The Guru Report: Saint Joseph’s and Temple Upset; Caitlin Clark Achieves the Combo AIAW/NCAA eras Career Mark Passing Kansas Star Lynette Woodard

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

 

PHILADELPHIA — There was a nice symmetry at one point Wednesday night for the local teams with NCAA aspirations until disaster struck across the board that didn’t necessarily leave all in shambles, but it certainly made things a little tougher than it was earlier as games got under way.

 

Nationally, No. 3 Texas became the latest squad to become a victim of the curse of the top five teams, er let’s correct that to, the curse of the four top teams not named No. 1 South Carolina, though in recent weeks No. 2 Ohio State had remained stable after reaching the runner-up spot and on Wednesday the Buckeyes clinched an outright Big Ten regular season crown.

 

In Minneapolis, where the Big Ten tourney will be held next week and for the first time is a sellout, No. 6 Iowa’s Caitlin Clark in a win over Minnesota posted another triple double and claimed the major collegiate women’s scoring title set in the AIAW, pre-NCAA era.

 

Next goal is the men’s mark set by LSU’S Pistol Pete Maravich.

 

But you’re going to have to wait for those details as we go through the local implosions and we begin here on Hawk Hill at Hagan Arena where Saint Joseph’s got stunned by Fordham 62-57 for a season split and technically 3-2 against teams in the Atlantic 10 with Rams as their mascot. (Rhode Island 2-0, VCU 0-1).

 

“We somehow just weren’t ourselves tonight,” said veteran coach Cindy Griffin.

 

But the impact quote “bad timing” said it best as did the justifiable bandage words of “not the last game.”

 

Let’s deal with the bad timing first. 

 

For one, the night began in a tie with Richmond (25-5, 15-2) though the Spiders by winning out, the head-to-head victory here in early January gives the Spiders the No. 1 seed. 

 

However, they clinched it Wednesday by decimating visiting Duquesne 90-74 as four players scored in double figures, including Cardinal O’Hara grad Maggie Doogan with 14 points.

 

The Hawks (25-4, 14-3) dropped into a second-place three-way tie with VCU (25-4, 14-3), which beat preseason favorite and host Rhode Island 69-59, and George Mason (23-5, 14-3), which rolled over visiting Dayton 78-53.

 

Duquesne (18-10, 13-4) is one-game back in fifth and hosting the Hawks Saturday at 2 p.m. (ESPN+) in Pittsburgh.

 

George Mason is at VCU Saturday, so if Saint Joseph’s wins, the Hawks clinch a double bye that goes to the top four teams.

 

Where remains to be seen in terms of the seed.

 

Bad timing number one: If this happened midseason, it would be yesterday’s news, but unlike if the loss had been one of the top contenders, the word “bad” comes into play considering the Rams (13-15, 8-9) record, which is not good when being called a just outside the bubble team.

 

Furthermore, if the losses had been spread out to this point, the lingo would have been different but enjoying the best season record-wise the Hawks arrived like a rolling freight train.

 

But that said, unlike last year, when bounced out of the quarters by Saint Louis, which went on to win the league, Saint Joseph’s has leeway to win the rest of the way to the title game, and then if it’s a respectable loss, an at-large bid may still be possible.

 

As for the details of Wednesday, very much part of attached to the implication of the final score, the Hawks after an 0-4 start went on an 11–0 run and looked like business as usual.

 

“It was fool’s gold,” Griffin said. “It may have looked like it was going to be easy, but the entire coaching staff knew what we’d be up against, and Fordham did a very good job.”

 

In the fourth quarter, separation seemed to be going the home team’s way early with a 50-44 lead.

 

But Fordham did not go away and trailing 57-56 with a minute to play, Taylor Donaldson, who made the visitors’ only two threes of the night, off an offensive rebound, nailed her second for a 59-57 lead with 31 seconds on the clock.

 

Then with 13 seconds left Mackenzie Smith missed a shot grabbed the rebound, Griffin was asking for a time out and the official called a travel.

 

People not having a dog and evaluate officials referred to the move as bad and one saying you can show on the tape what should be done, but it’s not going to get a do-over.

 

“Bad timing,” Griffin said. “We didn’t have a controversial call affecting a game all year.”

 

And there’s no guarantee they score, though chances would have improved.’

 

As the saying goes, never put the game in the hands of the officials.

 

The Hawks were then forced to foul, which Fordham cashed in for a four-point lead.

 

Smith scored 24, while Talya Bruglar scored 13.

 

Fordham’s Donaldson scored 18, and Emy Hayford scored 11.

 

Meanwhile, La Salle, which goes to Fordham Saturday to finish its A-10 schedule, wrapped up the home slate at Tom Gola, losing to Saint Louis 78-57.

