PHILADELPHIA – The Columbia women's basketball team bounced back in a big way with a wire-to-wire, 85-55, win against on Saturday Penn at The Palestra. Senior
Abbey Hsu nailed six threes on her way to a game-high 28 points and 10 rebounds.
Columbia (13-5, 4-1 Ivy) made a statement, not only avenging last weekend's loss at Princeton that snapped their record-tying 10-game winning streak, but also avenging the only blemish away from home during last year's Ivy League season. They did it on both sides of the ball, knocking down a season-high 15 threes, shooting over 45 percent from the outside, outrebounding the Quakers (10-8, 2-3 Ivy) by 19 and scoring 26 points off 14 Penn turnovers.
"We put together much more of a complete 40 minutes, which was nice to see," said eighth-year head coach
Megan Griffith during the
postgame press conference. "Defensively, we were great in the first quarter, and I thought we executed our game plan well … Offensively, [we] can score and we really love to share the ball. It was fun watching them do their thing today, especially as Penn started to gain momentum at certain times – they went on a little bit of a run and I felt like we just kept making big shots and making big plays. That's a good sign for a team that is finishing the first round of Ivy League play."
Hsu put on a show inside the Cathedral of College Basketball that was reminiscent of the 28-point performance she had in the very same building as a first-year in 2020. This time around, she shot 10-for-17 from the floor and was a lights-out 6-for-10 from beyond the arc. The native of Parkland, Florida completed her fifth career double-double, three of which have come this season, while also coming away with two steals.
"Seeing the ball go in early, it just builds confidence," Hsu said. "I give credit to the constant confidence being put in me by my teammates and coaches … [The last time we played Penn], I wasn't completely there and I wasn't the biggest factor in the game. Playing them a second time, I wanted to be a big factor in this game, and not just offensively. I want to be disruptive and get rebounds."
Cecelia Collins was also a big factor on Saturday, going for 22 points and knocking down 3-of-7 from long range. She posted seven rebounds and added four assists and a steal to her tally.
"It's been a great transition for me. This offense is definitely very different from my first two years in college but I think it's a really good different," said Collins when asked about making the transition to Columbia after her first two seasons at Bucknell. "The girls and the coaches have just made it so easy … Everyone is just building confidence in one another and I think we're on the right track."
Riley Weiss pumped in 11 points off the bench, an area where Columbia outscored Penn, 21-7. Junior point guard
Kitty Henderson posted seven points, six rebounds, two steals and five assists, moving her career assists tally up to 306.
For Penn, freshman Mataya Gayle led the way with 21 points and a team-high four assists. The Lions shut down senior Jordan Obi, who scored just six points and played nearly 36 minutes despite being in constant foul trouble. Aside from Gayle, no other Quaker scored in double figures.
Columbia went on a 10-2 run and held Penn to a 0-for-6 start from the floor. The hustle and the effort were apparent from the tip, evidenced by a tremendous save from Henderson to get to a shot that was bouncing out-of-bounds. She tipped it to
Nicole Stephens, who found Hsu at the top of the arc that led to a driving layup. A triple by Hsu at the 1:56 mark gave the Lions 17 straight points and a 20-2 lead.
Penn used a 10-1 run between the first two quarters to pull within nine but Collins immediately answered with a triple that boosted her teammates. The Quakers were stuck on 14 points for nearly five minutes and the Lions took advantage. A 3-point play by Henderson fueled the fire as the Lions went up, 34-14.
No matter how much Penn tried to chip away in the second half, it wouldn't matter. Columbia shot over 61 percent (16-26) during the final 20 minutes, taking a 16-point lead into the fourth and ballooning the margin to as many as 33.
After spending the last two weekends on the road, the Lions return home next weekend for an Ivy League back-to-back against Harvard (11-7, 4-1 Ivy) and Dartmouth (6-11, 0-5 Ivy). Friday night's game against the Crimson is scheduled for 6 p.m. ET.
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