‘Mental’ Problems Affect W. Hoops

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass.—Even during youth-league basketball games, chances are good that the team turning the ball over 29 times will not emerge victorious.

And neither of the two Newton Girls’ Club teams, which played at halftime of yesterday’s game at Conte Forum, turned the ball over that often.

The Harvard women’s basketball team, on the other hand, did break that golden rule of basketball and suffered a 39-point drubbing at the hands of No. 21 Boston College as a result.

The Eagles scored 38 points off the Crimson’s many miscues, making the game virtually unwinnable for Harvard.

“We don’t see a lot of the intense pressure that [the Eagles] put on us today,” said junior forward Hana Peljto. “And we also made a lot of mental mistakes that we need to fix.”

While the Crimson was particularly adept at handing the ball over to BC, the squad was not nearly so successful at finding its own players, generating only seven assists as a team.

But the many turnovers were not the only difficulty preventing the Crimson from establishing any momentum as the game unfolded.

BC outrebounded Harvard, 37-27, and more importantly, the Eagles hauled down 12 offensive boards, five more than the Crimson.

This disparity, combined with the turnovers, led to 18 more shots for BC than Harvard—an advantage the Eagles capitalized on repeatedly.

Over As Quickly As It Began

With 17:13 remaining in the first half, Peljto sank a pair of free throws to even the score at 7-7.

Less than three minutes later, the Crimson had fallen behind by nine, a deficit from which it was unable to recover. Harvard never came within six points again

The primary culprits in Harvard’s sudden demise was turnovers—four of them in just one three-minute span.

As a result, the Crimson attempted just one shot in 3:23.

BC managed six shots during the same time frame, converting on three of them.

“I think basketball is a game of runs,” said sophomore Rochelle Bell. “We got a little tense and nervous instead of reacting and stepping up the defense.”

Spread Thin

In each of the Crimson’s three losses this year to ranked opponents, Harvard has allowed four players from opposing squads to score more than ten points.

While the Crimson varied its defense in an attempt to bewilder and stifle the Eagles, BC was never stunned for more than a possession or two.

Instead, the Eagles reversed the ball with ease, particularly along the baseline, and kept the Crimson guessing as to who would score next.

“We have such a great outside game, but we also have a great inside game,” said BC junior Amber Jacobs. “I think Harvard tried to switch it up, tried to stay out on our guards. But then our post [players] kept putting it in.”

All Harvard earned for its troubles were 22 fouls, 14 of which came in the second half.

Those fouls put the Eagles in the double bonus with more than half the period to play, foreshadowing doom for the Crimson.

In contrast to the Eagles multi-pronged attack, Harvard’s offense was confined primarily to Peljto, who once again led the squad in scoring with 21 points, 15 of which came in the first half.

No other Harvard player managed more than six points as the Eagles stifled the Crimson offense.

—Staff writer Timothy J. McGinn can be reached at mcginn@fas.harvard.edu.