Game Information
Cornell at Penn
Tip Off: Friday, Feb. 22, 2013; 7:00 p.m.
Location: The Palestra (Philadelphia, Pa.)
Records: Cornell (11-10, 3-4 Ivy); Penn (12-9, 5-2 Ivy)
Series Record: Penn leads, 49-19
Last Meeting: Penn won, 65-56 (Feb. 2, 2013; Newman Arena)
Live Stats: www.PennAthletics.com
Live Audio: None
Video Webcast: www.PennAthletics.com

Cornell at Princeton
Tip Off: Saturday, Feb. 23, 2013; 6:00 p.m.
Location: Jadwin Gym (Princeton, N.J)
Records: Cornell (11-10, 3-4 Ivy); Princeton (16-5, 7-0 Ivy)
Series Record: Princeton leads, 45-20
Last Meeting: Princeton won, 77-46 (Feb. 1, 2013; Newman Arena)
Live Stats: www.GoPrincetonTigers.com
Live Audio: None
Video Webcast: www.GoPrincetonTigers.com

Game Notes (PDF)

THE MATCHUP: The Big Red women's basketball team (11-10, 3-4 Ivy) returns opens up a four-game road swing this weekend as it travels to Penn and Princeton on Friday, Feb. 22 and Saturday, Feb. 23, respectively. The Tigers carry a 31-game Ivy League winning streak into the weekend, while the Quakers are coming off a huge upset of Harvard last weekend to improve to 5-2 in the conference.

THE SERIES VS. PENN: Cornell's rivalry with Penn began during the 1974-75 season and the two teams have met every year since, excluding the 1977-78 and 1978-79 seasons. The Quakers hold the all-time series record, 49-19, but the Big Red has won 10 of the last 15 meetings. Coach Smith, who served as an assistant coach for Penn from 1999-2002, holds a 10-11 record vs. her old squad.

THE SERIES VS. PRINCETON: The Cornell and Princeton series has been one of the more competitive Ivy League matchups in recent years, with the Tigers holding the 15-10 lead since the 2000-01 season. The series began in 1974-75 with a 51-33 Princeton victory, but the teams wouldn't meet again until the 1979-80 season. The schools have met every year since 1979-80, and the Tigers hold the edge in the all-time series, 45-20. Coach Dayna Smith is 7-16 vs. Princeton.

WHAT JUST HAPPENED?:
• The Big Red split a pair of games last weekend at Newman Arena, falling to Yale, 67-59, before beating Brown, 60-58.
• Allyson DiMagno registered a career-high 23 points to lead Cornell vs. the Bulldogs, while pulling down 10 rebounds for her 10th double-double of the season.
• Spencer Lane also registered double-digits against Yale with 10 points and five rebounds.
• Clare Fitzpatrick scored the game-winning basket vs. the Bears, hitting a layup while getting fouled with :06 on the clock. She converted the three-point play to secure the victory.
•Fitzpatrick finished with a team-high 17 points to lead four Cornell players in double figures.
•DiMagno tallied 16 points and 17 rebounds, while Stephanie Long and Shelby Lyman finished with 15 and 10 points, respectively.

ALL GOOD THINGS MUST COME TO AN END: Prior to Cornell's 69-60 overtime loss to Harvard on Feb. 10, head coach Dayna Smith was undefeated in three previous overtime contests at the helm of the Big Red program, having guided Cornell to victory against Harvard in 2003-04, Niagara in 2005-06, and Columbia earlier this season. 

DOUBLE THE OT: Cornell has played in two overtime contests this season (Columbia on Jan. 26, Harvard on Feb. 10), a feat that hasn't occurred since the Big Red played three overtime games during the 1997-98 campaign.

EVERYBODY'S (ACADEMIC) ALL-AMERICAN: Junior Allyson DiMagno has been named a Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-District first-team selection for the first time of her career. She is now among 40 players to vie for a spot on the prestigious Capital One Academic All-America squad. A biological sciences major with a3.79 grade-point average, she becomes just the second Academic All-District selection in the history of the Big Red women's basketball program, joining Virginia McMunigal '10, who was a second-team selection during her senior season.

A LEGEND IN THE MAKING: The Atlantic 10 Conference recently announced its Inaugural Women's Basketball Legends list and Cornell head coach Dayna Smith has been selected to represent her alma mater, the University of Rhode Island. Smith was one of the top point guards in Atlantic 10 history while starring for Rhode Island from 1992-96. One of just 11 players at the NCAA Division I level to record more than 1,000 points and 750 assists, Smith was a key component of the Rams' run to the 1996 NCAA Tournament. The Women's Basketball Legends will be honored on March 16 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., the morning of the 2013 A-10 Women's Basketball Championship finals. Each honoree will be recognized during an awards brunch in the 40/40 Club, beginning at 11 a.m.

