CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Harvard women's basketball (8-6, 1-0 Ivy) picked up their first Ivy win of the season, downing Yale (3-11, 0-1 Ivy), 73-54, in their first game at home in over a month. 
 
Returning to action for the first time since December 2 following knee surgery, Harmoni Turner led the Crimson with a near season best 28 points on 57.9% shooting from the field.  The junior guard added three rebounds, three assists, and a season-high five steals in the contest.
 
Katie Krupa and Abigail Wright joined Turner in double figures as each added 12 points while shooting 83.3% and 75% from the field, respectively. 

How it Happened

Wasting no time to prove that she's back, Harmoni Turner notched the Crimson first ten points to help Harvard pull out to a 12-2 lead through the first five minutes of play.  Following Turner's scoring spurt, Katie Krupa picked up where she left off after shooting 100% from the field against Delaware.  The sophomore notched all of her 12 points in the first frame while shooting five-of-six from the field.  The duo of Turner and Krupa combined for all 24 points in the quarter as the Crimson defense held the Bulldogs to just nine.
 
The second quarter proved to be lower scoring for the Crimson but its strong defensive effort brought the score to 38-20 heading into the locker room.  Abigail Wright got her scoring going in the second frame as she notched back-to-back buckets in the final two minutes.  Going into the halftime the Crimson were shooting 50% from the field and had already accumulated nine steals led by three from Turner and two from both Elena Rodriguez and Mona Zaric. 
 
Yale connected first out the locker room but a bucket from Turner in the following possession got scoring started for the Crimson and pulled the junior over 20 points for the day.  The Ivy foes traded baskets throughout the frame and Harvard never allowed their lead to fall under 13 points.  Ultimately, buckets from Turner, Saniyah Glenn-Bello and Gabby Anderson put the Crimson up 49-33 heading into the final ten minutes. 
 
The final quarter provided the highest scoring 10 minutes of the game as Harvard outscored Yale 24-21 to close out play.  While the Bulldogs secured most their points at the line, the Crimson connected on nine field goals while shooting 56.3%.  First-year Abigail Wright scored a third of the Crimson 24 quarter points by ending the game shooting a perfect four-for-four. 

Harvard Highlights

• Harmoni Turner was connecting from all over the court to put up a near season-high 28 points on 11-of-19 shooting from the field.  The junior also added three rebounds, three assists, and a season-high five steals in her return to the court. 
• Katie Krupa shot 83.3% on five-of-six from the field to surpass double digit points for the sixth time this season.  In the last two games Krupa has scored a combined 23 points on 90.9% shooting. 
• Abigail Wright got back to her scoring ways today by registering 12 points on six-of-eight shooting from the field.
• Saniyah Glenn-Bello and Gabby Anderson both added eight points for the Crimson while also leading the team with five boards each.   
• Harvard played lock-down defense throughout the contest forcing 20 turnovers, grabbing 15 steals and holding the Bulldogs to 32.7% shooting from the field and 21.4% from beyond the arc. 
• Overall, the team shot 46% from the field and collected 40 of their 73 points inside the paint. 
• Harvard out-rebounded the Bulldogs 38-34 to win the rebounding battle for the seventh time this season.  The Crimson are 6-1 in 2023-24 when out-rebounding its opponents.   
• The Crimson shot over 55% in both the first and fourth quarters while connecting on a combined 19 of its 29 field goals in the two frames. 

Next Up

The Crimson will remain home for a rematch of last season's Ivy Tournament championship game as it welcomes the Princeton Tigers to Cambridge, Mass.  Tip-off of the second Ivy match up of the year is set for 2:00 p.m. in Lavietes Pavilion and on ESPN+.