Until Monday, Princeton women’s basketball (0–1 overall, 0–0 Ivy League) had not lost their first game of the season since 2016. However, after going cold in the fourth quarter, the team’s streak ended: the Tiger squad fell 76–66 to the Duquesne Dukes (1–0 overall, 0–0 Atlantic 10).
With sophomores Fadima Tall and Ashley Chea and senior Parker Hill accompanying returning athletes sophomore Skye Belker and junior Madison St. Rose in the starting lineup, the Tigers leaned into the dual dynamics of youth and early-season exploration.
For the first time since the 2021–22 season, head coach Carla Berube had to field a starting lineup without first team all-ivy selections Kaitlyn Chen ’24 and Ellie Mitchell ’24 — and she is still working out the kinks of the new-look Tiger’s rotation. Against the Dukes, eight players recorded over 10 minutes of play, which is not typical of a Berube-coached team, demonstrating the flexibility of the beginning of the non-conference schedule.
“Now, it’s all about learning how to play with each other and getting used to everyone’s pace,” St. Rose told The Daily Princetonian. “Once it clicks, we’re going to be really, really good.”
St. Rose and Belker immediately made their returning presences known, combining to score all of Princeton’s first 10 points. After a layup from junior forward Tabitha Amanze and first-year guard Cristina Parrella’s first points as a Tiger, Princeton were up 15–10 midway through the first quarter.
“Cristina [Parrella] did really well when she was open,” St. Rose said. “Being a point guard and a freshman, you can feel a lot of pressure, but when she was in the game, she looked like it was easy to her; she looks very confident.”
Parrella responded to a Duquesne three with another triple of her own, and after Chea got in on the action from deep, Princeton led 21–16 in a high-scoring first quarter.
Bang.@ashleyycheaa at the buzzer! #GetStops 🐯🏀 pic.twitter.com/sLAhvFxXPB
— Princeton WBB (@PrincetonWBB) November 4, 2024
The Tigers started off sluggishly in the second, missing their first five field goals — all from long-range — and in just five minutes, the tenor of the game had changed as Duquesne went up 31–25.
While Princeton settled down in the closing minutes of the first half, Duquesne maintained a 40–36 lead going into the break. For a Princeton team that gave up less than 60 points per game last year, a total of 40 in a half was an unexpected total that Berube will surely seek to improve in practice.
Princeton started the third quarter in an offensive frenzy. Successfully getting to the foul line, the Tigers showed a physical presence. Princeton got to the charity stripe nine times in the frame, converting eight of those shots into points. The Tigers also got their second buzzer-beater of the game, with St. Rose draining a last-second three to finish the frame just as Chea did after the first.
Uh oh, they let @nat_strose get hot.#GetStops 🐯🏀 pic.twitter.com/HmDC6TsOkz
— Princeton WBB (@PrincetonWBB) November 4, 2024
For St. Rose, a significant adjustment in this season comes in assuming the role of captain and being a vocal leader on and off the court.
“It is something that’s very new to me,” St. Rose said. “Sometimes, I might not realize that I’m not speaking up, but it’s those times when I have to continue to be vocal and stay engaged.”
Heading into the fourth, Princeton was up 62–56, but the good fortune would quickly come crashing down.
In seven minutes and 26 seconds, Princeton scored zero points. Along the way, they missed eight shots, turned the ball over four times, and allowed Duquesne to score 14 points. When St. Rose finally connected on a free throw, the Tigers were down 70–64 with just over two and a half minutes left, and things were not looking good for the Tigers.
“In the third quarter, we [had] the pace; we had the momentum going,” St. Rose said. “That’s when we just have to keep our foot on the gas and not let Duquesne get that momentum which ended up swinging the game.”
Princeton managed a meager four points in the fourth quarter, allowing 20 to Duquesne as the Dukes came back to win the season opener, 76–66. Princeton’s vaunted defense was inconsistent, allowing the Dukes to get comfortable from long range. Duquesne shot 46.6 percent from the field and just under 40 percent from three, led by Megan McConnell’s four triples and game-high 24 points.
Princeton lost the turnover battle as well. Used to forcing nearly 20 turnovers a game, the Tigers only got Duquesne to cough up the ball 10 times, whereas Princeton committed 18 turnovers of their own. For St. Rose, the main lessons come down to consistency and effort.
“[We need to] make sure that we still do all the little things, like protecting the ball and really getting the right shot, so we can set everyone up,” St. Rose said. “Obviously, we weren’t able to do that in the fourth quarter.”
St. Rose also emphasized the responsibility of wearing a Princeton uniform and the target on their backs that comes with success.
“We have to really work for every single win, because we know that every team that we’re going to play against is going to want to beat us, because we had this history of being nationally ranked,” St. Rose said. “We just have to really take pride when playing in the games.”
The adventure continues with a trip to Chicago, where Princeton will visit DePaul on Saturday.
Max Hines is a senior Sports writer for the ‘Prince.’
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
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