Jan. 21, 2008
AMHERST, Mass. -
MINUTEWOMEN HOST YALE IN FINAL NON-CONFERENCE GAME
The UMass women's basketball team (8-9, 1-2 A-10) concludes its two-game homestand on Tuesday night, hosting Yale (3-10, 1-0 Ivy) at the Mullins Center. The game will draw to a close the non-conference portion of UMass' schedule, with 11 Atlantic 10 games remaining in the regular season. The Minutewomen dropped their first home game of the season on Sunday to Richmond, 86-63. Prior to the loss, UMass had started the season 7-0 at home.
Yale started Ivy League play on Saturday with a 57-55 victory on the road vs. Brown. The win snapped a five-game losing streak for the Lady Bulldogs. Their two wins came back-to-back in early December vs. Stony Brook, 81-64, and Hofstra, 73-67. They enter the game with a 1-6 record on the road.
Jan. 12's victory vs. Rhode Island was the 150th win of UMass head coach Marnie Dacko's career. She currently has 70 victories at UMass and had 80 while coaching at Cornell.
After Tuesday's game vs. Yale, UMass will to Cincinnati to take on A-10 foe Xavier. Tip-off is slated for 6 p.m. Saturday at the Cintas Center.
BROADCAST INFO
The game will be carried on WMUA 91.1 FM and on UMassAthletics.com with Zach Claudio and Chris Marovelli calling the action. Live stats will be available via Gametracker at UMassAthletics.com. Streaming Video will be available at UMass All-Access at UMassAthletics.com.
SERIES HISTORY
This will be the sixth time the teams have met in a series that dates back to 1983. Yale leads the series, 4-1, and has won the last three meetings. UMass won its only home game against the Lady Bulldogs, 73-56, on Dec. 10, 1983 at the Curry Hicks Cage.
In last season's game, on Jan. 6, 2007 in New Haven, UMass fell to the Lady Bulldogs, 70-60. The Minutewomen cut a 13-point second half deficit down to two, but were unable to pull out the victory. Tamara Tatham recorded a double-double with 24 points and 10 rebounds, while Kate Mills and Pam Rosanio each added 13 points.
Erica Davis had a game-high 25 points and 13 rebounds to lead the lLady Bulldogs, while Stephanie Marciano added 11 points.
Marnie Dacko is 5-10 in her career vs. Yale, with all but last season's meeting coming while coaching in the Ivy League at Cornell.
SCOUTING YALE
Yale is 3-10 overall this season and enter Tuesday's game coming off an Ivy League opening win at Brown, 52-45, on Saturday. Prior to that, the Lady Bulldogs lost five-straight games. Their other two victories came back-to-back in early December vs. Stony Brook, 81-64, and Hofstra, 73-67.
Richmond is 1-6 on the road in 2007-08, with Saturday's win over Brown being the lone win away from New Haven.
The Lady Bulldogs are led by 6-0 sophomore swing-player Melissa Colborne at 16.0 ppg and 4.6 rpg. 5-8 junior guard Jamie Van Horne is second on the club in scoring at 9.9 ppg and is the top threat from the outside, making 37% of her 3-point attempts (31-84). 6-1 freshman Lindsey Williams is the team's leading rebounder at 6.7 rpg and 5-4 senior captain Stephanie Marciano is the team's on-floor leader while scoring at a 7.1 ppg clip and a .333 3-point percentage. Mady Gobrecht, daughter of head coach Chris Gobrecht, is a 6-2 freshman that has played in all 13 games and is third on the team in rebounding at 5.7 per game.
Chris Gobrecht is in her third season at Yale, posting a 18-50 record. She led the Lady Bulldogs to a 12-16 mark last season, with a 5-9 mark in conference play. This is her 27th year as a Division I head coach, with a 443-361 (.551) career record. The 1977 Southern California grad has previously coached at Cal State Fullerton, Washington, Florida State, and her alma mater, USC.