 

The Explorers are at 7-21 overall and 4-13 in the A-10, at 13^th and could finish in a three-way tie for 11^th.

 

Tiara Bolden scored 13 points, Nicole Melious had 12, Jolene Armendariz scored 11, and Molly Masciantonio scored 10.

Fourth Quarter Fade for Temple: At the same time across town the Owls’ ups and downs were occurring the same moments as Saint Joseph’s.

 

Holding first place in the American Athletic Conference, Temple (17-11, 11-5) had a five-game win streak and the largest crowd of the season at the Liacouras Center to host Tulsa, which the Owls had already beaten.

 

In the fourth quarter, though, Tulsa outscored the locals 30-20, winning 76-67 and dropping the Owls, picked ninth in the 14-team preseason poll, down to a third-place tie with themselves and North Texas.

 

Temple finishes with East Carolina on the road Sunday and hosting Florida Atlantic next Wednesday before the AAC tourney in Fort Worth, Texas, where they’ll likely have a double bye.

 

Temira Poindexter with 30 points overall and Delanie Crawford with 24 led the way for Tulsa in the final period, which Temple second-year coach Diane Richardson called “self-sabotage.”

 

The Owls’ Aleah Nelson and Tiarra East each collected 16 points while Demi Washington scored 15.

 

Temple has to win the AAC to get to the NCAA but likely, especially with a two or three seed, could land in the new NCAA-run 32-team WBIT or 48-team WNIT.

 

But Richardson isn’t ready for happy talk.

 

“There's no such thing as a pretty good spot when you lose,” she said. “Our goal was to win every game to be sure. This was a setback today, I told them we've got to get back on our horse and ride it, and I don't think they knew what that meant because I'm so old and that's an old saying. 

 

“I was a little disappointed in our effort today. We know how to bounce back. I don't think this is going to happen again.”

 

Villanova Repulsed by No. 10 UConn: The Wildcats couldn’t flip the script, like they did several years ago, at Storrs, losing to the injury-riddled but still Big East-dominating Huskies 67-46 for a season-sweep by the home team (25-5, 17-0), who own the No. 1 seed for next weekend’s tournament at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Conn.

 

The Wildcats after hosting DePaul Sunday at 5 p.m. at Finneran Pavilion, will be either a 4 or 5, which is the same quarterfinal game with Marquette, who they swept.

 

Paige Bueckers had 31 points, while Aaliyah Edwards, who got visiting defenders Christina Dulce and Kaitlyn Orihel in foul trouble, had 14 points and 11 rebounds.

 

Orihel had 15 points and Zanai Jones scored 10 for ‘Nova (17-11, 10-7), but Lucy Olsen with six points was defended into her worst night of the season.

 

“We’ve got to figure it out, you know, regroup and get a win on Sunday before we head to the tournament,” Villanova coach Denise Dillon said.

 

Penn State Stops Slide: On the road in the Big Ten, the Lady Lions (17-11, 8-9) snapped their six-game slide with a narrow 93-88 win at Purdue (12-16, 5-12) in West Lafayette, Ind., as Ashley Owusu scored 23 points, Makenna Marisa scored 17, reserve Jayla Oden scored 15, Leilani Kapinus scored 14 points, and Shay Ciezki scored 10.

 

PSU currently sits in a two-way-tie with Michigan for seventh a half game behind Maryland and finishes Sunday hosting Minnesota at 1 p.m.

 

Patriot Locals Swept: Lehigh fell at Boston University 89-78, while at home in the Kirby Sports Center in Easton, Pa., Lafayette was beaten by Navy 58-49.

 

Lehigh (15-12, 7-9) got 22 points from Ella Stemmer, a total cancelled by the 22 scored by Alex Giannaros scored for the Terriers (17-10, 9-7).

 

Makayla Andrews had 18 for the host Leopards (10-17, 5-11).

 

Lafayette hosts Bucknell Saturday at 2 p.m., while Lehigh hosts Colgate the same day at 4:30 p.m. at Stabler Arena in Bethlehem, Pa., both on ESPN+.

 

On Thursday, the only local action, Rider with a four-game win streak is at preseason favorite Niagara in the MAAC at 6 p.m. on ESPN+.

 

The National Scene – Clark Explodes Again: No. 6 Iowa in the Big Ten downed host Minnesota 108-60 as Caitlin Clark passed former Kansas star Lynnette Woodard of the pre-NCAA era scoring 33 points to reach 3,650 points topping Woodard’s 3,3649.           

 

“Tonight is the night of the real record,” Iowa coach Lisa Bluder said.

