Get your brooms out. The sweeping has begun.
The Elis played three against the Crimson last night. And Yale woke up this morning with no wins, no bragging rights, and no self respect.
For many the big one was held at Bright Hockey Center. But for the true hoops fanatics, the crazed, Dick Vitale lovin', basketball worshippin' fans, the biggest one was in the budding metropolis of downtown New Haven.
And big it was for the Harvard women hoopsters, who came away with a solid 75-69 victory.
Leading the way in the victory were the youngsters. Freshman point guard Elizabeth Proudfit, coming off her second Rookie of the Week honor this season, turned in a strong performance (14 points, 5-6 shooting).
Sophomore Tammy Butler had another simple night at the office. She pumped in 15 points (7-12) and grabbed nine rebounds.
Others could be mentioned as well. Co-Captain Erin Maher, though not shooting much, connected on five of eight shots. Junior Cara Frey also hit on five of eight, two from international waters.
Scorching Nets
But the key was the team performance.
Collectively, the Crimson scorched the nets, shooting a sizzling 60 percent from the floor. On defense, they held Yale to under 40 percent from the floor.
In the biggest game of the year so far, the Crimson came through. It faced a hostile environment. It faced a good team. And it faced the harsh comments of the critics pending another road loss.
Perched on top of the Ivies with an undefeated record (6-0), the Crimson embarked on a roadtrip this weekend.
Not a Jake and Elwood, Blues Brothers type roadtrip. Some business needed to be taken care of. The type of business that all potential Ivy league champions must tend to.
Harvard had not won on the road. In five tries this year, the women from Cambridge had packed their bags and left behind the familiar home cookin' of Briggs Cage. And five times they returned home hungry for a win.
Over Christmas Harvard went out West and lost to Stanford and Utah. Tough games. Certainly no reason to hang their heads.
Next came losses at Vermont, Rhode Island, and New Hampshire. Three winnable games. Three close games. Still, three losses. The ever important "road win" was becoming more downright elusive.
Last night in Eli country, it was time to prove something. It was time to prove that Harvard could win on the road. It was time to prove that they are the best team in the Ivies.
The good teams take care of the home games. The great ones steal victories on the road.
The Crimson took that step towards greatness last night.
Pretty good night at the office. HARVARD: Buffer 7-12 1-5 15, Proudfft 5-6 2-2 14, Cronk 0-2 0-2 0, Phillips 0-0 2-2 2, Reinhard 0-0 0-0 0, Maher 5-8 1-2 11, Frey 5-8 2-3 14, Crisers 2-2 0-0 4, McNamer 1-2 0-0 2, Flandermeyer 5-8 3-4 13, Gettleman 0-0 0-0 0. Total: 30-50 11-18 75 YALE: Offer 0-2 1-2 1, Kalich 2-10 0-0 4, Siampeko 6-16 7-8 19, Jacobsen 2-4 0-0 4, Poter 3-6 7-9 13, Brandt 3-8 0-0 9, Verschneider 4-8 5-5 15, Adeiman 0-1 2-2 2, Price 1-1 0-0 2. Totals: 21-56 22-26 69.
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