Saturday, March 4
Baltimore, Md.
7 p.m.
Lehigh University
at
No. 8 Loyola
Lehigh Begins Patriot Tournament Play at Loyola on Saturday
3/3/2017 4:58:00 PM | Women's Basketball
| GAME INFORMATION | |
| Matchup | Lehigh (10-19, 5-13 Patriot) at Loyola (Md.) (10-19, 6-12 Patriot) |
| Location/Time | Reitz Arena – Baltimore, Md./Saturday, March 4 - 7 p.m. |
| Live Video | Patriot League Network |
| Radio | ESPN Radio LV 1160/1230/1320 AM |
| Internet Audio | http://www.espnlv.com/ and Lehighsports.com/watch |
| Live Stats | Loyola Game Center |
| Game Notes | Lehigh Game Notes |
BETHLEHEM, Pa. - The Lehigh women's basketball team has clinched the No. 9 seed in the Patriot League Tournament and will begin play on Saturday evening in the first round, traveling to eighth seeded Loyola (Md.). The winner will advance to Monday's quarterfinal round at Bucknell.
Lehigh has been heating up from the field over the last four games, shooting 44.4 percent overall and 42.7 percent from three-point range, well above their season averages of 37.3 and 32.4 percent, respectively. Lehigh is 3-3 over its last six games, and has won four of its last five home games, but has struggled to a 2-11 mark on the road this season.
Loyola ended an eight game losing streak in their regular season finale at Holy Cross on Wednesday night. Over their last nine games, Loyola has topped 60 points on two occasions, both in losses, including an 86-69 defeat to Lehigh in the last meeting between the two teams on Feb. 1 at Stabler Arena.
The game will feature three newly crowned All-Patriot League performers, including Lehigh's Quinci Mann who landed on the third team. Loyola guard Bri Betz-White picked up first team honors, and freshman Stephanie Karcz earned spots on the All-Defensive Team and All-Rookie Team.
IF LEHIGH BEATS LOYOLA
- Lehigh would avoid losing the season series with Loyola for the first time since the Greyhounds joined the Patriot League.
- Lehigh would clinch a spot in the PL Quarterfinal round for the fourth straight season (since the first round was implemented).
ALL-TIME VS. LOYOLA (MD.)
The Mountain Hawks hold a 9-5 record all-time against the Greyhounds, including a 5-3 mark since Loyola joined the Patriot League in 2013-14.
The Greyhounds topped the Mountain Hawks by four in their first meeting this season back on Jan. 5 at Reitz Arena, ending Lehigh's three-game winning streak against Loyola, which at the time was Lehigh's longest active winning streak against another Patriot League team. Lehigh then topped the Greyhounds 86-69 at Stabler Arena on Feb. 1. Lehigh was 34-for-40 from the free throw line in the game.
The Mountain Hawks are 3-4 all-time at Loyola and 6-1 at Stabler Arena. Quinci Mann is averaging 21 points and six rebounds against Loyola this season, shooting 40 percent both overall and from long range. She scored a career-high 26 points and was 16-for-16 from the free throw line in Lehigh's Feb. 1 win over Loyola.
Loyola's Bri Betz-White averaged 19 ppg in the first two matchups, while Stephanie Karcz averaged 17.3 points and 13.5 rebounds through the first two meetings.
SCOUTING THE GREYHOUNDS
Loyola concluded the regular season with a 10-19 overall record and a 6-12 mark in league play, putting them one game ahead of Lehigh in eighth place.
Loyola finished the regular season with a 56-37 win at Holy Cross on Wednesday, snapping their eight game losing streak. Loyola has scored in the 60s only twice since Feb. 1, averaging 54.3 ppg over their last nine games, while allowing 64.8 points over that stretch.
Loyola ranks third in the Patriot League in turnover margin ( 1.7) and seventh in rebounding margin (-3.0). They average an even 58.9 points per game this season (8th in PL), and 59.1 ppg in league play (9th in PL).
Junior guard Bri Betz-White picked up First Team All-PL honors after finishing the regular season averaging 15.0 ppg overall, ranking third in the league. She is just the second Greyhound to earn First Team All-PL honors. Freshman Stephanie Karcz made the All-Rookie and All-Defensive teams after ranking third on the team in scoring (9.6), second in the PL with 2.5 steals per game and eighth in the league with 6.4 rebounds.
Karcz tormented the Mountain Hawks back on January 5, putting up 19 points, 14 rebounds and five steals en route to being named the Patriot League's Rookie of the Week. Betz-White added 19 points of her own on 6-of-15 shooting. Daugherty also scored in double figures by adding 12 points, five rebounds, and two steals.
FIRST TIMERS IN THE FIRST ROUND
Lehigh will be making its first ever appearance in the First Round of the Patriot League Tournament since the opening round was implemented for the 2013-14 season. Lehigh has earned first round byes to the quarterfinals each of the last three seasons. Lehigh fell in the semifinals in 2014 and 2016, and lost to American in the championship game in 2015.
TURNING THE CORNER ON THE ROAD?
In their last two road games, the Mountain Hawks have set season-highs in road field goal percentage, shooting 39.1 percent overall at Colgate last Wednesday, and then surpassing that with a 43.5 percent effort at Army on Saturday. Despite the shooting, Lehigh lost both games. LU has struggled on the road overall this year, going just 2-11 while shooting 33.2 percent from the field, including 27.2 percent from three-point range.
QUINCI MANN
- Named Third Team All-Patriot League, the second all-league honor of her career after garnering second team honors last season.
- Has scored at least 20 points in 11 games this season, tied for the most in the Patriot League with Army's Madison Hovren.
