Saint Joseph's (11-2, 1-0 A-10) at George Washington (9-5, 1-0 A-10)
Wednesday, January 4 | 6:00 p.m. | Smith Center | Washington, D.C.
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WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Saint Joseph's women's basketball team heads for its final matchup of a two-game road stand to begin conference play, taking on George Washington in the nation's capital in midweek action.
In the last time out for the Crimson and Gray, the Hawks kept the momentum from the non-conference campaign rolling into the A-10 slate, defeating La Salle in the opener of Atlantic 10 play, and the Big 5 finale, with a 68-64 road win. SJU recorded its biggest comeback of the season, clawing back from an 11-point deficit in the early stages of the contest to eventually take a lead at the half before closing out the contest with the third win of the year by five or less points.
Saint Joseph's has yet to lose a game this season when leading at the break, starting the season 10-0 in such contests. Talya Brugler has remained a consistent threat from the field, averaging 18.3 points over the last seven games after recording a team-high 20 points in the win over the Explorers. Katie Jekot made her return after missing three games to close out the non-conference, tallying a season-high 11 assists in the win over La Salle to move into 10th all-time in Saint Joseph's history in assists, falling one point shy of a double-double. Emma Boslet almost recorded her first double-double of her career with career-bests 11 points and nine rebounds off the bench for the Hawks. In the matchup of the sisters (Katie Jekot - Saint Joseph's, Julie Jekot - La Salle), it was the former who finally grabbed her first win in the series after LAS swept last year's games.
Scouting The Colonials
George Washington closed 2022 similarly to the Hawks, opening the A-10 slate with a road win at Richmond in a narrow 65-63 thriller, completing the comeback in the fourth quarter to start off the season strong. With the win, the Colonials moved to four-straight wins on the bounce, improving its record to 9-5 in the second year under Caroline McCombs. GW has been stout at home, holding a 5-1 record at the Charles E. Smith Center with all five victories in a double-digit margin. GW has found an identity at the three point line, ranking 15th in threes made per game, 42nd in 3PT% and 46th in attempts from deep.
Mia Lakstigala paces the D.C. side with 14.8 points per contest, chipping in nearly six rebounds a night. Nya Robertson also adds double figures with 11.4 points per game, Jayla Thornton picking up an extra 8.4 points of her own. Mayowa Taiwo has been a monster on the boards, securing 9.2 rebounds (team-high) per game while adding 7.9 points. Taiwo also leads the team in steals (27) while more than able to dish the ball to teammates with 18 assists. Asjah Innis leads the offense with a team-best 29 assists.
Boslet's Big Game
Emma Boslet proved vital in the 68-64 win over A-10/Big 5 rivals La Salle on New Year's Eve, setting new career marks in points (11) and rebounds (9). The junior was a perfect 6-6 from the charity stripe, remaining 100% on the season at the line. Boslet has nearly scored more in her nine games this season (35) than in her previous 27 games of her Hawk career (42).
Assist Queen
With her 11 assists, Katie Jekot entered into the top 10 all-time in St. Joe's history in assists, entering the game at La Salle needing just eight to surpass Erin Shields (2010-14). Jekot has had a knack for dishing dimes against the Explorers, her two highest tallies being 12 against La Salle at home in the 2021-22 season and her 11 on New Year's Eve in Tom Gola Arena.
Lining Up
One of the premier free throw shooting teams in the country, the Hawks rank 17th in the nation in free throw percentage (78.4%). The Crimson and Gray are led by Mackenzie Smith and Talya Brugler, who rank first and rhird respectively in the A-10 in both free throws made (61, 51). Smith ranks 41st in the country in attempts and 34th in the country in makes.
Start As You Mean To Go On
The Hawks have started 11-2 on the season for the first time since the 2013-14 season, also achieving that feat before notching the thrid loss. In Cindy Griffin's first year on Hawk Hill in 2001-02, the team played 17 games before recording their third defeat.
Jekot Serving Dishes
Katie Jekot remains one of the premier passers in the country entering her final season in the Crimson and Gray. The sixth year guard ranks first in the A-10 in assist-turnover ratio (3.17) and sixth in the country. Her 5.7 assists per game rank 20th in the country. Jekot assists on 37.7% of made baskets for the Hawks, ranking 14th in the country.
