Road Test Awaits WBB at Fordham Friday Night
12/4/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
NR/RV SETON HALL (6-1) at FORDHAM (4-3)
Bronx, N.Y. (Rose Hill Gym) • Friday, Dec. 5 • 7:00 PM
Broadcast: FordhamSports.com
Radio: 89.5 FM WSOU (Play-by-play: Matt Valentine; Color: Christian Pierre-Louis)
Seton Hall Game Notes 
| Live Video | Live Stats
The Seton Hall University women's basketball team will be back in action on Friday night, when the Pirates head to Fordham University for a 7 p.m. tip. It is the second-straight road test for The Hall, which is coming off a 79-74 win at Creighton in its BIG EAST opener on Wednesday night in Omaha.
For Seton Hall, which has won five-straight games for the first time since 2008, Fordham represents the third defending conference champion it has faced this season, with the Pirates already playing the defending Big 12 (West Virginia) and Big Ten (Penn State) champions.
Fordham will be a little better rested, having last played on Sunday afternoon in a 62-56 loss to Drake in San Antonio. The Rams are 4-3 overall, and had won four in a row before that setback over Thanksgiving Weekend.
Friday night's matchup is truly a clash of styles and whichever team is more effective at dictating the pace of the game is likely to come out victorious.
Seton Hall has played at a quick pace, pressuring on defense while trying to get out in transition off turnovers and missed buckets. Head coach Anthony Bozzella has said he wants to see the Pirates get up to 80 field goal attempts in a game, which they almost did with 73 in a win over Saint Joseph's last Sunday.
Fordham will counter with a half-court game and physical defense. The Rams are yielding just 51.7 ppg to their opponents this season, which ranks as the 15th-best scoring defense in the nation. On the flip side, Fordham ranks 305th on offense at 56.1 ppg.
The Rams also have not done a great job of protecting the basketball, averaging 17.6 turnovers per game. If Seton Hall can find the same success with its pressure defense it has during the current five-game winning streak, the Rams may be forced to score at a higher pace than they are comfortable. The Pirates rank 17th in the nation averaging 13.0 steals per game, and have grabbed 15 in three-straight contests. That has led to 20.3 points off turnovers per game for The Hall.
Fordham is led by Emily Tapio, the only player averaging double figures for the Rams at 12.6 ppg. Seton Hall has four players averaging double figures and three ranked in the top-10 in scoring in the BIG EAST, led by Ka-Deidre Simmons at 18.7 ppg. However, Daisha Simmons is the hottest offensive weapon for the Pirates as of late, topping 20 points in three-straight games, scoring a game-high 23 in the win at Creighton on Wednesday.
SETON HALL STATUS
- With four games in seven days, getting off to a good start in the conference opener at Creighton was critical for Seton Hall, and the Pirates did just that, picking up a 79-74 win on the road.
- Four players scored in double figures for Seton Hall, led by Daisha Simmons who finished with 23. Janee Johnson tied her career-high of 16, while knocking down a personal best four 3-pointers.
- Seton Hall buried 10 3-pointers as a team in the win and forced Creighton into committing 19 turnovers, well above its average of 12 per contest. Seton Hall has recorded 15 steals in three-straight games.
FORDHAM'S STATUS
- Fordham enters Friday night's matchup a little better rested, as the Rams have not played since losing to Drake, 62-56, over Thanksgiving weekend in San Antonio.
- The Rams lost their two leading scorers from a year ago but have seen senior forward Emily Tapio take a big step forward, leading the team with 12.6 points per game.
- After keeping the same starting lineup for all 33 games during last year's run to the Atlantic 10 title and the NCAA Tournament, Fordham has seen some lineup experimentation early in the year. However, Tapio, Samantha Clark and Tiffany Ruffin have started all seven games so far, with Clark leading the team in rebounding (7.1 rpg) and Ruffin in assists (3.5 apg).
RUN THAT WIN STREAK TO FIVE
- With its 79-74 victory at Creighton on Dec. 3, Seton Hall ran its current winning streak to five games in a row, the longest such streak for SHU in nearly six years.
- The last time the Pirates won five-straight games was in December 2008, when The Hall ran its streak to seven in a row.
- The Pirates also boast a pretty healthy home winning streak, taking nine in a row in Walsh Gym dating back to last season.
TOP-10 TERRITORY
- Scoring 18 points at Creighton on Dec. 3, graduate point guard Ka-Deidre Simmons moved into the top-10 all-time in Seton Hall history in scoring with 1,270 points.
- Simmons needs just two points to move past Leslie Fairbanks (`80-'84) for the ninth spot, and once she reaches 1,300 points, she would be along in eighth place.
- Simmons is averaging a career-best 18.7 ppg so far this season, which leads Seton Hall and ranks second in the BIG EAST.
FIND THE BALL HANDLER
- The addition of Daisha Simmons has not only provided Seton Hall with an additional scoring threat, but also one of the best distributors in the league.
- Ka-Deidre Simmons set a program record for assists last season, but now with Daisha Simmons, Seton Hall currently has the top-two players in assists in the BIG EAST.
- Ka-Deidre Simmons leads the league with 5.6 assists per game, while Daisha Simmons is second with 4.9 per game.
- Ka-Deidre Simmons had a season-high 10 assists at West Virginia on Nov. 17, while Daisha Simmons has recorded eight assists twice, most recently at Creighton on Dec. 3.
STICKY FINGERS
- Seton Hall has proven to be particularly effective at forcing turnovers so far this season, with three of the Pirates' opponents turning the ball over more than 20 times.
- The Pirates have tallied double-digit steals as a team in six of their seven games this year, with 15 steals in each of the last three games.
- The Pirates are now averaging 13.0 steals per game, which ranks 17th in the nation.
MAKING THEM PAY
- All of those steals have given the Pirates a lot of extra possessions and opportunities to score on the break.
- Seton Hall has scored 142 points off turnovers already this season, for an average of 20.3 per game.
- The Pirates have topped 20 points off turnovers in four games, scoring a season-high 31 on their extra possessions in a win over Saint Peter's on Nov. 29.
ANOTHER 3-POINT THREAT
- Seton Hall's opponents already had their hands full with the Pirates' plethora of outside shooters, but now graduate forward Janee Johnson can be added to that list.
- Entering the season, Johnson had hit just a pair of 3-pointers in her career, both of which came last season. This year? She is tied for second on the team with nine 3-pointers.
- Johnson knocked down a career-high four shots from long distance in Seton Hall's 79-74 win at Creighton on Dec. 3, tying a carer-high of 16 points in the process.
