CAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL WEEKLY REPORT - NOV. 22
**Complete release in PDF format located at the bottom of this article**
THIS
WEEKS QUICK HITS:
• The
league owns a 19-14 record in non-conference play.
• James
Madison and UNC Wilmington will face nationally-ranked opponents this week. The
Dukes will face #21/22 Iowa, while the Seahawks will visit #7/7 Ohio State.
• Delaware's
Elena Delle Donne poured in record book numbers against Yale with 41 points.
That total ties fifth best in the CAA record book.
• Three
CAA WBB teams continue to be ranked in the Nov. 16 edition of the
CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Poll (#5 Old Dominion, #9 James Madison and #15 Delaware).
• Delaware's
Elena Della Donne and JMU's Dawn Evans have been added to the watch lists of
two prestigious awards -- Wooden and the Naismith Awards, and both were named
CAA Preseason Co-Players of the Year.
• James
Madison was the preseason pick to take the 2011 CAA Women's Basketball title.
• The
Show Place Arena (Upper Marlboro, Md.) will host the 2011 CAA Women's
Basketball Championship on March 10-13.
• The
CAA has 27 games slated to be televised for the 2010-11 season.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
Elena Delle Donne • Delaware
Wilmington, Del./Ursuline Academy, So., Guard/Forward
Delle Donne earned CAA Player of the Week honors for the second
straight week after leading the Blue Hens to a pair of victories over Villanova
and Yale. She poured in a league-high 75 total points on the week, including a
season-high 41 performance on the road Saturday. Delle Donne shot an impressive 59.1 percent
(26-of-44) from the floor, 71.4 percent (5-of-7) from long and 90.0 percent
(18-of-20) from the free throw line. She also finished the week with 17 rebounds,
five assists and two blocks.
ROOKIES OF THE WEEK:
Alisha Andrews • UNC Wilmington
Stone Mountain, Ga./Redan, Fr., Guard
Andrews received CAA Rookie of the Week accolades after helping the
Seahawks to a pair of road victories to open the season. She opened her collegiate career scoring 10
points, becoming the first UNCW freshman since 2007-08 season to reach double
figures in her Seahawk debut. The rookie averaged 9.5 points and 3.7 rebounds
per game, while adding five assists and three steals for the Seahawks.
Jacqueline Brewer • VCU
Winchester, Va./Martinsburg Central, Fr., Guard
Brewer
received CAA Rookie of the Week honors after averaging 10.5 points per game off
the bench for the Rams two outings. The rookie scored 14 points on 5-of-9
shooting with three rebounds and two steals against Virginia Tech and added
seven points in the game against Winthrop earlier in the week. Brewer shot 80.0
percent, missing just one shot (4-of-5), from the free throw line.
CAA
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS:
Delaware's Elena Delle Donne leads the league in scoring as she is averaging
37.0 points per game. Over the weekend, the sophomore guard/forward poured in a
season-high 41 points against Yale, which ties the fifth best point total in a
single game for the CAA. Dawn Evans from JMU (25.7 ppg) and VCU's Courtney Hurt
(23.7 ppg) follow. UNC Wilmington's
Brittany Blackwell lead the CAA in rebounds per game with 14.0, while Georgia
State's Chan Harris follows at 12.5 rpg, Hurt is averaging 12.0 rpg and Mason's
Angelee LaTouche wraps up the double-figure rebounding with 10.0 rpg.
Northeastern's Jamie Conroy has dished out a league-best 27 assists (6.8 apg),
while teammate Rachel Pecota leads the league with 11 steals and 14
three-pointers made.
TOP
SHOOTERS FROM THE LINE (min. 2.0 FT/G): The CAA has five free-throw shooters who have made over 10 free-throws
this season and only missed two or less. James Madison's Dawn Evans has made 20
of her 21 free throws, while NU's Mia Mayberry and Hofstra's Marie Malone have
made 10 of their 11 shots from the line. Delaware's Elena Delle Donne
(24-of-26) and Hofstra's Candice Bellocchio (12-of-14) have just missed
two.
CAA
PRESEASON TEAM PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH: James Madison, which captured the 2010 CAA women's basketball
championship, is favored to win the conference title again in 2010-11 according
to a vote of the league's coaches, sports information directors and media
members. The results of the poll were announced during the CAA Basketball Media
Day at Champps-Pentagon Row in Arlington, Va. The Dukes were followed in the
voting by Old Dominion, Delaware, Hofstra and VCU. Drexel was picked to finish
sixth, followed by William and Mary, UNC Wilmington, Georgia State, George
Mason, Towson and Northeastern.