THRICE AS NICE: Three times this season, Allyson DiMagno has been named the Ivy League co-Player of the Week (Dec. 3, Jan. 21, and Jan. 28). The three weekly honors in a single season ties the school record and DiMagno becomes the first Cornell women's basketball player to accomplish that feat since Jeomi Maduka won the award three times during the 2007-08 season.

STREAKING: Earlier this season, Cornell had a four-game winning streak, as well as a posting six consecutive victories at Newman Arena. Those streaks were the longest since the Big Red won eight consecutive games during the 2007-08 season, and posted 10-straight victories at Newman Arena over the 2007-08 and 2008-09 seasons.

SEASON SWEEP: With its double overtime victory at Columbia on Jan. 26, the Big Red posted back-to-back season sweeps against the Lions for the first time since 2005-06, 2006-07.

FIFTY IS FINE: Junior Allyson DiMagno set a school record for minutes played in a contest when she played all 50 minutes during Cornell's double overtime game at Columbia on Jan. 26. The previous record had been held by Do Stevens, who played 46 minutes of a double overtime game vs. Harvard on Feb. 22, 2002.

DOUBLE OT: When Cornell's game at Columbia went into double overtime, it became just the third double-overtime game in Cornell women's basketball history (1979-80 vs. Colgate; 2001-02 vs. Harvard).The Big Red lost both previous games by the identical score of 77-75.

BEST BOARDS: As of the national rankings on Feb. 17, Allyson DiMagno led the Ivy League and ranked ninth in the nation in rebounds per game (11.9).

TOP TEN ASSISTS: With her seven assists vs. Daemen College (N.Y.) on Jan. 13, Spencer Lane jumped into the top 10 in Cornell history for career assists. She currently sits in ninth place with 254 assists and needs two more to surpass Karen Walker (1987-91), who sits in eighth place.

800/600: Over the Yale/Brown weekend (Feb. 15-16), Allyson DiMagno surpassed the 800-point, 600-rebound plateau, becoming the only player under head coach Dayna Smith to register at least 800 points and 600 rebounds. She is the fourth player in Cornell history to reach those marks, and is the first since Patti Froehlich finished her career with more than 1,000 points and 900 rebounds in 1989 – three years before DiMagno was born.

5-10 STANDING TALL: Standing at just 5-10, Allyson DiMagno is the only player ranked in the top 10 in the NCAA in rebounding to be shorter than 6-0.

TOP TEN POINTS: With her 17 points at Harvard on Feb. 10, senior Clare Fitzpatrick moved into the top 10 for points in a career at Cornell. She sits in 10th place overall with 1,132 and needs 17 more points to move into ninth place.

TOP TEN REBOUNDS: Allyson DiMagno and Clare Fitzpatrick have both moved into Cornell's top 10 for career rebounds. DiMagno made the jump after pulling down 15 against Columbia on Jan. 19 and Fitzpatrick did it with seven boards the very next weekend at Columbia on Jan. 26. DiMagno currently sits in fourth place with 523 and needs 99 more to surpass Karin Dwyer (1982-86). Fitzpatrick is ninth overall with 577 and needs 13 more to surpass Keri Farley (1991-95).

RECORD WATCH: At a pace of 11.9 rebounds per game and seven contests remaining on the schedule, Allyson DiMagno is on pace to set the school record for rebounds in a single season. The junior forward currently sits in fourth place overall with 249 rebounds and needs just four more to move into third place, surpassing Patti Froehlich (1986-87), and needs just 39 more to overtake the all-time leader Rhonda Anderson (1982-83).

NUMBER ONE STARTER: Earlier this season vs. Princeton, senior Clare Fitzpatrick set the school record for games started in a career, surpassing Lauren Benson (97; 2006-10). Fitzpatrick has currently made 102 career starts for the Big Red.

TOP 10 SHOTS: Clare Fitzpatrick and Taylor Flynn have moved into the top 10 in Cornell history for field goals made and three point field goals made, respectively. Fitzpatrick sits ninth overall (410) and needs just six more to move into eighth place, while Flynn ranks 10th (106) and needs just two more treys to move into ninth place.

