Cambridge, Mass. - The Harvard women's basketball team (9-5, 2-0 Ivy) has started conference play with two wins after a 89-59 win over Brown (7-7, 0-2 Ivy) in Lavietes Pavilion. 

Lola Mullaney had an excellent night, setting a new career high and leading the team in scoring with 30 points. She sank six of the team's seven three point field goals throughout the game. Along with Mullaney, Harmoni Turner, Elena Rodriguez and Katie Krupa scored in the double digits.

Head Coach Carrie Moore says the team has been working on "building their connection on and off the court in hopes that it will translate to wins such as tonight's." 

Harmoni Turner started the night for the Crimson with a fast break lay up after a steal, leading the team with 10 points in the first quarter before the Bears made their first basket. They closed out the quarter ahead of Brown in every metric, with a score of 22-3. 

The Crimson remained dominant in the second quarter, pulling down eight rebounds over Brown's six and passing off five assists over Brown's three. The team went into the locker room with a 39-17 lead, led by Lola Mullaney with 14 points. 

The Crimson outscored the Bears for the third quarter in a row to grow their lead to 24, entering the final quarter 66-34. Mullaney scored nine points in the last two minutes of the quarter off of three three-pointers. 

Harvard and Brown stayed relatively even the last ten minutes of play, with the Crimson ultimately securing a 30 point victory, 89-59. 

Harvard Highlights

• Lola Mullaney led the team in scoring for the first game this season, scoring 30 points over the Bears to set a new career high. A strong shooter from beyond the arc, she converted six of the team's seven three-point baskets and finished the game shooting 11-of-15 from the floor and 6-of-10 from three. 
• This is the second time this season a Crimson player has scored 30+ points in a game, the first being game one vs URI where Harmoni Turner scored 31. 
• Turner, Rodriguez and Krupa also scored in the double digits, scoring 16, 11 and 10, respectively. 
• Rodriguez pulled down 11 rebounds to lead the team in the metric, posting a new career high in rebounds. She was followed by Turner with five
• Rodriguez led the team in assists as well, dishing out five assists followed by McKenzie Forbes with four. 
• Nine of the Crimson players who saw the court pulled down at least two rebounds and contributed at least one assist. 
• Harvard was in control of the Bears both offensively and defensively throughout the duration of the game, beating the Bears in the following metrics: rebounds (37-26), blocks (5-1), steals (12-8) and assists (21-10). 
• The Crimson held the lead for 100% of the game following Turner's layup that put the first points on the board.
• Today's win extends the Crimson's win streak over the Bears to 14, with Harvard having won every matchup since 2015. The series now sits at 59-34, led by Harvard.
• With tonight's win over Brown, Harvard has started conference play 2-0 for the first time since the 2018-19 season. 

Up Next

The Crimson will be back in Lavietes tomorrow on Saturday, Jan. 7, to face off against Yale. The game will be the Harvard women's basketball's Pride celebration.  The game will also be streamed on ESPN+.