CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – In its final home game of the 2024-25 season, Harvard women's basketball (21-4, 10-3 Ivy) defeated Penn (15-11, 6-7 Ivy), 62-44 and clinched the three-seed in the 2025 Ivy League Tournament.
The Crimson was led by its senior tandem of
Harmoni Turner and
Elena Rodriguez who contributed 24 and 17 points, respectively. Along with her 24 points, Turner grabbed 11 rebounds to record her second double-double of the season.
How it Happened
With the emotions of senior day, the Crimson started slow, tallying just eight points in the opening ten minutes. Despite a lull on the offensive end, Harvard recorded seven steals to trail by just two possessions after one frame.
The Crimson's energy picked up in the second, holding the Quakers scoreless in the first three minutes to take a 13-12 lead. Penn responded with the next five points to pull back in front, 17-13. Late in the stanza, Turner began to heat up, contributing seven points in a 9-2 Harvard run. Despite the late-quarter push the contest sat at 26-all heading into the locker room.
Harvard ramped up its play in the second half, outscoring the Quakers 36-18 to run away with the contest.
Beginning in the third quarter, Harvard allowed just one field goal in the opening five and a half minutes. The Crimson then closed the stanza with a 13-4 run to secure a double-digit advantage heading into the final quarter.
Harvard only continued to grow its lead in the fourth quarter, holding the Quakers to 20% shooting and just two field goals. Mona Zaric connected off an assist from Rodriguez to provide one final senior highlight for the night. The Crimson would go on to build its lead out to as many as 20 before closing the contest with a 62-44 victory.
Harvard Highlights
- With the victory, Harvard moves to 21-4 overall and 10-3 in Ivy League play. Harvard has now won its most games since the 2016-17 and surpassed double digit conference victories for the first time since 2017-18.
- The Crimson have officially locked up the three seed in Ivy Madness and will face Princeton on March 14 at 7:30 p.m. in Providence, RI.
- With the win, the Crimson move to 2-0 against the Quakers in 2024-25, marking its first sweep of the foe since the 2011-12 season.
- Harmoni Turner concluded her career inside Lavietes Pavilion with an impressive 24-point and 11-rebound double-double performance. The senior also tallied three assists and two steals in the contest.
- Elena Rodriguez also provided a signature all-around performance, recording 17 points on 7-of-13 shooting, seven rebounds, three assists, a block, and three steals.
- Saniyah Glenn-Bello, Abigail Wright, and Karlee White each added five or more points to help defeat the Quakers.
- The Harvard defense held Penn to 32% (16-of-50) shooting from the field and 21.4% (3-of-14) shooting from distance. Additionally, it forced 18 turnovers and tallied 13 steals.
Next Up
Harvard will conclude its regular season next weekend as it travels to Hanover, N.H., to face Dartmouth on Saturday, March 8 at 2:00 p.m. ET.
