QU Women's Basketball Opens MAAC Play at Saint Peter's on Thursday

Quinnipiac Bobcats (4-1, 0-0 MAAC) at
Saint Peter's Peacocks (0-5, 0-0 MAAC)
Date: Thursday, Dec. 1, 2016 | 7 PM
Location: Yanitelli Center | Jersey City, N.J.
All-Time Series vs. Saint Peter's: Quinnipiac leads 6-0
Last Meeting: W, 65-53 (February 14, 2016 at SPU)

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BOUNCING BACK
Following a difficult 71-68 road lose to Temple on Sunday, the first defeat for the Quinnipiac women's basketball team of 2016-17, the Bobcats look to bounce back on Thursday night with the start of MAAC play at Saint Peter's. The Bobcats head into the midweek conference showdown still sitting atop the MAAC standings at 4-1 overall on the season and come in having never lost to the Peacocks in six games since joining the conference in 2013-14. Quinnipiac also looks to move to 3-1 in MAAC openers having fallen last season to Marist, 56-47, for the first time in a league-opening contest.

SCOUTING THE PEACOCKS

Saint Peter's (0-5) has struggled out of the games this season as the Peacocks are winless in five contests heading into conference play
Competing in the Hall of Fame Classic from Nov. 20-22, the Peacocks played a grueling three games in three days schedule that featured contests against mid-major powers Maine and Hampton as well as a spotlight game at nationally-ranked South Carolina
Despite the five losses, Saint Peter's comes into Thursday's meeting playing much-improved ball as the Peacocks suffered a tough 73-68 loss to Bowling Green on Nov. 27
The 68-point showing easily stands as a season-high as the previous high mark for the Peacocks in 2016-17 was 50 points in a season-opening loss to Penn State
Sajanna Bethea is one of the top scorers in the league as she posted 12.1 points and 7.1 rebounds per game last season on her way to earning All-MAAC Third Team honors
She has struggled against the top competition through five games this season as she is averaging 8.6 points and 6.2 rebounds per game but is shooting just 32.1 percent from the floor
Bethea, however, comes in having played one of the best games of her career in the overtime loss to Bowling Green as she went for 26 points on 10-of-14 shooting while adding 10 rebounds for a double-double in 40 minutes of action
Talah Hughes is in the midst of a breakout season as the junior comes in as the team's leading scorer at 11.4 points while shooting an impressive 44 percent from the floor while adding 7.4 rebounds in 33.6 minutes per game
Hughes has been a consistent producer all season as he has four double digit scoring games to her name including a season high 17 points (6-13 FG, 5-6 FT) against Penn State while she added a double-double (10 points, 14 rebounds) against Maine
Hughes was solid in the last contest for Saint Peter's as she went for 13 points (6-13 FG) with six rebounds before fouling out in the overtime period
Janelle Mullen (30.4 3FG%) and Alyssa Velles (32.0 3FG%) are the top three-point shooters on the team and both come in averaging 1.4 and 1.6 three-point makes, respectively for the season
Even with facing some stiff competition in the early season schedule, Saint Peter's still averages 38.4 rebounds per game and has a -3.6 rebounding margin average
Turnovers and free throw shooting have been two of the biggest concerns with the Peacocks as they come in averaging 23.4 turnovers per game while shooting just 53.4 percent at the charity stripe

ALL-TIME SERIES AGAINST SAINT PETER'S

Quinnipiac has never lost to the Peacocks in six all-time meetings
In their first season in the MAAC, Quinnipiac scored a pair of dominating victories as the Bobcats won on the road 71-40 and at home 67-44
A very similar sequence played out in 2014-15 as the Bobcats picked up a 81-50 road win and followed up with another 30+ point victory (82-52) at home
Saint Peter's play improved significantly last season in two games against the Bobcats as they fell in Hamden 66-49 and at home 65-53
Both margins last season were the two lowest margin of victories for the Bobcats in six all-time meetings with Saint Peter's
The most-recent score 65-53 coming in Jersey City was the lowest margin in the series history
Aryn McClure shined in two meetings against the Peacocks last season as she posted eight points, 12 rebounds, three assists, three blocks and three steals at home and also turned in a 14-point, seven-rebound performance on the road

HAVE A DAY JEN FAY
Temple's hot shooting spoiled what was the best game of redshirt sophomore Jen Fay's young caree as she finished with a career and game high 26 points on 10-of-13 shooting, 3-of-5 from three and 3-for-3 at the free throw line. Fay added six rebounds and two steals in just 25 minutes of action as she easily surpassed her previous career-best total of 11. After scoring 10+ points just once in her freshman season, Fay has notched a team-leading three straight double digit outings for the Bobcats. Her 26 points also represents the highest single-game point total by a Bobcat since Samantha Guastella went for 28 in a home win over Siena on Dec. 5, 2014 (66 games ago).