 

Clark with eight makes from deep set the NCAA single season record with 156. She also got her 17^th career triple double adding 12 assists and ten rebounds for the Hawkeyes (25-4, 14-3 Big Ten).

 

Sunday’s senior day game has a $403 price in Iowa City, which could be Clark’s last regular season home appearance if she foregoes her fifth-year option and declares for the WNBA.

 

And that’s the report.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Guru Report: Temple and Saint Joseph’s Chasing Separate Conference Top Finishes and No. 1 Seeds

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

 

Wednesday night will be a good one to get a sneak preview of March Madness at Saint Joseph’s and Temple, who remain in the hunt for respective first place finishes in the Atlantic Ten and American Athletic Conferences ahead of next week’s first wave of tournament fights for NCAA automatic qualifiers.

 

But first, while no one locally played yet this week, on Tuesday night, a chance to start getting high with a little help from some some friends ended with no chance at all.

 

We start in the Big East where a Marquette win over St. John’s would help Villanova land in third place out of No. 10 UConn’s reach in next weekend’s tourney at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn., until the title round if both advance.

 

But in the year of nightly upsets St. John’s took down the Golden Eagles 56-50 on the road in Milwaukee, Wis., and barring some miracle the Wildcats will likely come out Wednesday’s second game with UConn, this one in Storrs, heading for a three-way tie for third with Tuesday’s opponents.

 

If so, both Villanova and St. John’s swept Marquette and since the Wildcats melted down in the league opener to the Red Storm in Madison Square Garden and didn’t play a second game, they are a four seed, which mean likely playingMarquette a third time in a quarterfinal.

 

For a team categorized on the bubble and in the proverbial hard to beat a good team three times dynamic, more than heavy lifting will be needed by Villanova, besides hoping bid stealing does not happen elsewhere.

 

The St. John’s loss could have been survivable were not there losses at Providence and home to Butler.

 

While we’re here, on a brighter note, congrats to ‘Nova’s Lucy Olsen and Saint Joseph’s Laura Ziegler and Talya Bruglar, as well as Princeton’s Kaitlyn Chen, who made the 40-member watch list and All-America ballot of the United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA).

 

If the Wildcats don’t make the NCAAs and they are one of the first four out, they will be a No. 1 seed in the new NCAA-run 32-team Women’s Basketball Invitational Tourney, though they would still be a high pick anyway or play in the 48-team WNIT, which ‘Nova coach Denise Dillon once guided Drexel to a title.

 

Postseason Brightens for Temple

 

The Owls, on a five-game win streak and who host Tulsa at 7 p.m. in the Liacouras Center at 7 p.m., Wednesday, (ESPN+) are in first place in the AAC, and can clinch a double bye for the tourney in Fort Worth, Texas, with a sweep of the visitors.

 

Had not East Carolina lost in four overtimes Tuesday night to North Texas, then the combo would have clinched a tie for first for Temple.

 

But in first at this hour, if Temple wins out, beating East Carolina on the road Sunday and FAU here next Wednesday, the Owls earn the No. 1 seed.

 

They must still win the whole thing in Texas to get to the NCAA, but if not, the chances are excellent to make either the WBIT or WNIT, which will still be great progress in year two under Diane Richardson.

 

Saint Joseph’s Close to Goals

 

The Hawks with their most wins in history host Fordham at Hagan Arena, Wednesday, at 7 p.m. (ESPN+) looking to sweep the Rams and clinch a double bye for next week’s tournament in suburban Richmond.

 

If Richmond, the team, loses to Duquesne Wednesday night, and the Hawks with a win snap the first-place tie, their Duquesne game in Pittsburgh Saturday for the season final will be a shot to grab the No.1 seed.

 

Getting to the A-10 championship game could be good enough to land an NCAA invite if the Hawks fall short in that contest, but they’ll be somewhere in the postseason.

 

Looking Ahead: In the Big Ten, Penn State is at Purdue at 7 p.m. The Lady Lions, tied for eighth, are 0-6 in February since losing Tay Valladay to a season-ending injury, dropping from an NCAA lock to the wrong side of the bubble.

 

Elsewhere, locally, La Salle closes the home slate hosting Saint Louis at 6:30 p.m. (ESPN+) and finishes at Fordham, Saturday, currently tied for 12^th in the A-10 and could be 11^th.

 

In the Patriot League, Lehigh is at Boston U. at 6 p.m. while at the same time Lafayette hosts Navy in the Kirby Sports Center in Easton, Pa., both games on ESPN+.

 

Nationally, in a Big Ten doubleheader on Peacock, No. 2 Ohio State hosts Michigan at 7 p.m. before No. 6 No. 6 Iowa visits Minnesota at 9 p.m.

