No. 20 New Haven vs. Le Moyne
Tuesday, Feb. 10 - 5:30 p.m.
West Haven, Conn. - Charger Gymnasium
Game Coverage: Video | Live Stats
Complete Game Notes (PDF)
Opening Tip
The nationally-ranked No. 20 University of New Haven women's basketball team continues a three-game homestand and looks for its seventh win in a row when it hosts Le Moyne in a Northeast-10 Conference Southwest Division matchup on Wednesday, February 10 at 5:30 p.m.
Last Time Out
#Aqullin Hayes# launched a half court buzzer-beater to send the nationally-ranked No. 20 University of New Haven women's basketball team into overtime and eventually to a 79-76 win over Saint Rose at Charger Gymnasium. After trailing for nearly the entire second half, Hayes' shot tied the game for the first time in the final 19 minutes of the second half.
In overtime, New Haven held a 74-67 lead with 35 seconds left, but the Golden Knights rallied and converted shots to come within one, 77-76, just 26 seconds later. Rykema Stone (Bronx, N.Y./Wings Academy) hit a pair of free throws with six seconds left, to put the Chargers ahead by three. Saint Rose rushed the ball down the court and a wide open three-point attempt bouced off the rim and out as time expired.
Hayes led the Chargers in scoring with a career-high 29 points. She added 11 rebounds and three assists as well. Briana Bradford (Waterbury, Conn./Holy Cross) pitching in 16 points, while Stone finished with nine points and 11 rebounds. Ashley LeBlanc (Methuen, Mass./Methuen) registered six points and eight rebounds and Elizabeth Cruso (Westerly, R.I./Westerly) chipped in eight points.
The Chargers jumped out to an early 10-2 lead over the Golden Knights with buckets coming from Hayes, Cruso and LeBlanc. Staci Barrett led the comeback for the Golden Knights who cut the deficit to three before a Sarah Illingworth three-pointer evened the game at 20. Despite tallies from Hutcheson and Barrett, New Haven led 27-24 after the first 20 minutes.
Saint Rose knocked down the first basket of the second half to tie it at 27-27 and later went on an 8-2 run but to go ahead 43-32 at the 14:09 mark. A LeBlanc layup stopped the rally and the Chargers began to rally from as many as 12 points behind. Small rallies brought New Haven within one at the 1:00 mark and a pair of free throws with three seconds left put Saint Rose ahead 63-60. After inbounding the ball to Sade King (Mount Vernon, N.Y./Mount Vernon / Hampton University), Hayes got the pass back and hurled the game-tying shot from the half court line.
The Blue and Gold scored a quick four points and jumped out to a 69-65 lead in the early minutes of overtime. The Chargers held on to the lead for the entire extra period, while Saint Rose mounted a pair of attempts in the final 30-seconds.
Scouting Report
Le Moyne enters play with a 14-9 record overall and is 8-8 in the NE-10. The Dolphins have dropped four straight games and are coming off a 73-67 setback against Southern Connecticut State on Saturday.
A trio of players average double-figure scoring for Le Moyne led by senior guard Alex Marple at 17.7 points a contest. Junior guard Vandell Andrade is tallying 13.4 a night while leading the Dolphins at 7.7 rebounds per game. Senior forward Emily Greer adds 10.4 points per contest. Consistency has been a key to Le Moyne's success this season as four players have started all 23 games.
Gina Castelli is in her second season with the Dolphins and carries a 29-22 record with the Green and Gold. She joins the Dolphins following a long run at Division I Siena College where Castelli compiled a record of 336-296 with the Saints.
All-Time Series
Saturday marks the 24th meeting between the Chargers and Dolphins. Le Moyne holds a slim 12-11 series lead, but New Haven won the previous game between the two teams, 65-62 on November 19. The Blue and Gold are 5-2 againstthe Dolphins at Charger Gymnasium.
Cold Month, Hot Play
The Chargers went 8-1 in January with their only loss being a three-point setback at Franklin Pierce. New Haven came within a tenth of a second of possibly having an undefeated month when a game-tying three-pointer from Elizabeth Cruso against the Ravens was released just after the buzzer.
Off To A Good Start
The 17-3 record that New Haven accumulated earlier this season is the best record through 20 games since the 1988-89 team also went 17-3. That squad started 12-3 before winning 16 games in a row, prior to finishing the year 28-4. The best start through 20 games in school history belongs to the 1986-87 National Champions who after beginning the year 1-2 did not lose the rest of the way.
Happy at Home
The 2014-15 season marks the third time that New Haven has started 10-0 or better at home. The 1986-87 and 1987-88 squads both accomplished the feat. The 86-87 unit went a perfect 15-0 at Charger Gymnasium including a run through the NECC Tournament and its first round NCAA Tournament game against Stonehill.
Up Next
New Haven conlcudes a three-game homestand when it hosts Northeast-10 Coneference Southwest Division foe Pace on Saturday, Feb. 14 at 1:30 p.m.
