Feb. 21, 2007

GAME INFO:
Yale (11-13, 4-6 Ivy) at Cornell (10-13, 6-4 Ivy)
Friday, Feb. 23, 2007-7 p.m.
Newman Arena-Ithaca, N.Y.

Webcast: cornellbigred.com
Radio/Internet: None

GAME INFO:
Yale (11-13, 4-6 Ivy) at Columbia (7-17, 3-7 Ivy)
Saturday, Feb. 24, 2007-7 p.m.
Levien Gymnasium-New York, N.Y.

Webcast: gocolumbialions.com
Radio/Internet: gocolumbialions.com: Lance Meadow

TONIGHT'S GAME
The Bulldogs journey to the Empire State for their final two road games of the season. Yale is 11-13 on the season and sits in sixth place with a 4-6 Ivy League mark. The Bulldogs are 0-5 on the road in conference play. Yale split a pair of games with this weekend's opponents two weeks ago in New Haven, falling 72-64 to Columbia and beating Cornell 61-45. Cornell (10-13, 6-4 Ivy) is in third place. The Big Red split with Princeton and Penn last weekend. Columbia (7-17, 3-7 Ivy) is 3-1 in its last four games, including the victory over the Bulldogs. The Lions beat both Penn and Princeton last weekend.

SERIES HISTORY
The Bulldogs lead the all-time series with the Big Red 39-17. Yale has won two straight and five of the last six meetings between the teams. Last season, Cornell posted a 79-68 win in Ithaca. The Bulldogs' last win in an Ivy League road game came at Newman Arena, an 81-57 victory on March 4, 2005.
Columbia has won five straight against the Bulldogs, including a 72-64 victory at the John J. Lee Amphitheater on Feb. 9. Yale, however, leads the all-time series 34-11. The Lions notched a 79-68 victory at Levien Gymnasium last season. The Bulldogs' last win in New York was a 71-60 triumph on Feb. 22, 2003.

LAST TIME OUT
The Bulldogs got behind early, spotting Harvard a 24-8 lead, and were never able to catch up last Saturday in Cambridge. Jamie Van Horne had 15 straight points-on five three-pointers-to keep Yale in it, and the Bulldogs trailed by just five, 30-25, at halftime. Van Horne finished with a game-high 20 points. Yale pulled within five on a pair of Erica Davis free throws with 5:57 to go, but Niki Finelli's three on the other end ignited a 9-0 Crimson run that ended all Bulldog hopes, as Harvard pulled away for a 68-58 victory. Against Dartmouth on Friday night, Ashley Taylor's free throw shooting was the difference in a 67-59 Big Green win. Taylor went 16-for-18 from the line, including 12-for-12 down the stretch, to help Dartmouth pull away. While the Big Green went 27-for-37 from the line, the Bulldogs were just 13-for-24 at the charity stripe. Melissa Colborne had 17 points and Davis added 16.

BULLDOG BYTES
After winning eight out of nine, Yale has lost five of its last six. The Bulldogs enter this weekend looking for their first conference road win of the season. Senior center Erica Davis is Yale's go-to player. She leads the Ivy League in rebounding (9.3 rpg), field goal percentage (.535), blocks (2.33 bpg) and offensive rebounds (3.79). Davis is also third in the conference with 16.1 points per game. Senior forward Chinenye Okafor is third in the League in rebounding (8.0 rpg) and steals (1.91 spg). Freshman guard Melissa Colborne is second on the team and first among Ivy League rookies in scoring (10.9 ppg). Sophomore guard Jamie Van Horne is second in three-pointers (2.17). Junior guard Stephanie Marciano, the only Bulldog to start all 24 games, ranks second in assists (4.3 apg) and assist/turnover ratio (1.41).

SEEING RED
After going 6-1 in January, Cornell is 2-4 in February. At 6-4, Cornell is in third place and still mathematically alive for the Ivy League title. The Big Red may be without two key players this weekend. Sophomore forward Jeomi Maduka, the team leader in scoring (13.8 ppg) and rebounding (8.1 rpg), is also a key member of Cornell's indoor track team, which is competing at the Ivy League Heptagonal Indoor Track & Field Championships this weekend. Senior guard Claire Perry, the Ivy League leader in free throw percentage (.882), has missed the Big Red's last three games with an injury. Junior forward Moina Snyder averages 9.4 points and 5.8 rebounds per outing. Freshman guard Lauren Benson is the reigning Ivy Rookie of the Week.

LIONS DEN
After losing nine out of 10, Columbia has now won three out of four, including a victory over the Bulldogs. The Lions swept Penn and Princeton last weekend, their first Ivy wins over a team other than Yale in 28 games. Senior guard Megan Griffith leads Columbia in scoring (13.4 ppg), assists (3.8 apg) and steals (1.8 spg). Freshman forward/center Chelsea Frazier, who had 15 points in the first meeting with the Bulldogs, averages six rebounds per contest. Junior guard Brittany Carfora leads the Ivy League in three-point percentage (.513).

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