 

No. 3 Texas at 7 p.m. visits No. 24 Oklahoma at 7 p.m. looking to tie the Sooners for first in the Big 12 on ESPN+.

 

On Thursday, just one local game has Rider is at Siena in the MAAC at 6 p.m. on ESPN+.

 

The second NCAA reveal from the basketball committee of the Top 16 teams is on ESPN at 6:30 p.m.

 

The 68-team bracket Selection Sunday show is 8 p.m. on March 17 on ESPN.

 

And that’s the report.

 

The Guru Report: Temple Holds First in AAC With Fifth Straight Win; Drexel Handles UNCW; Upsets Strike ACC and Pac-12

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

 

PHILADELPHIA — While it was another day of national upsets on Sunday, here at Drexel’s Daskalakis Athletic Center, the Dragons got back on the winning track in the Coastal Athletic Association beating UNCW 63-39.

 

Reversing the way it went Friday night for the two CAA local teams, Delaware fell at preseason favorite Towson 70-57.

 

But while getting back to this duo in a bit, the story of the moment is one nobody saw coming a month ago.

 

If Temple was beginning to get hot at the time, the Owls are really on fire now after beating one of two other Owls contingent in the American Athletic Conference in their first ever meeting.

 

Completing a Texas Two Step sweep, the current win streak is five straight after downing Rice 75-66 to stay in first with three games remaining in the regular season.

 

Holding a one-game lead Temple (17-10, 11-4) under second-year head coach Diane Richardson, seems likely to clinch one of four double-byes for a top four finish that could come by beating Tulsa Wednesday night at 7 p.m. in the Liacouras Center (ESPN+).

 

It’s almost certain the Owls are close to knowing their season will not end early and if it means falling just short of the NCAA but playing in the new 32-team WBIT or reduced 48-team WNIT, it will still be a major growth step for a squad picked ninth in the preseason poll from the conference coaches.

 

Against Rice (15-12, 9-7) in the host Owls’ Tudor Fieldhouse in Houston, Tarriyona Gary was 5-5 from long range and finished with 20 points, while Tristen Taylor was 4-4 from deep.

 

Freshman Taylor from nearby Duncanville, Texas, scored 14 off the bench, Tiarra East had 12 points and 10 boards, while Aleah Nelson and Rayne Tucker each scored 10 points and grabbed 13 rebounds.

 

“We called her a fearless freshman in the beginning of the season,” Richardson said. “We saw that today. We were in her home state, so I think she is pretty confident playing in Texas.”

 

All of it offset Malia Fisher scoring 24 with eight boards for Rice.

 

The streak is the longest since the December portion of 2019-20, while it’s the longest in conference since 2016-17. Temple last reached 17 wins in 2015-16 when the Owls won 23, and the last time the Owls were leading a conference this late was. Back in 2011-12 as a member of the Atlantic 10.

 

Temple went 3-0 in the past week, a feat helpful when beginning likely in the quarterfinals of the AAC  Tourney in Fort Worth.

 

“to prepare for that,  we’ve got to do that when we get to the tournament,” said Richardson, who several years ago led Towson on a run to the CAA title at Delaware.

 

“We want to stay focused on each game.”

 

“The game the other day was not typical Temple offense,” Richardson said on the zoom call afterwards. “They got in the gym and worked on their shots, and I could kind of tell it was going to be one of those games.

 

“It was just the confidence factor. I knew it was a tough game coming in and our ladies shot the lights out.”

 

Here at Drexel, it was all Dragons (12-13, 7-7) getting close to back above .500 to draw potential postseason interest.

 

Right now, coach Amy Mallon said the concentration is just trying to get better each game.

 

Villanova transfer Brooke Mullin was 4-5 from three and finished with 16 points, Amaris Baker scored 14 points on 7-15 from the field.

 

Laine McGurk scored seven and drew several charges by the opposition (5-20, 3-11).

 

The Dragons next finish the season home stand hosting CAA leader Stony Brook at 6 p.m., Friday night, and. Campbell Sunday at 2 p.m., both games on FloHoops.

 

Delaware (10-16, 6-8) meanwhile struggled at Towson (16-9, 8-6), which is in sixth place a game ahead of Campbell and Drexel.

 

Chloe Wilson had 23 points for the visiting Blue Hens, while Ande’A Cherisier scored 12. With seven boards.

 

The Blue Hens will host Campbell Friday night at 7 on FloHoops in the Bob Carpenter Center in Newark and then greet Elon at 1 p.m. on Sunday, both games on FloHoops.

 

The National Scene: Some held firm. Others did not.

 

This time next week a bunch of conference tournament fields will be set to pursue the first group of NCAA automatic bids. It’s been wild all season and it’s likely to continue.

