Jan. 16, 2009
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BOSTON - Fresh off an 81-63 victory over Binghamton on Wednesday night at Agganis Arena, the Boston University women's basketball team will continue its homestand on Saturday (Jan. 17) when it welcomes New Hampshire to Case Gym for a 1 p.m. tip-off. The Terriers enter the match-up riding a four-game winning streak, while the Wildcats are looking to rebound from back-to-back losses.
THE TERRIERS: Boston University's offense, which is second in the America East rankings, is averaging 68.4 points per game. In its conference games, BU has posted an impressive 70.3 ppg and won by at least 11 points. In all, the Terriers have recorded six double-digit victories with their season high coming against Brown (Dec. 3) when they won by 27, 81-54.
The senior class is the squad's offense spark as Jesyka Burks-Wiley is averaging a team-best 17.3 ppg and is just 17 points away from reaching the 1,000-point plateau. She is followed by Kristi Dini and Christine Kinneary with 11.9 ppg each and Amarachi Umez-Eronini with 9.8 ppg. Burks-Wiley is also the team's leading rebounder with 6.9 rpg.
THE WILDCATS: New Hampshire is led on the offensive front by junior Candace Williams with 15.5 points per game - good for fourth in the league. She has reached double figures in all 16 contests this season and has recorded six double-doubles this season including four straight in December. Classmate Amy Simpson has also come on strong in the front court, posting back-to-back 20-point games. Point guard Abigail LaRosa is fourth in the America East with 3.9 assists per game and recently dished out five against Dartmouth (Jan. 13).
After opening the conference slate with a victory over Maine, 51-47, on Jan. 6, the Wildcats have dropped back-to-back games to UMBC, 95-85, on Jan. 10 and non-conference foe Dartmouth, 62-49, on Jan. 13. The squad is averaging 56.1 ppg and is shooting .361 from the field.
BU VS. NEW HAMPSHIRE: The series with the Wildcats is the fourth-oldest rivalry for the team. BU has won 10 of the last 14 meetings and the all-times series is tied at 29-29. The Terriers owned the first decade of the series, going 11-4 from Feb. 21, 1978 to Feb. 6, 1988, while the Wildcats won 11 of the next 15 meetings.
CLASS ACTS: The Terriers' senior class of Jesyka Burks-Wiley, Kristi Dini, Christine Kinneary and Amarachi Umez-Eronini need 10 more wins this season to become the all-time winningest class in program history. They currently own a .579 winning percentage over four seasons - the best in 19 years - with a 62-45 record.
The class of '90 was 71-42 (.628), recording the most wins over a four-year period at BU. Lynn Bay, Renee Doctor, Marjorie Haney, Lynne Ranando and Tia Theriault were members of that class.
COUNTDOWN TO 1,000: Senior Jesyka Burks-Wiley is next in line to reach the 1,000-point plateau, as the Kansas City, Mo., native is just 17 points away from the milestone. If Burks-Wiley maintains her 17.3 ppg she could surpass 1,000 against the Wildcats on Saturday. She would become the 17th player to join the prestigious club in the program's 34 years.
START YOUR ENGINES: In 2008-09, how the Boston University women's basketball team begins a game has been indicative of how it finishes. When the Terriers lead at the half, it has been an impressive 8-0, however, when they trail at halftime they are 1-6.
KINNEARY HANDOUTS: Senior Christine Kinneary is 28 handouts away from breaking a 28-year-old record for career assists. The record is currently held by Debbie Miller (`81), who had dished out 477 over her four years.
If Kinneary maintains her 4.9 assists per game, she could surpass Miller's record halfway through the conference season. She currently ranks third all-time and needs just 16 more to break into the top five in America East history. She is one of only three BU women's basketball players to surpass 400 helpers.
CASE CLOSED: The confines of Case Gym have proven to be a formidable home-court advantage for the Terriers over the last two and a half seasons. BU was 11-0 overall and 8-0 in America East action in 2007-08, and the Terriers' only home loss came at Agganis Arena on Nov. 17, 2007 to then-No. 16 Ohio State. It marked the first time in program history the Terriers went undefeated at Case.
BU's 13-game home unbeaten streak recently came to an end vs. St. John's (Dec. 30); however, the Terriers have still not lost to a conference opponent in 12 straight games, dating back to Feb. 10, 2007 when it dropped an 83-77 decision to Stony Brook.
Five times, BU has lost just one home contest (2007-08, 1994-95, 1986-87, 1979-80, 1977-78).
UP NEXT: The Terriers will close out their season-long four-game homestand when it welcomes defending America East champions Hartford to Case for a Wednesday (Jan. 21) match-up. Game time is set for 7 p.m.
