Women’s Basketball to Face Iowa State in March Madness Opener

Princeton women’s basketball will face Iowa State on Wednesday, March 19, at 7 p.m. in the first game of the women’s NCAA March Madness tournament. 

After losing to eventual champion Harvard — led by a record-breaking 44 points from Harmoni Turner — in the Ivy League Tournament semifinals last weekend, the Tigers earned an at-large bid for the NCAA Tournament. They were the last team to make it in. Columbia, the Ivy League’s regular season champion, also earned an at-large bid  — making this year the first time three Ivy League schools earned bids to the tournament. 

“We’re playing in the NCAA Tournament and that means we’ve had a tremendous season,” said Princeton head coach Carla Berube in a Tuesday press conference. “I’ve got a great group of student-athletes that I get to coach every day and a wonderful staff and yeah, we’ll be ready to go.”

Princeton has reached the NCAA field in four straight seasons under Berube (and was on the verge of a bid in 2020, with a 26-1 record, before the tournament was cancelled due to COVID). The 11-seed Tigers will play the 11-seed Cyclones for the chance to play 6-seed Michigan in South Bend, Indiana, on Notre Dame’s home court. 

The Cyclones are simultaneously a powerful 3-point shooting team and known for their sophomore center, Audi Crooks, who stands 6’3” and plays bully ball inside the post. She’s attempted 228 free throws this year alone — Princeton as a team has attempted 329 free throws on the season. 

Iowa State is a member of the Big 12 Conference, which includes West Virginia (who Princeton lost to in the first round of the tournament last year), as well as Utah — who Princeton lost to in Salt Lake City earlier this season by three points (Iowa State lost in Ames by six). 

“We understand the game in those conferences, how they play, and they pound the ball inside,” Berube said. “They’re always looking to [Crooks]. They share the ball very well. Their assist to turnover ratio is quite amazing. It’s going to be quite a challenge.”

Other Iowa State standouts include fellow sophomore Addy Brown and lone senior Emily Ryan, who is the school’s all-time assist leader and the team’s third-best scorer (averaging 9.8 points and 6.3 assists per game). For her part, Brown averages more than 15 points per game (15.2 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 5.2 assists).

For the Tigers, Skye Belker ’27 leads the team in scoring with 13.1 points per game, with point guard Ashley Chea ’27 not far behind, averaging 12.5.

To advance to the Round of 64, the Tigers will need to be firing on all cylinders. Princeton’s bigs — Parker Hill ’25, Tabitha Amanze ’26, and Katie Thiers ’25 — will need to work hard on defense to shut Crooks down in the post. 

Don’t be surprised if 6-foot Fadima Tall ’27 — who leads the Tigers in steals this season with 38 — is part of that low-post effort to guard Crooks. Crooks isn’t known for her ball handling, and a fierce defensive effort could shut her down in the paint. 

Against Harvard, Princeton struggled to get loose balls and were massively outrebounded (41–27), especially on the offensive glass.

Ultimately, it’s hard to evaluate a team based on numbers alone. In the NCAA Tournament, games are often mental battles just as much as they are physical ones. But at this point in the season, the Tigers say they are ready for the matchup. 

“I think this entire year at the start I was still dealing with some nervous jitters, but now I feel like I’ve gotten that confidence from my coaches and teammates and now it’s in myself,” said Tall at the press conference. “It’s just exciting to be able to play on a stage like this.”