- Tied her career-high with five three-pointers at Colgate on 2/22.
- Ranks 36th in the nation, second in the PL with a free throw percentage of 85.0 percent. Climbed to as high as 19th nationally in free throw pct. in mid-February.
- Went 16-for-16 from the free throw line against Loyola on Feb. 1, setting a new program record for made free throws in a game. Her 16 made free throws is the second most in a single game in the Patriot League this season, and tied for ninth most in a single game in the nation.
ONE THORNE IN THEIR SIDE
Lehigh has allowed a 20-point scorer in four consecutive games: Lafayette's Harriet Ottewill-Soulsby (21), Colgate's Kateri Stone (29); Army's Madison Hovren (20), and Colgate's Rachel Thomspon (25).
GETTING HOT FROM THE FIELD
The Mountain Hawks are shooting 42.4 percent from the field over their last six games, including a 41.3 percent clip from three-point range.
Over the last four games, the team is hitting 44.4 percent of their shots and 42.7 percent from downtown.
Lehigh's 12 made three-pointers at Colgate on Feb. 25 tied their season-high. On March 1, they set a season high by shooting 52.4 percent from the outside against Colgate. The Mountain Hawks have now hit 10 three-pointers on six different occasions this season.
GRUNDHOFFER MAKING STRIDES
Freshman Gena Grundhoffer has been a force for the Mountain Hawks over the last eight games, scoring 12.5 points per contest and shooting 44.2 percent from the field. She is also 6-for-12 from beyond the arc and is collecting 4.9 rebounds per game over the last eight games. She had the first 20-point game of her career on Feb. 11 against Holy Cross.
BUHR'S SOLID SECOND HALF
Over the last 13 games, freshman Camryn Buhr leads the Mountain Hawks with 5.1 rebounds and is third with 8.7 points per game. She is shooting 41.5 percent from the field during that span while leading the team with seven blocks, tying for the team lead with 12 steals, and adding 14 assists. For the season, she has crept up to second on the team with 4.4 boards per game.
HAILING DOWN THREES
Hailey Pascoe is shooting 56.5 percent (13-for-23) over the last four games and 60 percent (9-for-15) from three-point range, averaging nine points per game. Over the last three games, she is shooting 63.2 percent and is 8-for-12 from three-point land.
BATTLE ON THE BOARDS
After getting outrebounded in nine straight games from Dec. 5-Jan. 14 with a rebounding margin of -8.7, the Mountain Hawks went on a run of outrebounding their opponents in four of five games with a rebounding margin of 4.8 over that span.
After getting outrebounded by an average of 12 boards to Colgate (2/22) and Army (2/25), Lehigh responded by outrebounding Colgate 35-32 on Wednesday.
Lehigh ranks fifth in the Patriot League by collecting 37.0 rebounds per game, but comes in eighth/10 by allowing 40.1 boards per game. Overall, Lehigh's rebounding margin sits at -3.4 and is T-8th in the PL. Lehigh has been outrebounded in 17 of its 28 games this season and holds a 2-15 record in those games.
NOT ENOUGH THIS TIME
Lehigh's loss on Feb. 25 at Colgate was just the second this season when scoring at least 70 points, with the other coming in the Patriot League opener against Army on Dec. 30. Lehigh holds a 7-2 record in games this year where they have scored at least 70 points, and is 3-17 when scoring under 70, including a 1-8 mark when scoring in the 50's. Lehigh is averaging 76.9 points in their wins and 56.7 in their losses.
BIG POINTS AT THE CHARITY STRIPE
The 34 made free throws by the Mountain Hawks against Loyola was the most in the Patriot League this season (Army had 29 vs. Lafayette on 1/5/17), and just four shy of the league record of 38, set by Bucknell on Feb. 21, 1998.
THE BIG QUARTER
Lehigh is the only team in the Patriot League to have allowed 30 points in a single quarter on two separate occasions this season - the first quarter at Duquesne on Nov. 13 (30), and the fourth quarter against Boston University on Jan. 4 (37).
On the flip side, four Patriot League teams have scored 30 in a quarter this season: American (30) vs. UMBC, Army West Point (32) vs. Mercy, and Boston University (37) at Lehigh, and Colgate (32) at Lafayette.
LEAGUE RANKS
Team Rankings
Category Stat PL Rank
Scoring Offense 63.7 ppg 5th
Scoring Margin -5.4 8th
3pt. FG Made/Game 7.1 2nd
Free Throw Pct. 71.4% 4th
Turnover Margin -1.4 6th
Avg. Home Attendance 883 3rd
Individual
Category Stat PL Rank
Quinci Mann 15.8 ppg 3rd
Bernadette Devaney 40.5 3FG% 6th
Hailey Pascoe 38.9 3FG% 8th
Quinci Mann 85.0 FT% 2nd (36th nationally)
Gena Grundhoffer 82.5% FT% 3rd
Hannah Hedstrom 3.4 assists/game T-4th
Hannah Hedstrom 3.8 assists/game T-3rd (PL games only)
HOME COOKING: LEHIGH AT HOME VS. ROAD
| Home | Road | |
| 8-8 | Record | 2-11 |
| 71.3 | Scoring Offense | 54.2 |
| 69.8 | Scoring Defense | 68.0 |
| 1.5 | Scoring Margin | -13.8 |
| 40.5 | FG Pct. | 33.2 |
| 36.8 | 3pt FG Pct. | 27.2 |
| 1.2 | Rebounding Margin | -8.5 |
| -1.6 | Turnover Margin | -1.1 |
ON DECK
The winner of Saturday's clash will advance to the quarterfinals on Monday evening at Bucknell at 6 p.m.
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Players Mentioned
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