Princeton’s Madison St. Rose (23) drives to the basket past Penn’s Sydnei Caldwell (22) during the Ivy League Tournament semifinal women’s basketball game on Friday evening at Jadwin Gymnasium. (Rich Hundley III/ For The -)
Princeton’s bench reacts to a made basket against Penn during the Ivy League Tournament semifinal women’s basketball game on Friday evening at Jadwin Gymnasium. (Rich Hundley III/ For The -)
Princeton’s Chet Nweke, left, tries to shoot the ball over Penn’s Jordan Obi, right, during the Ivy League Tournament semifinal women’s basketball game on Friday evening at Jadwin Gymnasium. (Rich Hundley III/ For The -)
Princeton’s Madison St. Rose (23) drives toward the basket against Penn during the Ivy League Tournament semifinal women’s basketball game on Friday evening at Jadwin Gymnasium. (Rich Hundley III/ For The -)
Princeton’s Kaitlyn Chen (20) shoots the ball against Penn during the Ivy League Tournament semifinal women’s basketball game on Friday evening at Jadwin Gymnasium. (Rich Hundley III/ For The -)
Princeton coach Carla Berube gestures to her team against Penn during the Ivy League Tournament semifinal women’s basketball game on Friday evening at Jadwin Gymnasium. (Rich Hundley III/ For The -)
Princeton’s Kaitlyn Chen (20) shoots the ball over Penn’s Floor Toonders (14) and Stina Almqvist (5) during the Ivy League Tournament semifinal women’s basketball game on Friday evening at Jadwin Gymnasium. (Rich Hundley III/ For The -)
Princeton’s Chet Nweke, left, drives to the basket as Penn’s Jordan Obi, right, defends during the Ivy League Tournament semifinal women’s basketball game on Friday evening at Jadwin Gymnasium. (Rich Hundley III/ For The -)
Princeton’s Ellie Mitchell (00) shoots the ball over Penn’s Mandy McGurk (10) during the Ivy League Tournament semifinal women’s basketball game on Friday evening at Jadwin Gymnasium. (Rich Hundley III/ For The -)
Princeton’s Kaitlyn Chen (20) drives to the basket against Penn during the Ivy League Tournament semifinal women’s basketball game on Friday evening at Jadwin Gymnasium. (Rich Hundley III/ For The -)
Princeton coach Carla Berube, right, gestures to her team as the bench reacts against Penn during the Ivy League Tournament semifinal women’s basketball game on Friday evening at Jadwin Gymnasium. (Rich Hundley III/ For The -)
Princeton’s Julia Cunningham (24) passes the ball against Penn during the Ivy League Tournament semifinal women’s basketball game on Friday evening at Jadwin Gymnasium. (Rich Hundley III/ For The -)
Princeton’s Madison St. Rose (23) shoots the ball over the defense of Penn’s Stina Almqvist (5) during the Ivy League Tournament semifinal women’s basketball game on Friday evening at Jadwin Gymnasium. (Rich Hundley III/ For The -)
Princeton’s Kaitlyn Chen (20) looks to move the ball as Penn’s Sydnei Caldwell (22) defends during the Ivy League Tournament semifinal women’s basketball game on Friday evening at Jadwin Gymnasium. (Rich Hundley III/ For The -)
PRINCETON — Talk about not messing around.
The Princeton women’s basketball team has no intention of leaving its NCAA Tournament hopes to chance.
Katilyn Chen scored 22 points, the Tigers opened the game on a 16-0 run and then pulled away for good in the fourth quarter for a wire-to-wire 60-47 victory over Penn in an Ivy League semifinal game on Friday evening at Jadwin Gymnasium.
Top-seeded Princeton (22-5) faces the winner of the semifinal between second-seeded Columbia and third-seeded Harvard on Saturday at 5 p.m. for the automatic NCAA berth. Both the Tigers and Lions have NET rankings in the 40s and are considered on the bubble.
Princeton led, 21-2, early in the second quarter before the fourth-seeded Quakers (17-11) began to crawl back into the game. Mandy McGurk hit a halfcourt shot at the end of the second quarter to cut the lead to 11 and Kayla Padilla scored with four seconds left in the third quarter to pull Penn within six.
The Tigers went on a 10-2 run to start the fourth quarter to put the game out of reach.
Ivy Player of the Year Chen finished 10-of-20 from the floor and had two baskets in the fourth to push the advantage back to 12.
Ellie Mitchell finished with a double-double of 10 points and 12 rebounds and Ivy Rookie of the Year Madison St. Rose had 11 of her points in the first half.
Padilla paced Penn with 20 points, but was forced into 7-of-21 from the floor.
