Women's basketball stages dramatic 17-point comeback against Boston College, advances to WNIT quarterfinals

Upper West Side NY

25 March, 2022

4:57 PM

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Columbia Daily Spectator BY ADAM LANG MARCH 25, 2022 Down by 15 points at halftime, it looked as though women's basketball's historic season might finally come to an end. After a tight victory over Old Dominion, women's basketball aimed to advance further in the postseason. With a win over Boston College, Columbia would move into the quarterfinals of the Women's National Invitation Tournament. Overcoming an Eagles' lead which seemed insurmountable, the Lions showed their resiliency and pulled out a win after taking their only lead of the game with 12 seconds left on the clock—and without making a single three-pointer all game. The 54-51 victory puts Columbia (25-6, 12-2 Ivy) on par with the top 50 of the nation as Boston College (21-12) was ranked 49th coming into the postseason. The Eagles had one of the best offenses in the tournament, which they demonstrated with a 94-point explosion in the last round. The Lions, however, forced the Eagles to shoot just 27.3 percent from the field and score over 20 points fewer than their 72.1-point average. The Light Blue's strong defense waited for its offense to catch up, as it had so many times in the regular season, and it was able to fight to a gritty victory much to the delight of frenzied fans in Levien Gymnasium. Junior forward Kaitlyn Davis led the team with 21 points, and junior guard Jaida Patrick posted a 15-point 13 rebound double-double. Sophomore guard Abbey Hsu struggled to find her rhythm, shooting 3-of-15 from the field, and the Lions as a whole put up a performance to forget from three-point range, failing to make even one in 20 attempts. Yet the Lions managed to keep their composure offensively by looking for open shots and fighting underneath the basket. Head coach Megan Griffith, CC '07, was impressed by the unity the team demonstrated in the comeback win. "I told them ... lions hunt with other lions, and you don't see eagles flying around with other eagles," Griffith said. But it was not an easy game for the team to fight through. The matchup was difficult for the Lions early on from both ends of the floor. Boston College hammered the Lions in the paint, scoring 12 of its first 15 points underneath the basket. Davis was the only player who showed up for the Lions in the first quarter. She spun along the baseline for a wide open jumper to end an 8-0 run by the Eagles and beat the buzzer with a strong layup in traffic to score 8 out of 11 points for the Lions. The quarter break did not help the Lions regain their rhythm. After Boston College guard Cameron Swartz converted on her sixth free throw attempt, the Eagles extended the lead to 17 points, with Swartz having outscored the entire Lions team to that point with her 15 points. In contrast, Columbia star Hsu went 0-of-5 in the half and scored just one point. After shooting 4-of-17 in the first, shooting woes continued in the next quarter, as the Lions went 3-of-15 in the second. Rebounding defense was one factor that hurt the Lions in the first half. They allowed 11 offensive rebounds, which translated into 11 second chance points. Five of Eagles forward Taylor Soule's six rebounds were offensive rebounds. This meant that, despite the Lions defense, the Eagles were still able to score crucial, easy points to establish a cushion. The Lions turned it around completely in the second half, allowing just three offensive rebounds, and their defense finally exhibited its full strength. Boston College's field goal percentage dropped below 30 percent and below the Lions' mark. Offense finally arrived in the third quarter as Columbia went on a 10-0 run to get within five. Boston College responded with its own 8-0 run, but yet again, it was Davis who carried the Lions on her shoulders at this crucial junction. With a steal and fast break layup, then beating the buzzer again to close the deficit to six points, Davis recorded a nine-point quarter. Davis had gone down earlier in the quarter with an ankle injury, but she soon returned to spur the Lions on. "My ankle hurts," Davis said. "Honestly, the only thing in my mind was I need to be back there for my teammates on the court." Griffith thought Davis's resilience was the engine that powered the Lions' comeback. "This is the first time that she has said, 'Coach, put me back in the game' versus 'Are you ready?' Griffith said. "And so when she said that, I knew it was go time. We weren't losing that game." Momentum shifted to the Lions as soon as the fourth quarter started. The Eagles missed their first six shots of the quarter, and with two made free throws, first-year guard Kitty Henderson tied the game 43-43 with just over than five minutes remaining. The Light Blue defense continued to stifle the Eagles, and the Lions stayed close, though they never managed to take the lead. With 16 seconds left, Davis grabbed her third steal to give the Lions a crucial late possession. Griffith drew up the perfect play. Davis received the ball at the left elbow and drove to the basket, attracting two Boston College defenders, but finding the cutting Patrick underneath the basket for an open layup, which was the Lions' first lead of the game. Then, on the other side of the floor, Davis played smothering defense to seal the victory with a block. Once the buzzer sounded, Columbia fans flooded onto the court, celebrating with players after perhaps the most exhilarating win all season. Boston College head coach Joanna Bernabei-McNamee said she thought the Lions succeeded most in taking the Eagles out of an offensive rhythm. "I wish I knew [why we scored 21 points in the first quarter and 30 for the rest of the game] ... You start to play instead of to win, you start to play not to lose," she said. "They really took us out of what we were trying to do offensively." The Lions are now one of the final eight teams remaining in the tournament, and they look to beat Seton Hall (22-12) at home on Monday, March 28 at 8 p.m. Griffith said that watching her team celebrate with fans allowed her to take perspective in what was a special moment for the program. "The coolest part for me was seeing all the students on the court after the game," Griffith said. "I've never seen that here, and that was really special and emotional for me." Senior staff writer Adam Lang can be contacted at [email protected]. Follow Spectator Sports on Twitter @CUSpecSports. Founded in 1877, the Columbia Daily Spectator is the independent undergraduate newspaper of Columbia University, serving thousands of readers in Morningside Heights, West Harlem, and beyond. Read more at columbiaspectator.com and donate here.