Women's Basketball | 2/25/2018 9:37:00 PM

GAME NOTES

THE DETAILS
Bloomsburg (13-15, 10-12 PSAC) at Kutztown 17-11, 12-10 PSAC)
Monday, Feb. 26, 2018 at 5:30 p.m.
Keystone Arena | Kutztown, Pa.
 
GAME COVERAGE
Watch - Click here
Live Stats - Click here
Listen - Click here
 
RELATED LINKS
Bloomsburg - Schedule | Roster | Statistics
Kutztown - Schedule | Roster | Statistics
 
STORYLINE
Bloomsburg (No. 5-East) travels to Kutztown (No. 4-East) in the first round of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) tournament. The teams split the regular season meetings, with both teams winning on their respective home floors.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES
This will be the 98^th all-time meeting between Bloomsburg and Kutztown, with BU leading the all-time series 72-25.
 
LAST MEETING
Bloomsburg knocked off Kutztown 68-60 at the Nelson Field House back on Jan. 31. The two teams started off slow in the first quarter, with Kutztown holding a slim 14-13 lead after the opening 10 minutes. Bloomsburg's offense would explode in the second quarter, with the help of a 17-2 run that stretched over 6:21 of the quarter to leave the Huskies up 30-16. The final bucket of the half came on a layup by Rylee Derr with 21 seconds left, and Bloomsburg would take a 35-28 lead to the half. This marked the seventh time this season the Huskies led at the break. Kutztown would trim their deficit in the third quarter, out-scoring BU 15-10 in the frame. The Huskies would out-score the Golden Bears 23-17 in the final frame to secure the home win. As a team, Bloomsburg shot 46.2 percent (24-52) from the field, 28.6 percent (2-7) from long range and a season-high 85.7 percent (18-21) from the free throw line. Bloomsburg scored 30 points in the paint, 13 off turnovers, 12 off second chances and two off the fast-break. Bloomsburg's bench out-scored their KU counterparts 47-20 in the victory. Three Huskies poured in double-figure points in the win, led by a game-high 21 from Alyssa Mack (Walnutport, Pa./Allentown Central Catholic). Her performance was aided by a career-high nine free throws on the night, while she shot 5-10 from the field and made two of her three long balls. Taylor Montana (Berwick, Pa./Berwick) completed the double-double effort with 16 points and 13 rebounds, going 6-10 from the field and 4-6 from the charity stripe. Her 13 rebounds tied a career-high, which she set back on Nov. 21, 2017 versus Holy Family. Five other Huskies scored in the win. BU won the battle on the boards 39-30, including a 28-20 margin on the defensive glass.
LAST TIME OUT
The Huskies extended their winning streak to seven games on Saturday (Feb. 24) with a 66-58 win at Shippensburg to end the regular season. The Raiders led 19-11 after one quarter, keeping Bloomsburg to single-digits until the final minute of the frame. The Huskies clamped down defensively in the second to win the frame 13-8, but still trailed 27-24 at the half. The Huskies won a high-scoring third quarter 17-15 that began with an old-fashioned three-point play from Jones, before Montana scored a bucket to get BU back within four. Bloomsburg was able to out-score Shippensburg 25-16 to secure the road win and move their win streak to seven games. As a team, BU shot 47.1 percent (24-51) from the floor, 36.4 percent (4-11) from long range and 63.6 percent (14-22) from the foul line. Both teams scored 32 points each in the paint, while Shippensburg out-scored Bloomsburg 14-8 off turnovers. Bloomsburg won the battle for second chance points 8-2, while the Huskies bench also out-scored their counterparts 45-3. Mack's 23 points were a game-high, just one shy of her career-high 24 that she scored back on Jan. 6 at Cheyney. Mack was 8-11 shooting from the field, including a perfect 3-3 from beyond the arc and a 4-4 effort at the free throw line. Montana was the only other Husky to score in double-figures with 11 points. Montana shot a perfect 5-5 on the day from the floor and also made one free throw. BU won the battle on the boards 39-29, which included a 28-21 edge on the defensive end and an 11-8 edge on the offensive glass. Meghan Corridoni (Exeter, Pa./Holy Redeemer) pulled down a game-high eight boards, while Montana and Lauren Oeth (Doylestown, Pa./Germantown Academy) each grabbed seven.  Payton Spadaccino (Ivyland, Pa./Council Rock South) led the Huskies dishing out three assists, while Montana registered three rejections and Oeth and Mack each recorded one steal. Bella Ricci (Etters, Pa./Red Land) tied her career-high for minutes played with 19, while setting a new career mark by making three free throws. She also tied a career-mark in assists with two, while recording her first career block. Emma Saxton (York, Pa./Central York) registered one block for the fourth time this season, while Montana blocked three shots in a game for the fifth time this season.
 
Kutztown defended their home court with an 84-68 win over Lock Haven on Saturday (Feb. 24). The Golden Bears led 23-11 after one quarter and won the second quarter 23-10 to take a 46-21 lead at the half. KU was able to pull away in the third quarter by winning the frame 22-18, before Lock Haven won the fourth quarter 25-16. Five Golden Bears scored in double figures in the win, led by a game-high 25 points from Alexis Smith. Rylee Derr and Zoe Zerman each scored 13 in the win, while Gabbi Wright and Alex Leader each chipped in 10.
 
SCOUTING BLOOMSBURG
As a team, Bloomsburg shoots 41.4 percent from the floor, 29.9 percent from beyond the arc and 65.6 percent from the free throw line. The Huskies score 59.8 points per game, while their scoring defense (62.7 points per game) is fifth in the conference. Mack's 10.4 points per game lead the team individually, while Montana is second on the team contributing 9.1 points per game. The Huskies pull down 36.9 rebounds per game, while having the sixth-best rebounding defense in the league limiting opponents to 37.0 boards per game. Montana is the team's leading rebounder, pulling down an average of 6.2 rebounds per game. Mack is also the team's assist leader with 55, while Saxton is the only other player with at least 40 on the season with 52 total. Saxton's 21 steals lead the team, while six others have at least 10 on the season. Corridoni leads the blocking effort with 29, while Montana is second on the team with 23. Saxton (25.1) is one of four Huskies to log at least 20 minutes per game, with Corridoni (21.7), Mack (21.4) and Montana (21.3) being the others.
 
SCOUTING KUTZTOWN
As a unit, KU shoots 38.5 percent from the field, 32.8 percent from downtown and 67.2 percent from the charity stripe. They have the eighth-best scoring offense in the league scoring an average of 67.1 points per game, while surrendering an average of 67.5 points per game. Derr is the team's leading scorer pouring in 13.5 points per game, while Smith adds 9.2 points per game. Kutztown hauls in 35.6 rebounds per game, while holding opponents to 38.3 rebounds per game. Keifonna Ferguson is the team's leading rebounder grabbing 6.3 boards per game, while Derr pulls down 4.8 boards per game. Taylor Thames's 71 assists lead the team, while Karen Lapkiewicz (57) and Derr (53) are the only other players with at least 50 on the season. Derr and Ferguson are tied for the team lead in steals with 42, while nine others have double-digit steals on the season. Wright is the team's leading blocker with 25 on the year, while Smith and Jenna Widdicombe each have 10 on the season. Derr is the team's minutes leader playing 28.1 per game, while four others also play at least 20 minutes per game.
 
UP NEXT
With a win, Bloomsburg will advance to the PSAC tournament quarterfinals at East division No. 1 seed West Chester. Tip-off for that game is tentatively set for 5:30 p.m. A loss ends the 2017-18 season for the Huskies.