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University of Massachusets Athletics
Women's Basketball Plays At Northeastern Sunday
December 12, 2003 | Women's Basketball
Dec. 12, 2003
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Game-Day Information
What: Massachusetts (3-5) at Northeastern (3-2)
Where: Matthews Arena (5,500) * Boston, Mass.
When: Sunday, December 14, 2003 * 2:00 PM
Television: CN8 (Live)
Leandra Reilly (play-by-play) and Megan Keating (color)
Radio: WMUA, 91.1 FM in Amherst
Jon Junkins (play-by-play) and Matt Cahill (color)
Series: Massachusetts leads, 14-10
Last Time: UMass won 77-61 on December 14, 2002, at the Mullins Center
Streak: UMass has won the last two meetings
Game Day... The UMass women's basketball team (3-5), winners in three of its last four games, travels across the Commonwealth for a 2:00 p.m. game at Northeastern. The game will be televised live on CN8 in the region. This marks the second-straight year in which these two teams have met on this date. The Huskies enter the game with a 3-2 record after Thursday's win at home against Harvard. The Northeastern roster features two western Massachusetts natives in Melissa Kowalski and Francesca Vanin. Kowalski is a native of Wilbraham, while Vanin hails from Amherst. UMass leads the all-time series with Northeastern, 14-10, including last year's 77-61 triumph on Dec. 14, 2002, at Mullins. UMass head coach Marnie Dacko is now three wins shy of 100 for her career.
Scouting The Huskies ... Northeastern University enters this afternoon's game with a 3-2 record. They are 3-0 at home and 0-2 on the road, both in the state of Rhode Island. NU is averaging 59.2 points per game while allowing 59.2 points per game as well. The Huskies are shooting .387 from the field, .268 from three-point range and .716 at the free throw line. Northeastern is out-rebounding its opponents, 37.6-36.2 and have committed 111 turnovers, an average of 22.2 per game.
Maralene Zwarich leads the team with 13.2 points per game and 7.8 rebounds a contest. Wilbraham native Melissa Kowalski is second on the team in scoring at 10.0 ppg, while Joi Jefferson is third at 9.4 ppg. She has also dished out a team-high 24 assists and posted a team-best 15 steals. Amherst product Francesca Vanin is scoring 8.8 ppg and hauling in 4.4 boards a game.
The Series ... Massachusetts leads the all-time series with Northeastern, 14-10. The Minutewomen are 4-5 in games played in Boston and have won the last two games in the series. Massachusetts was a 77-61 winner on this same date last year. Prior to last year's game, the last time these two team's met on the hardcourt was a 56-44 UMass victory on Dec. 1, 1993. The last game played at Northeastern was on Dec. 1, 1992, a 64-63 NU win.
Last Time ... Jen Butler scored a career-high 30 points, while pulling down 20 rebounds as the University of Massachusetts (8-1) women's basketball team won its sixth consecutive game, a 77-61 triumph over Northeastern (2-6) Dec. 14, 2002, at the Mullins Center. Massachusetts had runs of 10-0 and 7-0 in the first half, but could not put the pesky Huskies away. The Minutewomen held a 45-34 advantage at the break. In the second half, the Minutewomen saw their 15-point lead cut to six at the 7:23 mark of the second half, but an 11-1 run over the next 4:21 ended the Huskies' come-back attempt.
Nekole Smith chipped in with a season-high 19 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the field. Ebony Pegues had 12 points, seven rebounds and six assists, while Katie Nelson had eight points, four assists and no turnovers. Monique Govan dished out four assists in just five minutes.
The Minutewomen out-rebounded the Huskies, 50-32, and shot .449 (31-69) from the field. UMass had 23 assists for 31 field goals. UMass turned a 9-8 game into a 19-8 lead with a 10-0 run spanning 3:38 of the first half. Butler had a double-double at halftime (17-11), her seventh of the season and 48th for her career. Smith and Pegues also reached double-figures by intermission with 12 and 10 points, respectively. Katarina Andersson led the Huskies with 12 points and six rebounds. Amherst product Francesca Vanin poured in nine points, while grabbing a team-high seven rebounds.
Road Woes ... Dating back to last season, the Minutewomen have now dropped 13 straight road games. The last win for Massachusetts on an opponents' home floor was over a year ago. It was a 59-45 win at Rhode Island on Dec. 9, 2002. Prior to that streak, the Minutewomen had been victorious on seven of nine straight road or neutral site contests. Before defeating Brown on Nov. 30, 2003, in the third-place game of the Coca-Cola Classic at the Arena at Harbor Yard in Bridgeport, Conn., the Minutewomen had lost 14 straight road or neutral site contests. UMass is 0-4 in road contests so far in 2003-04, but 2-0 in neutral site games.