IVY LEADERS: In addition to Allyson DiMagno leading the Ivy League in rebounding (11.9 rpg.), several Big Red players are ranked among the top 10 in various categories in the Ivy League, including:
*Allyson DiMagno – third in scoring (14.3 points per game)
*Clare Fitzpatrick – seventh in scoring (13.0 points per game)
*Clare Fitzpatrick – third in field goal percentage (.487)
*Allyson DiMagno – fourth in field goal percentage (.484)
* Spencer Lane – first in assists (4.0 assists per game)
* Stephanie Long – ninth in assists (2.6 assists per game)
*Allyson DiMagno – second in free throw percentage (.844)
*Clare Fitzpatrick – seventh in free throw percentage (.762)
*Allyson DiMagno – fifth in steals (1.9 steals per game)
* Spencer Lane – ninth in steals (1.5 steals per game)
*Shelby Lyman – sixth in 3-point field goals made (1.6 per game)
*Stephanie Long – ninth in 3-point field goals made (1.3 per game
* Clare Fitzpatrick – seventh in blocked shots (0.8 blocks per game)
* Spencer Lane – first in assist/turnover ratio (1.5 per game)
*Allyson DiMagno – first in offensive rebounds (4.5 per game)
* Clare Fitzpatrick – ninth in offensive rebounds (1.8 per game)
*Allyson DiMagno – first in defensive rebounds (7.4 per game)
*Allyson DiMagno – first in minutes played (36.0 per game)
* Spencer Lane – fourth in minutes played (31.8 per game)
* Shelby Lyman – fifth in minutes played (31.3 per game)
* Stephanie Long – ninth in minutes played (31.0 per game)

SURE SHOTS: Clare Fitzpatrick and Allyson DiMagno rank third and fourth, respectively in the Ivy League in field goal percentage, helping the Big Red to third place ranking in the Ivy League as a team (.393).

CLOSE CALLS: Since the beginning of the 2010-11 season, the Big Red has had 29-of-75 games (37%) decided by eight points or fewer. In those games, Cornell has posted a 17-13 record.

BLOCKS A LOT: Senior Clare Fitzpatrick currently sits in sixth place in Cornell history for career blocks (65), having surpassed classmate Kristina Danielak, who is now sitting in 11th place with 52 blocks.

I'LL TAKE THAT: So far this season, Cornell has averaged 8.3 steals per game, down slightly from last year when the Big Red averaged 8.4 steals per game. Last season's total was the best team average since the 2001-02 team finished the year with 11.0 steals per game.

MAY I ASSIST YOU?: So far this season, the Big Red has assisted on 309-of-444 baskets (70%), which is up significantly from last year when Cornell had assists on 366-of-576 baskets (64%).

STARTING STREAK: Junior Allyson DiMagno has a 72-game starting streak, which is by far the longest current active streak on the team. Senior Spencer Lane's 51-game streak ranks second.

FIRST ACTION: Freshman Jen Wahleithner became the first member of the rookie class to see action this season, playing one minute in the Big Red's first game at Colgate. Since then, both other members of the class of 2016 – Allison Bockrath and Molly Meriggioli – have seen the court for the Big Red, with Bockrath getting her first playing action vs. Syracuse, while Meriggioli saw her first minutes vs. Buffalo. 

LOW PERCENTAGE SHOTS: So far this season, Cornell has held 15 of its 21 opponents to below 40 percent shooting from the floor. The Big Red closed the 2011-12 season by holding its opponents to 40 percent or below from the floor in 12 of its final 18 games.

100 THREES: For the past five seasons, Cornell has hit at least 100 3-pointers as a team, and is on pace to extend that streak this year. With an average of 4.7 3-pointers made per game, the Big Red should reach 134 by season's end. Cornell has registered at least 100 3-pointers in all but one season under head coach Dayna Smith, with the 2006-07 squad coming up just short with 98 treys.

22 BOARDS: Junior Allyson DiMagno registered a career- and team-season high 22 rebounds at Columbia on Jan. 26. The 22 rebound effort is the fifth-best single-game performance in the NCAA this season and ranks fourth all-time in Cornell history, matching Patti Froehlich (vs. St. Francis (Pa.) on Jan. 9, 1989) and Rhonda Anderson's (vs. Oneonta State on Dec. 2, 1980) 22-rebound efforts.

COLLEGE SPORTS MADNESS POW: Clare Fitzpatrick was named the College Sports Madness Ivy League Player of the Week on Jan. 28 following her performance in Cornell's double-overtime victory at Columbia. Fitzpatrick scored 23 points, including seven in the two overtime sessions, to go along with four assists, two blocks and two steals. Fitzpatrick sunk two free throws with nine seconds remaining in the first overtime period, and then blocked a Mawa Tachibana shot attempt with 1.7 seconds to play to force the game into a second overtime.