STREAK BUSTED
Quinnipiac has enjoyed a great deal of success over the past three seasons when building a first half lead. After starting 2016-17 with a mark of 2-0 when owning a halftime lead, the Bobcats recently saw one of their most impressive streaks in program history come to an end in a 71-68 loss at Temple. Quinnipiac's three-point loss signaled the first time the Bobcats had lost a game in which they held a halftime lead since the 2014 MAAC Championship game against Marist. The undefeated streak, which lasted over the course of three seasons, came to an end at 45 straight wins for the Bobcats when holding a halftime lead. Quinnipiac went undefeated in both 2014-15 (24-0) and 2015-16 (19-0) and for the first two games of 2016-17 before suffering the defeat.

VOTERS TAKING NOTICE
Voters are beginning to take notice of Quinnipiac and their 4-1 start to 2016-17 as the Bobcats earned the No. 5 ranking in the College Insider Mid-Major Poll on Tuesday. The Top 5 ranking comes just one week following the program's highest-ranking in the College Insider Poll at No. 4. The following day, Quinnipiac claimed the No. 10 spot in the ESPNW Mid-Major Poll which marked just the second time in program history the Bobcats were ranked in the espnW.com poll. In the College Insider version, Quinnipiac has improved the most spots week-to-week of any team in the poll as the Bobcats vaulted up from No. 13 in the preseason poll to their current No. 4 position just two weeks into the season. The markup also is reflected in the total points as Quinnipiac checked in with 632 points this week compared to 345 in the preseason poll for a nation-leading +287 improvement.

SHOOTER'S TOUCH
Even with the 4-1 start, Quinnipiac struggled to find their shot in the first two games of the season as the Bobcats started the season just 36 percent (45-125 FG) from the floor and 26.8 percent (11-41 3FG) from three for 64.5 points per game. Those numbers have improved considerably in the last three games as the Bobcats have since shot 40.6 percent (82-202 FG) overall and 30.5 percent (25-82 3FG) from deep on their way to 74 PPG as a team.

FLIPPING THE SCRIPT
One of the most telling statistical trends all season for the Bobcats has been in the turnover department as Quinnipiac owns a +36 advantage (+7.2 per game; 24^th in the nation) in turnover margin through five games in 2016-17. The Bobcats have turned the ball over just 69 times while forcing the opposition into 105 turnovers (21 per game) which ranks 44^th in the nation. Temple was the first of the five opponents for Quinnipiac to have committed less than 20 turnovers in a single-game. The pressure-packed team defensive approach has translated directly into points as the Bobcats have outscored their five opponents 108-68 (+40) in points-off-turnovers for a per-game average of 21.6 compared to 13.6 for the opposition.

THAT 70+ SHOW
Since the 2007-08 season, Quinnipiac is 119-15 (.888) in games wherein the Bobcats score 70 or more points, including a 13-1 mark in 2015-16 and 42-2 combined since 2014-15. During 2012-13 (18-0) and 2010-11 (8-0), the Bobcats rolled to undefeated records in each respective season when reaching the scoring plateau.

Quinnipiac's Record in Games Scoring 70+ Points Since 2007-08
Season                                                                 Record
2016-17                                                                 2-0
2015-16                                                                 13-1
2014-15                                                                 28-1
2013-14                                                                 14-6
2012-13                                                                 18-0
2011-12                                                                 9-3
2010-11                                                                 8-0
2009-10                                                                 5-2
2008-09                                                                 11-1
2007-08                                                                 11-1
Total (10 Seasons)                                                119-15 (.888)

BOY CAN THE BOBCATS PROTECT THE BALL
Even after the graduation of the program's all-time assists leader Gillian Abshire in 2015, Quinnipiac has prolonged their supreme proficiency with the ball. The Bobcats predicate smart passes and protecting the ball on offense and the stats certainly reflect that trend as Quinnipiac has produced a conference-leading assist/turnover ratio in four of the last five seasons while ranking Top 50 in the nation three times. Through five games in 2016-17, the pattern is already showing through as the Bobcats lead the MAAC and rank 29^th in the nation in assist/turnover ratio (1.28).