 

In the Big Ten it was recent business as usual for No. 2 Ohio State which clinched a tie and top seed for next week’s action by winning 79-66 at Maryland as Celeste Taylor scored 20, Jacy Sheldon scored 17and three others were also in double figures for the Buckeyes (24-4, 15-1) with their 14^th straight victory.

 

One triumph in two remaining games earns the regular season title outright.

 

Bri McDaniel scored 21 and Brinae Alexander had 16 for the Terrapins (16-11, 8-8), who parted with a four-game win streak.

 

No. 4 Iowa (24-4, 13-3) downed visiting Illinois 101-85 following the loss to No. 14 Indiana as Caitlin Clark earned her 16^th triple double, doing so with 24 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists. She had five makes from deep.

 

The Hawkeyes and Indiana are tied for second behind Ohio State, which visits Iowa in Sunday’s wrapup after Clark’s group visits Minnesota Wednesday.

 

Consider it a sneak preview for next week’s Big Ten Tournament at the Target Center in Minneapolis, which for the first time is sold out, yet another residual from the NCAA Division I record setter.

 

Over in the Atlantic Coast Conference No. 8 Virginia Tech (23-4, 14-2) won it’s 10^th straight, beating North Carolina 74-62 as Elizabeth Kitley scored 34 to give the Hokies a share of the conference regular season title and No. 1 seed next week in Greensboro, N.C.

 

But Virginia (14-13, 6-10) won at No. 20 Louisville 73-68, the first unranked team to win at the KFC Yum! Center, snapping a 56-game win streak by the Cardinals (22-7, 11-5).  Camryn Taylor had nine of her 22 points in the fourth quarter for the Cavaliers.

 

Duke beat No. 6 N.C. State 69-58 at home in Durham, N.C. as Taina Mair had 19 points for the Blue Devils (18-9, 10-6), making it two straight upsets of ranked teams in four days.

 

The Wolfpack (23-5, 11-5) lost their second straight for the first time this season.

 

In the Southeastern Conference No. 1 South Carolina (27-0, 14-0) romped at Kentucky 103-55 to claim single ownership of the conference for Greenville, S.C., next week, already holding the No. 1 seed.

 

It’s the third straight and eighth of 11 regular season crowns for the Gamecocks.

 

No. 13 LSU (24-4, 11-3), the reigning NCAA champions, won on the road beating Tennessee 75-60 as Louisville transfer Hailey van Lith scored 26 points and Angel Reese crossed a career-milestone to get to 2,006 points combined at Maryland and with the Tigers.

 

Rickea Jackson reached 1,006 with 16 points for the Lady Vols (16-10, 9-5).

 

In the Pac-12, No. 3 Stanford bounced back from Friday’s loss to Arizona beating Arizona State 81-67 and with help else the damage was minimized as the Cardinal (24-4, 13-3) claimed a share of the conference crown, their last before joining the ACC next season.

 

It was their final Pac-12 game in Maples Pavilion.

 

Kiki Iriafen had 22 points and 20 rebounds while Cameron Brink, who missed Friday suffering from the flu, scored 14.

 

No. 7 Southern Cal at home in the Galen Center blew a chance to keep pace, losing 74-68 to No. 18 Utah in Los Angeles.

 

Former Trojan Alissa Pili had 23 points and nine boards for the Utes (20-8, 10-6), who had their highest rank opponent road win.

 

In departing from a seven-game win streak USC (21-5, 11-5) suffered its worse loss of the season.

 

Freshman sensation JuJu Watkins had 30 points for the Trojans.

 

Washington beat visiting No. 9 Oregon State 61-51 home in Seattle lessening the Beavers’ hopes to share the last Pac-12 title. 

 

Elle Ladine scored 23 points for the Huskies.

 

Leading scorer Raegan Beers missed her fourth straight game with a broken nose for Oregon State (22-5, 11-5), which got 13 points and 11 rebounds from Timea Gardiner.

 

In the Big East, No. 15 UConn may have struggled nationally on an injury-riddled roster but continue to own the conference winning 100-67 at DePaul in Chicago, the 25^th straight win over the Blue Demons (12-17, 4-12).

 

Paige Bueckers had 30 points for the Huskies (24-5, 16-0) and Aaliyah Edwards had 23 points and 17 rebounds.

 

It was Geno Auriemma’s 1204 career win, second in college basketball to Stanford’s Tara VanDerveer (1210).

 

There are no local games the next two days, but Monday night Colorado is at UCLA (9 p.m., ESPN2).

