W. Cagers Face Ivy Test

Last weekend, the Harvard women's basketball team ascended to a peak when senior Allison Feaster scored her 2,000th career point versus Yale.

Now, Harvard must carry its momentum into this weekend against Penn and Princeton, as the Crimson tsunami (15-2, 5-0 Ivy) heads towards the shores of yet another league championship.

In its next two games, Harvard faces a pair of quietly-improving squads. Both Penn and Princeton have already equalled their respective win totals from last year.

Penn is powered by freshman center Diana Caramanico, who earned her fifth Ivy Rookie of the Week Award on Jan. 26. In a 70-63 win over Lafayette the previous week, Caramanico, who recorded 29 points and 15 boards--her sixth double-double of the year.

Princeton guard Maggie Langlas, who shared Ivy Player of the Week honors with Feaster on Jan. 12, averaged 18 points in the Tigers' first three league games.

Still, both Princeton and Penn's predicament this weekend resembles that of the 1978 Red Sox heading into the playoff game against the Yankees. Just as the Yankees boasted Ron Guidry, who finished with a 25-3 record that year, Harvard has Feaster.

"We want to feed off [Feaster]," said Head Coach Kathy Delaney-Smith after the Yale win. "There is this intangible communication, and we do feed off of her."

The senior forward surpassed 2,000 points with a trey in the second half of Saturday's 74-54 win over Yale. Her milestone ranks her with Bill Bradley as the only Ivy players to record 2,000 points and 1,000 rebounds. Feaster concluded the game with 36 points, nine rebounds, four steals and four assists.

Senior guard Sarah Brandt sank three straight treys in the first half for her nine points against Yale; in her last six games, Brandt is shooting 44 percent from beyond the arc. Senior Karun Grossman also sank both treys she attempted. The Crimson attempted a team-record 33 three-point shots against Yale, connecting on 12.

As the Crimson season surges toward a third consecutive league crown, it cannot suffer a letdown after last weekend's drama. Rather, Harvard must maintain its shooting accuracy and just let Feaster be Feaster.