GAME DAY INFORMATION DATE: December 1, 2021 LOCATION: Moore Field House, New Haven, Conn. GAME DAY LINKS LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO

NEWS NEWS ROSTER ROSTER SCHEDULE SCHEDULE STATS STATS GAME NOTES

OPENING TIP
The Chargers picked up their fourth win of the season in a 56-43 home win over Saint Thomas Aquinas to break a two game skid. The squad will head on the road, but won't be going far as they return to Moore Field House for an Elm City showdown with the Southern Connecticut Owls on Wednesday, Dec. 1 at 5:30 PM.

INSIDE THE SERIES
History has favored the Chargers in this historic rivalry, as the Chargers hold a 46-30 record in the all-time series. New Haven enters the matchup with a four game win streak against the Owls, winning the last two games at Southern Connecticut State. The two first met on Nov. 29, 1980 in a 60-54 win for the Owls. They last met on Feb. 19, 2020 in a 61-56 road victory for the Chargers.

SCOUTING THE CHARGERS
The Chargers enter Wednesday's matchup against the Southern Connecticut State Owls, looking to pick up their first conference win of the season. The team broke a two-game skid last time out in a 56-43 home win over the Saint Thomas Aquinas Spartans on Sunday. 

New Haven jumped out to an early lead in the first quarter, ending with a 14-9 lead but soon found themselves trailing at the half, 30-25, after outscoring the Chargers, 21-11 in the second quarter.

Despite holding the Spartans to 0-4 shooting from the three in the first, Saint Thomas Aquinas went on a tear in the second, shooting 5-6 from the distance. The New Haven defense held strong, however, holding the Spartans to only 6-23 (26%) shooting for the entire second half.

The Chargers went 20-55 (36.4%) from the field but were held to 4-17 (23.5%) shooting from beyond the arc.

Leading the Charger's offense was graduate guard Brie Pergola (Torrington, Conn./Torrington), who caught fire in the second half, scoring 13 points, including three three-pointers. Pergola finished the game with 18 total points while also tallying four rebounds, three assists, a block and a steal.

Camryn DeBose (Wellington, Fla./Wellington Community) once again reached double-digit scoring with 13 points on 29 percent shooting while adding a three- pointer of her own. She also finished with a season-high seven rebounds and two blocks in the winning effort.

DeBose currently ranks sixth for scorers in the NE-10 Conference with a team-leading 16.2 points per game. She also ranks top-15 in the conference with an average of 1.8 steals per game.

Junior forwards Aurora Deshaies (Syracuse, N.Y./Bishop Ludden) and Briana Van Cleaf (Staten Island, N.Y./Notre Dame Academy) combined for 17 points and 23 rebounds in the low post, as both reached double-digit rebounds.

For the first time since Dec. 15, 2020, New Haven saw two players reach 10+ rebounds in a game, last accomplished by Micah Wormack (18) and Deshaies (14).

Van Cleaf's career-high 11 boards in Sunday's win, pushes her season average to 7.5, which is tied for 11th in the NE10. Deshaies is averaging 11.2 points and rebounds per game, the latter securing her fifth in the conference.

SCOUTING THE OWLS
The Owls enter the game on a two-game win streak with a 3-2 record, coming off a 68-52 non-conference win over the Holy Family Tigers on Sunday. Southern Connecticut State saw a combination of only six scorers in the winning effort, with four reaching double-digit points. Graduate forward Jessica Fessle led the Owls in their last game with an 18 point-18 rebound double-double.

The Chargers traveled to Moore Field House to start the season in the SCSU Tip-off Tournament, but did not compete against the Owls while there. SCSU ranks fourth in the conference with an average of 69.8 points per game, while shooting a 12th best 36.1 percent from the field.

Fressle leads the Owls on the year in scoring, as well as on the glass, with 18 points and 13 rebounds per game. Senior guard Zoë Amalbert is the team's second-leading scorer with 14.4 points per game on 38.5 percent shooting from the field and from beyond the arc. Amalbert also handily leads the Owls with 25 assists on the year. 

From the three, SCSU's Patricia Conroy has been a sharp-shooter, entering the matchup shooting 42.4 percent on the long ball. Conroy has made 14 three pointers this season, hitting an NE10 second-best 2.8 threes per game.

Southern Connecticut State allows an average of 63.0 points per game to their opponent on 38.8 percent shooting. As a whole, they rank second in the conference, averaging 46.6 rebounds for a +11.6 margin.

SCSU boast a diverse roster comprised of 10 guards and four forwards. The class makeup is divided into three freshmen, two sophomores, three juniors, two seniors and four graduate students.

Kate Lynch entered her seventh season as head women's basketball coach at Southern Connecticut State University. Lynch, an '08 graduate, was a 2018 inductee into the Southern Connecticut State University Alumni Hall of Fame.The all-time leading scorer in the history of the Southern Connecticut State women's basketball program, Lynch was announced as head coach on June 29, 2015. Lynch enters the match with a 79-73 overall record and 45-55 conference record at the helm of SCSU.

NEXT UP
The Chargers will head to Albany, N.Y. to take on the Saint Rose Golden Knights for the second of of three-straight conference games. Tip off for that game is scheduled for 5:30 PM on Saturday, Dec. 4 at Daniel P. Nolan Gymnasium.