CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--New Hampshire
senior forward Denise Beliveau (Framingham, Mass./Framingham) repeats as
the Player of the Week and captures the first award of
America East conference play. Meanwhile, UMBC freshman
point guard Lauren Chase (Bowie, Md./Riverdale Baptist) earned the first
Rookie of the Week award of 2011-12, and now captures the first
such honor of the 2012 America East league schedule this afternoon.
Beliveau averaged 20.0 points, 11.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.5 steals per game in two league contests last week. She also shot 56.5 percent (13-for-23) from the field and improved her league-leading free-throw shooting with a perfect (10-for-10) performance combined in the two games. The forward added 4-for-7 shooting from beyond the arc to her weekly resumé.
Beliveau recorded her league-leading sixth double-double of the season on Monday at UMBC with 17 points and 16 boards, also finished with three assists. She then led the Wildcats past Hartford with a 23-point, seven-rebound performance, leading all players in both categories. Beliveau hit 3-of-5 three-pointers against the Hawks, and netted eight straight points with a pair of treys midway through the first half to establish an early 13-point UNH advantage.
In conference games this year, Beliveau is first in America East in scoring and free-throw percentage, second in rebounds, third in three-point field-goal percentage and fourth in field-goal percentage. She ranks sixth in Division I with a 91.1 percent mark at the charity stripe.
In leading the Retrievers to a 2-1 mark last week Chase contributed all over the court with 6.0 points, 2.7 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 3.0 steals per game. She shot 50 percent (6-for-12) from the field and handed out 17 assists against 10 turnovers.
In the league opener against UNH, Chase recorded nine points, five rebounds, seven assists and four steals while shooting 5-of-6 from the free-throw line in the victory. She handed out another seven helpers to close out the week at Maine. The rookie also chipped in seven points and four steals against the Black Bears.
Chase leads America East this season with 3.9 assists per game. Her assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.0 is tied for fourth and she ranks 10th with 1.8 steals per game.
2012 Virtual Playbook l Link l
America East introduced today the all-new 2012 America East Women's Basketball Virtual Playbook. Click the link above to catch up on the America East x's & o's with video interviews, rosters, history and more. The Playbook has also been optimized for viewing on tablet and mobile devices.
Progress Report
The conference finished off the non-conference schedule with a 53-64 (.453) mark. The latest RPI Report from RPIratings.com gives America East a one-spot boost from 14th to 13th out of 33 conferences. Six of the league's nine teams made positive movement with first-place Albany leading the way with a 47-spot jump up to 110. Hartford is the top-rated conference team at 94, while Boston U. is second at 108.
Conference Rankings America East Teams
1. Big 12 94. Hartford (9-8)
2. Big East 108. Boston U. (9-6)
3. SEC 110. Albany (9-7)
4. Big Ten 142. UMBC (8-8)
5. ACC 184. New Hampshire (8-6)
6. Pac-12 225. Binghamton (8-8)
7. Colonial 238. Vermont (7-9)
8. West Coast 246. Stony Brook (4-12)
9. Atlantic 10 324. Maine (3-12)
10. Missouri Valley
11. Ivy
12. Conference USA
13. America East
14. Mid-American
15. Horizon
Running Start
The America East Conference season got off to a running start with many teams playing three-games in the opening week. Albany, picked in the preseason to finish fifth, raced out to a 3-0 start to top the standings.
On Top At The End
The America East Women's Basketball Champion has been either the one or two seed in the conference tournament 20 times in 27 years. Additionally, in 24 out of the 27 years of the tournament, the champion has been one of the top three seeds, making regular-season play crucial for championship hopes. Providing even further motivation, the highest seeded team remaining will host the America East Championship final in 2012 for the third straight year.
TV Guide
This week, fans can watch Vermont hosting New Hampshire Saturday live on WCAXtra. Tipoff for the televised game is 3 p.m.
D-D-Defense!
As of the NCAA's Jan. 9 statistics report, four America East teams rank among the top 100 teams in Division I for scoring defense. Stony Brook's league-leading 52.9 points allowed per game ranks 27th and Albany's 54.0 sits 32nd. Hartford (57.5; 79th) and Binghamton (57.9; 88th) also rank in that group.
