CAMBRIDGE, MA—Harvard overcame a 17-point first-half deficit to defeat visiting NJIT 66-54 Sunday afternoon at the Lavietes Pavilion. Senior forward Temi Fagbenle scored 15 of her game-high 22 points in the second half to lead the Crimson's comeback win.

Harvard, which came into the contest on a three-game skid, improved to 7-8 overall, while the visiting Highlanders dropped to 8-12.

Fagbenle, a first-team All-Ivy selection, finished the game 9-for-16 from the field and 4-of-5 from the free throw line, while forward Erin McDonnell was the other double-figure scorer for the Crimson with 10 points (all in the first half).  Anna Lachenauer chipped in nine points and a team-high seven rebounds as the Crimson held a 42-to-32 advantage on the boards.

The Highlanders were paced by sophomore Leah Horton's team-high 13 points, as the 6-foot-1 forward shot 6-of-6 from the field and pulled down seven rebounds.  Senior forward Nicole Maticka scored 12 points, finishing 3-of-4 from three-point range ,while classmate Kim Tullis netted eight points and pulled down a game-high nine rebounds to go along with three assists.  Point guard Alyssa Albanese dished out a game-high six assists and sophomore Alana Dudley set a new career mark with five assists.

NJIT jumped out to a hot start, scoring 20 of the game's first 24 points for a 20-4 advantage at the 12:19 mark.  At the time, NJIT was shooting 61.5%, including 4-for-7 from three-point range.

Harvard's Fagbenle broke the Crimson scoring drought with five straight points, cutting the Highlander lead to 20-9. NJIT's Alyssa Albanese and Matcika connected on back-to-back three-pointers, giving the Highlanders theor largest lead of the game, 26-6, with 9:11 left on the first-half clock.

The Crimson scored the next nine points, closing the Highlander lead to single-digits, 26-18, with 7:34 remaining in the first period, sparked by a three-pointer by Grace Keane at the 8:51.

After a layup by NJIT's Ruta Vetra, the Highlanders pushed the lead back to double-figures, 28-18, but Harvard used a 13-2 run over the next six minutes to take its first lead of the contest, 31-30, on a jumper by McDonnell, with 1:50 on the clock.

NJIT's Tullis finished an old-fashioned three-point play at 1:17, for a two-point Highlander advantage, 33-31.  Harvard's Kirby Porter scored with 1:03 on the clock, knotting the game at 33, where it stayed at halftime. Harvard's McDonnell led all scorers at the half with 10 while NJIT's Tullis and Maticka each had six.

Neither team led by more than four points in the opening eight minutes of the second half, until Harvard used an 8-1 run to push its lead to nine, 50-41, with 8:16 left to play.  Harvard's Lachenauer scored six of the Crimson's eight points in the run.

The Highlanders went on a 6-2 spurt, slimming the Crimson lead to 52-47 after back-to-back jumpers by Horton and a jumper by Alana Dudley with 6:08 left.

The Crimson then scored five straight points, extending the lead to 10, 57-47, behind four points from Fagbenle with 5:25 remaining in the game.  

The Highlanders gave it one last push with Horton scoring three straight points closing the gap to within seven, 57-50. But Harvard secured the win, finishing the game on a 9-4 spurt for the 12-point victory, 66-54.

NJIT will return to action on Tuesday at 11:30am when the Highlanders face their third straight Ivy League opponent, Brown, in Providence, RI.