WOMEN’S BASKETBALL PREVIEW: Massachusetts at Saint Louis
WHEN: Thursday, Jan. 18, 2018 • 7 p.m. CST
WHERE: Chaifetz Arena • St. Louis, Missouri
RECORDS: SLU 8-9, 2-2 Atlantic 10; Massachusetts 8-9, 0-4 Atlantic 10
SLU-MASSACH– USETTS SERIES: SLU leads 10-3 and has won seven straight
SLU-MASSACH– USETTS LAST MEETING: at SLU 91, Massachusetts 51 (2/26/17) RECAP
BILLIKENS’ LAST GAME: at Dayton 101, SLU 76 (Jan. 14) RECAP
MINUTEWOMEN’S LAST GAME: Saint Joseph’s 84, at Massachusetts 79 (Jan. 13) RECAP
UP NEXT FOR THE BILLIKENS: Saint Joseph’s • Sunday, Jan. 21 • 1 p.m. CST • Chaifetz Arena
GAME NOTES: Saint Louis
GAME NOTES: Massachusetts
LIVE VIDEO: A-10 Digital Network (Email [email protected] if you encounter difficulty.)
LIVE STATS: StatBroadcast
A LOOK AT THE BILLIKENS
• The Saint Louis Billikens look to snap a two-game skid Thursday, Jan. 18, when they square off with the Massachusetts Minutewomen at Chaifetz Arena.
• SLU’s 10 victories over UMass are the second most for the Billikens vs. an Atlantic 10 Conference opponent. Saint Louis has recorded 11 wins over Rhode Island.
• Since the beginning of the 2015-16 season, the Billikens are 27-9 in A-10 play. That ranks second in the conference, just one game behind George Washington.
• Jackie Kemph owns a commanding lead in assists in the A-10. Kemph dishes 7.7 assists per game, three more than the second-place player. She is on pace to have career highs for a season in assists per game and assist-turnover ratio (currently 2.85).
• Paige Rakers and Jordyn Frantz have become one of the A-10’s most potent 3-point shooting combinations. Rakers (14-of-25, .560) and Frantz (15-of-31, .484) have combined to shoot 51.8 percent from beyond the arc over the last six games.
• In A-10 games, SLU leads the league in FT percentage (.806); ranks second in assists (18.3 apg), assist-turnover ratio (1.43), defensive rebounding (29.8 drpg) and 3-point FGs (8.5/game); and is third in scoring (74.0 ppg) and FG percentage defense (.360).
• Jackie Kemph leads the A-10 with 8.0 assists per game and a 4.57 assist-turnover ratio in league action. Kemph has committed only seven turnovers in four A-10 contests.
• Paige Rakers tops the conference in field goal shooting in A-10 games, connecting at a 63.9-percent clip. That includes 57.9 percent (11-of-19) from 3-point range, good for second in the league.
• SLU has held seven of its last nine opponents to under 40-percent field goal shooting.
• The Bills have pushed their season free throw accuracy to 72.5 percent by connecting on 78.7 percent (85-of-108) from the stripe over the last six games.
• SLU has been much stronger from 3-point range recently. After shooting just 29 percent from beyond the arc in their first 11 games, the Billikens have connected on 39.6 percent (53-of-134) from distance in their last six outings.
• Sixth-year head coach Lisa Stone takes a 98-78 record at Saint Louis into the Dayton game. Now in her 32nd season overall as a collegiate head coach, Stone owns a 601-315 career mark.
A LOOK AT THE MINUTEWOMEN
• Massachusetts returned three starters from its 2016-17 team that was 9-21 overall and 3-13 (13th) in the A-10.
• Sophomore guard/forward Hailey Leidel earned A-10 Rookie of the Year plaudits a year ago. Leidel leads UMass in scoring (14.8 ppg) and is tied for the conference lead in 3-pointers (49, 2.9/game). She shoots 44.1 percent from beyond the arc and 87.2 percent from the foul line.
• Junior guard/forward Genesis Rivera scores 12.5 points per game and is second on the team with 31 3-pointers.
• Senior center Maggie Mulligan carries an 11.2 scoring average and ranks fourth in the A-10 with a team-high 9.7 rebounds per game (third in the league with 4.1 offensive boards per game). Mulligan is second in the conference with 2.3 blocks per game.
• Freshman guard Bre Hampton-Bey averages 11.1 points and leads UMass with 4.4 assists and 2.3 steals per game.