LAST TIME OUT
Behind a 14-for-21 effort behind the 3-point line, including 8-of-9 in the first half, Richmond handed UMass its first home loss of the season, 86-63, on Sunday afternoon at the Mullins Center. Prior to the loss, the Minutewomen had started the season 7-0 at home and now fall to 1-2 in conference play.
UMass was led by Pam Rosanio with 22 points on 9-for-12 shooting and seven assists. Kate Mills had 19 points and eight rebounds, while Stefanie Gerardot added 10 points. The trio of Rosanio, Mills, and Gerardot accounted for 51 of UMass' 63 points (81%). Sakera Young off the bench to dish out six assists for the Minutewomen.
Danielle Bell led four Spiders in double-figures with 24 points and shot 6-for-7 from behind the arc, while Kara Powell handed out nine assists. Brittani Shells made 4-of-5 3-point attempts and scored 17 points, while Christina Campion logged her first double-double of the season for Richmond, with 13 points and 11 rebounds.
For the game, UMass shot 51% (25-49) from the floor and was 4-for-11 from 3-point range. Richmond shot 50% (32-64) including the 14-for-21 mark behind the arc. The Spiders won the battle on the glass, 35-24.
UMASS ROMPS URI IN A-10 OPENER
The dynamic duo of seniors Pam Rosanio and Kate Mills scored 23 and 19 points, respectively, to lead UMass to a 91-53 victory over Rhode Island in Jan. 12's Atlantic 10 women's basketball opener at the Mullins Center. Rosanio was 7-for-8 from the field and a perfect 7-for-7 at the foul line, while Mills shot 8-for-12 from the floor. Stefanie Gerardot added 12 points and freshman Stephanie Lawrence set a new career-high with 10 points. Sakera Young dished out a team-high six assists.
UMass' 91 points was a team-record at the Mullins Center and the club's highest offensive output since Jan. 14, 1981, when the Minutewomen defeated Maine, 97-62, at the Curry Hicks Cage.
Amanda McGrew led Rhode Island with 12 points.
For the game, UMass shot 52.9% (27-51) from the floor and was 5-for-9 from 3-point range. The Minutewomen went 32-for-36 from the free throw line, coming within one of the team record for makes from the charity stripe. Rhode Island shot 35.8% (19-53) was 7-for-19 from long-range. The Minutewomen won the battle on the glass, 35-26.
HOME SWEET HOME
The Mullins Center has been extra good to the Minutewomen this season. They are 7-1 on Jack Leaman Court this season.
UMass started out a perfect 7-0 at home this season. It was their best start at home since the 1995-96 season, when UMass ran the table at home, going 12-0. They finished 20-10 that season, culminating in the program's first NCAA Tournament appearance.
UMass averages 12 points per game more at home (71.8 to 59.8) while allowing over five fewer (63.2 to 68.6). The Minutewomen also shoot much better in the familiar surroundings, 49.1% to 40.4%. The biggest difference has been behind the 3-point arc, where they shoot 37.6% at home as opposed to 23.7% on the road.
Last season UMass was 8-4 at home.
UMass' Dec. 22 victory over Buffalo was No. 100 for the Minutewomen at the Mullins Center. They currently have a record of 102-59 (.634) on their home court since their first game there on Jan. 2, 1994 vs. Vanderbilt.
NEXT GAME: AT XAVIER
The Minutewomen return to action on Saturday, when they travel to Cincinnati to take on Xavier in an A-10 showdown. Tip-off is slated for 6 p.m. at the Cintas Center.
It will be the 17th time the Minutewomen and Musketeers have squared off, with Xavier winning 14 of the 16 previous match-ups. Last season, UMass fell, 75-67, on Feb. 18 in Amherst. UMass' last win came on March 1, 1998, 49-44, in the A-10 Tournament. The Musketeers have won 12-straight over UMass.
WMUA 91.1 FM and UMassAthletics.com will carry the game with Mike Walsh and Zach Claudio covering the action. Live stats will also be available on Gametracker at UMassAthletics.com. 
