BOX SCORE
Boston, Mass. – After holding opponents to 50.4 points a year ago, the Hawks have now given up 70 or more in four of their eight games as they fall to 1-7 overall in 2009-10 with an 85-61 loss to Harvard on the road on Friday night. The Hawks were led by a pair of double digit scorers as Daphne Elliott led the way with 16 and her sophomore classmate Nikkia Smith added 10.
The Hawks finished the game shooting 36.5 percent for the game (19-of-52), while the Crimson shot great in their home opener, finishing the game at a 53 percent clip (33-of-62). Leading all scorers was the Crimson's Victoria Lippert who finished with 21 points.
Hartford came out of the halftime break and began to make their run with six straight points, capped off by an Alex Hall three pointer with 16:20 to play in the game. That basket pulled the Hawks within single digits at 44-36.
Harvard answered that small Hawks run with nine of the next 11 points to regain control and a 53-38 lead with 13:36 to play. The final seven points of that run and the next four points for the Crimson all came from Lippert as she single handedly opened the Crimson lead to 57-42 with 12:07 to play.
The Hawks would hit back-to-back three pointers, broken up by a Claire Wheeler layup, but would get no closer than 61-48 with 9:54 to play. The Crimson then rattled off 15 of the next 17 points in the game to open up their largest lead 81-51 with just under three minutes remaining.
Hartford would cut into that lead with 10 of the next 12 points but it would prove to be to late as the Crimson came away with the home opening victory.
Hartford open the game with the first points, a layup on a drive to the hoop from Elliott. The Crimson would answer by scoring the next five and eight of the next 10 to begin to stretch their lead. Hartford could never put together a stretch with more than one basket, while Harvard manages runs of seven, five and five to open up their first double digit lead with 9:36 left in the half.
Late in the half, the Crimson saw their largest lead at 37-20 with 2:50 remaining after eight straight points, all coming from junior guard Brogan Berry. The Hawks would answer by scoring back-to-back three pointers from Ilicia Mathis and Jackie Smith to cut the lead to 37-26, but a Crimson bucket as the buzzer sounded at the break would count and Harvard took a 39-26 lead into the break.
The Crimson couldn't miss in the first half shooting 57.7 percent (15-of-26) overall, while shooting 46 percent from long range (5-of-11). On the other end, the Hawks first half shooting struggles continued as the made 9-of-31 for 29 percent. The Hawks were shooting better from beyond the arc, where they made 36 percent of their shots (4-of-11).
The Hawks will return to the friendly confines of the Chase Family Arena for the first time in the month of December when they host the Marist Red Foxes on Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. Be sure to get to the game early as the first 1,000 fans will receive a free commemorative Jen Rizzotti Bobblehead doll, and wear white as the Hawks will White out the Pavilion against Marist.
