QU Women's Basketball Closes Non-Conference Play Against Central Michigan on the Road Thursday

Thursday, December 21

Mount Pleasant, MI / McGuirk Arena

7:00 PM

Quinnipiac University

Central Michigan

Tickets

QU Women's Basketball Closes Non-Conference Play Against Central Michigan on the Road Thursday

12/19/2017 3:17:00 PM | Women's Basketball

By: QU Athletic Communications

Thursday, Dec. 21, 2017 | 7 PM (ET) | McGuirk Arena, Mount Pleasant, Michigan | ESPN3
QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY BOBCATS (5-5) vs. CENTRAL MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY CHIPPEWAS (8-2)
Watch It Live: ESPN3
Follow Live Stats: CMUchippewas.com
Listen Live: AM 1220 WQUN
Updates: @QU_WBB
Game Notes: Quinnipiac | Central Michigan

All-Time Series vs. Central Michigan: QU leads 1-0
Current Streak: Quinnipiac – 1 straight
Last Meeting: Quinnipiac 90-79 (2009-2010)

MOUNT PLEASANT, MICHIGAN - After falling to Michigan State on the road on Monday evening, the Quinnipiac women's basketball team will look to get back on track as the Bobcats will close their non-conference schedule on Thursday against Central Michigan at 7 p.m.

LAST GAME (MICHIGAN STATE 74, QUINNIPIAC 55)
Michigan State jumped out to a 9-0 lead and the Bobcats were unable to recover as the Spartans captured a 74-55 win at the Breslin Center on Monday evening. Michigan State stretched its lead out to 17-7 at the end of the first quarter and 26-7 with another 9-0 run to start the second quarter. The Bobcats got as close as nine at 28-19 on two foul shots from Paige Warfel, but Michigan State ended the half on a 7-0 run to take a 35-19 lead into the break and maintained a double-digit lead the rest of the way. Quinnipiac was led by Jaden Ward off the bench, who finished with a career-high 12 points, but she was the only Bobcat in double figures on the evening.

SCOUTING CENTRAL MICHIGAN
The Chippewas come in with an 8-2 record on the year after seeing an eight-game win streak snapped in their last outing, a three-point loss to Duquesne on Sunday. They are an exceptional shooting team, knocking down 10.7 three-pointers per game on 41.2 percent shooting from beyond the arc, while ranking among the top free throw shooting teams in the nation at 84.7 percent. Five players average in double figures in scoring for Central Michigan, led by Presley Hudson, who averages 19.8 points on 45.3 percent shooting from three and 95.1 at the line. Tinara Moore averages 15.7 points and 8.2 rebounds, Cassie Breen averages 15.0 points, and Reyna Frost averages 11.7 points and 13.5 rebounds. Micaela Kelly rounds out a starting five with all five players in double figures at 10.4 points per game.

LAST MEETING
The two teams have met once before, although it has been a while. Quinnipiac came away with a 90-79 win over the Chippewas on December 29, 2009 in the consolation game of the Miami (Fla.) Holiday Tournament. The next time the Bobcats returned to Miami, the wins were a bit larger, as Quinnipiac defeated Marquette and the host Hurricanes last year in the NCAA Tournament to advance to the Sweet 16.

GIVING IT HER ALL
Junior Aryn McClure, the Preseason Player of the Year in the MAAC, is a player who contributes across the board in many stat categories. McClure had a strong effort in the matchup at No. 9/8 Ohio State (11/17) as she went for 15 points (6-16 FG) with six rebounds (three offensive), four assists, two blocks, one steal and no turnovers in 31 minutes of play. McClure put up similar numbers last season in the NCAA Tournament in wins against Marquette (11 points, six rebounds, four assists, two blocks) and at Miami (15 points, four rebounds, three assists, one block). She currently leads all active Bobcats in scoring at 10.1 points per game this season.

