Women's Basketball Heads To Providence, Saturday

GAMENOTES (.pdf) 

THE MATCHUP

            Seton Hall will look to snap a two-game losing streak and get back to .500 in the BIG EAST when it takes on Providence.  The Pirates are 1-2 in conference road games thus far, winning at Villanova while losing at Rutgers and Georgetown.

            Junior forward Noteisha Womack, who is tops in the BIG EAST and tied for fourth in the nation with 11.7 rebounds per game, leads SHU in scoring at 11.4 points.  Senior guard Ela Mukosiej has been good for 10.6 points, followed by freshman guard Ebonie Williams with 10.4 points.  The Pirates will look to avoid their first three-game losing streak of the season when they face the Friars.

            Providence has last four of its last five games, including a 70-50 setback at Villanova in its last outing.  The Friars’ lone conference win came at USF on Jan. 15.  Sophomore guard Kendria Holmes leads the team with an average of 11.3 points, followed by freshman forward Mi-Khida Hankins at 10.7 points.  Providence is averaging 61.9 points per game while allowing 60.7. 

            SHU returns home to host St. John’s on Jan. 29 in a nationally-televised broadcast on CSTV, with tip-off at 8:00 p.m.

SERIES BREAKDOWN

            Seton Hall is 24-24 all-time against Providence.  The Pirates scored a pair of victories last season, including a 66-52 win on the Friars’ home floor.

First Meeting     12/2/78

Result               SHU 65-59

Last Meeting     1/23/07

Result               SHU 60-46

SUCCESS IN RHODE ISLAND

            The Pirates have felt right at home in Providence’s Alumni Hall, winning their last six visits.  It has been over 11 years since the Friars have pulled off a win over the SHU at home, with the last coming on Jan. 16, 1997.

OVERALL DOMINANCE

            SHU’s success against Providence has also continued at Walsh Gymnasium, where the Pirates have won five of the last six.  In all, 10 of the last 11 meetings have gone to SHU.

A COLD NIGHT IN D.C.

            Seton Hall suffered through one of its worst shooting nights of the season at Georgetown in a 57-56 loss.  The Pirates shot 36.2% from the field and made only 17 field goals, the second lowest total of the season for a single game in both categories.  SHU was also outrebounded for just the fifth time this year.

WOMACK NEARING 500

            Junior Noteisha Womack is on the verge of joining Seton Hall’s 500-point club, with a current total of 499.  Senior guard Ela Mukosiej has already hit the milestone this season, while junior Jadis Rhodin (402 points) and senior Amber Harris (397 points) also have a shot at the mark.

DOUBLE UP

            Junior Noteisha Womack is fifth in the BIG EAST with eight double-doubles this season; she entered the year with a career total of two.

HOME STREAK SNAPPED

            Seton Hall had put together a 14-game home winning streak dating back to last season before falling to USF.  The Pirates had  not been defeated at Walsh Gymnasium since Rutgers took a 62-50 win on Jan. 13, 2007.  The 14-game streak is the third longest in school history behind two 20-game streaks (1/5/94-1/11/95 and 1/15/80-1/28/81).

FOUR SCORE

            Three Pirates - Noteisha Womack, Ela Mukosiej, and Ebonie Williams- are currently averaging double-figure points, while Jadis Rhodin is just shy.  The Hall has not had three players finish a season averaging 10 or more points since the 2001-02 season.  Although early records are incomplete, it is believed that four players have finished a season averaging double-figures just twice in school history - in 1986-87, and in 1982-83, when the team was still nicknamed the Bucettes.

THE J IN JADIS

            Junior guard Jadis Rhodin has connected from beyond the arc 31 times this year after making a combined 29 in her first two seasons.  She ranks 10th in the BIG EAST in 3-point field goal percentage at 40.3%.

THE “3” BECOMES A WEAPON

            Seton Hall has 66 made 3-point field goals this year after connecting on just 57 in all of 2006-07.  The Pirates are hitting 31.3% of their attempts this season after making only 24.2% last year.

SHU VS. THE TOP 25

            After falling to Ruters, Seton Hall is 8-99 all-time against teams ranked in the AP Top 25.  SHU owns just one road win against a Top 25 team, which came in a 74-61 defeat of No. 12 Notre Dame on Jan. 7, 2006.  The Hall is 0-26 against teams ranked in the top five.

2-0 IN THE BIG EAST

            For the fourth time in the past six years, the Pirates got off to a 2-0 start in conference play.  SHU has still never won its first three in the BIG EAST.

WINNING WITH DEFENSE

            Seton Hall’s trademark tough defense has been on display once again this season.  Six of the Pirates’ 17 opponents have failed to reach the 50-point mark, while 11 of 17 have been held below 60.

