Women's Basketball Wins Home Opener Against Maine, 69-60

Despite trailing at the half by three points, the Harvard women’s basketball team surged past visiting Maine en route to a 69-62 victory in its home opener on Tuesday. In the second straight year hosting the Black Bears (1-2) in its home debut, the Crimson (1-1) avenged its 2015 loss and earned its first win of the new season with concerted defensive play and an increasingly more patient offense as the game progressed.

A 37-34 lead after 20 minutes had Maine feeling confident entering the intermission; nevertheless, with just over four minutes remaining in the third frame, Harvard reclaimed the lead at 45-43 thanks to sophomore guard Sydney Skinner’s lay-in. From there, three lead changes and two ties very much defined the quarter as a nail-biter. The Crimson eventually blew the contest open late in the final period, achieving the game’s largest lead by either team at nine points with just one minute remaining.

“There was a lot of energy,” sophomore guard Madeline Raster said. “Our in-game adjustments were really good. In the first half, [the Black Bears] were getting back-door [looks]... and then we made some adjustments in the second half, and we were able to stop them in our zone.”

Entering the season, both teams had been ranked third in their conferences’ respective preseason polls. The win moves Harvard to 25-10 in home openers under head coach Kathy Delaney-Smith.

“I think it’s a great win for us,” coach Delaney-Smith noted. “For a young team, I was very happy…. I’m very pleased.”

Although the Crimson eventually ran away with a sound victory Tuesday night in Lavietes Pavilion, it did not always control the game as the final line would indicate. Harvard’s only lead of the first half occurred shortly after tip-off and lasted a mere two minutes. It wasn’t until the Crimson locked down defensively and prioritized communication that it found success against the tenacious Black Bears.

“We never really grabbed the ball with any kind of toughness,” coach Delaney-Smith said, “because we were hurrying to be in our transition game… and you’re going to win or lose a ball game based on your defense and your rebounding, especially with this team.”

Maine converted just 23 percent of its field goals in the latter 20 minutes—sinking just seven shots from the floor—as it struggled to solve the committed Harvard defense. One of the leading causes of the Black Bears’ shooting woes was the Crimson’s paint protection in the second half, which recorded five blocks and 17 defensive rebounds in quarters three and four. Harvard freshman forward Jeannie Boehm played a crucial role in her team’s improved interior defense, sending back three Black Bear shots and pulling down five defensive boards.

Trying to to set a fast-paced tempo early in the game, the Crimson pushed the ball up the court in transition after nearly every defensive rebound. Hustle was evident in the first few minutes. Harvard set the tone with 12 rebounds—four of the offensive sort—after the first quarter. Although this gritty play was not enough to give the Crimson the lead entering the second frame, Harvard managed to tie the game with eight minutes left in the first half thanks to some key three-pointers and second-chance baskets.

As the second half opened, Maine stymied Harvard’s early attempts to seize the game by answering each basket with one of its own, often a clutch and-one or deep ball. With a minute remaining in the third quarter, however, Raster stole the ball off a Maine inbound and converted an easy lay-up to tie the game. Seconds later, continuing her impressive individual effort, she drained a three to give her Crimson the lead exiting the third frame—a lead that Harvard perpetuated until the final buzzer.

“[Coach Delaney-Smith said] we were going to win the game with defense and rebounding,” Raster said. “Our shots were going to fall, but we really needed to talk on defense and make the adjustments we ended up making.”

Harvard senior forward Destiny Nunley led both teams in scoring with 22 points on 8-of-12 shooting, while two other Crimson players notched double figures. Raster, coming off a sharpshooting performance last Saturday in which she scored all 18 of her points from long range, played the role of facilitator on Tuesday, dishing out five assists.

For Maine, senior guard Sigi Koizar had the hot hand, chipping in a team-high 21 points while shooting a perfect 9-9 from the charity stripe. The Black Bears finished the night shooting a collective 93 percent from the free throw line, despite second-half woes from the field. Freshman guard Naira Caceres snagged eight rebounds, good for a game-high. Ultimately, it was Maine’s ball movement and aggressive rebounding that kept them in the game.

“In the beginning we saw a lot of those back-screens,” Nunley recognized.

Regarding the opposition’s play, Raster added, “I thought [the Black Bears] were really aggressive on the offensive boards.”

Whereas Maine’s top five scorers all started the game, the Crimson received vastly more substantial contributions from its bench; Skinner, leading all reserve players with 10 points, doubled the Maine bench’s scoring output. Junior guard Taylor Rooks also added six points and four rebounds off the bench.