STORRS, Conn. - The Saint Joseph's women's basketball team will take on eighth-seeded Georgia in the NCAA First Round on Sunday night from the Gampel Pavilion at 5:30 p.m. The telecast is on ESPN with Dave O'Brien and Debbie Antonelli calling the action.
The winner will face the winner of No. 1 Connecticut vs. No. 16 Prairie View A&M on Tuesday.
The game will be audio streamed on the Saint Joseph's Sports Network with Phil Denne calling the action.
GAME STORIES . . .
• Saint Joseph's is making its second straight, and 13th overall appearance, in the NCAA Tournament.
• The Hawks garnered one of 32 at-large bids into the 2014 NCAA Tournament, marking the first time since 2000 that they have earned a bid.
• Saint Joseph's earned the ninth seed in the Lincoln Region.
• Sunday's matchup with Georgia will be the first meeting between the Hawks and the Bulldogs.
• This year marks the second consecutive season that the Hawks have earned a ninth seed and play their first game at Gampel Pavilion. Saint Joseph's fell to eighth seed Vanderbilt, 60-54, in the First Round of last year's NCAA Tournament (boxscore and recap on page 7).
• The Hawks are playing in their second NCAA Tournament under head coach
Cindy Griffin. Saint Joseph's has earned 10 postseason bids (two NCAA, eight WNIT) during her 13 seasons as head coach.
• Saint Joseph's is one of three Atlantic 10 teams in the NCAA Tournament field. Regular season champion Dayton is the six seed in the Stanford Region, while A-10 Tournament champions Fordham earned a 10th seed in the Notre Dame Region.
• This year marks the first time since 1997 that both Saint Joseph's women's and men's basketball team have advanced to the NCAA Tournament. The Hawks are one of just 25 schools this year to make the NCAA Tournament with both squads.
HAWKS VERSUS FIRST & SECOND ROUND OPPONENTS
Saint Joseph's vs. GEORGIA - First Round, Sunday March 23
Sunday's matchup is the first meeting between the Hawks and Georgia. Saint Joseph's is in similar territory though, facing fellow SEC member Vanderbilt in last year's First Round of the NCAA Tournament (L, 60-54, 3/23/13). Additionally, the Hawks dropped an 80-64 decision at LSU in the Second Round of the Preseason WNIT earlier this year. All-time, Saint Joseph's is 5-15 against SEC opponents - Alabama (1-3), Arkansas (1-0), Auburn (1-1), LSU (0-1), Mississippi (0-1), Mississippi State (1-0), South Carolina (0-2), Tennessee (0-5), Vanderbilt (1-2).
Saint Joseph's vs. Connecticut - Second Round, Tuesday March 25
The Hawks are 2-4 all-time against Connecticut, but have lost four straight to in the series. Saint Joseph's won the first two meetings (67-56 on December 10, 1983 and 65-52 on December 28, 1987), but the Huskies have dominated the last four games, winning by an average of 29.5 points per game.
Saint Joseph's vs. Prairie View A&M - Second Round, Tuesday March 25
Saint Joseph's and Prairie View A&M have never met. The Hawks have only faced one other member of the Southwestern Athletic Conference, besting Mississippi Valley State, 98-56, in the consolation game of the Lady Techsters Dial Classic (12/2/89).
HAWKS EARN FIFTH STRAIGHT POSTSEASON BID
Saint Joseph's will make its fifth consecutive postseason this Sunday when the Hawks face Georgia in the First Round of the 2014 NCAA Tournament. Coming off its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 13 years in 2013, Saint Joseph's previously earned Postseason WNIT bids from 2009-10 to 2011-12. The five-year streak of appearances is now the second longest stretch in Hawk history, just one off the record of six that was set from 1984-85 to 1989-90.
SAINT JOSEPH'S VERSUS THE FIELD
The Hawks enter the 2014 NCAA Tournament having faced seven fellow participants. Saint Joseph's went a combined 4-4 versus those teams.
HIGH-FLYING OFFENSE
This year's scoring average is one for the ages at Hawk Hill as Saint Joseph's enters the NCAA Tournament averaging 72.2 points per game. It has been 24 seasons since the Hawks averaged that much, posting 78.2 points per game in 1989-90. For perspective, SJU head coach
Cindy Griffin and Director of Basketball Operations
Katie Gardler were playing for the Hawks that season, while no current SJU student-athlete had been born.
TAKING CARE OF THE BALL
Ranking 12th nationally in turnovers per game at 12.39, the Hawks are on pace to set the single-season record for fewest turnovers. Currently at 384 turnovers this year, Saint Joseph's should challenge the record of 408 set by the 1993-94 Hawks.
SHIELDS SETS CAREER GAMES PLAYED RECORD
Erin Shields will add to her record come Sunday as the senior guard owns Saint Joseph's all-time record for career games played with 128. Having played all 128 straight games dating back to her freshman campaign, Shields surpassed former teammates, Michelle Baker (2008-12) and Ashley Prim (2009-13), who held the previous record of 127.
SHIELD AMONG TOP SINGLE-SEASON SCORERS
Tallying 462 points so far this year, senior guard
Erin Shields ranks among the top single-season scorers in Hawk history. She enters the NCAA Tournament tied for 21st alongside Wendy Brink and should pass Mary Sue Garrity (463), Angela Zampella (464), Audrey Codner (465) and
Kim Foley (466) into 17th place.