Board Games
Six America East players are averaging at least 8.0 rebounds per game led by Albany junior Julie Forster with 9.8 rpg which ranks 33rd in the country. The conference hasn't had six players finish with season averages of 8.0 rpg or higher since the 1999-2000 season.
You've Been 'Frame'd
One of America East's highest scorers and rebounders won't show up in the league's overall stats since she hasn't played in 75 percent of her team's games yet, but she is somebody that other teams will need to plan for. New Hampshire junior Morgan Frame, a 6-foot-1 forward, was a midseason transfer last winter from St. Anselm College and was not eligible for the Wildcats until their Dec. 18 game against Rhode Island. In the six games since, Frame has become UNH's leading scorer with 20.7 ppg and second-leading rebounder with 8.7 rpg. The Wildcats are 4-2 since Frame has become eligible after going 4-4 in the first eight games without Frame.
Join The Club
Sat. Dec. 3 marked a special day for three players who all reached the 1,000 point milestone within hours of one another. New Hampshire senior Denise Beliveau first hit the mark against Holy Cross, followed by UMBC senior Erin Brown against Princeton. Boston U. junior Chantell Alford tallied her 1,000th career point in the first half against West Virginia. Alford is the first junior to accomplish the feat since UMBC's Michelle Kurowski and Binghamton's Andrea Holmes each scored their 1,000th points last January. Binghamton senior Viive Rebane became the most recent to hit the mark Dec. 29 at St. Peter's College. The league now has seven active 1,000-point scorers, the highest number of active members since there were 10 during the 2009-10 season.
Going National
The America East announced a national broadcast package earlier this season that made league history. First, a five-year deal with ESPN includes a minimum of 47 national appearances for the league's men's and women's basketball programs on ESPN platforms, the most in conference history. The package includes seven women's hoops games on ESPN3, including the America East Championship semifinals and final. The league also signed a contract with CBS Sports Network, putting five America East basketball games on national television. A February 19 matchup between UMBC and Hartford at Chase Family Arena will mark the first-ever nationally televised conference women's basketball game.
America East Women's Basketball
TV Package
Jan. 25 Boston U. at UMBC (ESPN3)
Feb. 1 Vermont at Boston U. (ESPN3)
Feb. 11 Binghamton at Hartford (ESPN3)
Feb. 19 UMBC at Hartford (CBS Sports Network)
Feb. 25 Boston U. at Hartford (ESPN3)
March 4 America East Semifinals (ESPN3)
TBD America East Championship (ESPN3
Team Notebooks:
Albany (9-7, AE 3-0) started off the league slate undefeated, recording wins against Hartford and Stony Brook on the road and UMBC at home... The Great Danes successfully knocked off the league's defending tournament champion and regular-season champion in Hartford and UMBC, while a 20-0 run in the second half put Stony Brook away for good... The Great Danes were led by junior guard Ebone Henry (San Diego, Calif./Mater Dei Catholic) who averaged 14.3 points and 6.0 rebounds on the week. Henry wrapped up the three-game week with a 20-point, six-rebound performance at Stony Brook, where she also recorded five assists and four steals while shooting .500 from the floor... Classmate Julie Forster (Huntington, N.Y./Huntington) recorded a double-double against UMBC, tallying 15 points and 10 rebounds, going 7-of-9 from the floor and also recording four steals and two assists... 6-foot-8 freshman Megan Craig (Whangerai, New Zealand/Kamo) has been seeing increasing playing time off the bench. Craig totaled six points and grabbed three rebounds at Stony Brook... The Great Danes will continue America East play this week, visiting New Hampshire and Maine on Wednesday and Saturday, respectively.
Senior point guard Andrea Holmes (Memphis, Tenn./Mitchell) averaged 16.7 points per game last week, pacing Binghamton (8-8, 2-1 AE) to a 2-1 record in conference play. She poured in a game-high 19 points at Stony Brook on Thursday and led all scorers with 16 points at Boston U. on Sunday. For her career, Holmes now has 1,340 points and remains in fourth place all time in program history. Sitting in third place with 1,341 career points is current Bearcat assistant coach Leah Truncale, who starred on the team from 1998-02... Also averaging 16.7 points per game this past week was senior guard Orla O'Reilly (Cork, Ireland/Ursuline School). She netted 22 points against Maine on Monday and capped off the week with 15 points at Boston U... Junior forward Kara Elofson (Minneapolis, Minn./Hopkins) reached double figures in rebounding the final two games of the week, with 10 rebounds at Stony Brook and 11 rebounds at Boston U.
