Wednesday, December 4
New York, N.Y.
11:00 a.m.
Columbia University
vs
San Francisco
Photo by: Columbia University Athletics / Stockton Photo, Inc.
Columbia Hosts San Francisco Wednesday Morning for Education Day
12/3/2024 4:04:00 PM | Women's Basketball
NYC elementary school students to pack Levien Gym
NEW YORK – The Columbia women's basketball team (6-3) will host the University of San Francisco (2-4) on Wednesday morning for its annual Education Day game. Opening tip is scheduled for 11 a.m., with more than 2,000 New York City elementary school students expected to be in attendance.
EDUCATION DAY
Students from more than 20 New York City schools will be in attendance for the 14th annual Columbia women's basketball Education Day Game. The first such game was held in 2008 and was hosted annually through 2019. After being interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, Education Day returned to Levien Gymnasium last season.
TICKETS
• Fans are encouraged to purchase tickets ahead of time by visiting GoColumbiaLions.com/Tickets. Fans can also purchase tickets on-site at the ticket window.
GAME COVERAGE
• Wednesday's game is available live on ESPN+ and the ESPN app. Fans can also track live statistics on GoColumbiaLions.com and the ESPN app. Live updates will also be posted to the Columbia women's basketball team's Twitter account (@CULionsWBB).
OPENING TIPS
• The Lions are coming off a loss at then-No. 13 Duke this past Sunday, 77-61. It was Columbia's first ever trip to Cameron Indoor Stadium. Kitty Henderson scored a game-high 20 points, moving her past head coach Megan Griffith as one of Columbia's top 10 all-time scorers. The senior from Australia is now ninth with 1,074 career points. She added five boards, four assists and two steals on the afternoon.
• Henderson was named Ivy League Player of the Week for a second time this season on Monday. She shot 51 percent from the floor while averaging 22.0 points, 5.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 3.0 steals in games against Ball State and Duke. She scored 20+ points in each contest, including a career-high 24 points on 9-of-16 shooting in a 69-62 victory over Ball State at the Bad Boy Mowers Battle 4 Atlantis.
• Columbia has won 16 consecutive regular season games at home. Their last loss was more than a calendar year ago, Nov. 14, 2023, against then-No. 22 Duke, 66-62.
• Wednesday will be Columbia's last game at home for the next 47 days, which is the longest stretch between home games in the country. The Lions will play six games on the road before returning home to play Princeton on Monday, January 20. UC Irvine (46), Texas A&M Commerce (45), Indiana State (45) and Stephen F. Austin (40) are the only other teams that go 40+ days between home games.
• Kitty Henderson ranks No. 1 in the Ivy League in total assists (46) and assists per game (5.1). She is 18th in the NCAA in total assists and top 50 in assists per game. Her 2.00 assist/turnover ratio is top 100 in the NCAA and third in the Ivies.
• Cecelia Collins is second in the Ivy League in assists (41) and assists per game (4.6), ranking her 36th nationally in total assists. The second-year senior transfer out of Scranton also leads all qualified Ivy League players in field goal percentage (.500 – Min. 5 FG made per game).
• Riley Weiss leads Columbia and ranks No. 4 in the Ivies in scoring (16.7). Kitty Henderson (15.2) and Cecelia Collins (13.4) are also top 10 in the league in scoring.
• Weiss ranks No. 6 nationally in 3-point attempts (71) and No. 12 nationally in 3-point makes (25). Both of those marks lead the Ivy League.
• Henderson's 2.44 steals per game and 22 total steals each rank No. 2 in the Ivy League. Her 22 total steals are top 30 in the NCAA.
HOME-COURT ADVANTAGE
• Columbia is a combined 31-4 (.886) at home over its last 35 games dating back to the 2022-23 season.
• The Lions have won 16 straight regular-season games at home.
• Columbia went 14-1 (.933) at home during the 2023-24 regular season.
• Columbia's last regular season loss at home was a narrow, 66-62, defeat against Duke (Nov. 14, 2023).
SETTING THE STANDARD
• Columbia has evolved into an Ivy League powerhouse, coming off back-to-back regular-season championships, its first two Ivy League championships in program history.
