American East Conference

Kurpniece netted a game-high 19 points and grabbed a team-high 11 rebounded as Binghamton recorded a landmark win over Syracuse in the Carrier Dome on Saturday. It marked the first time in four tries that the Bearcats have defeated Syracuse since moving up to the Division I level. Kurpniece has now led the Bearcats in scoring in three of the last five games. She has recorded a pair of double-doubles during that span.

Smith posted a pair of 20-point games in a 1-1 week as the Seawolves knocked off another defending conference champion in Dartmouth. She averaged 20.5 points and 9.5 rebounds while shooting 60.7 percent (17-for-28) from the field. In SB’s win over Dartmouth, she posted her second double-double of the season with 20 points and 10 boards while shooting 61.5 percent (8-for-13) from the floor and dishing out a season-high four assists. In a loss at St. John’s, she added a game-high 21 points to go with nine rebounds.

Burks-Wiley’s week was highlighted by a strong performance versus cross-town foe Boston College. The freshman netted 11 points and four rebounds in just 21 minutes of action versus the #25 Eagles. Burks-Wiley is shooting 43.3 percent from the field on the season, 45.5 percent from beyond the arc and is a perfect 7-for-7 from the charity stripe.

AMERICA EAST NOTES:
Strong start: America East women’s basketball teams are off to a strong 42-30 combined start to the 2005-06 season. As a conference, America East currently ranks 12th in the nation in The Collegiate Basketball News Women’s RPI Report, but more importantly, is fourth among I-AA conferences. Only the Colonial (eighth), Missouri Valley (10th) and Atlantic 10 (11th) are higher ranking I-AA leagues. America East boasts four teams with RPIs in the top 100. Due in large part to the Seawolves win over ranked Temple, Stony Brook leads the conference teams with an RPI of 38, followed by Boston University (58), Hartford (76) and Binghamton (83). The Bearcats are coming off a quality win over the Big East’s Syracuse.

Three-point Pender: UMBC’s Matea Pender buried five threes against Drexel and now ranks fifth in UMBC’s career three-point annals. She is also only 10 points shy of breaking UMBC’s top-20 career scoring list. Pender finished that Drexel contest 5-for-6 from beyond the arc, including a desperation heave with eight seconds left on the clock. Without her final shot she would have tied UMBC’s single-game mark for three-point field goal percentage.

Dynamic duo: Stony Brook’s Jessica Smith and Mykeema Ford have proven to be America East’s most formidable duo thus far this season. Smith (17.2 ppg) and Ford (15.3 ppg) currently rank first and second in the league in scoring, respectively, as they combine for 32.5 ppg. On the week, the two were even better as they combined for 40.0 ppg over two games. The next closest pair on the week was Vermont’s Alexis Castro and Brittney Cross, averaging 37.0 ppg.

Binghamton shocks Syracuse: Behind Laine Kurpniece’s impressive 19 points and 11 rebounds, the Bearcats defeated the Big East’s Syracuse, 74-52, in the Carrier Dome. The win is Binghamton’s first in four tries against the Orange. The Bearcats raced out to a 44-23 lead at the break and never led by less than 10 points in the second half.

Three’s company: Seven current New Hampshire Wildcats have found their way into the school record books by way of three-point field goals made. Lindsay Adams, Ashley Cerniglia, Danielle Clark, Whitney Edwards, Emily Hardy, Salee-Marie Johnson and Ebony Woods all rank in the top-20 at UNH in career three-pointers.