Harvard’s Fast Start Sinks Dartmouth

Monday, January 16

Hanover, N.H.

5:00 PM

Dartmouth College

2-17,0-5Ivy League

Harvard

10-7,3-2Ivy League

Harvard

Dartmouth

Mekkena Boyd ’24

Photo by: Doug Austin

1/16/2023 7:47:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Box Score Highlights

The Big Green put together a gritty second half, but were unable to recover from an 18-point halftime deficit

By: Kyle Relf

HANOVER, N.H. — A rocky start for the Dartmouth women's basketball team proved costly in a 68-52 loss to Harvard in Ivy League action Monday night at Leede Arena.

The Big Green outscored the Crimson in the third quarter before the two sides played to a stalemate in the fourth, but an 18-point halftime deficit was too much to overcome as Dartmouth dropped to 2-17 (0-5) and Harvard improved to 10-7 (0-5).

Hot shooting continued for Mekkena Boyd and Mia Curtis as the two juniors combined to shoot 6-of-9 from deep. Boyd posted a team-high 14 points, while Curtis followed with 10. Both shot better than 50 percent from the perimeter in Dartmouth's last outing against Penn. Harvard's Lola Mullaney dropped a game-high 24 and was one of two Crimson players to hit four 3-pointers (McKenzie Forbes), while Elena Rodriguez earned an 18-point, 14-rebound double-double. Harvard shot 50 percent or better from the field in all four quarters to finish at a 51.9 clip. Dartmouth bounced back from a low-scoring first half to shoot 63.6 percent in the third.

Boyd drained her first two attempts from deep to pace the Dartmouth offense early, but it wasn't enough to keep Harvard from jumping out to a double-digit lead in the first. The Crimson held an 18-8 edge after Maggie McCarthy's triple at the 3:27 mark. The Big Green were back within single digits when Karina Mitchell's drive drew a foul and the co-captain knocked down both free throws. Allie Harland went 1-for-2 at the line to end the quarter

Emma Koch knocked down a 3-pointer to open the second quarter, but a 13-2 Harvard run followed. The Crimson held their largest lead of the half, 36-17, after Forbes' trey with just over four minutes remaining. A cold spell ensued for both sides – Anna Nelson's 3-pointer with 51 seconds remaining in the quarter broke a scoreless three-minute stretch. Harvard scored on its next possession to bring the margin to 38-20 heading into the break.

Harvard was held without a field goal until the 5:26 mark of the third as Dartmouth found a strong start of out of the break. Mia Curtis' 3-pointer had the Big Green, who had trailed by 20 just two-and-a-half minutes prior, back within 10 to force a Harvard timeout. The Crimson's offensive resurgence, powered by two Mullaney treys, soon had the visitors on top by 18, 50-32.

.@miacurtis2020 🎯 Big Green back within 10!https://t.co/ow55ma8bhx | @ESPNPlus pic.twitter.com/KxU3l3psc7
— Dartmouth College WBB (@DartmouthWBB) January 16, 2023

Holding a commanding 55-39 edge heading into the fourth, Harvard quickly rolled to a 21-point lead behind two more Mullaney 3-pointers. Dartmouth was within 15 at the 4:49 mark after Koch's offensive rebound and putback and eventually cut the lead to 13 with Victoria Page's drive to the hoop, but an inspired second half effort ran out of time as Harvard salted away a 68-52 triumph.

Dartmouth is back in action at Leede Arena on Saturday, Jan. 21 to host Princeton at 2 p.m. Dartmouth will honor the legacy of Pat Summit with the 'We Back Pat' initiative, and the game will be streamed live on ESPN+ with Bob Lipman and Lori McBride on the call. An audio broadcast will also be available with Justin McIsaac calling the action.