• The Lions earned their first NCAA Tournament appearance last season, receiving a 12 seed as an at-large bid, just the second at-large selection in women's basketball in Ivy League history (2016). They played in the First Four against Vanderbilt, falling in a close contest, 72-68.
• Columbia is coming off three straight 20-win seasons, posting overall records of 25-7 (2021-22), 28-6 (2022-23) and 23-7 (2023-24). The 2021-22 team earned the program's first bid to a postseason tournament in its Division I history. The following year, the Lions advanced all the way to the WNIT Championship Game against Kansas. Last season, they earned their first selection to the Big Dance. Prior to 2021, the Lions had never had a 20-win season in their Division I history (1986-pres.).
THE OPPONENT
• San Francisco (2-4) is on a four-day trip to the Northeast. The Dons faced Seton Hall on Monday, battling the Pirates tough at Walsh Gymnasium but ultimately coming up short, 59-53. Emma Trawally Porta scored a season-high 15 points off the bench for USF. She also had a game-high nine rebounds to help her team outrebound Seton Hall by 12. However, the Dons turned 13 offensive rebounds into just four second-chance points.
• Freja Werth (10.7), Debora dos Santos (10.0), and Trawally Porta (9.8) all average just about 10 points per game. USF has three players averaging north of six rebounds, led by dos Santos (7.7) and Trawally Porta (7.0). The Dons have a +11.8 rebounding margin on the season.
• Columbia earned its first series win in six tries last season when it took down San Francisco, 74-67, out on the West Coast. Columbia retook the lead in a close contest when Cecelia Collins assisted back-to-back buckets by Perri Page. After San Francisco tied things back up at 66, the Lions took over. Kitty Henderson found Abbey Hsu on a back-door cut at the 3:12 mark, which gave Columbia the lead back for good. The Lions outscored the Dons, 8-1 down the stretch, holding the home team without a field goal over the final 4:45 to grind out the victory.
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.
EDUCATION DAY
Students from more than 20 New York City schools will be in attendance for the 14th annual Columbia women's basketball Education Day Game. The first such game was held in 2008 and was hosted annually through 2019. After being interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, Education Day returned to Levien Gymnasium last season.
TICKETS
• Fans are encouraged to purchase tickets ahead of time by visiting GoColumbiaLions.com/Tickets. Fans can also purchase tickets on-site at the ticket window.
GAME COVERAGE
• Wednesday's game is available live on ESPN+ and the ESPN app. Fans can also track live statistics on GoColumbiaLions.com and the ESPN app. Live updates will also be posted to the Columbia women's basketball team's Twitter account (@CULionsWBB).
OPENING TIPS
• The Lions are coming off a loss at then-No. 13 Duke this past Sunday, 77-61. It was Columbia's first ever trip to Cameron Indoor Stadium. Kitty Henderson scored a game-high 20 points, moving her past head coach Megan Griffith as one of Columbia's top 10 all-time scorers. The senior from Australia is now ninth with 1,074 career points. She added five boards, four assists and two steals on the afternoon.
• Henderson was named Ivy League Player of the Week for a second time this season on Monday. She shot 51 percent from the floor while averaging 22.0 points, 5.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 3.0 steals in games against Ball State and Duke. She scored 20+ points in each contest, including a career-high 24 points on 9-of-16 shooting in a 69-62 victory over Ball State at the Bad Boy Mowers Battle 4 Atlantis.
• Columbia has won 16 consecutive regular season games at home. Their last loss was more than a calendar year ago, Nov. 14, 2023, against then-No. 22 Duke, 66-62.
• Wednesday will be Columbia's last game at home for the next 47 days, which is the longest stretch between home games in the country. The Lions will play six games on the road before returning home to play Princeton on Monday, January 20. UC Irvine (46), Texas A&M Commerce (45), Indiana State (45) and Stephen F. Austin (40) are the only other teams that go 40+ days between home games.
KITTY IN THE TOP 10
• Kitty Henderson ranks among the top 10 in Columbia women's basketball history in three separate categories. The senior point guard is ninth in career points (1,074), fifth in career assists (390) and eighth in career steals (138). She is 10 points from passing Kaitlyn Davis for eighth on the all-time scoring list and 10 assists away from becoming just the fourth player in program history to record 400.
