NEW YORK – Winners of nine straight and 19 of their last 20 overall, the Columbia women's basketball team (21-5, 12-1 Ivy) will have an opportunity to repeat as Ivy League champions on Saturday when it takes on Cornell (7-18, 1-12 Ivy). Tip time from Newman Arena in Ithaca, New York is scheduled for 2 p.m. ET.
Columbia is vying for its second straight Ivy League Regular Season Championship. With a win on Saturday, the Lions would secure no worse than a share of the title. Columbia also has an opportunity to post its best Ivy League record in program history, surpassing the mark of 12-2 from the past two seasons.
TICKETS
• Fans planning to make the trip to upstate New York can
purchase tickets ahead of time via Cornell's online ticketing platform. Tickets will also be available for purchase on-site at the game.
GAME COVERAGE
• Saturday's game will be broadcast
live on ESPN+. Johnny Gadamowitz and Rheanna DeCrow will have the call. Fans can also track
live statistics courtesy of CornellBigRed.com. Live in-game updates will also be posted to the @CULionsWBB social media pages on
X and
Instagram.
WHAT TO KNOW:
OPENING TIPS
• Columbia's 19-1 record over its last 20 games ties for the fourth-best record over that span in the country. Only No. 1 South Carolina, No. 15 Gonzaga and No. 25 Fairfield hold better records over that time (20-0). A win on Saturday would give the Lions their second 10-game winning streak of the season, tying the program record and making them one of just three teams in the NCAA to have two separate 10-game winning streaks this season.
• The Lions are receiving votes in this week's Associated Press Top 25. This marks the second week in a row the Lions are receiving votes. They received votes for the first time in the Week 17 poll after defeating then-No. 25 Princeton. Last year, the Lions earned their first votes in the AP Top 25 in program history, appearing six times.
•
Abbey Hsu was named a finalist for the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Award on Wednesday. She leads the Ivy League in several categories, including scoring (20.9), total threes (76) and 3-point field goal percentage (.404). She ranks No. 15 in the NCAA in points per game and top 10 in threes per game.
• Columbia enters the weekend leading the Ivy League in 12 NCAA-ranked statistics, which includes scoring offense (77.7), rebound margin (+7.8), rebounds per game (39.81), offensive rebounds per game (14.7), 3-pointers made per game (8.1), field goal percentage (.457), free throws made (11.58) and attempted (16.23) per game, assists per game (17.3), bench points per game (21.7), assist/turnover ratio (1.17).
• Columbia ranks top 25 in the country in scoring (77.0), assists per game (17.3), rebound margin (+7.8) and offensive rebounding (14.7). The Lions are No. 27 in field goal percentage (.457).
MARCHING INTO MARCH
• Columbia has won 19 of its last 20 games entering the weekend, which includes a program-record 10-game winning streak (Nov. 25 - Jan. 15) and a current nine-game winning streak. Over their last nine games, the Lions are averaging 77.7 points per game, outscoring opponents by 17.0 points, outrebounding opponents by 12.3 per game and shooting over 47 percent from the field.
BUBBLE WATCH
• Columbia is currently on the NCAA Tournament bubble according to ESPN bracketologist Charlie Creme. The Lions are currently listed on Creme's "First Four Out". Columbia holds a record of 5-5 against NET Top 100 teams, is an undefeated 16-0 against NET 101+, and holds a winning 4-3 record against teams ranked 51-100. The Lions hold a NET ranking of 56, which is their highest NET ranking of the season.
NOTES ON NET RANKINGS
• Columbia is No. 56 in the NET rankings (Mar. 8) and is one of three Ivy League teams in the Top 100.
• Columbia's current NET ranking is its best of the season.
• Columbia's average opponent NET is 156, which ranks No. 97 in terms of strength in the NCAA.
• The Lions are 5-5 vs. the NET top 100 and an undefeated 16-0 vs. NET 101+.
• Columbia ended the 2022-23 season No. 47 in the NET, its highest final ranking in program history.
• Last year, Columbia's peak in the NET last year was 23rd, which came on Wednesday, Dec. 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.
YALE POSTGAME NOTES (MAR. 2)
• Columbia's 27-7 first-quarter lead was its largest of the season. Its 27 first-quarter points tied for its second-most of the season (28-11 vs. Northeastern).
• Five Lions scored in double figures for the first time since March 24, 2023 vs. Syracuse (WNIT)
• Yale shot 27.9 percent, the lowest by a Columbia opponent this season (first time under 30%)
• Columbia shot 50 percent or better (.509) for the fifth time this season
•
Riley Weiss matched a season-high high with 25 minutes played
•
Susie Rafiu played a career-high 30 minutes and shot a career-best 62.5 percent (5-8) (min. 5 FG made).
•
Abbey Hsu moved into Columbia's top 10 all-time in rebounds (617).
• Hsu passed Camille Zimmerman for the most made field goals in program history (730).
BROWN POSTGAME NOTES (MAR. 1)
•
Abbey Hsu shot 10-of-14 (.714) from the field, which was her best shooting percentage of the season.
• Hsu made 10+ field goals in a single game for the eighth time this season.
• Hsu secured her fifth double-double of the season. She has scored at least 20 points in all five.
•
Cecelia Collins recorded her first career double-double
• Collins' only other 10+ rebound game since Feb. 12, 2022 at Holy Cross, her freshman season at Bucknell
• Two Lions recorded a double-double in the same game for the first time since Feb. 2, 2022 at Penn.
• The last two Lions to record a double-double in the same game were
Kaitlyn Davis and
Jaida Patrick.
IVY STAT LEADERS
•
Abbey Hsu (20.9), is the Ivy League's leading scorer.
•
Cecelia Collins (13.8) ranks 11th in scoring.
Kitty Henderson (11.6) is top 15.
• Collins (.494) and Henderson (.476) are No. 4 and No. 6, respectively, in field goal percentage.
• Hsu is No. 1 in 3-point percentage (.404) and No. 8 in field goal percentage (.461).
• Collins (.865) is No. 1 in the Ivy League in free throw percentage and ranks No. 29 in the NCAA.
• Hsu's 2.92 made threes per game lead the league and rank No. 10 in the NCAA.
• Hsu ranks No. 4 in the league in rebounding (7.1) and No. 12 in total blocks (15).
•
Kitty Henderson is 11th in the Ivy League in rebounding (6.0).
• Five Lions rank top 25 in the Ivies in assists per game.
Kitty Henderson (4.2) is fourth; Collins (4.0) is fifth;
Fliss Henderson (2.7) is 11th; Hsu (2.2) is 14th and
Nicole Stephens (1.6) is 23rd.
•
Kitty Henderson (50) has the most total steals in the Ivy League and is second in steals/game (1.9).
ABOUT THE BIG RED
• Cornell (7-18, 1-12 Ivy) enters its regular season finale on a seven-game skid. Last weekend, they were competitive but ultimately came up short at Yale, 79-72, and Brown, 75-66. Their one Ivy win this season came on Feb. 2 against Dartmouth, 61-47.
• The Big Red average 56.4 points per game on the season. They have two players who average double figures in Kaya Ingram (10.4) and Emily Pape (10.1). Pape is also the team's leading rebounder (6.4), while Ingram boasts a team-high 78 assists (3.1 per game).
• Columbia won the first meeting of the season between the two sides, 82-53, in New York City.
Abbey Hsu led the way with a game-high 20 points. The Lions have won five straight in the series to narrow the all-time gap to 32-42.
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.
