the field and are being outrebounded by 8.0 per game.
• This is Columbia's first game at War Memorial Gym since November 14, 2014, which was the collegiate debut of Camille Zimmerman '18CC. Zimmerman went on to become the program's all-time leader in scoring (1,973) and rebounding (940). She ranks fourth in Ivy League history in scoring and 14th in rebounding. Zimmerman recently won a gold medal with USA Basketball at the 2023 3x3 Women's AmeriCup. CHASING DOWN THE ALL-TIME GREATS
• Abbey Hsu is currently No. 5 in scoring in Columbia basketball history (men's or women's) with 1,752 career points. She is within 15 points of the next three players.
• Hsu is No. 14 on the Ivy League's all-time women's scoring list, recently passing Bella Alarie, who scored 1,704 points at Princeton from 2016-20. Alarie was the 5th overall pick in the 2020 WNBA Draft.
• Hsu is currently No. 25 among active NCAA Div. I players in career points.
Columbia Basketball All-Time Scoring Leaders
(W) Camille Zimmerman (2014-18) - 1,973
(M) Buck Jenkins (1989-93) - 1,767
(M) Jim McMillian (1967-70) - 1,758
(M) Maodo Lo (2012-16) - 1,756
(W) Abbey Hsu (2019-pres.) - 1,752
(M) Mike Smith (2016-20) - 1,653
KITTY ENTERS THE TOP 10
• With three assists in Columbia's win over Memphis (Dec. 6), junior Kitty Henderson entered Columbia's top 10 all-time. She passed Sara Yee (2006-10) for the No. 10 spot and now has 272 in her career. Henderson ranks No. 2 in the Ivies and top 100 nationally this season in assists (49) and assists per game (4.5). NOTES ON NET RANKINGS
• Columbia is No. 71 in the NET rankings (Dec. 22) and is one of three Ivy League teams in the top 100.
• Columbia's average opponent NET is 130, which ranks 48th-toughest in the NCAA.
• The Lions are an undefeated 5-0 vs. NET 101+. They are 2-4 vs. the NET top 100.
• Columbia ended the 2022-23 season No. 47 in the NET, its highest final ranking in program history.
• Columbia's peak in the NET last year was 23rd, which came on December 14.
• The NET, which stands for the NCAA Evaluation Tool, replaced the RPI after the 2017-18 season and it is used as the primary sorting tool for selection and seeding for the NCAA tournament.
ABOUT THE DONS
• USF (3-8) is coming off a nine-day break since its last game, in which it fell in a nail-biter at Long Beach State, 81-79. The Dons trailed by as many as 19 in the third quarter and rallied to tie the game with 3:25 to go but came up short. Thursday will be the team's first home game since December 9 against Northern Arizona.
• Jasmine Gayles heads the scoring effort with 15.3 points per game, ranking third in the West Coast Conference. She and Debora dos Santos (12.7) make up the two players averaging double figures. Meanwhile, dos Santos also averages a WCC-leading 10.2 rebounds. The 6-foot forward ranks top 20 in the NCAA in rebounding, as well as top 30 in offensive rebounds (3.8). She owns a conference-leading six double-doubles on the campaign.
• Columbia will be looking for its first series win against USF, which has won the five previous meetings. The two teams first squared off in January of 1991 at The Hilltop and again in 1996. The 1996 USF team went on to advance to the Sweet 16. They also met at the 2006 Hawai'i Invitational, followed by a home-and-home in 2013 and 2014.
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.
