W. Hoops Faces Yale, Brown in Ivy Rematch

This weekend may feel oddly familiar to the Harvard women’s basketball team. After facing off against Brown and Yale two weeks ago, the Crimson (15-7, 7-2 Ivy) will play both teams again this weekend as the season winds down, with current league leader Dartmouth still within striking distance.

The last time Harvard faced these two opponents, it was a decidedly mixed weekend. The Crimson defense was ripped to shreds by a barrage of Brown three-pointers in a 68-73 loss, but was then able to completely smother the Yale offensive attack in the following game, blowing out the Bulldogs 90-55.

This time, the Crimson will look plug the holes that plagued it against the Bears (15-8, 7-3), which sit at third behind Harvard in the race to unseat the Ivy undefeated Big Green, while applying that same defensive spark it showed against Yale (5-18, 2-8).

The first challenge will take place tonight against the Bulldogs—and despite the 35-point margin of victory the Crimson enjoyed two weeks ago, cellar-dwelling Yale is by no means being overlooked.

“There are no easy games in the Ivy League,” said captain center Reka Cserny, who scored 16 points and collected a near-record seven steals in the previous matchup. “We are definitely going to focus a lot on Yale.”

In a close division race, moreover, a careless loss could prove deadly.

“I think everyone in this league has the potential to come out and play an amazing game,” junior guard Jess Holsey added. “You just have to come out ready.”

Two weeks ago, Harvard was able to force 31 Bulldog turnovers and capitalize on the resulting fast breaks, a strategy it now feels that Yale may be prepared for. According to Cserny, since the Bulldogs have had two weeks to create a new game plan, any deviation from their usual defensive intensity is simply not an option.

“We just watched some of our game against them, and our defense was reactive for the entire game and we pressured them for forty minutes,” Cserny said. “I think everyone on the team now realizes that’s how we can win all of our games.”

According to Holsey, in fact, a lack of that very defensive effort was what made the difference against Brown.

“Our defense in the Brown game as a whole was just not as intense as it should have been,” she said. “I think if we just come out more ready to play, we’ll be able to beat them.”

Against the Bears tomorrow, the Crimson defense will be especially hard-pressed.

Brown dominated the first half of the teams’ last matchup with a lethal outside attack. While Harvard was able to hold Bears star center Holly Robinson just 11 points on 3-for-10 shooting in 31 minutes of play, guards Lena McAfee and Sarah Hayes combined for 34 points, taking full advantage of a largely unguarded perimeter.

According to Cserny, the defense will have to shift its focus if it expects to overcome the Brown backcourt.

“In the first game we focused too much on Holly Robinson,” she said. “We were going to double her, and that’s why they got easy and open shots on the perimeter.”

With the Crimson perhaps overcompensating for the threat of Robinson, Brown was able to capitalize, seizing an early lead with seven first half three-pointers and never looking back.

This weekend, Harvard will have to find a balance between defending against these two threats if it hopes to hold off Brown’s bid for second place in the Ivy League. With just five games left in the season, a pair of Harvard victories would give the Crimson a late advantage in the race to challenge Dartmouth for the Ivy League crown.