Princeton’s Ellie Mitchell is more than a rebounding machine
Princeton’s Ellie Mitchell is more than a rebounding machine
As Princeton pounded Yale 79-30 for its sixth straight win, one of the most productive rebounders in Division I showed what else she's capable of.
PRINCETON – Yale is plenty familiar with Ellie Mitchell by now. Every Ivy League opponent should be, given that Mitchell led the league in rebounding last season and is on pace to do the same in 2022-23. When Mitchell finishes a game with eight rebounds, it’s a slow day at the office.
But the start of Saturday afternoon’s game between Princeton and Yale showed how Mitchell has other tricks up her sleeve, that she can do a little bit of everything, not just rebound, to further the Tigers’ cause.
The forward, who had been struggling with her offense at points this winter, scored or assisted on the Tigers’ first three buckets to set an early tone. She made the first basket of the game with ease and hit another later on while falling away.
In between those, Mitchell was knocked to the floor but recovered just in time to catch a pass toward the high post – where she immediately sent this perfect bounce pass to Grace Stone for a layup:
While the rebounds predictably piled up, Mitchell flexed on the other end of the court in the second quarter with a running swat that fired up Princeton basketball alumni sitting courtside.
The upshot: Princeton pounded Yale 79-30 for its sixth straight win, and one of the most productive rebounders in Division I showed what else she’s capable of, in what her coach agreed was her best all-around game of the season.
“I thought it was great. We want Ellie to be looking for her offense,” Carla Berube said. “Her teammates were finding her inside. She was posting up hard in there. She’s gonna get those O-boards and she needs to go back up and get those second-chance opportunities. Really proud of her.”
Mitchell tallied eight points, two assists and two steals on Saturday to go with her 12 rebounds, five on the offensive glass. She’s maintained an 11.1 rebound average (ranking 11th in D1) despite this being her first double-digit rebound game since Jan. 6 against Columbia, when she came down with 22 in an overtime loss.
Ivy opponents know what’s coming. Some have double-teamed her when shots go up.
“It’s always a battle under the boards,” Mitchell said. “Whether or not it’s one or two on me, I gotta fight for it. If they are throwing two at me, which, you know, it happens, it’s a great opportunity for my teammates to come flying in and they get their rebounds … We always find a way to make it work.”
To wit: Princeton finished with 19 offensive rebounds Saturday. The Tigers lead the league in fewest rebounds allowed to their opponents and rank second only to Columbia in offensive boards and rebounding margin.
Julia Cunningham agreed it’s rubbed off on her teammates, some of whom are playing their third season with Mitchell. It doesn’t hurt the Tigers’ shooting confidence, either.
“It’s like every shot you take, you know that there’s an opportunity that you might get another one because she’s under there getting the offensive rebound,” Cunningham said. “And then on the defensive side too, every shot that goes up, she’s flying in there. Sometimes you’re boxing your girl out and she just comes from out of nowhere and gets the rebound. It’s really great and I think it helps us build a lot of trust with each other.
It goes without saying that Mitchell’s 6-foot-1 stature comes in handy, but her tenacity and willingness to dive on the floor or save a ball approaching the baseline is what shines through.
Berube has also experimented with more varied lineup combos this season, including putting Mitchell next to the 6-foot-4 Parker Hill. The sophomore has seen an expanded role this year and can finish at the rim reliably (she went 5-for-5 against Dartmouth and 6-for-8 last month against Rhode Island).
“Parker’s huge. It’s great for us,” Mitchell said. “She comes in, it’s an automatic bucket. It’s really hard to guard 6-foot-4. It puts more pressure on them defensively. They can’t just sag off, they’ve got to play two posts for real.”
“She’s such a great offensive presence,” Berube added. “Ellie finds her well. I think they work well together. If Parker misses (a shot), Ellie’s gonna get that rebound. Parker’s a great passer out of the post, too. And then defensively, Parker’s a big presence. It’s hard to shoot over her (and) she’s a good rebounder.”
As for Mitchell’s offense, it appears to be coming along nicely just as the Ivy season turns a corner. Mitchell made her first four shots Saturday before cooling off in the second half, though her presence freed up more of the Tigers’ outside shooters to help turn the game into a laugher.
“I’m just trying to take my time,” Mitchell said. “When I get the opportunity, focus, slow down. Don’t be so passive.”
The win was crucial for Princeton as it jostles for position in a top-heavy league. Columbia leads with a 6-1 Ivy record, and Princeton joined Harvard and Penn at 5-2 while pushing Yale back to 4-3. The Tigers visit Columbia next Saturday to seek some revenge for the earlier OT loss.
“It was as close as it’s been to a full 40,” Berube said of Saturday’s effort. “… I think the defensive piece was more like the Princeton basketball defense that we’ve been working on.”
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Thanks for reading. You may have noticed I took an impromptu half-week off last Thursday. (Or maybe you didn’t miss me. I get it. We all sign up for too many newsletters.) With no games to cover and some other plans falling through, I gave myself a break in advance of the upcoming home stretch; Selection Sunday is 42 days away and the final nine or 10 weeks of this season are certain to fly by.
Nobody probably wants to read a college basketball newsletter the Monday morning after the NFL’s Championship Game weekend, or immediately after the Super Bowl, so I’m shifting to a Sunday-Thursday release schedule for at least three weeks. Saturdays are the biggest days of the hoops season, after all, especially this coming Saturday when Rutgers takes on Michigan State at Madison Square Garden. I’ll be there, with a day-after column up Sunday morning.
It was a victorious Saturday all around New Jersey, with plenty of notes and quotes to get to, so let’s make like Ellie Mitchell and clean the glass:
How do you do, Monmouth Hawks! The program has suffered through one of its worst seasons in recent memory but finally earned their first win in the Colonial Athletic Association on Saturday by beating NC A&T on the road, 79-64. A team that’s lacked consistent offense shot 52.8 percent and made six 3-pointers and 17 free throws. “This definitely feels great, just playing team basketball, everybody involved in the game. Just finding our offense through our defense, that was the key to the game,” said Tahron Allen, who scored a career-high 23 points and had nine rebounds. Jack Collins (16 points) made four threes and Jakari Spence went 8-for-8 at the stripe to finish with 14 points, seven assists and five rebounds.
Seton Hall beat Butler again, 70-49, allowing the fewest points to a Big East opponent this year. The Pirates have solidified themselves in fifth place in the Big East, but they are 0-5 against the top four (Xavier, Marquette, Providence, Creighton) and 6-0 against everyone else. It can’t be spelled out simpler than that. Please fast-forward me to their February games against Creighton and at Villanova. Also, Saturday’s win may have come at the expense of Dre Davis, who was clearly in pain when he suffered a right leg injury late in the game.
Something from Friday that deserves a quick note: Rider is all by itself in second place in the MAAC after yet another come-from-behind win, this time at Marist (who led by 14 early in the first half) coupled with Iona’s lopsided loss to first-place Siena. Rider’s 7-3 league record looks strong, considering it lost by just five points at Siena and fell to 6-3 Quinnipiac while also beating Iona on the road. They’ve snuck their way up to 199th in KenPom. Winners of four straight, the Broncs visit Fairfield later today.
The Princeton men weren’t as fortunate as the women, as Yale ran roughshod over the Tigers in the second half Saturday night in New Haven. The Bulldogs scored an unthinkable 65 points in the second half on 21-for-29 shooting. They started the league schedule surprisingly slow, but it looks like they’ll continue to be this Princeton team’s bugaboo until the Tigers prove otherwise, whether in the regular season or Ivy Madness.