BU Heads West For UNM Thanksgiving Tourney
November 27, 2014 | Women's Basketball
THE TOURNAMENT
The Boston University women's basketball team has arrived in Albuquerque for the New Mexico Thanksgiving Tournament and is set to face the Lobos on Friday night and either Stephen F. Austin or UC Riverside on Saturday night.
THE TERRIERS
Sophomore forward Meghan Green has been a spark for the BU offense this season, averaging a near double-double with 16.5 points and 9.8 rebounds. She had back-to-back career nights against Harvard and Boston College, scoring 19 points in a win over the Crimson before topping herself with 22 points against the Eagles.
Classmate Sarah Hope has also emerged as a key contributor, currently the second-highest scorer with an average of 9.8 points per game. Hope and fellow sophomore Courtney Latham, who fought her way to a starting spot after the first three games, lead the team in assists with 11 apiece.
BU returns six players and has four new faces this season and is led by the lone senior Mollie McKendrick, who shares captain duties with Latham.
LOS LOBOS
New Mexico is still looking for its first win of the season after losing its first four contests and enters Friday's matchup after losing a heartbreaker to No. 5 Stanford, 70-65
A low-scoring offense that averages 58.8 points per game, the Lobos have three players averaging double figure points: Khadijah Shumpert (12.8), Antiesha Brown (12.3) and Bryce Owens (10.8). UNM allows an average of 73.5 points per game, though that average is somewhat inflated due to a 97-59 blowout at DePaul, but should still allow for the Terriers to score close to its average of 64.8 points per contest.
The Lobos also struggle with turnovers, averaging over 22 per game while forcing less than 15.
THE HIGHLANDERS
UC Riverside is undefeated so far this season, going 3-0 against San Francisco, Santa Clara and San Jose State. The squad is averaging 82 points per game, led by Brittany Crain, who puts up 26.3 points each contest. Simone DeCoud is also averaging over 20 points per game.
THE LADYJACKS
Stephen F. Austin is 3-1 so far this season and is led by Taylor Ross who is averaging 23 points per game. As a team, the Ladyjacks average 74.8 points per game and have a 10 point differential over their opponents. They also out-rebound their opponents (+4.0) and turn the ball over less (+3.0).
THE SERIES
New Mexico is the only team the Terriers have previously faced in the tournament. The first and only time BU has played the Lobos was at the Penn State Lady Lion Classic in 1982 where they won 66-60.
GAME COVERAGE
The game against New Mexico will be streamed live on GoLobos.com or fans can listen to Joe Weil's call on the Terrier Sports Radio Network. Saturday night's game will not have a video stream but can be followed on TSRN or by following @BUGameDay.
THANKSGIVING IN THE LAND OF ENCHANTMENT
The Terriers headed west for the New Mexico Thanksgiving Tournament. BU will spend Thanksgiving in the Land of Enchantment before playing on Friday and Saturday at the University of New Mexico. The Lobos are first on the schedule for the Terriers, who will play UNM on Friday at 9 p.m. ET. Depending on the result of Friday's games, BU will play either Stephen F. Austin or UC Riverside on Saturday at 7 p.m. ET.
LAST TIME OUT
After nearly a week off from competition, the Terriers enter Friday's matchup with the Lobos after defeating Vermont, 66-61 in Case Gym last Saturday afternoon. Four BU players were in double-digit scoring against the Catamounts, with Meghan Green leading the charge, tallying 14 points and was accompanied by Clodagh Scannell (13), Sarah Hope (12) and Courtney Latham (11).
PATRIOT LEAGUE NETWORK
The Patriot League, in collaboration with Campus Insiders, enters its second season this year. The PL will live-stream hundreds of its men and women's sporting events, add studio programming and grow distribution on multiple platforms and devices. All BU women's basketball home games, and road conference games that are not part of a television package, will be available to watch for free on the PLN.
A TERRIER WIN WOULD...
...Give BU a winning record and head coach Katy Steding's first-ever record over .500 at the Division I level.
...Be Boston University's first victory in as many tries in the state of New Mexico.
...Be BU's first win on the road this season.
...Give Boston U. its longest winning streak of the year (two games).
KEEPING IT LOCAL
Boston University made its rounds with the Boston-area teams, playing all three to start the season. The Terriers began the year at Northeastern, losing a 75-74 heartbreaker before opening their home schedule with a thrilling 63-62 victory against Harvard. BU wasn't able to keep the momentum going, however, and lost at BC, 73-56 on Thursday night.
THE STEDING ERA
In its second season in a new conference, the Terriers have started yet another new era with the hiring of head coach Katy Steding. Steding comes to Boston University after spending the last two seasons as an assistant coach at California. Although this is her first year as a head coach in Division I, Steding spent seven years at the helm of the Warner Pacific College (NAIA) program following an impressive playing career. Steding was part of the 1996 "Women's Dream Team" alongside Teresa Edwards, Rebecca Lobo and Sheryl Swoopes, which went 60-0 en route to an Olympic gold medal in the Atlanta Summer Olympics. Prior to her professional career, where she played in both the ABL and WNBA, Steding helped Stanford win its first National Championship and was named the CBS/Chevrolet Player of the Game.
