Columbia Lions women's basketball
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| Columbia Lions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||
 | ||||
| University | Columbia University | |||
| First season | 1984 | |||
| Head coach | Megan Griffith (10th season) | |||
| Location | New York City, New York | |||
| Arena | Levien Gymnasium (capacity: 2,500) | |||
| Conference | Ivy League | |||
| Nickname | Lions | |||
| Colors | Columbia blue and white[1] | |||
| Student section | TBD | |||
| All-time record | 442–718 (.381) | |||
| NCAA Division I tournament appearances | ||||
| 2024, 2025 | ||||
| Conference regular-season champions | ||||
| 2023, 2024, 2025 | ||||
| Uniforms | ||||
| ||||
The Columbia Lions women's basketball team is the intercollegiate women's basketball program representing Columbia University. The school competes in the Ivy League in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The Lions play home basketball games at the Levien Gymnasium in New York, New York, on the university campus.[2] Columbia has won three Ivy League championships.[3] The team has been coached by Megan Griffith since 2016.
After the 2023–24 season, the Lions have a 442–718 record since beginning play in 1984 after Columbia went co-ed in 1983. They joined the Ivy League in women's basketball in 1986 after two seasons in Division III play. The women's teams used to be known as the Barnard Bears, named for the affiliated women's college of the same name. For their first 23 seasons, they never finished higher than fourth in the eight-team conference.[4] They received their first NCAA Tournament bid as an at-large bid in 2024, leaving only Yale as the one Ivy League team to never make the women's tournament. They won the Ivy regular season title once again in the 2024-25 season but lost in the championship game of the Ivy Tournament to Harvard. However, Columbia would receive an at-large bid to reach their second straight NCAA Tournament.
| Year | Record | Conference Record | Coach |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984–85 | 19–7 | n/a | Nancy Kalafus |
| 1985–86 | 21–6 | n/a | Nancy Kalafus |
| 1986–87 | 8–16 | 2–12 | Nancy Kalafus |
| 1987–88 | 12–14 | 4–10 | Nancy Kalafus |
| 1988–89 | 12–14 | 5–9 | Nancy Kalafus |
| 1989–90 | 12–14 | 5–9 | Nancy Kalafus |
| 1990–91 | 10–16 | 5–9 | Nancy Kalafus |
| 1991–92 | 4–22 | 1–13 | Kerry Phayre |
| 1992–93 | 7–19 | 1–13 | Kerry Phayre |
| 1993–94 | 4–22 | 2–12 | Kerry Phayre |
| 1994–95 | 0–26 | 0–14 | Kerry Phayre |
| 1995–96 | 2–24 | 1–13 | Kerry Phayre |
| 1996–97 | 6–20 | 3–11 | Jay Butler |
| 1997–98 | 4–22 | 0–14 | Jay Butler |
| 1998–99 | 6–20 | 2–12 | Jay Butler |
| 1999–2000 | 7–19 | 6–8 | Jay Butler |
| 2000–01 | 9–18 | 6–8 | Jay Butler |
| 2002–03 | 11–16 | 4–10 | Jay Butler |
| 2003–04 | 12–14 | 6–8 | Jay Butler |
| 2004–05 | 12–15 | 5–9 | Traci Waites/Tory Verdi |
| 2005–06 | 6–21 | 2–12 | Paul Nixon |
| 2006–07 | 8–20 | 4–10 | Paul Nixon |
| 2007–08 | 10–18 | 7–7 | Paul Nixon |
| 2008–09 | 13–15 | 6–8 | Paul Nixon |
| 2009–10 | 18–10 | 9–5 | Paul Nixon |
| 2010–11 | 7–21 | 6–8 | Paul Nixon |
| 2011–12 | 3–25 | 1–13 | Paul Nixon |
| 2012–13 | 5–23 | 3–11 | Paul Nixon |
| 2013–14 | 6–22 | 3–11 | Stephanie Glance |
| 2014–15 | 8–20 | 2–12 | Stephanie Glance |
| 2015–16 | 12–17 | 1–13 | Sheila Roux |
| 2016–17 | 13–14 | 3–11 | Megan Griffith |
| 2017–18 | 8–21 | 2–12 | Megan Griffith |
| 2018–19 | 8–19 | 4–10 | Megan Griffith |
| 2019–20 | 17–10 | 8–6 | Megan Griffith |
| 2020–21 | Season Cancelled Due to Covid | ||
| 2021–22 | 25–7 | 12–2 | Megan Griffith |
| 2022–23 | 28–6 | 12–2 | Megan Griffith |
| 2023–24 | 23–7 | 13-1 | Megan Griffith |
- All-Time Coaching Records[5]
| Name | Years | Record | % | Conf. Record | Conf. % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nancy Kalafus | 1984–91 (7) | 94–87 | .519 | 21–49 | .300 |
| Kerry Phayre | 1991–96 (5) | 17–113 | .131 | 5–65 | .071 |
| Jay Butler | 1996–04 (8) | 67–143 | .319 | 33–79 | .295 |
| Traci Waites | 2004–05 (<1) | 9–8 | .529 | 2–2 | .500 |
| Tory Verdi | 2004–05 (<1) | 3–7 | .300 | 5–7 | .417 |
| Paul Nixon | 2005–13 (8) | 70–153 | .314 | 39–74 | .345 |
| Stephanie Glance | 2013–15 (2) | 14–42 | .250 | 5–23 | .178 |
| Sheila Roux | 2015–16 (1) | 12–17 | .414 | 1–13 | .071 |
| Megan Griffith | 2016–pres. (8) | 122–84 | .592 | 54–44 | .551 |
Postseason appearances
NCAA Division I
Columbia has appeared in two NCAA Tournaments. They have a record of 1–2.
| Year | Seed | Round | Opponent | Results |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 12 | First Four | (12) Vanderbilt | L 68–72 |
| 2025 | 11 | First Four First round | (11) Washington (6) West Virginia | W 63–60 L 59–78 |
WNIT
Columbia has appeared in two Women's National Invitation Tournament (WNIT). They have a record of 8–2 and a Runners-up in 2023.
| Year | Round | Opponent | Results |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | First round Second round Third round Quarterfinals | Holy Cross Old Dominion Boston College Seton Hall | W 80–69 W 62–59 W 54–51 L 75–78 |
| 2023 | First round Second round Super 16 Great 8 Fab 4 Championship Game | FDU Fordham Syracuse Harvard Bowling Green Kansas | W 69–53 W 78–73 W 88–82 W 77–71 W 77–70 L 59–66 |
WBIT
Columbia has appeared in one Women's Basketball Invitation Tournament (WBIT). They have a record of 5–0 and won the Championship in 2026.
| Year | Round | Opponent | Results |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | First round Second round Quarterfinals Semifinals Championship Game | St. John's North Dakota State California Wisconsin BYU | W 74–26 W 86–57 W 74–68 W 67–50 W 81–64 |
