Feb. 15, 2006
Game 22
Stony Brook (14-7, 7-3) America East)
vs. New Hampshire (13-9, 5-6 America East)
February 15, 2006 • 7:00 p.m.
Indoor Sports Complex • Stony Brook, N.Y.
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Tonight's Matchup
Second place Stony Brook (14-7, 7-3 America East) will look to make it four straight when the Seawolves host New Hampshire (13-9, 5-6 America East) this evening. SB, which snapped a seven-game losing streak vs. the Wildcats with a 72-69 victory in Durham back on January 14, will look to sweep the season series for the first time.
Scouting the Wildcats
New Hampshire enters tonight's contest having lost two of its last three games, including a 62-52 loss to league-leading Hartford on Sunday after coughing up an 11-point second half lead at home.
The Wildcats are led by Danielle Clark's 14.4 points and 6.1 rebounds per game, while Ray Williams is averaging 11.1 points per outing.
Last Time Out
Mykeema Ford netted a game-high 21 points as Stony Brook cruised to a 68-53 victory over Binghamton on Sunday.
Stony Brook controlled the game from the tip and did not trail after taking a 5-4 lead off of a Sidney Orndorff three-pointer. The Seawolves' lead grew to as many as 14 as Stony Brook headed into the locker room up 39-25 and would lead by at least 10 points the rest of the way.
Ford led the way for Stony Brook, netting a game-high 21 points and added seven rebounds and four assists. Dana Ferraro contributed 10 points on five-of-eight shooting. Jessica Smith tallied a game-high 11 boards.
McHugh Approaching 250 career Coaching Victories
Stony Brook head coach Maura McHugh is approaching the 250 win milestone for her collegiate career, entering tonight's contest with 248 career victories.
McHugh racked up 142 victories in seven seasons (1980-87) at Oklahoma and 84 wins in six seasons (1987-93) at Arizona State. She then moved on to coach in the professional ranks for six seasons, four as a head coach, before returning to the college game in 2004-05 to join the Seawolves.
Seawolves Earn Highest RPI Ranking in Among League Teams
Behind several strong wins to open the season, Stony Brook has earned an America East-best RPI ranking of 33 as of February 13.
The Seawolves, who earned a previous best of 28th earlier this season, topped 19th-ranked Temple while also earning impressive wins over defending Ivy League Champion Dartmouth and the Sunbelt Conference's Arkansas State.
America East moved up one spot this week to 11th in The Collegiate Basketball News Women's RPI Report and now ranks third among I-AA conferences. Only the Colonial (eighth) and Atlantic 10 (10th) are higher ranking I-AA leagues. America East has never finished as high as 11th in the final RPI for a season and never as high as third among I-AA Conferences. America East boasts three teams with RPIs in the top 100 with Hartford (46) and Boston University (84) just behind the Seawolves.
Home Sweet Home
Stony Brook has been outstanding at home so far this season, racking up an 8-2 overall record and a 3-1 league mark at the Indoor Sports Complex.
The Seawolves have won seven of their last eight games at home, including four convincing America East victories, to post their best record at the Sports Complex since going 8-2 back in 2001-02.
Ferraro Among NCAA Leaders
Dana Ferraro ranks among NCAA Division I leaders in games played through February 13. Ferraro, who leads America East in rebounding, dropped one spot back to fifth in the nation with 11.6 rebounds per game.
Double Your Pleasure
Stony Brook has come to rely on the duo of Jessica Smith and Mykeema Ford to score in double-figures, while Dana Ferraro has provided the same effort on the boards.
Through 21 games this season, Smith has reached double-figures 15 times and Ford 18, while Ferraro has pulled down double-figures rebounds in 16 contests.
For their careers, Smith has scored in double-digits in 59-of-77 games and Ford in 59-of-75, while Ferraro has reached double-figures boards in 27-of-49 outings.
McHugh to be Featured on Upcoming America East on Campus
Stony Brook head coach Maura McHugh will be featured on the upcoming "America East On Campus" show, the conference's feature-oriented, half-hour television show.
The third installment of the program will showcase McHugh's travels from the WNBA to the rebuilding of the Stony Brook women's basketball program as well as features on Boston University and Hartford women's basketball and Albany and Hartford men's basketball.
The show will debut on New England Sports Network (NESN) on February 12 at 4:30 p.m., followed by NESN re-broadcasts on February 15 (3 p.m), 26 (7:30 p.m.) and 27 (3 p.m.).
Noting the Seawolves
The Seawolves' 14 wins equal their highest overall win total since 2001-02... at 14-7, SB is off to its best start through 21 games since going 17-4 in 1993-94... the win over Vermont on January 7 kept the Seawolves perfect in America East openers, as SB has gone 5-0 since joining the league that year... SB defeated a pair of conference champions this year, knocking off A-10 champ Temple on December 7 before downing Ivy League champion Dartmouth on December 13... SB has faced five teams that have either been ranked or received votes in the national polls this season, going 1-4 in those games.