Assist/Turnover Ratio Last Five Seasons
Season	Games	W-L	Ast	APG	TO	TPG	A/TO	NCAA Rank	Conf Rank
2012-13	33	30-3	557	16.9	477	14.5	1.17	10th	1st (NEC)
2013-14	34	21-13	554	16.3	446	13.1	1.24	20th	2nd (MAAC)
2014-15	35	31-4	685	19.6	465	13.3	1.47	5th	1st (MAAC)
2015-16	34	25-9	523	15.4	507	14.9	1.03	51st	2nd (MAAC)
2016-17	4	4-0	74	18.5	54	13.0	1.37	20th	1st (MAAC)
Total	140	111-29	2393	17.1	1949	13.9	1.23

RETURN OF THE GOLD RUSH
Injuries forced Quinnipiac out of their rotation but now back at full strength, Quinnipiac has utilized their "Gold Rush" subbing strategy to the fullest extent. In this approach first developed in the team's 30-3 season in 2012-13, Quinnipiac chooses to sub five players in-and-out of the game at a time throughout entire 40-minute contests. Since making the move back to the traditional approach, Quinnipiac is averaging 74 PPG while shooting 40.6 percent, dishing out 19 assists and totaling 13.3 steals per contest. Of the 10 consistent "Gold Rush" players, not one is averaging more than 20 MPG while seven Bobcats are averaging at least 5.0 PPG. On the defensive end, Quinnipiac is holding opponents to just 61.7 PPG, 35.8 percent shooting, 28 percent from deep and just 31 assists to 63 turnovers for a miniscule 0.49 assist/turnover ratio.

MARTUCCI HITTING HER MARK
The Bobcats' most-consistent performer all season has been Adily Martucci who comes in leading the team in scoring at 11.2 PPG through five games in 2016-17. Martucci has not finished a game with less than eight points while she ranks second on the team (first among guards) in overall shooting (48.9 percent; 22-45 FG) and from behind the arc (41.2 percent; 7-17 3FG). She is doing all her damage despite playing just 25 MPG, putting up a season high 15 points in just 17 minutes against Northeastern (11/20).

MORGAN MAKING IT HAPPEN
Morgan Manz has taken a leading role this season for the first time in her career as she ranks third on the team in scoring at 10.6 PPG. She paved the way with 16 points while shooting an impressive 6-of-9 overall and 3-for-5 from three-point range in a 78-55 road victory over Holy Cross (11/16). Coming into the Bobcats' 63-60 road win over Dayton where she posted a game-high 19 points, Manz owned a career-best point total of 15 and bested that mark in consecutive games.

BIG MAAC AWARD
Aryn McClure started the season taking home the league's first MAAC Player of the Week honor of 2016-17 as well as the first of her career. She also took home College Sports Madness' MAAC Player of the Week award, sweeping the week in what was a masterful performance from McClure over the 2-0 week. McClure started with her fifth career double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds to go along with four assists and a career high five blocks in the win over FGCU. She followed that up with 12 points, seven rebounds, two assists and two blocks in the comeback win over Dayton, netting 11 of her 12 points in the second half.

WHAT A WIN!
Trailing 17 points with 14:30 remaining, the Bobcats gutted out the largest comeback in the program's Division I history as Quinnipiac came-from-behind to defeat fellow mid-major power Dayton, 63-60, in Ohio on Sunday, Nov. 13. The 17-point Quinnipiac comeback sets a new Div. I record, one better than a 16-point margin overcome in a 68-61 overtime win over Robert Morris back on Feb. 19, 2000.

TURNAROUND FOR THE AGES
Playing in front of a ravenous home fanbase of nearly 2,000 strong cheering for a Dayton team just two seasons removed from a run into the 2015 Elite Eight, the Bobcats were all but out of it trailing 46-29 with 4:30 left in the third quarter. After shooting a paltry 11-for-41 (26.8 percent) overall up to the 4:30 mark of the third quarter, Quinnipiac was nothing short of incredible for the final 14:30 of play. Led by the senior tandem of Morgan Manz and Adily Martucci, the Bobcats finished 13-of-26 (50 percent) in what amounted to a 20-point swing (34-14 run) to end the game.

SPLASH ZONE
The lynchpin behind the victory over Dayton was a career game from Morgan Manz as she posted a monster total going for a career high 19 points (7-15 FG, 3-9 3FG) in a career best 31 minutes which included a decisive bucket in the waning minutes to help seal the win. Eight of her game-high 19 points came in the fourth quarter including a pair of three-pointers and the huge jumper that put the Bobcats up three with 21 seconds to go.

RESUME BOOSTER
Now 4-0 on the season, Quinnipiac opened 2016-17 with two of their most impressive wins in program history. Starting with a 66-56 win over perennial mid-major power Florida Gulf Coast, the Bobcats' 63-60 road win over Dayton comes against a Flyer team that had won six consecutive Atlantic-10 Championships from 2010-15. Between the Bobcats' first two opponents, Quinnipiac defeated a pair of teams that have combined for 453 wins (FGCU: 246-52; Dayton: 207-82), 50.3 wins per season (FGCU: 27.3; Dayton: 23), 77.1 winning percentage, 10 conference titles and five NCAA Tournament victories in the last nine seasons (since 2007-08).