 

And that’s the report.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Guru Report: Saint Joseph’s Back in 1st Place Tie in A-10 After Beating Rhode Island; Columbia Upsets No. 25 Princeton While Penn Rallies on Cornell; Fairfield Clinches MAAC 1-Seed

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

 

PHILADELPHIA — February frenzy, the prelude period leading to March Madness, struck here with all its force in the Atlantic 10 race to the finish and also over in the Ivy League Saturday afternoon.

 

When the curtain finally dropped on the afternoon action in the A-10 Saint Joseph’s held on to beat Rhode Island 72-67 here at Hagan Arena for a season sweep and an hour later the Hawks (25-3, 14-2) found themselves back in a first-place tie with Richmond (24-5, 14-2), which was upset in overtime at George Mason 82-76 in overtime in Fairfax, Va.

 

Latvian Paula Maurina, a transfer from Hartford filling in for Laura Ziegler (expected back Wednesday), had her best day with her newer Hawks (also Hartford’s mascot) scoring 19 points, with five rebounds.

 

“She was unbelievable today,” said Saint Joseph’s veteran coach Cindy Griffin. “Defensively, she did a wonderful job in the paint just limiting the other team’s touches.”

 

Earlier in the season, Maurina had a nice outing and at that time Griffin said she could be a big help moving forward.

 

Griffin’s comment was quite prophetic.

 

“Defense is a lot about Effort and how much effort you put into what you're doing,” her reserve star said “I just try to execute the game plan that the coaching staff had talked to us about.”

 

Talya Bruglar had 17 points, 11 in the second half, Chloe Welch scored 14 while Mackenzie Smith scored 13.

 

Senior days always produce roster alterations at the outset as coaches put those normally off the bench into the starting lineup and in that regard, Emma Boslet took advantage picking up four assists while later in the game freshman Gabby Casey off the bench had seven points and four assists.

 

The Hawks were again perfect on the line 17-17, all which helped at the finish when the Rams rallied.

 

The two A-10 leaders heading into the final week of the regular season hold a one-game lead over a group of three, GMU (22-5, 13-3), VCU (24-4, 13-3), and Duquesne (18-9, 13-3), tied for third and one of five will be eliminated from the perk of a double bye into the quarterfinals at next month’s tournament in suburban Richmond, from which the winner gets an automatic bid to the Big Dance.

 

“We have five teams that could finish one through four,” said Griffin, now in her 23rd season at her alma mater. “I think this is a multiple team league from a national standpoint.”

 

It is moot to go into all the scenarios now with a re-do that will be needed following Wednesday’s contest to look at what the situations are for Saturday’s final games on the league slate.

 

But from the Hawks’ standpoint right now, a win at home Wednesday night (7 p.m., ESPN+) over Fordham for a season sweep, would ensure a finish in the top four.

 

In a season that featured the program’s best start that was disrupted at VCU, the next win ties a record for total victories.

 

Furthermore, if they win out, meaning winning at Duquesne in Pittsburgh Saturday, should Duquesne upset Richmond Wednesday, Saint Joseph’s could finish with the No. 1 seed.

 

If they tie for first, Saint Joseph’s will be the two seed off a head-to-head loss here to Richmond in early January.

 

“It's going to be a very dynamic finish for all of us, and we're excited to finish, but we also got to get little things cleaned up a little bit tooand get ready for Fordham on Wednesday,” Griffin said.

 

As for what occurred here Saturday against a Rhode Island squad that was the coaches’ preseason pick, the Rams (17-12, 9-7) off suffering with injuries along the way arrived here trying to finish in the top eight — they’re now sixth — to at least grab a first-round bye.

 

But on senior day, the Hawks for most of the afternoon were in control building a 16-point lead during the second period and still comfortably ahead by 13 after the third period.

 

Then the Rams got life on three long makes from deep, the last of which from Dee Dee Davis, who had 19 points, was quickly followed by a shot by Anaelle Dutat off a turnover and suddenly it was 66-62 with 2:15 left.

 

Dutat then cut in to 66-63 with 1:24 left in regulation, shooting 1-2 from the line, and then it got even even closer at 66-64 on Ines Debroise going 1-2 from the line with 1:20 left.

 

Saint Joseph’s Julia Nystrom made two foul shots for a 68-64 lead with 24 seconds left, but URI countered with a deep three from Davis with 17 seconds left.

 

That was as far as the visitors gained as Bruglar banked two free throws, Davis missed the other way with a three and then Bruglar delivered two more from the line and the Hawks were back on the winning side.

 

“We were familiar with the situation and just knew that we needed to stay calm,” Bruglar said, “and execute what we were doing, and I think we did a good job of that.”

 

In the Richmond game, Cardinal O’Hara grad Maggie Doogan led five Spiders in double figures with 20 points and 11 rebounds, while Sonia Smith had 23 points for the Patriots, Taylor Jameson had 19 points, reserve Zahira Walton had 18 points and 14 rebounds, and Ta’Viyanna Habib scored 13.