Rage In The Cage II ... On Dec. 3, UMass defeated Vermont, 54-49, in Rage In The Cage II. It marked the second straight time that UMass has returned to the historic Curry Hicks Cage. Last year, UMass defeated Villanova, 55-50, on Dec. 11, 2002. Villanova advanced to the Elite Eight last year and was the only team to knock off Connecticut, ending the Huskies' 70-game winning streak. It was the first game played in the historic Cage since UMass beat Temple, 82-40, on Feb. 18, 1995. Overall, the Minutewomen are 126-107 at the Cage, which opened its doors in 1931.
Tough D ... One of the positives for Massachusetts this season has been the play by the defense. The Minutewomen have allowed just 57.4 points per game this season to rank third in the Atlantic 10 Conference and have held two of their opponents to a season-low in points. Both Fairfield (43) and Vermont (49) have come well short of its season averages against the UMass defense. Through eight games, UMass opponents are shooting .397 from the field and committing 18.4 turnovers a game.
Fiesta Bowl All-Tournament Team ... For the second time in as many weeks, UMass junior forward Brooke Campbell was named to an all-tournament team. This time, the Baltimore, Md., native was selected to the All-Tournament team of the Fiesta Bowl Classic in Tucson, Ariz. In two games at the McKale Center, Campbell had 28 points, 15 rebounds, five assists and two steals. For the season, Campbell is leading the team and is 17th in the A-10 averaging 11.5 points per game and 8.5 rebounds a game. Her tally on the glass is good for fourth-best in the conference. Campbell is also averaging 1.6 assists, 0.4 blocks and 1.6 steals per game.
Coca-Cola Classic All-Tournament Team ... Junior Brooke Campbell exploded for 37 points and 26 rebounds during the two-day Coca-Cola Classic, Nov. 29-30, at the Arena at Harbor Yard in Bridgeport, Conn., en route to All-Tournament team honors. The Midland (Texas) Junior College transfer also added five assists, two blocks and four steals as the Minutewomen finished in third place. She was also named the Dinn Brothers/UMass Athlete of the Week on Dec. 3.
Block Party ... Through its first eight games, Massachusetts has swatted 20 opponents' shots, an average of 2.5 a game to rank seventh in the A-10. Tamara Tatham leads the way with seven blocked shots, good for eighth in the league. Edris Bailey is second with four, while Cleo Foster and Brooke Campbell each have three. Glamora Maeweather has two and Judit Zsedenyi has one.
Who Said They Can't Rebound ... When Massachusetts lost the services of "Miss Everything" Jen Butler to graduation last year, people wondered where the rebounds were going to come from this season. Well, in its first six games, UMass has managed to equal or out-rebound the opposition each time. Last season, Butler led the nation grabbing 14.7 rebounds a game and only three other players were over 3.0. This year, six different Minutewomen are grabbing at least three rebounds a game. Following her career-high 15-rebound performance against Brown Nov. 30, junior Brooke Campbell leads the team and is fourth in the A-10 pulling down 8.5 boards a contest. It has also been the highest single-game rebound tally in the league this season. Overall, UMass is out-rebounding its opponents, 36.0-33.8 and are fourth in the league with a +2.2 rebounding margin.
Don't Want To Dominate On The Glass Though ... UMass seems to play better this year when not out-rebounding the opposition. When either tied on the glass or being out-rebounded this season, UMass is 3-0. They are 0-5, however, when holding the edge on the glass.
Nelson Out ... Massachusetts will be without the services of junior point guard Katie Nelson. Nelson left the Jan. 26, 2002 game against Dayton with a knee injury and with the exception of a brief three-minute stint at George Washington on Feb. 13, 2003, did not play again last season. She had off-season surgery and is not yet at 100 percent.
Sharpton's A Sharp-Shooter ... Redshirt sophomore Ashley Sharpton played a major role off the bench in the UMass 55-52 win over Brown on Nov. 30 as well as the 54-49 triumph over Vermont on Dec. 3 at the Cage. She tallied a career-high 10 points in 18 minutes to help the Minutewomen earn their first win of the season against the Bears. The UNC-Asheville transfer was 4-for-4 from the field, including 2-for-2 from three-point range, and also had a rebound and an assist. Against the Catamounts, she nailed two three-pointers in a 2:01 span to put UMass back up by 13 points after Vermont had cut a 20-point deficit down to five. For the season, the Conyers, Ga., native is averaging 3.5 points in 11.5 minutes. She is shooting .400 (8-20) from three-point land.
The All-Around Center ... The future looks bright for the Minutewomen if freshman Tamara Tatham continues this pace. A forward playing as a center this year, Tatham is second on the team with 9.5 points per game. She is also averaging 3.1 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 0.9 blocks and 1.3 steals per game. The Brampton, Ontario, native has reached double-figures in scoring in seven of the eight games this season.