MISSION COMPLETE
After a pair of thrilling meetings in the two seasons prior, the Bobcats finally broke through against Florida Gulf Coast as Quinnipiac dominated defensively in a 66-56 season-opening win at home over the fellow mid-major power. In a matchup pitting two programs ranked in the College Insider Mid-Major Poll, then-No. 13 Quinnipiac put on a defensive clinic in holding then-No. 7 FGCU to just 20-of-61 shooting from the floor and 12 percent (3-25 3FG) from three. Quinnipiac's defensive outing from the three-point line is commendable considering FGCU ranked sixth in the nation with 9.3 made three-pointers per game in 2015-16.

BALANCING ACT
Quinnipiac employed a well-balanced stat sheet that saw three Bobcats – Adily Martucci, Aryn McClure and Brittany Johnson – each finish with 14 points in the win. Martucci shot well all day going 6-for-12 from the floor while McClure was solid all around with 14 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and five blocks (fifth career double-double) and Johnson's 14-point night represented a career high for the junior guard.

HOME LOVIN
The TD Bank Sports Center, home of the Quinnipiac Bobcats, has long been one of the most difficult arenas to play at in the country. Since the 2012-13 season, Quinnipiac owns a record of 54-6 (.900) in games played at home. In just the last three seasons (since 2014-15), Quinnipiac owns a mark of 29-2 (.935). That mark easily ranks as the best in the MAAC while it also places them with the 13th-best home win percentage in the nation over the last three seasons. The Bobcats' 14-0 mark at home in 2014-15 made them one of just 14 teams in the nation to finish with an undefeated home record.

BIG MOVERS IN THE MAAC
Since joining the MAAC in 2013-14, Quinnipiac has reeled off a record of 58-11 (.841) in all games against MAAC opponents and 51-9 (.850) in regular season MAAC games, both records that currently lead all teams in the MAAC. The Bobcats just recently surpassed longtime conference power Marist who owns a mark of 53-15 (.779) against conference foes over the last three seasons and stand 47-13 (.783) in regular season MAAC play.

THE 2015-16 REGULAR SEASON
Quinnipiac finished 22-7 overall and 17-3 in league play to earn the 2015-16 MAAC Regular Season Championship and the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament. Quinnipiac clinched its second straight MAAC Regular Season title with a win over Iona in a winner-take-all regular season finale. The regular season title was the Bobcats' third in the four years dating back to the 2012-13 campaign where Quinnipiac was crowned the NEC Regular Season Champions. The Bobcats became just the second MAAC team, joining Marist in 2004-05, to start their conference schedule with three losses and win the remainder of their games to take home the MAAC Regular Season title outright. Quinnipiac entered the MAAC Tournament winners of 17 straight games which was the sixth-longest streak in the nation.

HIGH-POWERED OFFENSIVE ATTACK
Quinnipiac's coaching staff has long preached an up-tempo offensive system and the stats certainly reflect its success as the Bobcats have led their respective conference in scoring offense and assists in four of the last five seasons. Starting in the final two years of the Northeast Conference, Quinnipiac averaged an NEC-leading 67.9 points per game in 2011-12 and 70.5 PPG in 2012-13. That success carried over since joining the MAAC as the Bobcats ranked second in the league at 73.4 PPG in 2013-14 before leading the way again in 2014-15 with a league-record 78.5 PPG as well as 67.5 PPG in 2015-16. Over the last five seasons, Quinnipiac's cumulative scoring average is 71.6 PPG while the team dishes out 16.6 assists per game across the 168-game span.

Scoring Offense Last Five Seasons
Season	Games	W-L	Pts	PPG	Ast	APG
2011-12	32	22-10	2173	67.9	470	14.7
2012-13	33	30-3	2327	70.5	557	16.9
2013-14	34	21-13	2494	73.4	554	16.3
2014-15	35	31-4	2749	78.5	685	19.6
2015-16	34	25-9	2294	67.4	523	15.4
Total	168	129-39	12,037	71.6	2789	16.6

Schedule

QU Women's Basketball Opens MAAC Play at Saint Peter's on Thursday

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Players Mentioned

Jen Fay

Brittany Johnson

Morgan Manz

Adily Martucci

Aryn McClure

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QU Women's Basketball Opens MAAC Play at Saint Peter's on Thursday

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Jen Fay

Brittany Johnson

Morgan Manz

Adily Martucci

Aryn McClure

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