NEW YORK, N.Y. - Despite 20 points from first-year Harmoni Turner, the Harvard women's basketball team (12-11, 6-5 Ivy League) fell to Columbia (18-4, 9-1 Ivy League), 74-70, Friday evening, Feb. 18.
 
Three Harvard players put up double-digit points tonight, with Turner leading the way with 20, junior Annie Stritzel posting 17 and sophomore Lola Mullaney tallying 13. On the defensive side, Stritzel led the way, lighting up the stat sheet with one block and six steals, while junior Maggie McCarthy tallied four steals of her own. 
 
Demonstrating her skills on both ends of the floor, a quick steal into a layup from Turner kicked off the scoring for the Crimson. Not content to let Harvard sit on their early lead, Columbia struck back. Dominating in the paint, the Lions led by as many as six points, taking a 10-4 lead halfway through the quarter. However, riding a Columbia scoring drought that spanned nearly two and a half minutes, the Crimson came roaring back, taking a 17-16 lead with just one minute left in the period. Maintaining that lead, the Crimson would go into the second quarter up 19-18. 
 
Building on its first quarter momentum, Harvard kicked off the second by adding to its lead, as a quick jumper and a couple of drilled free throws from Turner extended the Crimson's advantage to 23-19. This offensive success was not to last though, as both teams clamped up defensively, with both squads only allowing a combined six points through the first five minutes of the quarter. While shots began to rattle in once again out of the media timeout, neither team was able to pull away, with both squads trading baskets and the lead. Not until the last minute of the half was one club able to gain some separation, as a last second three gave Columbia a 35-31 lead going into the half. 
 
While the Lions dominated early in the third quarter, jumping out to a six point lead, a Turner three and a Mullaney layup in quick succession cut Columbia's advantage to just one at 42-41 halfway through the third. Riding this offensive burst, the Crimson was able to keep pace with the high powered Columbia offense, ensuring that despite the Lions' beyond-the-arc prowess, they would only sport a 54-52 lead going into the fourth. 
 
Looking to lock up the game early, the Lions went on a 6-1 run to start the fourth quarter, giving them a 60-53 lead with seven minutes left to play. While the Crimson mounted a valiant attempt at a comeback, even shrinking the Lions' lead to as little as four points, Harvard could not keep up with the dynamic Columbia offense, dropping the hard-fought contest 74-70.
 
Harvard Highlights

• The Crimson forced twenty turnovers, including 14 steals.
• Harvard capitalized on the Lions' turnovers, scoring 21 points off of them. 
• With six steals, Annie Stritzel set a new career best, beating out her old record of five. 
• With 17 points, Stritzel tied her career-best. 
• Stritzel tallied a team high ten rebounds, another personal best for her on the day, beating out her old mark of eight. 
• Maggie McCarthy dished out a team leading seven assists. 

Up Next
Staying in New York State, the Crimson will travel up to Cornell to take on Big Red tomorrow, Feb. 19th at 5 p.m. The Game will be broadcast on ESPN+.