GAME DAY INFORMATION |
DATE: January 21, 2022
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LOCATION: Charger Gymnasium
West Haven, Conn. |
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GAME DAY LINKS |
LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO |
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WHAT'S ON TAP
Defense, defense, defense, it's what every coach preaches and its exactly what Coach Debbie Buff has the Chargers focused on and it led to the biggest win in recent memory with a putback victory at the buzzer over NE10 leading Bentley on Wednesday night. The Chargers look to build on the momentum of that victory as they go for a third straight when they welcome Pace for a Saturday afternoon showdown.Â
SCOUTING NEW HAVEN
Looking for a third-straight victory, New Haven needs to continue to rely on a defense that is holding opponents to just 59.9 points per game, while keeping confidence in their shooting ability that is currently 22nd best in the nation as they are connecting on 44.6 percent of their attempts. Additionally, New Haven needs to continue to focus on the boards where they lead the NE10 and are 17th in the country with their average of 8.0 rebounds more than their opponents. Leading the efforts is graduate guard Camryn DeBose (Wellington, Fla./Wellington Community) who is averaging 16.5 points per game, fourth in the NE10, including a career-high 30 points in the season opener against Georgian Court. Her co-captain Aurora Deshaies (Syracuse, N.Y./Bishop Ludden) has both offense and defense on her mind as she is second on the team averaging 13.5 ppg, while one of two players in the NE10 who is averaging a double double as she is pulling down 10.1 rebounds per outing, second best in the NE10. In addition, Deshaies leads all NE10 players and is fourth in the nation with her 64% shooting percentage (91-of-143) with all of her points coming from inside the three-point arc. Rounding out the leading scorers for the Blue and Gold is senior point guard Kameryn King (Old Saybrook, Conn./Mercy) who is averaging 10.3 ppg, while leading the team with 67 assists, with her 4.6 assists per game average second best in the conference. Defensively, it is senior guard Marigona Bacaliu (Worcester, Mass./Putnam Science Academy) who leads the team with 28 steals, while New Haven has 127 on the year and has turned the 223 turnovers they have forced into 207 points, including 25+ in two games, against Bloomfield (29) and Franklin Pierce (28).
SCOUTING PACE
It's been a season of streaks for the Setters who ended the 2022 portion and opened the 2023 portion of their schedule on a six-game win streak and recently snapped a three-game skid with a road win at Saint Michael's on Wednesday night. For the season, the Setters stand at 8-10 overall and are tied with the Chargers at 5-6 in NE10 play. As a team, the Setters have struggled to score the rock, averaging just 53.2 points per game which is second lowest in the NE10. However, it has been the Setters defense that has kept them in games as they are limiting their opponents to 55.6 points, third best in the conference. Individually, no Setter is averaging in double figures, however it is a balanced attack for Pace with six different players all averaging five or more points per game. Leading the way is sophomore post Arianna Stockinger who is averaging 9.6 points per game, while second in rebounding (5.4 per game) and leading the way with 20 blocks.
SERIES HISTORY vs PACE
·        New Haven and Pace meet for the 40th time in the history of the two programs, which has been dominated by the Setters.
·        Pace holds a 29-10 record in the previous 39 games, including a stretch where they won 18-of-19 straight games
·        In most recent memory, the Setters swept the home-and-home series last season with New Haven's most recent win coming in the second meeting in 2019-20 just prior to the CoVID-19 shutdown.
SLAYING THE DRAGON
New Haven may have entered the Dana Center as the underdog in its conference match-up against NE10 leading Bentley, a team that has garnered regional and national attention from those voting in weekly polls, but the Chargers proved that they are not a team to take lightly. It wasn't a fluke that New Haven came away with the buzzer-beating victory over the Falcons as they led for nearly 25 of the 40 minutes in the game. Overall, the contest featured 12 lead changes and eight ties, but the 51-49 final score is all that mattered as the Chargers held a Bentley team that averaged 14 points more than their opponents to a season-low 49 points and limited their leading scorers, who average more than 30 points per game combined, to just 16 total points among the top-three scorers.
OFFENSIVE EFFICIENCY
Going into the Wednesday night match-up against Bentley, the New Haven women's basketball team currently leads all NE10 teams with their 44.6 percent shooting average, connecting on 366-of-821 total attempts, with that average also the 22nd best in all of NCAA Division II. Leading the way individually is senior Aurora Deshaies (Syracuse, N.Y./Bishop Ludden) who leads the NE10 and is fifth in the nation at 64% (91-of-143). Included among the Chargers 366 total field goals are 88 three pointers, on 250 attempts, for a 352 percent average which is third best in the NE10. Currently, Camryn DeBose (Wellington, Fla./Wellington Community) leads the team with 31 three pointers, but keep an eye on freshman Lindsay Hogan (Bayville, N.Y./Locust Valley) who found her groove against Dominican when she went 7-of-9 from beyond the arc and now provides an efficient option off the bench for the Blue and Gold.
NEXT TIME OUT
The Chargers will spend the next two games on the road, not returning to Charger Gymnasium until the month of February when they will open the final month of the regular season with three straight home games. First up in the upcoming road trip will be a visit to Garden City, N.Y. for a date with Adelphi Panthers, starting the second round of games against conference teams that appear twice on the regular season slate. Tip-off from the Center for Recreation and Sport is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, January 24 with all of the action available live on NE10 NOW.