Boston U. (9-6, 2-0 AE) moved to 2-0 in the America East with wins at Vermont and home vs. Binghamton... Although the Catamounts out-scored the Terriers in the second half on Wednesday (39-24), Boston U. never relinquished the lead and held on to win 61-60...Junior Mo Moran (Hopewell Junction, N.Y./John Jay) led three players in double-figures with 19 points... Classmate Chantell Alford (West Haven, Conn./Wilbur Cross) netted 13 points and sophomore Rashidat Agboola (Methuen, Mass./Methuen) posted a double-double with a career-high 17 rebounds and 12 points for her third-straight game with double-digit rebounds... Boston U. moved to 5-0 this season when playing at Case Gym with a 60-48 triumph over Binghamton on Sunday.... The Terriers again had three players score in double-digits, as Moran led the team with 13 points and five assists...Agboola and Alford each added 12 while senior Caroline Stewart (Topsfield, Mass./Masconomet Regional) nearly had a double-double with a team-high 10 rebounds and nine points... The Terriers have now won nine of the last 10 against the Bearcats.
The Hawks (9-8, 0-3 AE) dropped three league games last week, opening the conference schedule with an 0-3 record... In the week's opener, the Hawks dropped a three point 40-37 decision to Albany, led by rookie Shanise Bultron (Watertown, Mass./Tabor Acad.) who finished with 10 points, the only player in the game to score in double figures... Sophomore Milana Gilbert (Smyrna, Del./Acad. of New Church) led the Hawks with 10 rebounds... In the Hawks' first league game on the road, junior Nikkia Smith (Montville, Conn./Montville) led the team with 10 points as the Hawks dropped a 64-45 decision to the New Hampshire Wildcats... In the final game of the week, Hartford relinquished a 15-point halftime lead to fall 57-50 at home to the Vermont Catamounts on Saturday afternoon... Smith again led the Hawks in scoring, matching her team high from New Hampshire with 10 points... The Hawks did manage a 47-29 advantage in rebounding as every player on the team finished with at least one rebound, led by freshman Cherelle Moore (Bridgeport, Conn./Kolbe Cathedral) who grabbed a career-best nine rebounds, while also adding seven points to her tally... The Hawks now have a seven-day hiatus before their next game at Binghamton on Saturday at 2 p.m... That outing will be the first of two in 48 hours as the Hawks will then take on the UMBC Retrievers on Monday in a noon start.
Maine (3-12, 0-2 AE) dropped its first two league games as it fell to Binghamton (72-54) on Monday before dropping the home conference opener to UMBC (75-55)... Brittany Williams (Rochester, N.Y.) and Samantha Baranowski (Stanhope, N.J./Lenape Valley Regional) each tallied double-figures in both games as Williams had 18 and 15 while Baranowski netted 11 and 17... Baranowski has tallied double-figures in Maine’s last three games as she totaled 10 points against Siena, 11 points at Binghamton and 17 vs UMBC. This marks the first time she has recorded double-figures in back-to-back games since she notched 12 and 10 on Dec. 28-29, 2008. Baranowski’s longest streak of double-figures is four-straight from Nov. 23-Dec. 3 of her freshman season in 2008... Freshman Danielle Walczak (Lee, N.H.) has started the last three games for Maine and has increased her points per game from 2.8 to 4.2, her rebounds from 3.5 to 4.4 (including a career-high 10 against UMBC, the first double-digit rebounding performance for Maine this season), and her overall minutes have gone from 13.3 to 17.5... A total of 10 Black Bears have started at least one game as Williams is the only player that has started all 15 games thus far. Maine has used seven different starting-five combinations so far and have had 10 different players lead in scoring and eight different players lead the team in rebounding for a game... Maine will now travel to face Boston U. on Wednesday before returning home to battle Albany on Saturday.
