Harvard Needs To Rain To Reign

You live by the three, and you die by the three.

That has been the Harvard women's basketball team's moniker for the last three years. And for three years, the Crimson has not only survived but it has thrived with the shot from distance.

This season, however, existence has become a bit more precarious for Harvard (7-11. 4-3 Ivy), and this weekend showed just how much the Crimson has come to depend on the downtown bomb.

In the weekend split with Princeton (11-8, 6-1) and Pennsylvania (7-12, 2-5)at Lavietes Pavilion, the Crimson's three-point shooting percentage was directly correlated with the final result.

Against the tigers on Friday night, Harvard was just 2-of-16 from beyond the arc form an abysmal 12.5 percent and lost the game, 55-42. One day later the Crimson scorched the Quakers with nine treys on 21 attempts for a 70-68 victory.

Moreover, in the final 4:04 against Penn, the three-pointer was Harvard's exclusive weapon en route to victory. With her team trailing 62-57, Harvard junior guard Courtney Egelhoff spotted up from the arc and drained a bucket. One defensive stop later, co-captain Suzie Miller pulled up about four feet beyond the top of the key and drilled another three to put Harvard up by one.

Following a short jumper by Penn sophomore guard Elisabeth Alexander, Egelhoff came down again, took a pass from freshman point guard Jen Monti and nailed a left-wing three that gave Harvard a lead it would not relinquish. But the Crimson was not done.

After Penn Junior point guard Mandy West missed her 13th shot the game, Harvard senior center Rose Janowski drove hard to the lane and kicked the rock out to Monti in the left corner. The rookie confidently spotted up and drilled what proved to be the game-winning three-pointer from right in front of the Harvard bench, sending the Crimson and the 1,100-plus fans in Lavietes Pavilion into a frenzy.

Penn made the final seconds nerve-wracking for the Harvard faithful as sophomores Diana Caramanico and Jessica Allen connected on a pair of buckets. But Harvard co-captain Sarah Russell grabbed a key rebound from Caramanico and drew a foul with five seconds remaining to seal the win for the Crimson.

The previous evening versus Princeton, Harvard had shooting trouble the entire night. The Crimson shot just 28.3 percent from the floor to go along with its poor shooting from the three-point land.

Princeton did not shoot extraordinarily well either--the Tigers shot 35.1 percent for the game and hit just 2-of-21 treys--but offense is not how Princeton wins. The Tigers win with defense, limiting opponents to an average of 56.6 points per game entering the weekend, seventh-best in the nation.

Princeton was able to contain Harvard's perimeter shooters, something Penn was unable to do, and that is why the Tigers came away with a win and the Quakers did not.

Harvard's two starting shooting guards, Egelhoff and Miller, were a combined 1-of-16 shooting on Friday night. In addition, the Crimson's four guards off the bench shot a combined 1-of-9. It is difficult to win when your shooters aren't hitting.

The only exception to Harvard's shooting woes versus Princeton was Monti, who turned in what was by far the best weekend of her young career. The Ellington, Conn. native scored 14 points against the Tigers, to go along with six rebounds and two assists, and was the catalyst for any offense Harvard could muster.

She outdid herself against Penn. Monti poured in nine points, including her game winner, but more importantly, she dished out 11 assists and re-energized a Harvard offense that had been dormant since the Crimson's 65-63 win at Dartmouth on Jan. 13.

She recorded another six rebounds against the Quakers to go along with two steals and one block, the latter coming on the game's final play when Monti swatted a desperation three-point attempt by Penn sophomore guard Erin Ladley at the buzzer.

Monti's performances notwithstanding, Harvard knows what it must do to have any chance at a fourth consecutive Ivy League title. With three losses already, the Crimson needs to win all its remaining games (and hope for Princeton and Dartmouth to falter along the way).

And if Harvard is to win out, it will have to rain down threes from the rafters.