The women’s basketball team had a mixed weekend on the road playing Ivy League rivals Harvard and Dartmouth. Bruno (8-16, Ivy 2-8) dropped a 77-71 decision to the third-ranked Crimson (15-8, 6-3) Friday night. But the Bears ended their weekend on a high note with a 59-39 win over the Big Green (6-17, 4-5) and co-captain Sheila Dixon ’13 reaching 1,000 career points during the course of Saturday night’s game.
Harvard 77, Brown 71
Brown was aggressive out of the gate, trading baskets with the Crimson throughout the first half. Harvard went on an eight-point run giving the Crimson a 12-8 lead, but Bruno pushed back. Sophia Bikofsky ’15 sank three treys and co-captain Caroline King ’13 scored three jump shots.
Dixon tallied three assists and helped the Bears end the half tied 37-37.
“Dixon was able to able find King and (Natalie Ball ’16),” said Head Coach Jean Burr. “We were scoring inside early, and it opened up the opportunity to get some long shots from Bikofsky and (Lauren Clarke ’14). (Dixon) was able to find the open players, which put us in a position to win.”
In the second half, Bruno faltered on defense, allowing the Crimson to build up an 11-point lead with 10 minutes left on the clock. Bruno attempted a comeback with strong shooting by Bikofsky and Sophie Beutel ’14. Dixon brought the Bears within two points of Harvard in the final 30 seconds of the match-up. But Harvard sealed the deal, making six free throws in the final seconds of the match.
“We gave up too many second-chance points,” Burr said. “The last couple games have been close, and in a close game they scored off of turnovers. I classify that as a buster.”
Brown 59, Dartmouth 39
Fresh off their loss to Harvard, the Bears found their stride Saturday night, shutting down the Big Green 59-39. The win snapped an eight-game losing streak.
“We finally got back into our rhythm, which we’d been missing for a couple games,” Dixon said. “With Dartmouth we finally found it, we kept it and we capitalized on it.”
The Bears went back and forth with the Big Green in the first minutes of the game. With five minutes left in the first half, the teams were tied at 14, but Bruno, led by Dixon with a trey and a layup, went on a 10-point run — opening an eight-point lead.
“We found the open player. We moved the ball well,” Burr said. “There were great contributions from a number of players.”
The team’s collaborative effort continued in the second half. The Bears racked up a 21-point lead, thanks in part to two shots from beyond the arc by Bikofsky and a layup by Ball. Beutel anchored the Bears’ defense with 11 rebounds.
“Beutel sealed the deal with a defensive board, that put us in the position to take a lead,” Burr said. “That’s what you want to see from your inside game — a good solid readiness.”
In the game’s last minutes, Dixon scored Bruno’s final two layups, the first of which brought her the 1,000th point of her career. Dixon and Clarke led both teams in scoring, with 14 points each.
“I knew I was close” to achieving the milestone, Dixon said. “But I didn’t know I was this close. It feels great to have accomplished that, but knowing the type of team that I have — I’ve only been able to do it because of them and the program that we have.”
The last Brown women’s basketball players to achieve this feat were Colleen Kelly ’06 and Sarah Hayes ’06, both in 2006. Kelly is currently an assistant coach for the Bears.
Dixon has plans to continue playing basketball after graduation. “I want to pursue playing professionally — I’ve heard from a number of people I have the potential to play,” Dixon said. “I would love to still play while I can.”
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