SHIELDS AND CLOUD AMONG ALL-TIME ASSIST LEADERS
The pair of junior guard
Natasha Cloud and senior guard
Erin Shields have formed arguably one of the most unselfish backcourts in Hawk history. In under two seasons, Cloud has climbed to ninth all-time in assists (375), while Shields is in 10th place with 362.
FAIRBANKS' STRONG SOPHOMORE CAMPAIGN
What a difference a season makes for sophomore forward
Sarah Fairbanks. Earning playing time as a reserve last season, she tallied 49 points and grabbed 60 rebounds over 27 contests. Starting 22 games, Fairbanks blossomed this season having scored more than eight times her output of last year with 399 points as she leads posts in scoring. Also, she lead SJU post players in rebounds (186) and ranks fourth in the Atlantic 10 in both blocked shots per game (1.2) and field goal percentage (.512)
ANDREWS ADDS OFFENSIVE PUNCH
A key reserve this season, sophomore guard
Ciara Andrews has proven to be a major piece to the Hawks' puzzle in 2013-14. Averaging 20.8 minutes per game Andrews has already surpassed almost all her statistical totals from a season ago, while averaging 14.7 points per game over the final six games of the season. Below is a comparison of Andrews' two seasons.
CLOUD NEARING SINGLE-SEASON ASSISTS RECORD
Junior guard
Natasha Cloud enters the NCAA Tournament second in Saint Joseph's single season history for assists with 233. Trailing Angela Zampella's mark of 241 set in 1999-00, Cloud has more assists this year than three teams in the nation (Wofford-220, Morgan St.-226 and Alcorn St.-192).
ROBINSON MAKING AN IMPACT
After missing the first eight games of the season recovering from a shoulder injury, redshirt junior forward
Ashley Robinson quickly picked up from where she left off last year. Averaging 5.6 points per game, Robinson has been a major contributor on the boards, grabbing 5.2 per game. She also posted her second and third career double-double (16 points and 10 rebounds against George Washington; 14 points and 11 rebounds at George Mason) and has set new career-highs in rebounds (11 at VCU and George Mason) and blocks (four versus Penn).
HAWKS WIN 2013-14 BIG 5 TITLE
Saint Joseph's claimed its 16th Big 5 title, and first since 2008-09, with a 64-52 win at La Salle on January 19. The Hawks capped an undefeated season in the City Series to claim their first outright title since 2000-01. Additionally, SJU also topped Drexel, 70-52, on November 20, to complete a perfect season against all five Philadelphia schools.
SAINT JOSEPH'S TAKING ADVANTAGE OF CHARITY STRIPE
Saint Joseph's has taken advantage of its trips to the free throw line this season, hitting 450-of-561 for 80.2 percent, good for second among all Division I teams. Additionally, senior
Erin Shields leads the A-10 in free throw percentage (94.9 percent), while sophomore guard
Ciara Andrews is currently third in the A-10 and 44th nationally at 84.8 percent. Additionally, Shields, who doesn't qualify for the national rankings because she is averaging just under 2.5 makes per game, is SJU's all-time leader in free throw percentage, converting 91.0 percent (191-of-210) for her career.
GRIFFIN SECOND ALL-TIME IN WINS AT HAWK HILL
Now in her 13th season at her alma mater,
Cindy Griffin is second all-time in victories, posting a 245-165 mark to date. Griffin, who has led SJU to a record nine postseason appearances, trails only Women's Basketball Hall of Famer Jim Foster (248) in career wins.
SHIELDS AMONG TOP MOTHER-DAUGHTER COMBOS
Senior
Erin Shields and her mother, Renie (1978-82) have combined to form one of th best mother-daughter duos in any school history. Among mothers and daughters to have played at the same school, the Shields currently are second all-time in scoring with 2,222 combined points (932 for Renie, 1,313 for Erin), trailing Pittsburgh's Jennifer Bruce (Scott) and daughter Shayla (3,291 points). The Shields additionally have combined for 841 assists.
GOTFRIDA AMONGST SJU'S MOST EFFICIENT SCORERS
Senior forward
Ilze Gotfrida has proven to be one of the more efficient scorers in Saint Joseph's history. A career 48.5 percent shooter from the floor (283-of-583), she is currently on pace to finish among the all-time leaders in efficiency in SJU history, while averaging a career-best 8.3 points per game this year.
HAWKS POST DOUBLE-DIGIT WINS AT HOME AND ON ROAD
This year's SJU squad became just the fourth team in program history to win 10 games at home and on the road, joining the 1977-78, 1986-87 and 1999-00 teams.
SHIELDS NEARING THREE-POINT RECORDS
Senior guard
Erin Shields has established as one of the top three-point shooters in Saint Joseph's history. The Hawks returning leader in three pointers, she is currently second all-time in three-pointer made (248) and attempts (664) and sixth in three-point percentage (.373). Her 88 three-pointers this year are eight thee of the record of 91 set by Kristen Sullivan in 1995-96,
CLOUD AND SHIELDS AMONG NATION'S ELITE
The pairing of senior
Erin Shields and junior
Natasha Cloud comprise one of the top backcourts in both the Atlantic 10 and nationally. Currently, the two are averaging a combined 26.4 points and 11.1 assists per game to go with 34.5 minutes per contest.