UMBC (8-8, 2-1 AE) opened its 2012 conference slate taking two out three games following the Retrievers’ 75-55 win over Maine in Orono on Saturday… Senior Erin Brown (Bethesda, Md./Walt Whitman) scored a game-high 23 points while classmate Michelle Kurowski (Hicksville, N.Y./Hicksville) added 14 in the winning effort… UMBC lost 53-41 on Wednesday at Albany… Brittany Crowell (Brandywine, Md./Gwynn Park/James Madison) led the Retrievers with 15 points in the game… The Retrievers started the conference schedule with a 67-65 come from behind win over New Hampshire last Monday at the RAC… Brown and Crowell each scored 15 second-half points as UMBC rallied from an 11-point deficit to pick up the win… Brown leads the America East in scoring, averaging 15.7 points per game as well as in three-point field goals made (2.7)… Freshman Lauren Chase (Bowie, Md./Riverdale Baptist) leads the league averaging 3.9 assists per game… With two blocks against Maine, senior Topé Obajolu is now just two blocks shy of breaking the school record of 132… The Retrievers return home to continue their conference schedule as they take on Stony Brook on Thursday evening before hosting Hartford on Monday afternoon at the RAC.
UNH (8-6, 1-1 AE) split a pair of games to open conference play last week, first falling at UMBC 67-65 before topping defending league champion Hartford 64-45 and snapping an 18-game losing streak to the Hawks... Senior Denise Beliveau (Framingham, Mass.) led UNH with 17 points and a season-high 16 rebounds against UMBC, as the Wildcats held a 10-point lead with six minutes to go but could not hold on for the win. Beliveau shot 4-of-9 from the field and a perfect 8-of-8 from the charity stripe, while junior Morgan Frame (Waterville, Maine) added a game-high 23 points... UNH led wire-to-wire in the home win over Hartford as Beliveau paced all players with 23 points and seven boards. Frame added 15 points and sophomore Kelsey Hogan (Nashua, N.H.) posted 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting from the field. As a team, the Wildcats shot 44.4 percent (24-54) from the floor and 57.1 percent (8-14) from long range... Beliveau earned America East Player of the Game honors in both contests, as she averegd 20 points and 11.5 rebounds in the two-game span... The Wildcats play host to Albany on Jan. 11 (7 p.m.) and then travel to Vermont on Jan. 14 at 3 p.m.
The Seawolves (4-12, 1-2 AE) went 1-2 on the week, defeating Vermont on the road on Monday before losing home games to Binghamton and Albany... The win over Vermont was Stony Brook's first against the Seawolves since Feb. 24, 2007, snapping an eight-game losing streak to the Catamounts... It was also Stony Brook's first win in a conference opener in six years... The victory over Vermont was also the Seawolves' third straight victory... It was their first three-game winning streak since 2008-09... Junior Dani Klupenger (Aurora, Ore.) scored a career-high 18 points against Vermont. Klupenger went 4-for-6 from three and 6-for-6 from the foul line... Stony Brook held Vermont 15 points below its scoring average... SBU held Binghamton to 29.5 percent shooting... It was the sixth time in the last seven games that Stony Brook held its opponent under 35 percent shooting.
Vermont (7-9, 1-2 AE) snapped an eight-game losing streak with a come-from-behind 57-50 victory at Hartford in the team's third game of the week... Junior Shanai Heber (Patterson, N.J./Patterson Kennedy) helped UVM erase a 15-point halftime deficit and led the Catamounts to the victory. She scored a game-high 14 points and added six rebounds, five assists and five steals... It was UVM's first regular season win at Hartford in 10 years (Feb. 2002)... The Catamounts scored 45 second-half points against the Hawks... Vermont also erased a 19-point deficit against Boston U, but the comeback effort fell just short as the Catamounts lost 61-60... Junior Lauren Buschmann (St. Catherines, Ontario/Governor Simcoe) led UVM with 20 points and nine rebounds... UVM also dropped a 54-47 decision to Stony Brook in the league opener... Buschmann posted her fifth double-double of the season with 13 points and 11 rebounds against the Seawolves... She finished the week averaging 14.3 points, 9.3 rebounds and shooting 42.1 percent from the floor. Buschmann is 43 rebounds shy of becoming the 21st Catamount to reach the 500-point/500-rebound milestone in the program's history. She enters the week with 660 points and 457 rebounds in her career... UVM hosts Binghamton on Wednesday (Jan. 11, 7 p.m.) and New Hampshire on Saturday (Jan. 14, 3 p.m.).