CAA
PRESEASON INDIVIDUAL HONORS: Delaware's Elena Delle Donne and JMU's Dawn Evans were chosen
as the CAA Preseason Co-Players of the Year. They are joined on the preseason
All-CAA first team by Hofstra's Evans, UNC Wilmington senior guard/forward
Brittany Blackwell (12.9 ppg/7.7 rpg) and William and Mary junior guard Taysha
Pye (16.4 ppg/5.2 rpg). Voted to the preseason All-CAA second team were Old
Dominion's Green, Lewis and Parker, James Madison's Hislop and VCU junior
forward Courtney Hurt (13.7 ppg/7.7 rpg).
TWO NEW
HEAD COACHES WELCOMED TO THE LEAGUE: Two CAA schools have new head coaches this season. UNC
Wilmington hired Cynthia Cooper-Dyke, who has previously served as head coach
at Prairie View A&M. The former college great, Olympic gold medalist and Women's
National Basketball Association (WNBA) Most Valuable Player was enshrined into
the James Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on August 13 in
Springfield, Mass. She replaces Ann Hancock. Georgia State hired Sharon
Baldwin-Tener to replace Lea Henry. Baldwin-Tener had spent the past eight
seasons with the East Carolina Lady Pirates and previously was the head coach
Mercer and Life.
THREE
CAA WBB TEAMS RANKED IN COLLEGEINSIDER.COM FIRST MID-MAJOR POLL: Old Dominion jumped from 11th to 5th
after the first week of play, while James Madison was ranked 9th and Delaware
followed at 15th in the CollegeInsider.com mid-major poll on Nov. 16. VCU also
received votes in the preseason poll. Atop the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top
25 is Green Bay, which received 22 first-place votes. The women's Mid-Major Top
25 is comprised of teams from America East, Atlantic Sun, Big Sky, Big South,
Big West, CAA, Great West, Horizon, Independents, Ivy, Metro Atlantic,
Mid-American, Mid-Eastern, Missouri Valley, Northeast, Ohio Valley, Patriot,
Southern, Southland, Southwestern, Summit, Sun Belt and West Coast Conference.
The Mid-Major Top 25 will be released every Tuesday throughout the 2010-11
season.
CAA IN
THE AP POLL: The
James Madison Dukes continues to receive votes in the 2010-11 AP Top 25 (Nov.
16), but the Dukes fell out of the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll, where they
received votes during the preseason.
2011
& 2012 CAA WOMEN'S CHAMPIONSHIPS TO BE HOSTED BY NEUTRAL SITE: The Show Place Arena in Upper
Marlboro, Md. has been selected to host the CAA Women's Basketball Championship
in 2011 and 2012 by the league's athletic directors. It will be the first time
that The Show Place Arena has served as host of the CAA women's championship.
All games in the four-day, 11-game tournament will be played at the 5,000-seat
arena, with the winner earning an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. This
season's event will be held from March 10-13, 2011.
TWO CAA
PLAYERS ADDED TO WATCH LISTS: CAA women's basketball standouts Elena Delle Donne of
Delaware and Dawn Evans of James Madison were added to the 2010-11 Women's
Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) State Farm® Wade Trophy Division I Player
of the Year and the Naismith preseason watch lists. Delle Donne, a sophomore
forward/guard, led Delaware to a 21-12 record and a berth in the Women's
National Invitation Tournament (WNIT) as a freshman. The Blue Hens' forward was
named the CAA Player and Rookie of the Year and became the first player in UD
history to earn All-America honors when she garnered third team Associated
Press and honorable mention WBCA accolades. Evans, a senior guard at JMU,
ranked fifth in the nation in scoring with 24.6 points per game, was third
nationally in three-pointers per game (3.6) and also was third in the CAA with
4.6 assists per game last season. Evans also honorable mention All-America
honors from the Associated Press.
TV EXPOSURE: The CAA surpassed its all-time record of 25 game (2007-08)
with 27 games aired during the 2009-10 season and looks to accomplish the same
task in 2010-11. At the start of the season, the league has 27 games scheduled
for the new season. All 12 teams will make at least one television appearance.
The CAA women's basketball television package has aired over 20 games for at least
the last three seasons.
