Mehta Scores Career-High 37, Women’s Hoops Beats Yale in Ivy Opener, 86-71

Friday, January 18

Providence, R.I.

11:00 AM

Brown University

9-8, 1-0Ivy

Yale

10-6, 0-1Ivy

Yale

Brown

Mehta Scores Career-High 37, Women’s Hoops Beats Yale in Ivy Opener, 86-71

1/18/2019 2:46:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Senior guard Shayna Mehta scored a career-high 37 points and made a career-high eight steals to lead Brown University women's basketball to an 86-71 win over Yale University in its Ivy League opener on Friday morning at the Pizzitola Sports Center.

In front of an Education Day crowd of 1,141 fans – including over 700 local elementary and middle school students – the Bears (9-8, 1-0 Ivy) led the Bulldogs (10-6, 0-1 Ivy), 43-28, at halftime and held a double-digit lead for all but 57 seconds in the second half.

"My girls stepped up today," Brown head coach Sarah Behn said. "They have been working hard during the semester break, getting a lot of shots up, and it showed. We had unbelievable leadership from our senior class. They are hungry. I'm proud of them and excited for what we can do in this conference."

Mehta (San Francisco, Calif.) scored her 37 points on 10-of-19 field goals, 3-of-6 3-pointers, and 14-of-15 free throws. She netted over 30 points for the fourth time in her career, the second time this season, and for the first time against an Ivy League opponent. Her 37 points tied for the third-most in a single game and the second-most in an Ivy League game in program history.

"We knew Yale would be a huge game," Mehta said. "We were fourth place two years ago. They were fourth place last year. It's a battle between who gets into the Ivy League Tournament. We were all hyped for this one and were super focused. For me and my other three seniors, this is it. We have 13 more games left, and we are putting it all out there."

Mehta's career-best eight steals pushed her career total to 216 career steals, moving her into seventh place on Brown's all-time list. She added a game-high five assists and four rebounds, while playing all 40 minutes.

Junior guard Justine Gaziano (Natick, Mass.) netted 19 points on 8-of-17 shooting and grabbed six rebounds. Senior guard Taylor Will (Arlington Heights, Ill.) tallied 13 points on 5-of-9 field goals with four assists, three steals, and three boards.

Senior forward Erika Steeves (Montreal, Quebec) posted 11 points and eight rebounds, while making 5-of-8 field goals. She now has 1,076 career points, moving into 16^th place on Brown's career scoring list.

Senior forward Mary Butler (Bangor, Maine) chipped in four rebounds and four steals, freshman guard Traiva Breedlove (Rochester, N.Y.) tacked on four points and three boards, and junior center Haley Green (Salem, Va.) and sophomore center Jenna Benzinger (Williamstown, Mass.) combined for seven boards.

"It was awesome to start out our Ivy League season with all these people here," Mehta said. "In the warm-ups all these kids were yelling our names and screaming at us. We got really hyped, and it was great to have that kind of energy before the game even started."

For the game, Brown led 29-13 in points off turnovers and 15-5 in fast break points. The Bears connected on 51.7 percent of their field goals (31-of-60) and 44.4 percent of their shots from 3-point distance (8-of-18), while making 18 steals.

The Bears began the game with a 14-6 lead as Will and Mehta both connected on 3-pointers in the opening five minutes. After Yale pulled within 14-11, the Bears outscored the visitors 9-4 over the rest of the quarter to take a 23-15 lead at the end of one. Mehta scored seven of the Bears' nine points during the stretch.

Brown took a 29-15 lead at the 8:47 mark of the second quarter with a jumper from Will capping a 15-4 run. Gaziano converted a trio of fast-break baskets to keep Brown ahead 38-24 with 2:36 left in the half. A corner 3-pointer from Will and another transition basket from Gaziano helped Brown earn a 43-28 lead at the intermission.

In the first half, Brown made 18-of-30 field goals (60.0 percent) and 4-of-8 triples (50.0 percent) while limiting Yale to 39.3-percent shooting (11-of-28) from the field and 20.0-percent shooting from distance (2-of-10). The Bears led in points off turnovers (17-5) and fast break points (12-3) at halftime.

After Yale pulled within 46-34 early in the third quarter, Benzinger grabbed a key offensive rebound to setup a 3-pointer from Steeves that pushed Brown ahead 49-34 with 6:45 left in the period. A corner 3-pointer from Gaziano made the score 59-41 for the Bears' largest lead of the game at the 4:22 mark. Mehta scored nine points inside of the final two minutes of the quarter to keep Brown ahead 68-53 heading to the fourth frame.

Gaziano opened the fourth quarter with a 3-pointer before Yale pulled within 71-62 with a 7-0 run. Breedlove stemmed the run with a layup prior to consecutive buckets from Mehta, Steeves, and Will that gave Brown a 79-62 edge with 3:28 to play. Mehta netted another five points down the stretch to seal the win.

For Yale, Camilla Emsbo posted a double-double on 26 points and 10 rebounds, while making 11-of-15 shots from the field. Megan Gorman added 11 points.

Prior to the game, the local elementary and middle school students in attendance heard from a variety of professionals, ranging from WPRI meteorologist Michelle Muscatello and a police K-9 unit to Brown head coach Sarah Behn and sophomore student-athletes Morgan Clausen (Algonquin, Ill.), McKenna Dale (Storrs, Conn.), and Savannah Lewis (Westlake Village, Calif.).

Just before tip-off, the Bears honored Steeves for scoring her 1,000^th career point against Maine on Dec. 8. She became the Bears' 22^nd 1,000-point scorer and is the seventh student-athlete in program history with over 1,000 career points and over 700 career rebounds.

Next, Brown completes the home-and-home with Yale on Saturday, Jan. 26 at 2:00 p.m. (ESPN3, WPRV-AM 790) in New Haven, Conn., at the Bulldogs' Lee Amphitheater.

Game Notes:
Shayna Mehta set her career high in scoring for the second time this season. She netted 34 points against Holy Cross (Nov. 18) earlier this year … Mehta scored over 20 points for the fifth time this season and the 27^th time in her career. She scored in double figures for the 16^th time this year and 83^rd time in her career … Mehta now has 216 career steals, moving into seventh place all-time at Brown and passing Lynn Johnson '78 (211 career steals) … Mehta now has 1,595 career points, 236 career made 3-pointers, 583 career field goals, and 260 career assists … Erika Steeves scored in double figures for the eighth time this season and 53^rd time in her career. She now has 1,076 career points, moving into 16^th place all-time at Brown and passing Sheila Dixon '13 (1,070 career points) … Justine Gaziano scored in double figures for the 15^th time this year and 59^th time in her career … Taylor Will scored in double figures for the 11^th time this year and 42^nd time in her career.

Video of all Brown women's basketball home contests and all Ivy League games, home and away, will be broadcast live on ESPN+.

Tickets for all Brown women's basketball games can be purchased online, by calling the Brown Athletics Ticket Office at (401) 863-2773, or by walking up to the box office located in the Pizzitola Sports Center, open Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.