FILLING THE STAT SHEET
Much like Aryn McClure (see above), redshirt junior Jen Fay has been contributing in many ways for the Bobcats this season. After tossing in a game-high 23 points (8-13 FG, 4-6 3FG), one shy of her career high, to go along with six rebounds in the season-opener at Iowa (11/10), Fay went for 15 points (5-12 FG, 4-10 3FG) with nine rebounds at No. 9/8 Ohio State (11/17). This season, she has been achieving personal bests in other categories besides scoring, setting a new career high with 14 rebounds against Dayton on Nov. 28, and passing it with 15 in a Dec. 6 win over Providence. She also had a career-best six assists in the Dayton win. She ranks fourth in the MAAC in rebounding at 8.2 per game.

SHEWAN NAMED MAAC PLAYER OF WEEK
Senior forward Sarah Shewan was named the MAAC Women's Basketball Player of the Week on Dec. 4 after a strong performance in a pair of wins over Atlantic 10 teams, although the award was bittersweet. Shewan made her first start of the season on Nov. 28 against Dayton, filling in for injured Aryn McClure, and responded with one of the best games of her career. She finished with 24 points and 13 rebounds in the 72-66 win, including 10 points and eight rebounds in the first quarter alone, when she had 10 of Quinnipiac's 17 points as the Bobcats led 17-11. The 24 points tied her career high, while the 13 rebounds was one shy of her personal best. With McClure back at Richmond, Shewan returned to her bench role but continued on her hot streak, tallying a team-best 22 points and nine rebounds in an 81-65 win. However, she was injured in the fourth quarter of the Richmond game and has not returned to action, remaining on the sidelines indefinitely.

LEADING THE HERD
After spending much of her rookie season on the bench, sophomore Taylor Herd has cracked the rotation in the early portions of the new season, breaking through with a career high 10 points (3-7 FG, 2-4 3FG) in 13 minutes at nationally-ranked Ohio State (11/17). After scoring nine points in 13 games last season, Herd eclipsed her entire career scoring output in one game as she went for 10 points, including eight in the first half. Herd hit on two of her four three-point attempts, scoring from the three-point line for the first time in her career. She added eight points on two more three-pointers in a Dec. 1 win at Richmond and made her first career start on Dec. 3 at Hampton, filling in for injured Vanessa Udoji. She matched her career high with 10 points in her second career start in a Dec. 6 win over Providence.

STEPPING UP
Senior Sarah Shewan and sophomore Vanessa Udoji, two of the team's top five scorers, suffered injuries against Richmond on Dec. 1 and have been out of action ever since. The void has given other Bobcats the chance to contribute, and several players responded in a Dec. 6 win over Providence. Sophomore guard Taylor Herd, who moved into the starting lineup in Udoji's absence, matched her career high with 10 points in the win. Sophomore forward Jaden Ward also set new career highs with nine points and five rebounds, while sophomore forward Paige Warfel had a strong effort on the glass, tallying eight rebounds in 18 minutes (one shy of her career high). Quinnipiac has had to adjust since the injuries, though. The Bobcats have frequently used a "gold rush" system with five players substituting at a time in recent years, but they used only eight players total against Princeton on Dec. 9.

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 67-8 (.893) in games played at home. In just the last three-plus seasons (since 2014-15), Quinnipiac owns a mark of 42-4 (.913). That mark ranks as the 12th-best home win percentage in the nation over that span. 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.

PRESEASON POY
Junior wing Aryn McClure became the first Bobcat in program history to be named the MAAC Preseason Player of the Year while she also earned a spot on the 2017-18 Preseason All-MAAC Third Team. Already a two-time All-MAAC performer, McClure entered her third year armed with impressive all-around career totals including 618 points, 441 rebounds, 172 assists, 109 blocks (8th all-time at Quinnipiac) and 93 steals through 70 games. McClure has led the Bobcats in rebounding each of her first two seasons while she led the team in both rebounds and assists last season. She is on-pace to become the program's all-time Div. I record holder in career blocks while she has a chance to join a select list that includes only two others in the Bobcats' Div. I era to finish their respective careers with 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds.

