Women's Basketball: Unbeaten cats battle as Tigers host Villanova

With two wins in its pocket, the women’s basketball team will face its strongest opponent yet in Villanova on Saturday. Extending the win streak will prove to be a challenge for the Tigers as Princeton looks to find a victory over a difficult Big East opponent that has already toppled one ranked squad this season.

During their first week of the season, the Tigers (2-0) dominated their opponents, beating St. Joseph’s and Lafayette by a combined total of 57 points.

The major change that Tiger fans have seen from last year is an increase in the pace of the game.

Head coach Courtney Banghart has made the focus of the offense this year to press the court as much as possible, and it appears that the strategy has already started to pay dividends by focusing on the Tigers’ strengths.

“We are a pretty athletic team, and the pace really allows us to capitalize on our speed and athleticism,” junior forward Kate Miller said. “It allows us to get more work from the open court, which we are pretty good at, and get a lot more transition points, which is a pretty good way to score.”

Miller has scored 18 points so far this season, all in the opener, and already seems poised to make a much bigger contribution to the Tiger squad. Last year, Miller averaged 4.2 points per game.

Miller also noted that running a full-court press always runs the risk of exposing the team’s frontcourt. “Just like any high-paced game, it’s high-risk, high-reward,” Miller said. “But with [senior center] Devona Allgood in back, I’m pretty confident in our center to control the court, so clearly the benefits outweigh the risks.”

“The speed of the game has been a lot faster than in high school, and I finally think that I am starting to get it,” freshman point guard Blake Dietrick said. “Before players could give up on some plays, but — especially here — you can’t afford to do that.”

The first two games of the season have been highlighted by the return of junior forward Niveen Rasheed, who missed much of last season due to injury. Rasheed has already proven to be the dominant offensive force on the squad with 39 points and six assists.

The Tigers have also seen strong contributions from senior guard Lauren Edwards, who has scored double digits in both games.

Villanova (3-0), which received seven votes in the most recent ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll, will come to Jadwin Gymnasium on a three-game win streak. This year is the first time the Wildcats have opened with three straight wins since the 2005-06 season.

The Wildcats have had four players score in double figures during all three victories.

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During their last game, the Wildcats used a 12-point run to come back and earn an upset victory over Marist. Marist — which will visit Jadwin on Monday — is one of the nation’s top mid-majors and received 24 votes in the most recent poll.

Leading the charge was forward Megan Pearson, who notched seven points during the comeback. Pearson and guard Rachel Roberts are regular offensive contributors for the Wildcats and could prove to cause some trouble for the Tigers’ defense.

The Princeton squad said that it is confident in its ability to challenge the Wildcats. “It should be a really big game because Villanova is a running, guard type of team that really likes to shoot threes,” Dietrick said.

Villanova also beat then-No. 25 Michigan State to open the season.

In order to come away with a win, Dietrick said that the Tigers “need to run just as much as they do, but that’s our game as well — we love to get up and down the floor.”

Miller believes the Tigers just need to “be completely on board with the game plan, and, as long as everyone sticks to the plan, then it could be anyone’s game.”

“It’s fun to play against a team at that level and to be able to go out and know that we have a chance to win,” she added.