Women’s Basketball Stuns Arkansas on the Road, Notches First SEC Win In Harvard History

Harvard women’s basketball (4-5, 0-0 Ivy) walked into Bud Walton Arena on Sunday and authored the signature win of its early season, knocking off Arkansas (7-2, 0-0 SEC) with a final score of 69-51. The team was fueled by a barrage of first-half threes and a defense that never hesitated.

The Crimson turned a choppy opening into a 44-26 cushion by the halftime break, then deflected every Razorback push for a comeback to close out a statement road victory and its first-ever win over an SEC opponent.

The tone flipped in favor of Harvard midway through the first quarter of play. After senior forward Katie Krupa swatted away a layup, snuffing out an early Arkansas look, the Crimson started firing from deep.

Krupa splashed a trail three, sophomore guard Alayna Rocco canned two more on kick-outs, and freshman Olivia Jones drilled another from the wing.

Harvard’s run wasn’t just spurred by effective shooting. It was powered by the dynamic style of the Crimson’s play on both sides of the court, as the defense forced turnovers that resulted in scoring opportunities.

Senior guard Gabby Anderson picked a pocket at midcourt, senior guard Saniyah Glenn-Bello jumped a passing lane, and Harvard kept winning extra possessions off the glass. Even when the shots didn’t fall, Krupa’s short-roll reads turned into simple paint touches: two late first-quarter jumpers off dishes from Glenn-Bello pushed the lead to 23-12 before the first horn.

By the time Rocco’s third triple swished through the hoop to make it 35-18, Arkansas had burned a timeout, and its fans were stunned into silence. The Harvard team cruised onward and toward the break, not faltering in its offensive momentum. Jones drove and sprayed to set up a corner three for freshman guard Aubrey Shaw, who drilled the shot home just before the buzzer. At halftime, the Crimson boasted a 44-26 lead.

After the break, Arkansas tried to corral the game under its control, with drives from guard Taleyah Jones, who led the Razorbacks in scoring. Harvard answered the increase in tempo with poise. Rocco hit two free throws to open the third, sophomore Nina Emnace stepped into a three off a Krupa find, and the defense kept tallying stops: Glenn-Bello swallowed a layup at the rim, Anderson dug out rebounds, and Krupa walled up without fouling.

When the Razorbacks finally strung together a mini-run to trim the margin into the low teens, Shaw steadied things with another right-wing triple, and the Crimson’s collective composure at the line closed the door as Harvard comfortably played from ahead to the 69-51 final.

Offensively, the Crimson was headlined by its shooters. Krupa and Rocco shared top-scoring honors for Harvard, combining to hit multiple threes and control the game’s speed with their 15-point performances, while Wright and Glenn-Bello added 9 and 10 points, respectively.

Anderson’s homecoming presence played an enormous role on the court, showing up in all aspects of the game as she tallied deflections, outlets, keep-alive taps, and helped Harvard win the rebounding battle, and the toughness plays.

Arkansas’s Jones and Jada Bates supplied most of the Razorbacks’ offense, but never found enough rhythm against Harvard’s connected half-court defense.

It was the kind of win that looked like Carrie Moore basketball: multiple ball-handlers, spacing that punishes late closeouts, and a defense built on activity instead of risky gambling. The box score backed up the eye test; threes early to create separation, then rebounding and free throws late to seal it. Krupa anchored both ends with timely shot-making and a block party in the paint; Rocco’s shooting stretched Arkansas past its comfort zone; Jones and Emnace supplied first-year fearlessness; and the senior core of Anderson, Glenn-Bello, and Krupa provided the composure of a group that’s already played on the NCAA stage.

Context matters, too. Harvard capped an eight-game away stretch in November with this win, a month Moore spent hardening a group that graduated two major scorers in Harmoni Turner and Elena Rodriguez. It is clear that the team maintains the spine demonstrated by last year’s Ivy League Champion and NCAA Tournament team.

Sunday’s result also created program history: the Crimson had been searching for a win against the SEC and got it on the road, in a building that rarely hands out favors.

Returning to Cambridge this week, Harvard finally gets a home stretch to work on the skills it honed over its away games: connected defense, unselfish shot creation, and a freshman class that looks ready for Ivy League competition. If Harvard keeps playing like this, Sunday’s win won’t be an outlier. It’ll be the template for a successful season ahead.