Crimson Excels in Second Half To Clinch Unbeaten Weekend

No one questions Brogan Berry’s leadership on the court. But it wasn’t until referees questioned her dribbling that the sophomore point guard hit her stride in the Harvard women’s basketball team’s 69-53 win over Cornell (5-12, 0-4 Ivy) Saturday night at Lavietes Pavilion.

Berry glided through the Big Red defense for an easy layup to give the Crimson (11-6, 2-1) what would have been a one-point lead, but referees called her for traveling. Unfazed, the sophomore retreated back on defense with a smile. The next possession, she stole the ball from Caitlin Costello and sprinted down the court for another layup. This time when the whistle blew, it sent Berry to the line. She converted the foul shot for the three-point play to put Harvard up, 18-16.

Eight seconds later, Berry struck again with a three-point shot, sending Harvard into halftime with a two-point lead.

“I try to be a leader on the court as best I can and sometimes it involves passing, sometimes it involves scoring,” the sophomore said.

The effort capped off a late-half rally. Cornell hadn’t made any spectacular offensive plays, but the Crimson couldn’t seem to find the basket against its high pressure defense. For much of the first 10 minutes, Harvard seemed out of rhythm as it endured a scoreless streak of more than six minutes, allowing the Big Red to pick up an eight-point lead.

“They came out really strong,” Berry said. “They’re a great team and they got us back on our heels.”

“We weren’t ready for them,” freshman Elle Hagedorn added.

The Crimson co-captains started to turn things around. Junior Claire Wheeler hit a jumper to reduce the deficit to six. Harvard wouldn’t find the basket again for nearly two minutes, but it played lockdown defense and didn’t allow Cornell a tally in that period. Then junior co-captain Christine Matera scored her second of four three-pointers to bring the deficit down to two. By then, it seemed only a matter a time before Harvard took control, which it did following a three-pointer by freshman Victoria Lippert and the back-to-back three-point plays by Berry, the second of which was the Crimson’s last basket of the half.

In the second half, Harvard finally looked the part of the favored team with its usual offensive stars—Matera, Lippert, Berry and junior Emma Markley—hitting their shots. But the Crimson allowed the Big Red to hang around just long enough to tie the game twice before two free throws from junior Jackie Alemany finally put Harvard up for good with 13 minutes to play.

That proved to be the backbreaker for Cornell. Matera struck soon after with her fourth three-pointer of the day, and Hagedorn followed it with back-to-back steals for layups.

“[Coach Kathy Delaney-Smith] just tells me to use my long arms, get in the passing lane,” the freshman said. “I think that’s one of the reasons she puts me in. I see that as one of my key roles on the team.”

More quietly, Matera contributed 16 points. The guard’s four three-pointers were executed so mechanically as to look easy.

“She’s awesome,” Hagedorn said. “It’s great knowing you have a shooter that’s that consistent.”

But the co-captain had the opportunity to add some flair on her final field goal of the night, using a hesitation move to get move to get past Cornell’s defenders. Her last two baskets were free throws.

“We told Chris that she should score 21 because she’s turning 21,” Hagedorn said. “I don’t think she reached that, but she still had a hell of a game.”

Matera’s 16-point effort, the highest of all scorers, put her five short of a 21-point birthday effort. Perhaps to compensate for those five points, she added two assists and three rebounds in the winning effort.

“I was just hoping for a win for my birthday,” she said. “I was just telling all of them that’s all I want for my birthday.”

—Staff writer Christina C. McClintock can be reached at ccmcclin@fas.harvard.edu.