Princeton Women Hold off Dartmouth in Ivy Battle

Saturday, February 6

Princeton, N.J.

6:00 PM

Dartmouth College

Princeton

Princeton Women Hold off Dartmouth in Ivy Battle

2/6/2010 8:00:00 PM | Women's Basketball

By: Dartmouth

Boxscore

Princeton, N.J. - Late free throws helped Princeton secure a 58-47 win over the Dartmouth women's basketball team this evening.

It was the Tigers' (17-2, 5-0 Ivy) first win over Dartmouth (8-11, 3-2 Ivy) in nearly three years, with the last win coming in the 2007 season.

A lack of rebounding in the second half and some key three pointers by Princeton proved the difference makers down the stretch. Brittney Smith (Fort Worth, Texas) had her double-double streak snapped but extended her rebounding streak to six straight games. Smith tallied 11 rebounds, eight points, three assists, three blocks and three steals. Faziah Steen (Kalamazoo, Mich.) was the only Big Green player in double figures with 10 points to go along with four assists.

Addie Micir won the game for Princeton with 25 points, including scoring the last six for the Tigers as Dartmouth tried to keep the game within reach. Lauren Edwards added 14 points. Dartmouth contained Princeton freshman leading scorer to five points and four rebounds.

Dartmouth showed exceptional balance in the first half, with each starter scoring at least four points. The Big Green came out of the gates on fire, opening up an 11-3 lead at 16:08 sparked by four points each from Steen and Brittney Smith. Dartmouth's offense cooled a bit as the Tigers went on a 7-2 run to slice the lead to 13-10 at 11:17.

The Big Green kept pace and took a 19-15 lead at 7:25 when Dosenko scored with just one second on the shot clock. Princeton scored four-straight, however, and Micir tied it up at 19-19 at 6:27. The teams traded buckets for the entire rest of the first half, but Princeton took its only lead of the half, up 23-21, off a Lauren Edwards drive at 3:34.

Betsy Williams (Norwich, Vt.) answered right back to tie it and Dosenko gave Dartmouth a 25-23 lead at 1:59. Dartmouth had several chances to extend its lead before the break but could not get a call inside, and the Tigers ultimately tied it, 25-25, at the half.

Princeton opened the second half on a 7-2 run to take a 32-27 lead at 17:25 before Sasha Dosenko stopped the momentum with a bucket at 16:36. Brittney Smith added another and Dartmouth kept pace, with the Tigers ahead, 36-32 at 14:49.

Dartmouth's downfall ultimately proved to be a more than six-minute scoring drought during which time Princeton built its advantage to 41-31 after a Micir three at 10:54. Meghan McFee (Manchester, Conn.) gave her team a big shot in the arm with a threeball at 8:16, cutting the lead to a manageable, 41-35.

The momentum was short-lived for Dartmouth, however, as Princeton scored four quick transition points to go back up by 10, 45-35, at 7:20. Each time the Big Green got the lead under 10, the Tigers had an answer, including a pair of Micir free throws after a Williams layup to make it 47-37 at 5:17.

Dartmouth did slice the lead back down to six points after four points from Margaret Smith (Fort Worth, Texas) and Brittney Smith, down 46-41 at 4:21. Margaret kept fighting and answered a Rasheed free throw to make it 48-43 at 3:29, but Lauren Edwards got the advantage right back on the next play.

Princeton got the lead back to double-digits on a Micir three at 1:18, up 55-44, and Dartmouth could not get anything going on its next two possessions. Steen nailed her first three of the game with 27 seconds to play but it was too little too late and Princeton hit its free throws down the stretch to seal the win.

Dartmouth is back in action next weekend at Leede Arena, hosting Ivy foes Brown on Friday and Yale on Saturday.