RANKING THE LIONSMoving on 🆙
— Columbia Women's Basketball (@CULionsWBB) December 2, 2024
Did you know, Kitty Henderson is now in the Top 🔟 in program history in scoring, steals AND assists?!?! 🧗♀️#EDGE | #RoarLionRoar | #OnlyHere 🦁🗽 pic.twitter.com/SFF5BSScJU
• Kitty Henderson ranks No. 1 in the Ivy League in total assists (46) and assists per game (5.1). She is 18th in the NCAA in total assists and top 50 in assists per game. Her 2.00 assist/turnover ratio is top 100 in the NCAA and third in the Ivies.
• Cecelia Collins is second in the Ivy League in assists (41) and assists per game (4.6), ranking her 36th nationally in total assists. The second-year senior transfer out of Scranton also leads all qualified Ivy League players in field goal percentage (.500 – Min. 5 FG made per game).
• Riley Weiss leads Columbia and ranks No. 4 in the Ivies in scoring (16.7). Kitty Henderson (15.2) and Cecelia Collins (13.4) are also top 10 in the league in scoring.
• Weiss ranks No. 6 nationally in 3-point attempts (71) and No. 12 nationally in 3-point makes (25). Both of those marks lead the Ivy League.
• Henderson's 2.44 steals per game and 22 total steals each rank No. 2 in the Ivy League. Her 22 total steals are top 30 in the NCAA.
HOME-COURT ADVANTAGE
• Columbia is a combined 31-4 (.886) at home over its last 35 games dating back to the 2022-23 season.
• The Lions have won 16 straight regular-season games at home.
• Columbia went 14-1 (.933) at home during the 2023-24 regular season.
• Columbia's last regular season loss at home was a narrow, 66-62, defeat against Duke (Nov. 14, 2023).
SETTING THE STANDARD
• Columbia has evolved into an Ivy League powerhouse, coming off back-to-back regular-season championships, its first two Ivy League championships in program history.
• The Lions earned their first NCAA Tournament appearance last season, receiving a 12 seed as an at-large bid, just the second at-large selection in women's basketball in Ivy League history (2016). They played in the First Four against Vanderbilt, falling in a close contest, 72-68.
• Columbia is coming off three straight 20-win seasons, posting overall records of 25-7 (2021-22), 28-6 (2022-23) and 23-7 (2023-24). The 2021-22 team earned the program's first bid to a postseason tournament in its Division I history. The following year, the Lions advanced all the way to the WNIT Championship Game against Kansas. Last season, they earned their first selection to the Big Dance. Prior to 2021, the Lions had never had a 20-win season in their Division I history (1986-pres.).
THE OPPONENT
• San Francisco (2-4) is on a four-day trip to the Northeast. The Dons faced Seton Hall on Monday, battling the Pirates tough at Walsh Gymnasium but ultimately coming up short, 59-53. Emma Trawally Porta scored a season-high 15 points off the bench for USF. She also had a game-high nine rebounds to help her team outrebound Seton Hall by 12. However, the Dons turned 13 offensive rebounds into just four second-chance points.
• Freja Werth (10.7), Debora dos Santos (10.0), and Trawally Porta (9.8) all average just about 10 points per game. USF has three players averaging north of six rebounds, led by dos Santos (7.7) and Trawally Porta (7.0). The Dons have a +11.8 rebounding margin on the season.
• Columbia earned its first series win in six tries last season when it took down San Francisco, 74-67, out on the West Coast. Columbia retook the lead in a close contest when Cecelia Collins assisted back-to-back buckets by Perri Page. After San Francisco tied things back up at 66, the Lions took over. Kitty Henderson found Abbey Hsu on a back-door cut at the 3:12 mark, which gave Columbia the lead back for good. The Lions outscored the Dons, 8-1 down the stretch, holding the home team without a field goal over the final 4:45 to grind out the victory.
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.
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
G/F
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballPostgame: WBK | Coach Griffith, Riley Weiss, and Susie Rafiu after Richmond
Saturday, November 15
Highlights: WBK | Columbia 67, Richmond 77
Saturday, November 15
Highlights: WBK | Columbia 92, Ohio 74
Sunday, November 09
Postgame: WBK | Page on Victory at Ohio
Sunday, November 09