ONE OF
THE BEST WBB COLLEGE POINT GUARDS: James Madison women's basketball player Dawn Evans has been
ranked as one of the top five point guards in the country by AOL FanHouse. The
selections were made by FanHouse women's basketball writers Michelle Smith and
Milton Kent. Evans averaged a team-high 24.6 points per game (fifth-highest in
the NCAA) and a team-high 4.6 assists per game last season. She enters the
2010-11 season 215 points away from the school career points record of 2,121
and is on pace to also break the CAA career scoring record of 2,581. The
FanHouse point guard ranking was as follows: 1. Danielle Robinson, Sr.,
Oklahoma; 2. Jasmine Thomas, Jr., Duke; 3. Samantha Prahalis, Jr., Ohio State;
4. Courtney Vandersloot, Sr., Gonzaga; 5. Dawn Evans, Sr., James Madison.
RECORD-HIGH
SEVEN TEAMS IN POSTSEASON PLAY: For the first time in conference history, the CAA sent seven
women's basketball teams to the postseason. James Madison earned a bid in the
NCAA Women's Basketball tournament, while Old Dominion, Delaware, Drexel,
Hofstra, and VCU earned bids to the Women's National Invitation Tournament and
Towson played in the Women's Basketball Invitational. For the fifth consecutive
season, at least three CAA teams advanced to the postseason and for the 10th
consecutive season the CAA had a representative in the WNIT. The CAA was just
one of four conferences to see five teams in the WNIT. The Big Ten, Big East
and Atlantic 10 also saw five conference teams advance to the postseason event.
CAA AT
NO. 9 IN RPI RANKING:
The CAA completed the 2009-10 season ranked ninth among the nation's 32
Division I conferences in women's basketball according to the RPI report
compiled by Collegiate Basketball News. James Madison finished ranked 44th in
the team RPI ranking. Old Dominion (59) and VCU (97) are the only other CAA
schools that completed the season in the Top 100.
DELAWARE
(3-0, 0-0 CAA)
Delaware
improved to 3-0, for the first time since 2005-06, with a 69-62 home victory
over Big East foe Villanova on Tuesday evening and a road win over Yale, 79-61.
Sophomore All-American Elena Delle Donne averaged a league-best 37.5 points per
game last week and contributed 17 total rebounds. Sophomore forward Danielle
Park, who dropped back-to-back double-doubles last week, added 11.0 points and grabbed a team-high
11.0 rebounds per outing last week. In the win over Yale, Delle Donne poured in
a season-high 41 points, which ranks second for a single game in Delaware
history, just behind her own mark of 54 points against James Madison on Feb.
18, 2010 and tie her for fifth in the CAA records. She is also the first player
in program has to post 30-plus points in three consecutive games. Delaware
returns home to the Bob Carpenter Center on Tuesday when it takes on the Red
Flash of St. Francis (Pa.).
DREXEL
(2-0, 0-0 CAA)
Drexel
opened its season with a 2-0 record as they defeated a pair of Big Five rivals.
Opening with back-to-back victories was
a first for the Dragons since the 2001-02 season and Drexel's first win in a
season opener since 2004-05. The Dragons opened the season with a 86-55 road
victory over La Salle on Tuesday, before downing Penn, 62-31. It was the first
time since the 1986-87 season that the team recorded back-to-back wins of 30
points or more. Drexel was led by three
players averaging double-figure points, guided by Kamile Nacickaite's 17.0 points
per outing. The junior also led the team with 6.0 rebounds per game. On
Tuesday, Nacickaite poured in a game-best 26 points and led the team rebounds
(7), assists (5) and steals (3) in the victory. Nacickaite was 10-for-15 from
the floor with all five of her misses coming from beyond the three-point arc
and shot a perfect 4-for-4 from the line over La Salle. Jasmina Rosseel added
13.0 points per contest and Hollie Mershon contributed 12.5 points per game.
Drexel, which is one game into a four-game home stand, aims for its third
straight win on Nov. 23 when it hosts Saint Joseph's at the DAC and then
Villanova on Nov. 26.
GEORGE
MASON (1-2, 0-0 CAA)
George
Mason suffered a pair of losses this week as they fell to Fairfield, 54-37, on
Monday evening before dropping a close 65-59 contest to Wichita State on
Saturday. The Patriots were led by Amber Easter (11.5 ppg) and Taleia Moton
(10. 5 ppg), while Anglee LaTouche led Mason on the boards with 9.5 rebounds
per outing last week. The Patriots played a tough contest against the Shockers
on Saturday as three Patriots posted double figure scoring led by Moton's 17,
nine coming in the second half. Amber Easter added 16, while Brittany Eley
contributed 14. George Mason returns to the court opening its home slate on
Tuesday, November 23 against UMBC.
