However, though the Crimson beat Columbia (10-13, 3-7) 90-62 on Feb. 14, taking two may not be a walk in the park.

“Believe it or not, the fact that we beat them by so much is scary because that’s the situation where a team tends to relax,” Delaney-Smith said. “I’m afraid of Columbia. [The win] was a tremendous team effort. Ironically, we thought Columbia was a better team than Cornell.”

The Lions’ offense is keyed around junior guard Sue Altman, a transfer from Holy Cross who has given Columbia an immediate boost, scoing 16.5 points per game. Altman scored 33 points against the Crimson, but Peljto countered, tying her career-high with 36 points and missing the school record by three.

Harvard benefits from the Lions’ matchup problems, as Columbia struggled to cover the Crimson’s dominant forwards in the last meeting.

“In the Columbia game, it seemed like everything was just clicking for us,” Moore said. “We definitely need to try to do the same things, mainly just doing a great job in the defensive end.”

With a three-game cushion at the top of the Ivy ladder, the final home games this weekend could—and perhaps should—wrap up another Ivy League title and NCAA tournament berth for the Crimson.

—Staff writer Jessica T. Lee can be reached at lee45@fas.harvard.edu.