Filling In Nicely ... Tatham is not the only Minutewoman playing out of position this year. Senior Cleo Foster has had to step in as the point guard, a position she is not very familiar with. The defensive specialist from Toronto is dishing out 3.25 assists per game to lead the team and is 12th in the conference. She also has a very respectable 0.93-1 assists-to-turnover ratio, good for 14th in the A-10. Foster is also averaging 1.6 points, 3.1 rebounds and has added three blocked shots and 13 steals.
Stepping It Up ... After averaging just 3.2 points and 1.8 rebounds per game last season, senior Judit Zsedenyi has dramatically stepped up her game. The Budapest, Hungary, native scored a career-high 17 points vs. Vermont on Dec. 3 and is third on the team pouring in 8.5 points per game. She is also averaging 3.1 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game.
Tale Of Two Halves ... If college basketball was just a 20-minute game, the Minutewomen would be 6-2 this year instead of 3-5. Massachusetts has enjoyed a halftime lead in six of its eight games this season, including a nine-point advantage on Nov. 25 at Syracuse which quickly evaporated. In those six games, UMass is shooting .520 (80-154) from the field in the first half, but just .318 (50-157) in the second stanza.
Break-Out Game ... Junior Edris Bailey showed UMass fans a lot against Holy Cross Nov. 23 in her Mullins Center debut. The Frank Phillips (Texas) Junior College transfer poured in 21 points on 10-of-13 shooting in just 20 minutes off the bench. Bailey played the second half in foul trouble and picked up her fifth with 7:08 left in the second half. For the season, Bailey is fourth on the team averaging 6.6 points, while also pulling down 2.9 rebounds per game. After coming off the bench in the first six games for Coach Dacko, Bailey has started the past two games.
Arizona Recap ... The University of Massachusetts women's basketball team (3-5) shot just .271 (13-48) for the game and fell to the 25th-ranked University of Arizona (5-2), 74-42, last Sunday afternoon in the championship game of the Fiesta Bowl Women's Classic.
"We had no answer to Arizona's size," said UMass Head Coach Marnie Dacko. "In the first half, we had our chances but could not convert at the free throw line. Arizona was missing shots and we were not coming up with the defensive rebounds."
The Massachusetts defense tried to keep them in the game in the first half, but the offense was unable get on track. The Wildcats built a 14-point lead at the 6:01 mark, 25-11, but UMass then made a run to cut into its deficit. Three-pointers by seniors Judit Zsedenyi (Budapest, Hungary) and Glamora Maeweather (Country Club Hills, Ill.), as well as a free throw by freshman Tamara Tatham (Brampton, Ontario) cut the lead to seven at 25-18 with 4:38 left.
That would be the last points of the half, however, for the Minutewomen. Arizona scored eight straight points to close out the half and took a 33-18 lead into intermission. UMass shot just .250 (6-24) from the field in the first half and committed 15 turnovers. The Minutewomen were also just 4-of-10 from the free throw line. Each team grabbed 20 boards in the first half.
UMass could not mount a come-back in the second half and the Wildcats began to pull away. Arizona had a 20-point lead at the 15:59 mark and never looked back.
Maeweather led the Minutewomen with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Junior Brooke Campbell (Baltimore, Md.) had nine points and nine boards and was selected to the All-Tournament team. UMass committed a season-high 28 turnovers and out-rebounded the Wildcats, 39-38.
It's An International Thing ... This year's UMass roster certainly has an International feel to it. There are five players who hail from overseas. Cleo Foster and Tamara Tatham are both from Ontario, Canada. Judit Zsedenyi is a native of Hungary, while junior redshirt Patrycja Gulak is from Poland. Edris Bailey is from Trinidad & Tobago.
Marnie's Army Leader ... With an 8-1 start last year, Massachusetts Head Coach Marnie Dacko enjoyed the best start of any UMass coach in their first season at the helm, not to mention the second-best start of any UMass team in the program's history as the 1968-69 team, which started 9-0, did not have a coach. When the Minutewomen downed Sacred Heart, 74-48 on Nov. 22 2002, Dacko became the seventh head coach out of nine in the program's history to win their first game on the UMass bench. The 1978 Southern Connecticut State University graduate is currently 17-18 (.486) at UMass and 97-122 (.443) overall in nine-plus seasons as a head coach. She is now just three wins shy of 100 in her career.
From Here ... After this weekend, the Minutewomen continue their stretch of six out of seven road games by visiting the University of Hartford on Dec. 21. Tip-off is slated for 2:00 p.m. After the holiday break, Massachusetts will host UNC-Greensboro on Tuesday, Dec. 30 at the Mullins Center. Tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m. A-10 play begins after the New Year and the Minutewomen start off with a pair of games in the City of Brotherly Love. UMass will play at La Salle on Saturday, Jan. 3, and then at Saint Joseph's on Tuesday, Jan. 6. Both games will begin at 12:00 p.m. The first A-10 home game will be Friday, Jan. 9 at 7:00 p.m. The Minutewomen will welcome Temple to the Mullins Center.
