Women's Basketball Clinches Ivy Title, Tournament Berth

The Harvard women’s basketball team entered Lavietes Pavillion Friday night with a share of the Ivy League title. But it seems that the young Crimson team forgot its manners against Cornell, and decided to seize the crown all for itself.

Guards Lindsay Hallion and Emily Tay scored 13 points each to lead a balanced offensive attack for the Crimson in a 64-48 win over the Big Red. The win gave Harvard sole possession of the Ivy League title and the conference’s automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament. Harvard will play two more league games before beginning tournament play in two weeks.

Junior guard Jessica Knox (eight points) came off the bench to provide an offensive spark for the Crimson, hitting a three-pointer that cut Cornell’s lead to 23-20 with 8:10 to play in the first half. Three minutes later, sophomore center Emma Moretzsohn’s layup from the right block would give Harvard its first lead of the game—a lead it would never relinquish.

Knox has seen time in each of Harvard’s games this season, but has made her presence felt primarily on the defensive end. This time, her hot hand energized the crowd and her teammates.

“Everyone on this team, all the way down the bench, is so amazing,” Knox said. “To make the most of the minutes I got was really exciting.”

In the second half, Knox came up big again from beyond the arc, this time to give the Crimson its largest lead of the game (13) with 11:35 to play.

In the early going, it seemed as though the road to the Big Dance might prove a bit rockier than expected. Still technically in the Ivy title hunt, Cornell opened the game with three-pointers from Kayleen Fitzsimmons and Allie Fedorowicz and went on to score 21 points in the first 10 minutes.

But the Crimson tightened up its defense from that point, allowing just five points after the 10:10 mark and taking a 30-26 lead into the locker room.

“I was really proud of that effort,” coach Kathy Delaney-Smith said. “That was really the game for us.”