WINNING STREAK ENDS AT SEVEN

            The Pirates season-high seven game winning streak came to an end at Rutgers on Jan. 12.  The stretch tied the ninth longest streak in school history.

WILLIAMS FINDS HER RANGE

            Freshman guard Ebonie Williams buried a career-high three 3-pointers on her way to a team-best 13 points in the win over Cincinnati.

DEATH, TAXES, WOMACK

            Junior Noteisha Womack’s production has been a sure thing this year for the Hall, and the Cincinnati game was no exception.  Womack recorded her sixth double-double of the season with 10 points and 11 rebounds.  Both totals were right around her season averages.

BIG EAST OPENERS

            Seton Hall has won three straight BIG EAST openers and is 10-13 all-time under Phyllis Mangina in conference debuts after defeating Cincinnati this year.

WOMACK NAMED PLAYER OF THE WEEK

            Junior Noteisha Womack earned the first BIG EAST Player of the Week Award of her career after being named MVP of the San Diego State Surf N Slam.  Womack scored a career-high 26 points and grabbed 18 rebounds in the championship game against Quinnipiac while playing 43 minutes.

MUKOSIEJ HITS 500

            Senior Ela Mukosiej scored her 500th career point in the Hall’s win over Quinnipiac at the San Diego State Surf N Slam.  Mukosiej accomplished the feat in her 42nd game as a Pirate.

TOURNEY TITANS

            With its victory at the San Diego State Surf N Slam, Seton Hall has now won three straight in-season tournaments.  The Pirates won this year’s SHU Classic, as well as last season’s Christmas City Classic at Lehigh University.

DECEMBER TO REMEMBER

            At 4-0, the Pirates completed an undefeated month of December for the first time since the 1994-95 campaign.

ELA ERUPTS, PART 2

            Senior guard Ela Mukosiej poured in a career-high 26 points to lead the Pirates to a win over Western Michigan in the first game of the San Diego Surf N Slam.  She also set career-highs in made 3-pointers with four and 3-point attempts with five.

OFFENSIVE FIREWORKS

            Seton Hall’s 85 points against Western Michigan was the most scored by the Pirates since they defeated Fairfield on Dec. 7, 2002, 85-50.

FIVE IN DOUBLE FIGURES

            All five Seton Hall starters scored in double figures against Western Michigan, led by senior Ela Mukosiej’s career-high 26 points.

ELA ERUPTS

            Senior guard Ela Mukosiej turned in a standout offensive performance against Saint Joseph’s, pouring in a then season-high 22 points. 

WILLIAMS WINS ROOKIE HONORS

            After scoring a career-high 21 points in Seton Hall’s win at Northwestern, freshman guard Ebonie Williams was named the BIG EAST Rookie of the Week on Dec. 10.

WOMACK’S HISTORIC NIGHT

            Junior forward Noteisha Womack grabbed a career-high 21 rebounds at Northwestern, tying the fifth best single-game total in Seton Hall history. 

MORE CAREER HIGHS

            Junior guard Jadis Rhodin continued her all-around strong play this season by making a career-high seven steals at Northwestern.  Senior guard Ela Mukosiej collected a personal-best eight rebounds.

ONE FOR THE ROAD

            After an 0-2 start away from home in 2007-08, SHU picked up its first road win of the season at Iona, 63-57.

BOOKER READS THE LANES

            Sophomore guard Ashley Booker came up with a career-high six steals at BYU while playing her best game of the season.  She added a season-high 12 points on 5-of-5 shooting.  Sophomore guard Shantel Brown also set a career-high with five steals against the Cougars.

LOW OUTPUT

            Seton Hall’s 43 points at BYU was the team’s lowest output since scoring just 39 points against Virginia on Dec. 7, 2005.

OT DEFEAT

            Seton Hall fell in overtime to Utah Valley, 78-73.  It was the first overtime game for the Pirates since Jan. 3, 2006, when they defeated West Virginia, 67-61.

BIG DAY FOR WILLIAMS

            Freshman guard Ebonie Williams scored a then career-high 19 points against Utah Valley.  Included in her performance was the first 4-point play of her career.

4-0

            Seton Hall went undefeated through four games for the first time since the 1993-94 season.  The Pirates have not been 5-0 since the 1992-93 squad won its first six contests.

SHU CLASSIC

            Seton Hall snapped a three-year championship drought in the SHU Classic with this year’s tournament victory.  The Pirates dispatched George Mason easily in the first game, 78-41, before coming from behind to defeat San Diego, 69-55.

RHODIN NAMED MVP

            Junior guard Jadis Rhodin was named SHU Classic MVP after pouring in a career-high 19 points in the championship game against San Diego. 