GEORGIA
STATE (1-1, 0-0 CAA)
Georgia
State picked up its first win of the season, under the direction of new head
coach Sharon Baldwin-Tener, with a 70-61 victory at Stetson on Sunday.
Angelique Burtts had a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds, as did
Chan Harris with 14 points, 10 rebounds and four blocked shots. Traci
Haltiwanger hit four three-point shots and added 15 points to the attack.
Georgia State shot 55.9% in the second half and 49.2% for the game, while
having a 46-33 rebound advantage in the road win. The victory over Stetson gave
Baldwin-Tenner her 196th career victory as a head coach, leaving her four shy
of the 200-win milestone. Georgia State stays in Florida for a Tuesday night
game at Bethune-Cookman in Daytona Beach. The Panthers will return home for
their home opener on Nov. 25-26 when they host the GSU Thanksgiving
Tournament. They will play Alabama
A&M on Friday, before facing either Rice or Mercer on Saturday.
HOFSTRA
(2-1, 0-0 CAA)
Hofstra
improved to 2-1 victories over Saint Peter's, 78-55, and Stony Brook, 84-72,
last week. Three Pride players averaged double-figure points on the week, led
by sophomore forward Shante Evans' 17.0 ppg. Marie Malone (14.0 ppg) and Nicole
Capurso (13.5 ppg) also contributed. Evans also led the team with 10.0 rebounds
per outing, while Aamira Terry added 7.0 rebounds per game. Candice Bellocchio
dished out a team-high 10 assists on the week. Against the Peahens, Evans had
17 points and freshman guard Kate Loper added 16 points to lead the Pride. Capurso
was the third member of the Pride in double figures as she added 10 points. In
their first road contest, Hofstra was led by Evans again with her first
double-double of the season with 17 points and 13 rebounds. Hofstra placed a
total of four players in double figures as Malone had a career- and game-high
19 points, Capurso chipped in with 17 and junior guard Candice Bellocchio added
12. Hofstra has had three different high scorers in each of its first three
games, and taking that one step further, the leading scorer in each of the
first three contests has been from a different position. Loper (guard) led
Hofstra with 16 versus UVA, Evans (forward) posted 17 points against the
Peahens and Malone (center) notched 17 points at Stony Brook. Hofstra will next
be in action on Monday when they travel to Providence.
JAMES
MADISON (2-1, 0-0 CAA)
James
Madison earned back-to-back wins at home to finish up the WNIT as they defeated
St. Francis (Pa.), 64-49, on Friday and then took UCF into overtime on Saturday
for a 82-78 victory. Senior guard Dawn Evans led the Dukes on the week with
26.0 points per outing and dished out 11 assists. Junior forward Lauren
Whitehurst grabbed a team-high 9.0 rebounds per outing. Evans poured in a game-
and season-high 34 points and added a career-best seven assists in the overtime
win over UCF, including three four shots in the closing seconds of regulation
to tie the game. Evans' 34 points marked her 18th career game with 30 or more
points. Evans currently stands at 1,983 career points and remains in second
place on the JMU list (138 points from Tamera Young's (2004-08) school record
2,121) and in fourth in the CAA record books. The Dukes will next be in action
at the Caribbean Challenge and will face nationally-ranked Iowa and Montana.
UNC
WILMINGTON (2-0, 0-0 CAA)
The
Seahawks have opened the season 2-0 under the direction of Cynthia Cooper-Dyke.
The Seahawks held off a feisty UNC Greensboro team on Monday evening as UNC
Wilmington earned its first win of the season with a 62-58 victory. They then
went on to defeat in-state rival East Carolina, 84-73, on Friday evening. The
Seahawks were led by Kristen Hanzer (18.5 ppg) and Martha White (18.0 ppg),
while Brittany Blackwell also contributed double-figure points (13.5 ppg) on
the week. Blackwell led the team on the glass as she snatched a team-best 28
rebounds and eight steals (a career-high six steals coming in the win over
UNCG). Against the Lady Pirates, White and Hanzer combined for 48 points to
lead UNCW. Hanzer scored a career-high 26 points and White matched her personal
best with 22 markers. UNCW welcomes High Point to Trask Coliseum for its home
opener on Monday, before visiting Wofford and #7/7 Ohio State later in the
week.
