HANOVER — It was hard to believe that despite playing its most complete game of the season Saturday afternoon, the Dartmouth College women’s basketball team somehow hadn’t committed a foul in the fourth quarter with more than 30 seconds remaining.
So with 21 seconds to play and down a point, the Big Green started to foul its Harvard guests.
Dartmouth rushed four fouls and the Crimson called a timeout with 20 seconds to play. Instead of passing the ball into the backcourt for an easy entry out of the timeout, Harvard forced a pass that Dartmouth’s Katie Douglas lurched forward and deflected.
The sophomore yelled for teammate Annie McKenna to scoop up the ball, and McKenna did. She grabbed the ball and sprinted down the court for a right-handed layup with 13 seconds remaining. Harvard was shocked; the Crimson didn’t take a shot on their final possession.
The final from Leede Arena on Saturday: Dartmouth 63, Harvard 62. The first victory for the Big Green over its archrival and its first Ivy League season-opening win since 2018. Its first win in 2020 after 2019 was closed out with three consecutive road losses.
“I think we always try to go for the ball first,” Douglas said. “I think I yelled out a mid-air, ‘Annie,’ dove and just tipped it to her.”
There’s no question that Saturday’s game-winning play was made with fewer than 15 seconds to play, but Dartmouth’s first sign of its best game of the season thus far came early on.
Trailing 15-14 with 2:22 to play in the first quarter, the game’s outcome already seemed to be teetering. Would Dartmouth play a tough first half then crumble like it has so often this season? Or would the Big Green find offensive consistency and make Harvard the team forced to play on its heels?
Dartmouth (7-7, 1-0 Ivy) opted for the latter.
McKenna knocked down a 3-pointer to give Dartmouth a 17-15 advantage, but the Big Green was just getting started. Douglas hit a trey, and McKenna responded with another one. Reeling Harvard (9-5, 0-1 Ivy) was forced to burn a timeout with 51 seconds to play in the quarter.
It didn’t do too much, though. A Crimson miss resulted in an Anna Luce jumper to close the quarter with Dartmouth on an 11-0 run. Douglas stood near half-court pumping her arms up and down as the 663 fans in attendance, largely students, responded with approval.
“I think we’ve always talked about our starts,” Douglas said. “Having that energizing start, I think, really boosted our confidence. We kind of came together as a team.”
As the game progressed, it became evident that the senior duo of McKenna and Paula Lenart wasn’t going to let its archrival come to Hanover and walk out with a victory to open conference play.
McKenna made the game’s most important shot and finished with 15 points. Lenart’s contribution, however, was especially noticeable.
Dartmouth’s closest thing to a center, Lenart found success in the paint. She averages 6.2 points per game but on Saturday finished with 10 points. Time after time, when a possession seemed to be fizzling out, she made a quick spin toward the basket or executed a hook shot. On Harvard’s final possession of the game, Lenart’s presence played a large role in the Crimson not getting a shot off.
“We want P to graduate and move on in life,” Big Green coach Belle Koclanes said with a smile. “We’re excited for her to do that. But at the same time, we don’t.”
The Big Green players lined up next to each other at game’s end, put their arms over their teammate’s shoulder and started to sing the Dartmouth alma mater. Moments after the season’s biggest win, it was time to enjoy it.
No matter the game or outcome, Koclanes’ team always sings the song. On Saturday, however, the Dartmouth players could stand and sing with a smile. Fans waited to give a final round of applause.
Still, it’s only the first game of conference play.
In her seventh season, Koclanes has never won an Ivy League title or finished the season with an Ivy League record over .500. Saturday’s victory against Harvard is only her fourth.
It is also just the third time under her leadership that Dartmouth has won its Ivy League opener. And while the Ivy League tournament is only three years old, the Big Green have never qualified.
“This is just one step towards our ultimate goal,” McKenna said.
Notes: Harvard won the battle of the boards easily, 39-27. The Crimson still hold the all-time series record 50-36. … The Big Green turned the ball over just nine times. It also finished the game 13-of-24 (54.2%) from beyond the arc, its best mark of the season. … Douglas led all scorers with 19 points. Luce gave Dartmouth some big minutes off the bench and finished with eight. … Dartmouth is now off for two weeks until it meets Harvard in Allston, Mass., on Jan. 25.
Pete Nakos can be reached at pnakos@vnews.com.