NEW YORK – Columbia (25-5, 12-2 Ivy) will look to take down an ACC opponent in the Super 16 of the WNIT for a second-straight season when it battles Syracuse (20-12, 9-9 ACC). Friday night's tipoff from Schiller Court at Levien Gymnasium is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET.
TICKETS
Fans can
purchase tickets ahead of time by visiting GoColumbiaLions.com/Tickets, or by calling 888-LIONS-11. Fans can also purchase tickets on-site at the ticket window, located at the main entrance on the southeast corner of 120th and Broadway.
GAME COVERAGE
Friday night's game will air live in the New York market on
SportsNet New York (SNY). The broadcast will also stream live on
ESPN3 and the ESPN App. Fans wishing to access the game on ESPN3 will need to verify their TV provider in order to view it on their desktop or the ESPN app.
Live stats will be provided by GoColumbiaLions.com. Live updates will be posted to the Columbia women's basketball team's Twitter account (
@CULionsWBB).
WHAT TO KNOW
THE STARS HAVE ALIGNED
• Friday night will mark one year ago to the day that Columbia pulled off a dramatic, 54-51, victory over Boston College in the Super 16 Round of the 2022 Postseason WNIT. In that game, the Lions trailed by as many as 17 in the first half and were down 15 at halftime, but came back to take their first lead on a
Jaida Patrick layup with 12.1 seconds remaining. They did so without hitting a 3-pointer all night, going 0-for-20 from beyond the arc. Sydney Schwartz put up a potential game-tying trey at the buzzer, but it was no good as the crowd stormed the court in celebration.
ACC SUCCESS
• Columbia is 3-0 in its last three games and 4-1 over its last five against opponents from the ACC. Earlier this season, they took down Miami, 78-71, to win the Miami Thanksgiving Tournament. The Hurricanes are currently competing in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament after knocking off No. 1 seed Indiana in the Second Round. Last year, the Lions came back from 17 points down to defeat Boston College in the WNIT, 54-51. Earlier that same season, they came back from 14 points down to defeat Clemson on the road, 82-78.
• Columbia is 9-10 in its last 19 games against power-conference opponents (ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Big East, SEC, Pac-12). Those nine victories include games against Miami, Boston College, Clemson, Georgetown, Providence and Seton Hall.
HSU CONTINUES HER CHASE
•
Abbey Hsu is one 3-pointer away from eclipsing 100 for the second consecutive season. Last year, she set the new Ivy League record with 108. Prior to that, the Ivy League record was 99, which belonged to Harvard's Katie Benzan.
• Hsu is also just one career trey behind Jeannie Cullen (Dartmouth, 2002-06) and Courtney Banghard (Dartmouth, 1996-00) for second in Ivy League history. She enters Friday with 272. The all-time record is 287, which belongs to Katie Benzan (Harvard, 2016-19).
• On Columbia's all-time scoring list, Hsu is currently third with 1,442 career points. She is five points behind Ula Lysniak '87BC, '91TC for second. The all-time record belongs to Camille Zimmerman '18CC, who scored 1,973 from 2014-18.
ALL-AMERICA FINALIST
•
Abbey Hsu was named one of 12 finalists in the region and one of 52 across the country for the WBCA's All-America Honors. She is the only player named to the list outside of the ACC in her region and one of just seven players representing a mid-major conference from across the country. Entering Friday, she ranks No. 2 in the NCAA in 3-pointers made per game (3.30), No. 9 in total threes (99) and is the Ivy League leading scorer (17.8).
NUGGETS FROM FORDHAM
•
Abbey Hsu posted the first 20-10 game by a Lion since
Sienna Durr went for 31 points and 13 rebounds at Buffalo on Nov. 15, 2019. Syracuse's current coach, Felisha Legette-Jack, was coaching that game for Buffalo.
• Hsu matched her career-high of 12 rebounds, which she last had on Feb. 29, 2020 at Dartmouth.
•
Sienna Durr played a season-high 19:26 and had a season-high seven rebounds.
•
Hannah Pratt had a career-high seven assists and matched another with three blocks.
•
Kitty Henderson had a career-high 11 assists, which were one off the program record of 12 set by Charlene Schuessler '90BC. Schuessler did it twice in 1988.
• Henderson's 11 assists are the most in a game since Danielle Browne had 11 against Brown on Feb. 20, 2009.
•
Kaitlyn Davis moved into the top 10 single-season rebounds. She holds two of those spots.
• Columbia's 24 assists marked the 13th time this season they've had 20 or more in a game.
THE OPPONENT
• Syracuse advanced to the Super 16 with two fairly convincing wins, thumping Kent State, 84-56, in the first round and defeating Seton Hall, 72-54, in the second round. Against the Pirates, Syracuse jumped out to a 20-point lead at the half thanks to outscoring SHU 26-8 in the second quarter. SHU rallied on its home floor to get within as little as nine but trailed by double figures the entire fourth quarter. Dyaisha Fair had a game-high 24 points, while Dariauna Lewis went for a game-high 10 rebounds.
• Fair was also named an All-America Region Finalist alongside Hsu on Wednesday. Fair has scored in double figures in all 32 games leading her team to the postseason for the first time since 2021. She is averaging 20.0 points per game and is shooting 40.2 percent from the field.
• Friday will mark the first all-time meeting between Columbia and Syracuse.
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.
