EVANSTON, Ill. – Harvard women's basketball (6-1, 0-0 Ivy) opened its weekend on the road by winning its fourth straight and collecting its third Power Five victory of the year, dropping Northwestern (1-3, 0-0 Big Ten) convincingly, 75-50.
The Crimson were led by a balanced scoring attack and its strong defensive presence.
Elena Rodriguez led all Crimson scorers with 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting, while
Gabby Anderson recorded her first career double-double on 11 points and a career-best 13 rebounds.
Saniyah Glenn-Bello rounded out the Harvard's double-digit scorers by contributing 11 points.
How it Happened
Both teams got out to slow offensive starts as the contest was locked at 4-4 at the midway point of the opening quarter. An
Elena Rodriguez triple ignited the Crimson offense at the 4:04 mark and
Gabby Anderson and
Karlee White added buckets in the closing minutes to grow a 16-13 Harvard lead after the first frame.
The Crimson came alive in the second quarter, shooting 50% (10-of-20) from the field and 44% (4-of-9) from distance to pull away from the home team. Eight different Crimson tallied points in the frame and Harvard headed into the locker room on a 14-2 run.
The Wildcats cut into the deficit out of the break, bringing the Crimson advantage to single digits as the Crimson recorded one field goal through the opening five minutes of the frame. Beginning at the 4:37 mark and on the back of seven straight
Elena Rodriguez points, Harvard took back all momentum in the contest. Harvard allowed just two Wildcat free throws throughout its quarter ending run to sit comfortably in front at 57-42 heading into the fourth quarter.
Harvard left no doubt in the final frame, holding Northwestern to its lowest scoring output of the afternoon by only allowing eight points. The Crimson countered with 18 of its own last quarter points to solidify its 25-point defeat of the Wildcats.
Harvard Highlights
- With the win, the Crimson improve to 3-0 against Power Five opponents in 2024-25, having previously defeated No. 25 Indiana and Boston College. The feat marks the first time in program history that Harvard has been victorious over three Power Five foes in a single season.
- Gabby Anderson registered her first career double-double with 11 points on 5-of-9 shooting and a career-high 13 rebounds.
- Elena Rodriguez led all Crimson scorers with a near season-best 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting. The senior also added four rebounds, three assists, a block, and two steals against the Wildcats.
- Saniyah Glenn-Bello rounded out the double-digit scorers for Harvard, adding 11 points on the back of three triples.
- Nine different players contributed points for the Crimson as seven added six or more points.
- Harvard recorded its highest rebounding total of the season with 46. Of its total boards, the Crimson grabbed 22 on the offensive end. The 22 offensive boards mark the most by Harvard since it recorded 25 against Maryland in its season opener last year. By result of attacking the offensive glass the Crimson registered 19 second chance points.
- Anderson dominated the glass by grabbing 13 while Katie Krupa collected six and four other Harvard players contributed four boards.
- Harvard assisted on 17 of its 24 made buckets, led by six assists from senior guard, Harmoni Turner.
- The Harvard defense recorded seven steals and forced 18 turnovers. Off the Wildcats miscues, the Crimson capitalized for 20 of its points.
Next Up
The Crimson will conclude its back-to-back weekend in Illinois tomorrow as it takes on Illinois State at 3:00 p.m. ET/2:00 p.m. CT inside CEFCU Arena and broadcast on ESPN+.
