PRINCETON, N.J. – Following a stellar 2022-23 campaign that saw four teams compete in postseason tournaments, recording nine wins, the Ivy League women’s basketball season tips off on Monday, November 6 as five Ivies are in action against non-conference foes. In total, all eight Ivies will begin their seasons before Saturday, November 11.
2022-23 RECAP
Last season, Columbia and Princeton both earned shares of the Ivy League title with 12-2 conference records. In postseason play, the Tigers won the Ivy League Tournament, earning the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, where for the second-straight season, they advanced to the Round of 32 after a win over No. 7-seed NC State.
In the Postseason WNIT, the Lions advanced all the way to the championship game before falling to Kansas. Columbia recorded wins over Syracuse, Harvard, and Bowling Green during their run. The Crimson advanced to the Great Eight of the tournament as well with wins over UMass and Rhode Island.
2023-24 SEASON PREVIEW
The Ivy League brings back all major award winners from last season as Princeton’s
Kaitlyn Chen (Player of the Year),
Ellie Mitchell (Co-Defensive Player of the Year), and
Madison St. Rose (Rookie of the Year) as well as Yale’s
Nyla McGill (Co-Defensive Player of the Year) all return to their respective institutions.
In the preseason, Chen and Columbia’s
Abbey Hsu were named to the 2024 Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Watch List, which recognizes the top student-athletes playing in mid-major conferences. Chen was one of two players in the Ivy League last season to rank in the top-five in both scoring and assists, averaging 16.2 points per game and 3.8 assists per game. Hsu was the Ivy League’s top scorer on the year, averaging 17.8 points per game while ranking second nationally in three-pointers made per game (3.3). Hsu ranked third in the conference in three-point shooting percentage (37.7%) while making the fourth most three-pointers in the nation (112).
On the coaching side, Columbia’s
Megan Griffith, last year’s Ivy League Coach of the Year and Princeton’s
Carla Berube, a two-time Ivy League Coach of the Year, were named to the 2024 Kathy Delaney-Smith Mid-Major Coach of the Year Watch List.
OPENING WEEK
In the opening week of the season, Ivies compete against five opponents from the Power 5 and Big East conferences. Harvard opens the season against an Elite Eight team from last season, No. 14 Maryland, on opening night, while Brown welcomes Florida Gulf Coast, a Round of 32 team last year on the same day.
Later in the week, Yale takes on Pittsburgh, Harvard faces Boston College, Columbia welcomes Seton Hall, and Brown travels to Georgetown.
Link to full composite schedule.