NORTHEASTERN
(1-3, 0-0 CAA)
Northeastern
went 1-2 on the three-game week as they fell to Kent State, 71-53, before
splitting at the Iowa Challenge. The Huskies fell to #22/24 ranked Iowa, 87-59,
but found their first win of the season against Northern Colorado, 61-53, at
the tournament. Sophomore Rachel Pecota led the Huskies with 14.7 points per
outing on the week, while Kashaia Cannon added 10.7 points per outing. Mayberry
notched the first double-double of her career with 13 points and 11 rebounds
against Northern Colorado, en route to being named to the Hawkeye Challenge
All-Tournament team. She finished the week with 21 rebounds, falling just
behind team leader Afreyea Tolbert (22). Mayberry shot an impressive 52.6
percent (10-of19) for the Huskies in the three outings. Jamie Conroy
contributed a team-high 20 assists on the week. The Huskies will enjoy a week
off before heading to West Point, N.Y. to take on Army on Monday, Nov. 29.
OLD
DOMINION (2-0, 0-0 CAA)
Old
Dominion played just one contests last week and improved to 2-0, for the third
time in the past four seasons, with a 79-65 home victory over North Carolina
A&T on Thursday. The last time the Lady Monarchs went 3-0 to start the
season was 2007-08 when ODU ended the season 31-5 overall and reached the NCAA
Sweet 16. Junior Tia Lewis posted a game-high 15 points on 63.6 percent
shooting (7-of-11) and sophomore Jackie Cook recorded her first career
double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Senior Alena Voronina posted a
career-high 14 points and classmate Jasmine Parker chipped in 11 in the win.
Old Dominion now prepares to make its first road trip of the season as the Lady
Monarchs travel to N.C. State on Tuesday.
TOWSON
(1-2, 0-0 CAA)
Towson
evened its record with a 65-55 home victory over St. Francis (Pa.) on Tuesday
evening, but then fell to #21/RV Maryland, 47-72, on Thursday night. Junior
guard/forward Deree Fooks led the team in scoring and rebounding with 12.5
points and 8.0 rebounds per outing. Senior guard Simona Petronyte also added
10.5 points per contest. Dovile Miliauskaite posted a double-double in the win
over the Red Flash and also finished the week averaging 7.0 rebounds per game.
The Tigers return to action on Monday, Nov. 22 when they visit Charles Street
rival, Loyola at 7 p.m.
VCU
(2-1, 0-0 CAA)
VCU split
on the week as they earned a 59-49 home victory against Winthrop before falling
to Virginia Tech, 63-61, in overtime on the road. With the win over Winthrop,
the Rams opened the season with back-to-back wins for the second year in a row
and the fifth time in the last six seasons. Junior forward Courtney Hurt shined
for the Rams this week as she tabbed her second and third straight
double-doubles and averaged 25.5 points and 11.5 rebounds per outing on the
week. The junior collected a team-high 25 points and 12 rebounds in the win
over Winthrop, while classmate Jennifer Lane finished with eight points and a
game-high four assists. Against the Hokies, Hurt posted a game-high 26 points
and 11 rebounds, while freshman Jaqueline Brewer scored 14 points and Lane
added 11. Junior Chelsea Snyder averaged 4.5 points and 8.0 rebounds on the
week, while collecting three blocks and an assist. She has started all three games this year
after spending her first two seasons as a reserve. VCU will enjoy a 10-day hiatus
before returning to the Verizon Wireless Arena on Dec. 2 against East Carolina.
WILLIAM
& MARY (0-2, 0-0 CAA)
The Tribe
suffered a pair of losses to start the season as they fell to Davidson, 69-47,
on Friday before dropping an 82-64 loss at Wake Forest on Sunday. Taysha Pye
averaged 15.0 points per game for William & Mary after posting a team-high
19 against the Wildcats and close the week with 11 points against the Demon
Deacons. Emily Correal averaged 10.0 points in the Tribe's first two outings. Both
Pye and Correal led the team with 12 rebounds a piece on the week. William and
Mary continues on the road next weekend, heading down the Pan-American highway
to Cancun, Mexico. In the Cancun Thanksgiving Classic, the Tribe will face
Bradley Friday night, before taking on Buffalo Saturday.