 

George Mason led most of the way but Richmond rallied in the fourth quarter, finally took a 68-66 lead on a Doogan three with 1:10 left.

 

Smith tied it from the line with 54 seconds left with Richmond then missing a game-winner just before regulation expired.

 

Walton’s layup in the first minute of overtime snapped the deadlock with the Spiders, and the Patriots went on to outscore the visitors 11-8 the rest of the way going up by eight with with 23 seconds left.

 

Ivy Chaos: Before a sellout crowd at the site of next month’s four-team Ivy Madness tournament in New York City, Columbia, which had been one of the seven dwarfs to the Princeton giant until Megan Griffith returned to coach her alma mater, had a tennis style game, set, match upset of the No. 25 Tigers winning 67-65 at Levien Gym to move into a first-place tie with the Tigers with two weeks remaining for the second straight season.

 

A year ago, Columbia ended Princeton’s mastery early at Jadwin Gym before the Tigers repaid the experience down the stretch and went on to win the automatic qualifier at home.

 

This time Princeton (20-4, 10-1) struck first at home early last month, but Columbia (19-5, 10-1) kept pace to be in position to even it up once more.

 

The Tigers arrived on the short trip with a 15-game winning streak.

 

Lions senior Abbey Hsu had 16 of her 26 points in the second half and became the fourth Ivy woman to reach 2,000 career points.

 

“The job is not finished yet and we are not satisfied but it's definitely a great win,” Hsu said.

 

A year ago, Columbia lost the tie-break, got upset in the semifinals by Harvard, costing minimally an NCAA at-large bid, though they made Ivy history advancing to the WNIT final before losing at Kansas.

 

Until Saturday, Columbia, which became Division I in 1986-87, was 0-12 against Associated Press Top 25 opponents.

 

Noting remarks she made to her seniors on their day at the postgame press conference, Griffith, a native of King of Prussia, related, “I hope you took a moment to just soak it in and look around at what you've built. There is no environment in our league like this - there's not even a lot of mid major environments in the country like this - and to have the support of our community, our families, you all, the media, and the people that just really bought into this program.

 

 “I could not be more proud of them for how they represent not only Columbia athletics and Columbia women's basketball but the university and what it stands for and the values that we hold here at Columbia.”

 

Cecilia Collins scored 14 points with four assists and three rebounds while Kitty Henderson had 11 points and eight rebounds.

 

Princeton’s Chet Nweke was 7-for-11 from the field and scored 17 points, reigning Ivy player of the year Kaitlyn Chen had 14 points and eight assists while Ellie Mitchell had nine points and 18 rebounds.

 

Both teams clinched berths last weekend.

 

Harvard (15-9, 8-3) clinched a berth Saturday beating Brown 80-73 as Lola Mullaney scored 24 points, Harmoni Turner scored 21, Abigail Wright had a career-high 18, and Karlee White scored 11.

 

“We're a resilient group, and it's about how do we respond when things aren't going our way,” said Harvard coach Carrie Moore. “So incredibly proud of how we finished the game because we have been talking a lot about finishing plays and finishing games.”

 

Penn (13-11) took advantage of the Brown loss to move into a fourth-place tie with the Bears (14-10, 5-6) for the last spot but the Quakers at Cornell in the fourth quarter were closer to an early spring vacation than a trip to Columbia, trailing the Big Red (7-16, 1-10) by eight points with 5:55 left in regulation.

 

However, freshman star Mataya Gayle keyed a 17-2 rally with 10 of her 12 points on the way to a 61-54 victory.

 

Jordan Obi had 18 points and 12 rebounds while Stina Almqvist scored 15 with six rebounds and Floor Tooners had nine boards off the bench.

 

The Quakers host Dartmouth Friday at 5 p.m. In The Palestra and Harvard Saturday, both on ESPN+.

 

If you’re a Penn fan, conceding the final game in two weeks at Princeton is not going to go well, your best hope is to sweep the weekend Brown among its last three games loses to Columbia and Yale.

 

Had the Quakers not yielded leads last weekend to Brown and in their first meeting to Yale they would be in the field with fighting for seeds the only remaining element in the title chase.

 

Villanova Falls at No. 21 Creighton: A promising halftime tie with the Bluejays in Omaha, Neb., fall apart in the second half resulting in a 69-59 defeat ahead of a trip to UConn Wednesday night in the final week of the Big East season that ends with a visit at DePaul next Sunday.

 

Lucy Olsen had 26 points for the Wildcats (17-10, 10-6), whose seeding fate from 3-5 will be determined in part by other games.

