Harvard women's basketball Coach Kathy Delaney-Smith is now facing her toughest battle to date.

The long-time coach, now in her 18th year at Harvard, was diagnosed with breast cancer in mid-December, not too long before the Crimson's Dec. 18 game at Northeastern. During a routine check-up, a doctor found a lump in her right breast.

"It's not anything really, other than a little imposition," she said after coaching the Crimson to a 73-67 win over Dartmouth Friday to open the Ivy League season. "I feel very healthy. I'm very optimistic. I have a lot of energy. Unfortunately, I have to go through the [treatment]."

Delaney-Smith, who had surgery the week before Christmas, will begin her treatment with chemotherapy soon, followed by radiation.

According to Jamie Weir, Harvard assistant director of sports media relations, a biopsy of the tissue yielded positive news.

"The borders were clean and it had not spread to her lymph nodes," Weir said.

Delaney-Smith does not expect to miss any games this season as the Crimson (7-5, 1-0 Ivy) delves head-first into its league schedule. Harvard hosts Yale and Brown this weekend.

"I don't expect it to [keep me out]," she said. "I might miss a practice. Maybe, maybe not. I'm not missing a game. I will be fabulous for the weekend."

Delaney-Smith broke the news to her team just before Christmas.

"We were devastated that anything remotely bad had happened to Kathy," captain Laela Sturdy said. "We were really upset when we first found out. But if anyone can handle it, Kathy can."

Sturdy says it has not changed the way the team treats its coach.

"It hasn't affected the way we look at her as a coach," Sturdy said. "We are just trying to be strong and supportive of her. It's just another small challenge in the road. We are just wishing her the best."

Delaney-Smith is the winningest basketball coach in Harvard history, currently owning an all-time record of 254-198. Her 250th career win came Nov. 28 with an 83-50 win over Sacred Heart. Friday's win over Dartmouth gave her 150 career Ivy League wins.

Delaney-Smith, who has the longest current basketball coaching tenure in the Ivy League, has guided Harvard to six Ivy titles and recruited Harvard's greatest women's basketball player ever, Allison Feaster '98.

In Feaster's senior season, the Crimson made history when it upset Stanford in the first round of the 1998 NCAA tournament. It marked the first time a No. 16 seed had beaten a No. 1 seed in either the men's or women's tournament.

She was the Ivy League Coach of the Year for the 1996-97 season after guiding the Crimson to a perfect 14-0 league record, the only time it has been done in Ivy League women's basketball history.

A Newton resident, Delaney-Smith lives with her husband, Francis, and their son, Jared.