“We’re not a 60 percent shooting team,” Delaney-Smith said. “We had to come back to earth. I think Reka was part of that [first-half] accuracy and they doubled her.”
Harvard’s offensive output took a nosedive in the second frame, as the Crimson posted 11 fewer points and sunk only eight of 30 attempted shots.
Heightened defensive pressure forced Harvard’s shooters to settle for longer-range shots and they didn’t fall nearly as frequently.
The Crimson was plagued by turnovers yet again Thursday, giving the ball away on 25 occasions. Those miscues led to 15 Wagner points.
“I thought when we try to be too quick, we [turn the ball over],” Delaney-Smith said. “I have to credit Wagner’s scrappy defense. I think we have a bad habit of getting sloppy with the ball and relaxing.”
Harvard continues its New York road trip Saturday, when the Crimson crosses the river and heads to New Brunswick, N.J., to take on Rutgers.
--Staff writer Timothy J. McGinn can be reached at mcginn@fas.harvard.edu.