PHILADELPHIA – The Saint Joseph's women's basketball team hosts Seton Hall in the inaugural Women's Basketball Invitation Tournament on Thursday evening inside Hagan Arena.

GAME INFORMATION: St. Joe's vs. Seton Hall
DATE/TIME: Thursday, March 21 | 7:00 p.m.
LOCATION: Hagan Arena | Philadelphia, Pa.
LIVE STATS: Click Here
LIVE STREAM: ESPN+
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LAST TIME OUT
• The Hawks bowed out early in the Atlantic 10 quarterfinals, dropping a 57-47 result to Rhode Island in the third meeting between the Hawks and the Rams.
• Overcoming an early deficit, the Hawks were able to take a two-point lead into the second half. The offense stalled, unable to build on the lead as the Rams were able to increase the lead by as many as 11 points. The Hawks were unable to recover, Rhode Island keeping St. Joe's at bay with defense and free throws to advance to the semifinal matchup.
• St. Joe's was led by Laura Ziegler, the sophomore putting up 12 points in the defeat. Chloe Welch was the only other Hawk in double-digits with 11 points. Mackenzie Smith added seven rebounds and tied her career-high with five assists.
 

ALL-CONFERENCE HONORS
• For the second time in as many years, the Hawks placed three players on the Atlantic 10 All-Conference Teams. Laura Ziegler (1st), Talya Brugler (2nd) and Mackenzie Smith (2nd) made the team in back-to-back seasons after becoming the first trio in nearly 20 years for St. Joe's to earn all-conference nods.
• Ziegler joined Brugler and Natasha Cloud as the only other Hawks in the last decade to make the First Team.
• Ziegler was also added to the All-Defensive Team, while Brugler earned All-Academic distinction.
 
 
CHASING HISTORY
• The 2023-24 squad tied the 1996-97 team that set the program record for wins in a season, looking to earn their 27th win of the season in the A-10 quarterfinals.
• The 26 wins on a season is the most under Head Coach Cindy Griffin, previously recording a best of 24 wins in her first year on Hawk Hill in 2001-02.
 

TWO HAWKS EARNING NATIONAL ATTENTION
• Talya Brugler and Laura Ziegler were named to the USBWA Ann Meyers Drysdale Award and All-America Watch List, two of 40 to be selected and one of 11 pairs of teammates to earn the accolades.
 

SERIES HISTORY
• The Hawks are 5-10 all-time against Seton Hall, the last three postseason appearances now having the two teams clash in the opening round.
• The Hawks are 2-1 all-time in postseason play against the Pirates, including an overtime win in the 2003-04 season and a win in 2017-18.
 

SAINT JOSEPH'S | Roster | Schedule | Stats | Game Notes
• St. Joe's enters its 26th postseason appearance, the 14th under the direction of head coach Cindy Griffin. Griffin has two NCAA appearances and 11 WNIT appearances in her tenure on Hawk Hill.
• The Hawks are 15-25 all-time in the postseason, eight of the 15 wins coming during the Griffin era.
• Talya Brugler leads the conference with a 54.2% shooting percentage among qualified players, entering the matchup with the Pirates with 15.8 points per game.
• Brugler (79) and Ziegler (78) lead the Hawks in assists, combining for 18 games with at least four assists.
• St. Joe's is one of the stingiest defenses in the country, entering the matchup with the sixth-best scoring defense in the country by allowing just 54.1 points per game.
• The Hawks hold one of the top percentages from the free throw line. SJU has knocked down 81.2% of its attempts (333-410), the mark good for third in the NCAA. St. Joe's ranks first among Atlantic 10 teams in FT%.
 
 
SETON HALL | Roster | Schedule | Stats | Game Notes
• Seton Hall has played in the postseason in eight of the 11 seasons under head coach Anthony Bozzella. The Pirates enter the game at 17-14 (8-10 BIG EAST), having faced 17 teams that are either in the NCAA Tournament or the WBIT. Seton Hall has posted five consecutive winning seasons, eight times in Bozzella's tenure.
• The Pirates are led by Azana Baines, an All-BIG EAST First Team selection. The graduate student averaged a team-high 15.1 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. Seton Hall also had Savannah Catalon recognized after an impressive rookie season saw her average 8.1 points against conference opposition, earning a spot on the BIG EAST All-Freshman Team. Micah Gray also adds double-digit scoring with 11.9 points per game, while Amari Wright dictates the offense with 158 assists on the season, more than double of the next closet Pirate.