HARRIS HOUNDS THE GLASS

            Senior forward Amber Harris posted her second double-double of the season with 14 points and 13 rebounds against San Diego.  She was named to the SHU Classic All-Tournament Team.

DECISIVE VICTORY

            Seton Hall’s 37-point win over George Mason was the largest margin of victory in a Pirate win since a 42-point win (88-46) over Sacramento State on Nov. 25, 2001.  Just one game eariler this season, the Pirates sent Fairleigh Dickinson to a 36-point defeat.  It is the first time since 1994-95 that SHU has two wins of at least 30 points in the same season, and it is just the fifth time in school history that the Pirates won consecutive games by at least 30 points.

WHAT A START!

            Sophomore guard Shantel Brown provided an electric start to the 2007-08 season for Seton Hall, burying a desperation three-pointer from 30-feet out to knock off Manhattan, 61-60.  It was the first game in almost a year for Brown, who missed all but five games last year due to injury.

HUGE DAY FOR HARRIS

            Senior forward Amber Harris was dominant inside against Manhattan, scoring a career-high 16 points and grabbing 11 rebounds for the second double-double of her career.

PIRATES FIRE FROM DOWNTOWN

            Seton Hall was 7-of-11 from three-point territory against Manhattan, surpassing its highest single-game total of made attempts from all of last season.  The Pirates had not connected on seven three-pointers since Jan. 6, 2006 at Notre Dame.

SEASON OPENERS

            Seton Hall had lost two straight season-opening games before defeating Manhattan.  SHU is now 17-6 in season debuts under head coach Phyllis Mangina.

MESSINA OUT INDEFINITELY

            Junior guard Brittney Messina is out indefinitely due to a back injury.

CAPTAINS OF THE SHIP

            Seton Hall announced its captains for the 2007-08 season - senior forward Amber Harris, senior guard Ela Mukosiej and senior center Nikole Sullivan.

A NEW FACE ON THE BENCH

            Brian Stanchak joins the Seton Hall women’s basketball coaching staff for the 2007-08 season after two seasons at Fairleigh Dickinson.

THE NEW KIDS

            Three freshmen and a junior transfer join the Seton Hall roster for the 2007-08 season.  Guard Ebonie Williams of Hagerstown, Md. was the 47th-ranked prospect by the Collegiate Girls Basketball Report.  Gretchen Gaskin of Oralnd Park, Ill. and Kashmere Joseph of London, England complete the freshman class.  Eligible at midseason will be junior Letitia Curry, who transferred from American University midway through last season.

SETON HALL TABBED 10th

            The Seton Hall women’s basketball team was picked 10th in the Preseason BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Coaches Poll. Coaches were not allowed to vote for their own team or players. Connecticut topped the poll with 225 points while earning 15 of 16 first-place votes. The top 12 teams in the conference standings qualify for the conference championship in Hartford, Conn., March 8-11.

MUST SEE TV

            Seton Hall will play a minimum of five televised games in the 2007-08 campaign.  On Dec. 6, the Pirates faced Northwestern on the Big Ten Network live from Evanston, Ill.  Seton Hall and St. John’s square off in a nationally-televised game from Walsh Gymnasium on Jan. 29.  SHU’s game at Pittsburgh will be televised by Comcast in the Pittsburgh local area.  On Feb. 9, CPTV will carry Connecticut’s visit to SHU, while SNY will televise the Pirates’ trip to Marquette on Feb. 16.

GREEN AND HEBER SIGN FOR 08

            The Seton Hall women’s basketball program has signed two high school seniors to National Letters of Intent.  Kandice Green of Baltimore, Md. and Shanai Heber of Paterson, N.J. will join the team in the 2008-09 season.  Green, a 6-1 forward at St. Frances Academy, averaged 15 points and 14 rebounds as a junior while leading her school to its fifth straight IAAM A conference title.  She was a First Team All-Met and First Team Baltimore City selection after earning preseason Honorable Mention All-America accolades from Street & Smith’s Magazine in 2006.  Green is ranked 82nd overall in the class of 2008 by the Blue Star Report.  Heber, a 5-9 combo guard from Kennedy High School, averaged 12 points, seven rebounds, five assists and five steals per game as a junior.  She was named to the All-Passaic and Herald News All-Area teams.

IMPROVEMENT IN 2006-07

            Seton Hall tied for the fourth-best improvement in the nation in 2006-07 according to NCAA statistics.  The Pirates had an overall improvement of 11.0 games; Oklahoma State topped the list with a 12.5 game improvement.

A CHANGE IN 2009

            Beginning next season, all 16 teams on both the men’s and women’s side will qualify for the BIG EAST Championship Tournament.