100 WINS AND COUNTING: Head Coach Dayna Smith is already the winningest coach in Cornell history, and she reached the 100-win mark for her career with the team's victory over Manhattan. She has since added to that and has 108 career coaching wins.

IVY OPENERS: Since Ivy League round robin play began in the 1982-83 season, Cornell has posted a 16-15 record in conference openers. The Big Red snapped a four-game losing streak in Ivy openers when it defeated Columbia, 68-54, earlier this season, making Coach Dayna Smith's record 5-6 in the first game of Ancient Eight play. Cornell has faced the Lions more than any other team, opening the season against Columbia 15 times.

HITTING 1,000/500: With her 15 points vs. Buffalo on Jan. 5, senior Clare Fitzpatrick became the 12th player in Cornell history to score 1,000 career points. She is also the seventh player in Cornell history, and second ever under head coach Dayna Smith, to register at least 1,000 points and 500 rebounds for her career. She hit the 500-rebound plateau with 12 boards against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Dec. 18. 

HELPING HAND: Cornell assisted on 24-of-30 shots vs. Daemen College. The 24 assists were the most in a game for the Big Red since recording 20 assists against Dartmouth on Jan. 28, 2011.

STUDYING THE OPPONENTS: Since the 1980-81 season, the Big Red is 12-20 coming out of Cornell's two-week study break. However, Coach Smith's teams have fared much better, posting a record of 7-4 in the first game back from exams … This season, the Big Red was edged by Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, 52-49 in its first game following the break.

FOR OPENERS: The Big Red is 18-24 all-time in season openers. Coach Dayna Smith improved her record to 2-9 in season openers after defeating Colgate, 69-65 on Nov. 11, 2012. It was the first season-opening victory since the 2004-05 campaign.

WHAT WAS LOST: The Big Red graduated two players from the 2011-12 squad – Maka Anyanwu and Allie Munson. A junior college transfer, Anyanwu earned two varsity letters and finished her senior season with 211 points (7.8 ppg.) and 118 rebounds (4.4 rpg.). Munson was a four-year letter winner for the Big Red and played in 93 career games (13.3 mpg.). She averaged 3.2 points and 3.8 rebounds per game for her career and ranks 12th all-time in Cornell history for career blocked shots (42). 

WHAT REMAINS: Cornell returns four starters and nine letter winners from last season's squad. The Big Red returns 84% of its scoring (1,298-of-1,554 points) and 83% of its rebounding (813-of-975) from a year ago.

BASKETBALL PEDIGREE: Junior Stephanie Long isn't the only member of her family to play collegiate basketball. Her father Dennis played basketball for three seasons at UConn.

PRESEASON HONORS: Clare Fitzpatrick and Allyson DiMagno were both named to the College Sports Madness Preseason All-Ivy team, with Fitzpatrick earning first-team honors and DiMagno snagging a place on the second-team.

TICKLE THE (ALL) IVY: Clare Fitzpatrick and Allyson DiMagno were each named honorable mention All-Ivy League following the 2011-12 season. Fitzpatrick ranked 12th in the Ancient Eight in scoring (10.8 ppg.) and was fourth in rebounding (6.9 rpg.). She also ranked third in the circuit in blocked shots and registered five double-doubles. Her basket with less than four seconds to play helped down Brown. DiMagno was 13th in scoring (10.7 ppg.) and second in rebounding (7.3 rpg.). She also ranked 10th in the Ivy in assists and seventh in steals and was just outside the top 10 in blocked shots. Her basket with three seconds left pushed the Big Red over Fordham.

HI, MY NAME IS: Cornell has a new face on the bench for the 2012-13 season, as Daan de Heus joins the women's basketball staff as an assistant coach. A native of Eindhoven, The Netherlands, de Heus played for the Dutch national youth basketball teams before going on to serve as an assistant coach for the Netherlands at the 2009 high school basketball world championships, held in Istanbul, Turkey. He was also the head basketball coach of a variety of youth and senior basketball teams at Almonte, from 2005-2011, wining two championships at the U16 and U18 level.

NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK: The Big Red added three players to the 2012-13 squad: Allison Bockrath (Dayton, Ohio), Molly Meriggioli (Waunakee, Wisc.) and Jen Wahleithner (Highlands Ranch, Colo). The class of three come from three different states and consists of two guards and one forward.

UP NEXT: Cornell opens a four-game road trip next weekend, travelling to Brown and Yale on Friday, March 1 and Saturday, March 2, respectively. The game with the Bears will tip off at 7 p.m., while the game with the Bulldogs will start at 6 p.m.