BULLDOGS HOST QUINNIPIAC SATURDAY IN NEC MATCHUP, TIP-OFF 1 PM

January 15, 2010

BULLDOGS HOST QUINNIPIAC SATURDAY IN NORTHEAST CONFERENCE MATCHUP, TIP-OFF 1 PM

GAME TO BE BROADCAST LIVE ON BRYANTBULLDOGS.TV

SMITHFIELD, R.I. - The Bryant University women's basketball team will play its second of a three-game homestand on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. in the Chace Athletic Center. The Bulldogs will take on Northeast Conference opponent Quinnipiac in their sixth conference battle of the season. Bryant leads the overall series, which dates back over 30 years, 15-12. The last meeting between the two squads was last year in the Bulldogs' inaugural DI campaign when the Bobcats won by a decisive, 66-49 margin. Bryant is currently 4-11 overall and looking to even its NEC record to 3-3 against a high-scoring Bobcat offense. Quinnipiac is 9-7 overall and 4-1 in conference play.

Not unlike any of the past three seasons, the Bulldogs are led by senior captain Kelsey O'Keefe. O'Keefe is averaging a team-high 13.3 points per game. The senior has scored 1,551 points in her career, good enough for third place all-time. Junior forward Siamone Bennett leads the Bulldogs in rebounding, pulling down an average of 6.5 boards per night.

Quinnipiac is currently in third place in the NEC with its 4-1 conference record, behind only Sacred Heart and Robert Morris. The Bobcats, who average 65.2ppg, are led by Courtney Kaminski and Kathleen Neyens. Kaminski and Neyens average 13 and 11.8 points per game, respectively. Quinnipiac has won its past three games, all against Northeast Conference opponents.

SCOUTING THE BOBCATS
Quinnipiac enters Saurday's matchup with a three-game winning streak on the line, with all three victories coming against Northeast Conference opponents. On Thursday evening the Bobcats defeated Central Connecticut, 56-45. Leading the way for the Bobcats was Courtney Kaminski as she recorded a double-double, scoring 11 points and pulling down 10 rebounds. Kaminski, the leading Bobcat scorer, is currently ranked 10th in the NEC in scoring, averaging 13 ppg. Following close behind Kaminski is Kathleen Neyens who averages 11.8 points per game. As of Thursday, the Bobcats were averaging 65.9 points per game, good enough for third in the NEC. QU is now averaging 65.2 ppg.

CRASHING THE BOARDS
The Bulldogs have outrebounded their opponents in 11 of 15 games so far this season, including all four victories. Prior to the Sacred Heart game on Thursday night Bryant was ranked second in the NEC in rebounding offense, averaging 41.5 per game. The Bulldogs were also second place in rebounding margin, averaging an even four rebounds better than their opponents. Junior Siamone Bennett is ranked 12th in the NEC in overall rebounding and second in the conference in the offensive rebounds category. Bennett averages 6.6 rpg, with more than half of them coming on the offensive end.

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
O'Keefe's 33-point performance at Monmouth on Saturday is the most points scored in the Northeast Conference by any player this season. She is currently ranked eighth in the NEC averaging 13.8 ppg. After 14 games, sophomore Lekia Cowen is ranked 4th in the NEC with a 44.4 percent 3-point shooting percentage. After hitting 2-3 3-point shots against SHU on Thursday night, Cowen's percentage improved to 45.8 percent. She is 22-48 from long range this season. Senior captain Courtney Schermerhorn is also ranked in the top-5 in 3-point shooting percentage going 14-32 from beyond the arc for a 42.3 percent mark. On the defensive end, Bennett holds down the post averaging 3.64 blocks per game. Bennett has a team-high 22 blocks on the season and is ranked second in the conference in blocks per game. Adding one more block to her resume on Thursday night, the junior currently sits in fourth place all-time for blocks in a career at Bryant with 90. She is only eight blocks short of passing Kellie Fournier and moving into third place on the list.

O'KEEFE MOVES INTO 3RD PLACE ALL-TIME
With a layup just 1:26 into the Bulldogs 82-74 victory at Colgate on Tuesday, Dec. 1 senior captain Kelsey O'Keefe passed Stephanie Ladd for third place all-time on the Bryant scoring list. O'Keefe now has 1,551 career points to go along with 745 career rebounds.

DOUBLE OR NOTHING
O'Keefe earned her second double-double of the season in the loss to Hampton University in the consolation game of the Sun & Fun Classic on Dec. 29 in Miami. O'Keefe recorded 12 points and posted 10 boards en route to her 26th career double-double. Earlier in the season, teammate Siamone Bennett scored 22 points and pulled down 10 boards against Long Island for her second double-double of the season. Earlier in the season Bennett registered 10 points and gathered 13 boards against Patriot League affiliate Holy Cross in mid-November. The junior post player has three in her three-year career.

BULLDOGS ON THE AIR
Fans can catch all of the action this year by logging onto www.bryantbulldogs.tv to watch all Bryant home games live online, courtesy of Pack Network. Also this year, track each game live online for free with LIVE STATS by visiting www.bryantbulldogs.com and clicking the Live Stats link.

UP NEXT
Over a five day span, Bryant will face possibly its toughest three-game stretch of the season. After facing Sacred Heart on Thursday and Quinnipiac this afternoon, Bryant will host Yale on Monday, Jan. 18 at 2 p.m. in the battle of the Bulldogs.