Harvard Travels to Tallahassee, Fla., to Take on No. 15/16 Florida State

Photo of Elle Hagadorn courtesy of Gil Talbot.

Game Notes

Particulars
Harvard steps out of conference play to face No. 15/16 Florida State in Tallahassee, Fla.

Last Time Out
Harvard fell to Dartmouth, 45-44, in the Ivy League opener for both teams on Saturday night at Leede Arena in Hanover, N.H.

The Crimson trailed nearly the entire game, but Jackie Alemany gave Harvard the lead with just under a minute to play. With five seconds left on the clock, Dartmouth’s Margaret Smith was fouled and sealed the victory for the Big Green as she made both of her free throws.

Emma Markley and Christine Matera led the Crimson in scoring with 11 points each. Markley and Alemany grabbed 11 rebounds each.

Way to Start
Harvard’s 9-5 record through 14 games is its best start since the 2002-03 season when the Crimson finished 22-5 overall and a perfect 14-0 in Ivy League play.

Playing the Best
Thursday’s contest against No. 15/16 Florida State marks the third time in five seasons that the Crimson will face a top 25 opponent in the regular season. Harvard opened the 2005-06 season against No. 18 DePaul and faced No. 23 BYU the following season.

Out of Their League
Harvard’s nine non-conference wins this season are the most for the program since the 1997-98 season when the Crimson went 11-3 out of the Ivy League.

Senior Discount
Harvard is one of only 15 NCAA Division I women’s basketball teams that does not have a senior on its roster. The 14 other Divsion I teams are Applachian State, Arizona, Army, Central Arkansas, Colorado State, George Washington, South Carolina, Southern Utah, Tennessee, Tennessee-Martin, Tennessee Tech, West Virginia, Winston-Salem State and Wyoming.

Scouting the Seminoles
Florida State is 16-3 on the season and coming off a 74-71 win over N.C. State.

Cierra Bravard hit a layup with 11 seconds remaining and added a free throw with 5.4 seconds to go to lift the Seminoles past the Wolfpack.

Jacinta Monroe leads the team in scoring with 13.2 ppg and is also first in rebounding with 6.7 boards per game. Monroe also leads in blocks with 2.4 per game.

The Seminoles average 74.4 ppg while holding their opponents to just 58.8 ppg.

The Series
Harvard and Florida State have met just one time on the hardwood, with the Crimson traveling to Florida in 2003. The Seminoles came away with the win, 96-82.

Harvard and the ACC
Florida State is the second Atlantic Coast Conference opponent Harvard will play this season. The Crimson opened the season with an 82-81 win over Boston College at Lavietes Pavilion.

Down But Not Out
In 2005 and 2008, the Crimson lost its Ivy League opener to Dartmouth and bounced back to win Ivy League titles. Harvard has also won Ancient Eight crowns in 1996, 2002 and 2007 after losing one of its first two conference games.

Among the Best
In all games through Jan. 17, Emma Markley ranks 24th in the nation in blocks (2.4 per game). Brogan Berry ranks 13th in the nation in assists (6.2 per game) and second in assist/turnover ratio (3.0).

Harvard is 16th in free throw shooting percentage (.758) and 20th in three-point field goal percentage (.377).

League Leaders (as of Jan. 17)
Brogan Berry leads the league in assist/turnover ratio (3.0) and assists (6.2).

The Offense
Harvard ranks second in the Ivy League in scoring offense with 71.1 points per game. The Crimson leads the Ancient Eight in free throw percentage (.758), blocked shots (5.0 per game) and three-point field goals (7.4 per game).

On the Bench
Kathy Delaney-Smith, the winningest coach in program history, is in her 28th season on the bench for the Crimson. Delaney-Smith, who has led the Crimson to 11 Ivy League titles, recorded her 400th career victory with a 68-47 win over Brown on March 7, 2008. She sports a 428-304 record 14 games into her 28th season.

Assistant Coach Bri Fecteau is back for her seventh season, while Kelly Finley returns for her second. She served as a volunteer assistant in 2008-09. Todd Earl, another Colorado State graduate, joins the staff as a volunteer coach this season.