 

Christina Dalce had 14 points and 13 rebounds while freshman Maddie Webber scored 10. 

 

Creighton’s Lauren Jensen scored 20, matching Olsen with four from deep, while Morgan Mally had 18 points and eight rebounds, Emma Ronsiek scored 15, and Molly Mogensen scored 13.

 

The Bluejays swept the season series but if the teams were to meet in the semifinals ‘Nova likely would need a win for an NCAA bid. Of course if the ‘Cats are in the other semifinal facing ‘UConn, they will be a high seed in the new NCAA-run WBIT or the WNIT.

 

The Other Locals: VCU remained in the Atlantic 10 traffic jam at the top at the expense of La Salle, ruining the Explorers’ senior day here in town at Tom Gola Arena with a 75-50 victory.

 

Sarah Te-Biasu had 17 points fir the visiting Rams, who upset Saint Joseph’s at home last Wednesday. Timaya Lewis-Eutsey had 14 points while Mykel Parham grabbed 15 rebounds for the Rams (24-4, 13-3).

 

Molly Masciantonio had 12 points for the Explorers (7-20, 4-12), while Mikayla Miller and Tiara Bolden each scored 11.

 

La Salle Wednesday hosts Saint Louis at 6:30 p.m., and VCU in a key game is at Rhode Island at 6 p.m., both on ESPN+.

 

In the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, Rider won its fourth straight beating Marist 62-61 in overtime at home in Alumni Gym in Lawrenceville, N.J.

 

The visiting Red Foxes (5-21, 3-13) went up by a point 54-53 with 20 seconds left in regulation on an 8-1 run with two foul shots and then the Broncs (9-16, 6-10) countered with a foul shot to tie but missed the game-winner to force the extra period.

 

Rider scored first and then Marist countered and the score remained much of the rest of the way until Molly Lynch’s shot gave the Broncs a 60-59 lead with 34 seconds left.

 

Taylor Langhan stole a ball and Makaya Firebaugh made it 62-59 with a second left.

 

Marist then took a long desperation shot and Rider was charged with a foul.

 

The Red Foxes made the first two but missed the third and Rider escaped and gained a season split.

 

“Great home win,” said veteran Rider coach Lynn Milligan. “This late in February, every MAAC win is so important. It's going to come down to the wire every single time.

 

 “Not exactly how we drew it up, but I'm happy with how we stayed connected today, especially on the defensive end.”

 

The streak is the longest since 2020.

 

Mariona Cos-Morales got into double figures for the first time and had a career-high 14 points while Langan had 13 points and nine rebounds and Sanaa Redmond scored 10.

 

Rider is at preseason favorite Niagara on Thursday at 6 p.m. (ESPN+).

 

The Purple Eagles (15-12, 12-5) were a 95-65 victim at Fairfield (24-1, 16-0) as the Stags won their 22^nd straight game and clinched the top seed in next month’s tournament in Atlantic City.

 

Meghan Andersen led four players in double figures for the winners with 26 points and nine rebounds.

 

In the Patriot League in the second game in the season series between the two local members, Lafayette won at Lehigh 68-63 in Stabler Arena in Bethlehem, Pa., for a split as Makayla Andrews had 20 points and eight rebounds for the Leopards (10-16, 5-10), Kayla Drummond had 15 points and six rebounds, and reserve Kay Donahue scored 13.

 

Lehigh (15-11, 7-8) had 25 points from Colleen McQuillen, 15 points and six boards from Ella Stemmer, and 10 points from Remi Sisselman.

 

On Wednesday Lehigh is at Boston U. at 6 p.m., the same time Lafayette hosts Navy, both games on ESPN+.

 

In the Big Ten, Rutgers lost at Michigan State 93-57 in East Lansing as Moira Joiner had 22 points for the Spartans (20-7, 10-6) and Erica Lafayette had 20 for the Scarlet Knights (8-22, 2-15) who host Northwestern next Sunday at 2 p.m.

 

Looking Ahead: Just three games locally Sunday, Temple at 3 p.m. looking to expand its first-place lead in the American Athletic Conference in a battle of Owls when they play their first game at Rice (ESPN+).

 

In the Coastal Athletic Association, Drexel hosts UNCW at 1 p.m. in the Daskalakis Athletic Center, while Delaware at 2 p.m. visits Towson in suburban Baltimore, both games on ESPN+.

 

Nationally, in the Big East, UConn is at Depaul in Chicago at 6 p.m. on CBSSN.

 

In the SEC at noon, No. 13 LSU is at Tennessee on ESPN, while at 3 p.m. No. 1 South Carolina is at Kentucky at on SECN.

 

In the Big Ten at 1 p.m. Illinois is No. 4 Iowa on FS1.

 

And that’s the report.