NEW HAVEN, CT – Harvard women's basketball (10-7, 4-1 Ivy) ended their first month of Ivy League play with a second win over Yale (4-14, 1-4 Ivy), 61-52.  With the win today, the Crimson extend its win streak to three and hold its strongest conference start through five games since 2017-18. 
 
Harmoni Turner led all scorers for the ninth time this season with 24 points on 8-of-18 shooting.  The junior added four rebounds, three assists, and a steal during the win.  Lola Mullaney and Elena Rodriguez joined in double figures with 13 and 11 points, respectively.  By also adding a team-leading 13 rebounds, Rodriguez posted her fourth double-double of 2023-24. 

How it Happened

Three minutes into the contest, Crimson scoring began as Mullaney notched her first bucket of the night.  Scoring went back-and-forth for the next three minutes, bringing the contest to a tie at 8-8 with four minutes remaining.  From that point on it was all Crimson as a pair of baskets from Rodriguez and Turner carried an 8-0 run to end the first frame.  Through ten minutes Harvard registered four steals and seven offensive rebounds while not allowing the Bulldogs to surpass double digit scoring.
 
A Rodriguez layup off an assist from Turner brought the Harvard lead to 10 as play resumed in the second quarter.  A short run from the Bulldogs pulled the Crimson lead down to three but a three-pointer from Turner silenced the crowd and brought Harvard's offense back to life.  Throughout the final five and a half minutes the Crimson were able to keep its lead above six until the final horn to enter the locker room with a 32-26 advantage.  At the half Turner had already surpassed double digit points while Rodriguez neared in on her double-double with seven points and nine rebounds.  After making her first start in 2023-24, Gabby Anderson came out on fire, notching eight points on 4-of-6 shooting in the first twenty minutes of play. 
 
The Bulldogs continued to pressure as play was underway in the second half.  The third quarter proved to be a back-and-forth scoring effort with Yale even gaining the lead for a short period.  Throughout the ten minutes no team held a lead larger than four as the Crimson ultimately claimed a one-point advantage heading into the final frame. 
 
Holding the Bulldogs to 7.7% shooting from the field with just one made field in the fourth quarter, Harvard was able to regain a sizable lead and secure their fourth league victory of the season.  Up just two possessions with 25 seconds remaining Mona Zaric provided the exclamation point for the Crimson, drawing a charge as Yale's Jenna Clark powered to the rim.  After the defensive stand, three free throws from Turner ultimately sealed Harvard's 61-52 win. 

Harvard Highlights

• While scoring over 20 points for the eighth time this season, Harmoni Turner led all scorers with 24 points on 44.4% shooting from the field.  The junior also grabbed four boards, dished out three assists, and had one steal. 
• Lola Mullaney got back to double figure scoring by adding 13 points along with five boards, two assists, a block, and a steal. 
• Elena Rodriguez closed out the list of Crimson double digits scorers with her 11 points on 5-of-7 shooting.  Rodriguez once again was contributing all around the court by adding 13 rebounds, five assists, and two steals in the contest. 
• Gabby Anderson made her return to the starting lineup for the first time this season and posted a strong performance with eight points on 5-of-7 shooting, four rebounds, and two steals. 
• As a team the Crimson shot 45.5% from the field and accumulated 40 points inside the paint.  Harvard did not shoot under 40% in a quarter including ending the game by knocking down 62.5% of their attempted shots. 
• Harvard's defense held Yale to 32.7% shooting from the field in today's match up, including allowing just one made field goal in the fourth quarter. 
• Continuing to prove itself as the top three-point defense in the conference, the Crimson gave up just one three-pointer, holding the Bulldogs to 14.3% from beyond the arc. 
• Harvard won the rebounding battle for the third straight game, grabbing 37 boards as opposed to Yale's 32.  The Crimson are 9-1 in 2023-24 when outrebounding its opponents.  In the first quarter alone, Harvard outrebounded the Bulldogs 13-5 while notching seven offensive boards. 
• With the win the Crimson grew its advantage in the all-time series to 58-37 and swept the Bulldogs for the first time since 2015-16. 
• Standing at 4-1 in conference action, the Crimson have its best start through five games since 2017-18 and currently sit in a three-way tie for second with Columbia and Brown. 

Next Up

The Crimson will remain on the road for its first back-to-back weekend of the season.  Action will begin on Friday, February 2 at 7:00 p.m. against Columbia and will be followed by a 5:00 p.m. match up the following day at Cornell.