Cambridge, Mass. - In their first Ivy League conference win of the 2022-23 season, the Harvard women's basketball team (8-5) defeated Princeton (8-4) in Lavietes Pavilion, 67-59.

In a packed Lavietes Pavilion, Head Coach Carrie Moore coached her first conference game against a familiar opponent, as she served as an assistant coach at Princeton from 2016-2019 and the Tigers' director of operations from 2008-2010. After falling to Princeton 67-72 in the 2022 Ivy League Tournament semifinals, Harvard came into today's matchup excited for another chance to beat the Tigers. With today's victory, Harvard snapped Princeton's 42-game Ivy League win streak and their seven-game win streak over the Crimson.

After scoring her first Ivy Win, Moore is "really excited about the team's ability to really believe in what we can accomplish. It's a big win and it gives us confidence and if anything it fuels our engine and continues to prove to us that we are a very competitive team. If we just worry about us and stay competitive and not worry about our opponent, I think that gives us the best chance of winning." 

Harvard started the game with three's from Saniyah Glenn-Bello, Harmoni Turner and McKenzie Forbes to take an early lead. Harvard shot 4-for-6 in three point shots over Princeton's 1-for-3 to finish the first quarter with a nine point lead, up 22-13.

Harvard remained in control for the first two and a half minutes of the second quarter, scoring four points to Princeton's zero. Both teams were relatively even throughout the second quarter, making four field goals each and pulling down 15 (Princeton) and 14 (Harvard) rebounds. They went into the lockers for halftime with the Crimson holding a 31-24 lead.

Forbes scored the only three point field goal of the third quarter, a ten-minute stint in which the Tigers began to gain on the Crimson. At the end of the quarter, Harvard still held a six-point lead, up 42-36.

Harvard sealed their victory in the final ten minutes of play, out-rebounding the Tigers seven to five and passing off five assists over Princeton's three. They scored their first Ivy victory of the season with a final score of 67-59.

Harvard Highlights

• Forbes and Turner each scored 17 points against the Tigers, leading the team in scoring. Forbes led the team in field goal and three point percentage as well, as she connected on 7-of-12 field goals (58.3%) and 3-of-5 three pointers (60%).
• Three Crimson players scored points in the double digits, with Lola Mullaney adding 12 to Forbes' and Turner's 17.
• Turner pulled down nine rebounds to lead the team in the metric, followed by Elena Rodriguez and Forbes with 6 each.
• With her 17 points and nine rebounds, Turner was one rebound away from posting her second double-double in a row.
• Forbes created five opportunities for her teammates to score, leading the team in assists, followed by Glenn-Bello who served up a career-high four assists.
• Every Crimson player who saw the court scored at least three points against the Tigers.
• The Crimson out-rebounded the Tigers 40-39. 
• Harvard posted four blocks over Princeton's two. The Crimson also stole the ball nine times over Princeton's two.
• Harvard held the lead for 36 minutes and 55 seconds of the game, taking the lead early in quarter one and never allowing the Tigers to take it back.
• Today's win breaks Princeton's seven-game win streak over the Crimson and 42-game win streak in Ivy League play. This victory sets the Crimson up as a dominant Ivy League team, as they have started their 2022-23 conference campaign with a win over the 2022 Ivy League Champions.
• The Crimson have brought the all-time series one game closer to a tie, as Harvard now trails 45-46.  They will have a chance to tie up the record on Feb. 24 during the second matchup between the Crimson and Tigers this season.
• Lavietes Pavilion held a crowd of 1,278 fans today, the highest turnout for a Harvard Women's Basketball game since before the pandemic.

Up Next

The Crimson will play host to Brown and Yale on Friday, Jan. 6 and Saturday, Jan. 7, respectively, to continue their Ivy League campaign. Both games will be streamed on ESPN+.