No. 4 Pioneers Host No. 5 Terriers in NEC Quarterfinal Sunday
3/6/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
No. 4 SACRED HEART (16-12, 11-7 NEC) VS No. 5 ST. FRANCIS BROOKLYN (12-18, 9-9 NEC)
GAME 29 * Fairfield, Conn. * Coach Bike Court at the William H. Pitt Center * 2:00 PM
Live Stats | Video | Tickets | Full Game Notes
Pioneers in the NEC Tournament...
The Sacred Heart women's basketball team has now made the NEC Tournament all 16 years it has been in the league. The Pioneers are 17-12 overall in the tournament, having won it all in 2006, 2009 and 2012. They own a .778 (14-4) winning percentage when playing a postseason game at home, .750 (6-2) in the quarterfinal round. Over the last 15 years, SHU is 9-6 in first round games.
All-Northeast Conference Selection...
Hannah Kimmel was named to the All-Northeast Conference First Team Friday morning. Kimmel started 2014-15 red hot with six straight double-digit point performances including posting a then career-best 28 points at Maine and topping herself two games later with 29 against Vermont. On December 20, she led the Pioneers to a huge 72-49 win over Big East member Villanova lighting up the scoreboard with a career-high 33 points. She recorded her second double-double of the season against with Wildcats, adding 10 rebounds to her scoring total, starting a streak of five double-doubles in seven games. Throughout the regular season, she led the SHU offense with 16.3 points per game, ranking fifth in league. Cleaning up the boards all year, the Harpursville, N.Y. native became the first Pioneer since 2005 to pull down 20-plus rebounds with a personal-best 23 in Sacred Heart's 101-90 road win at Saint Francis U. 7.04 defensive rebounds per game had her ranked second in the NEC at the end of the regular season and 29th among the NCAA Division I ranks, while her 8.7 rebounds per game ranked third in the league.
Inside the Series...
- This is the 37th meeting between the Pioneers and the Terriers
- The Pioneers and Terriers split the regular season each winning on their home court
- Sacred Heart is 12-2 at home against St. Francis Brooklyn in the Division I era
- Last season, the teams split coming away with a win a piece after the Terriers won 69-49 in Brooklyn and SHU picked up the W 77-53 at home
- SHU, who is 22-3 against St. Francis Brooklyn since joining the Division I ranks, opened its Division I era with a 17 game win streak against the Terriers spanning nine seasons (1999-00 - 2008-09)
- The teams met just once in the Northeast Conference Tournament. In 2013, the Pioneers moved onto the semifinals with a win over the Terriers 64-38 in the quarterfinal
- The Terriers hold the Division II series with eight wins to Sacred Heart's one
Scouting the Terriers...
- St. Francis Brooklyn comes into Sunday's quarterfinal carrying momentum after winning the final two games of the regular season against Regular Season Co-Champion Bryant (62-52) and LIU Brooklyn (73-49)
- The Terriers are led by seniors Jaymee Veney (14.2 ppg) and Eilidh Simpson (13.5)
- The Terrier defense ranks first in the Northeast Conference holding opponents to an average of 60.0 points per game
- Eilidh Simpson is second in the league shooting .870 from the free throw line leading St. Francis Brooklyn to the top spot in the NEC in the category
Last Time They Met...
Hannah Kimmel led the Pioneers with 17 points shooting .538 from the floor as the Sacred Heart women's basketball team suffered its largest loss of the season to the St. Francis Brooklyn Terriers 77-53 in the Pope Physical Education Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. The loss drops SHU to 12-10 on the season and 7-5 against Northeast Conference opponents, while SFBK improves to 8-17 overall and 5-8 in conference play. Kimmel and Adaysha Williams combined for over half of SHU's scoring. The sophomore guard tallied 12 points hitting five of her 10 shots.
Surpassing Last Year's Total...
Last Wednesday's win over Fairleigh Dickinson was the Pioneers' tenth Northeast Conference win of the year officially surpassing last season's nine wins.
Sweet 16...
The Pioneers have been in the tournament every year since joinging the league making this the sixteenth consecutive time SHU has a chance at a title. Sacred Heart had never finished lower than tied for third going into the tournament the first fourteen season, and made it last year as the six seed. The Pioneers are currently in fourth place in the NEC, and with one more win will clinch a quarterfinal home game, which will be on Sunday, March 8.
Coming Home...
Prior to last year, Sacred Heart had never finished lower than tied for third in the regular season standings clinching a quarterfinal home game in each of its first 14 seasons in the Northeast Conference. Last year, a sixth place finish sent the Pioneers to Saint Francis for what turned into a double-overtime high-scoring affair. With the win over Fairleigh Dickinson, SHU is bring the NEC Tournament back to the William H. Pitt Center. Securing the No. 4 seed, the Pioneers will host the No. 5 seed on Sunday, March 8.
