Box Score

NEW YORK – Colgate held Columbia scoreless for more than 7½ minutes of the second half and claimed its largest road victory in more than a decade, 72-44 here Saturday.

Not since an 84-37 pounding of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez at the 2001 San Juan Shootout has a Raiders road victory come so easily. And it's been 18 years since Colgate defeated a Division I opponent in its own gym by as many as 28 points, dating to a 78-50 win at Army late in the 1994-95 season.

Colgate hit its stride midway through the first half, and then found another gear to start the second as the Raiders won for the second time this week to improve to 3-5.

"We told them at halftime that we were giving up too many offensive rebounds," Colgate head coach Nicci Hays Fort said. "So we really wanted to keep them off the offensive glass and keep them from getting easy shots.

"Our defense in the first half was good, but we let them get the loose-ball rebounds. We did a much better job in the second half of holding them to one possession and out."

No More Second Chances
Columbia worked its way to an 8-4 lead, its largest of the game, before Colgate scored the next seven points. By the 10:50 mark of the first half, Colgate led 18-10 thanks chiefly to eight points from Carole Harris and a pair of threes from Mariah Jones and Missy Repoli.

The Lions pulled within 22-19 and then 30-26 before Colgate scored the last four of the first half to go into the break on top, 34-26.

"It was the offensive rebounds that were hurting us in the first half, so we had to box out in the second," Harris said.

Columbia's chance to end its seven-game losing streak became a long shot at best when the Raiders extended their lead to 45-33 with 14:07 remaining. Colgate then scored the game's next 14 points over a 7:36 stretch to remove all doubt.

Hays Fort said team defense was the key to the second-half explosion.

"Kelly Reid was fantastic in the second half on help defense," Hays Fort said. "She had six points, but her defense was great.

Double-Double Average
Harris just missed her second straight double-double but still led the winners with 19 points and nine rebounds, both game highs. No other Raiders were in double figures, but Jones added a complete scorecard of nine points, seven rebounds and six assists.

"Coach was telling the guards to rebound more, and I was just trying to do anything I could for the team," Jones said.

Harris, meanwhile, averaged a double-double for the week, finishing with 29 points and 20 rebounds in the current two-game winning streak.

"I tried to work on my outside game this summer while still attacking, and it's working out so far," said Harris, who's averaging nearly 12 points and 8½ rebounds for the season. "We needed these wins so we can get on a roll."

Sharing the Ball
Colgate finished with 21 assists on 31 field goals and shot 43 percent from the field. The Raiders won the rebounding battle 45-39, including a 23-14 edge in the second half. Colgate also committed just eight turnovers Saturday against Columbia and had a combined 14 turnovers in the two victories this week.

"We've been working in practice on sharing the ball and limiting our turnovers," Jones said. "Our assist-to-turnover ratio has been improving, and that's why we've gotten these two wins."

Before Wednesday's game against Drexel, the previous turnover low for the season was 15 at New Hampshire.

"You get more possessions by taking care of the ball and getting offensive rebounds," Hays Fort said. "This week, we made the most of our possessions."

Other highlights Saturday included Randyll Butler with her first made 3-pointer of the season (she's 1-of-2), Catherine Lewis returning to the 3-point column and Steph Schultz getting into the scoring column.

Lewis joined Paige Kriftcher with seven points, followed by Reid and Lauryn Kobiela with six, Butler and Repoli with five, and Schultz and Curtis with two apiece. Kobiela added seven assists.

"It was a great Colgate day," Hays Fort said.

Miwa Tachibana scored 11 points for Columbia (1-8).

Colgate's next game is Saturday at Robert Morris (3-4).

Pregame Celebration: A pregame reception celebrating 40 years of women's athletics at Colgate took place at Amsterdam Restaurant and Tapas Lounge. Representatives from Colgate Alumni Relations and the Athletics Department welcomed alumni, parents and friends, most of whom then attended Saturday's game at Levien Gym.

"It was great having so much support this afternoon to honor the 40th anniversary of women's athletics at Colgate, and to watch our women's basketball team get a solid win over Columbia," said Victoria M. Chun '91, MA'94, Director of Athletics. "The energy and support in the room from our trustees, our alums, our fans and our families was second to none.

"Colgate without a doubt is someplace special."