PUTTING IN A GOOD FAY'S WORK
Joining McClure on the 2017-18 Preseason All-MAAC First Team was forward Jen Fay, as the redshirt junior is coming off a breakout showing in the 2017 NCAA Tournament. Fay's return to the court in 2016-17 after a missed 2015-16 season (season-ending ACL injury over the summer of 2015) provided a huge boost to the Bobcats as she ranked first on the team in scoring (10.5 PPG). Fay led the Bobcats in two shooting categories, posting a team-leading 47.5 percent (134-282 FG) from the floor and 38.3 percent (44-115 3FG) from three, as she was the only player in the MAAC to lead her respective team in both categories.

PAULA = PIVOTAL PLAYER
The play of Paula Strautmane was one of the biggest indicators to the Bobcats' team success last season. In the 29 games the Bobcats won in 2016-17, Strautmane averaged 9.3 PPG (44.4 FG%), 5.8 RPG, 2.3 APG, 1.8 SPG and 1.6 BPG in 20.6 MPG. Compare those stats to Strautmane's averages in the seven Bobcat losses, 3.9 PPG (19.0 FG%, 66.7 FT%), 4.3 RPG, 1.1 APG, 0.6 SPG and 0.3 BPG, and the difference is clear. Strautmane reached double figures 14 times last season and the Bobcats went 13-1 (.929) in those contests. So far this year, Quinnipiac is 4-1 when she scores in double figures (12.2 PPG, 55.6 FG%), 1-4 when she doesn't (6.8 PPG, 30.6 FG%).

BACK-TO-BACK-TO-BACK
Quinnipiac enters the 2017-18 season as three-time defending MAAC regular season champions, earning the top record in conference play at 17-3 last year. Owning a 54-6 (.900) regular season mark against MAAC competition over the last three seasons, including an undefeated 20-0 conference season in 2014-15, the Bobcats have dominated the league since joining in 2013-14. Now in exclusive company, Quinnipiac is one of just 13 programs in the nation (UConn, George Washington, Notre Dame, Baylor, DePaul, Maryland, Green Bay, Colorado State, Oregon State, South Carolina, Chattanooga and New Mexico State) to win three straight regular season titles entering 2017-18.

2017 NCAA TOURNAMENT NOTABLES
- Quinnipiac became the fourth No. 12 seed in NCAA Div. I women's basketball history to advance to the Sweet 16, joining BYU in 2014, Kansas in 2013 and San Francisco in 1996
- In addition, Quinnipiac became the fourth team in history to defeat a No. 4 and No. 5 seed to advance to the Sweet 16
- The Bobcats hit 15 three-pointers, finishing just one shy of matching a single-game program record, in an 85-78 upset at then-No. 16 ranked Miami in the NCAA Second Round
- Quinnipiac's 15 triples stands as the third-most in NCAA Second Round history
- Quinnipiac defeated the No. 16 nationally-ranked Miami Hurricanes, marking the first time Quinnipiac has defeated an ACC program and the second straight NCAA Tournament win over a ranked opponent after coming in with an all-time mark of 0-9 against ranked foes
- Quinnipiac advanced into the Sweet 16 as the lowest-seeded team remaining in the field at the time, while standing as one of just two double digit seeds (No. 10 Oregon) who advanced past the NCAA Second Round
- The Bobcats also carried the flag as the lone mid-major program to advance two rounds in the 2017 NCAA Tournament as well as the lowest-seed in both the men's and women's brackets to make the Sweet 16 round
- The Bobcats became the first female sports program at Quinnipiac to win an NCAA Tournament game
- Quinnipiac University now has three athletic programs win at least one game in the NCAA Tournament (women's basketball, men's ice hockey and men's lacrosse)
- Quinnipiac became the 23rd team in the history of the NCAA Tournament to win as a No. 12 seed in a No. 5 vs. No. 12 NCAA First Round matchup
- Quinnipiac defeated a Marquette squad that earned the No. 25 ranking in the most-recent USA Today Coaches' Poll, marking the first time in program history the Bobcats have defeated a nationally-ranked opponent
- The win marked the first time a Quinnipiac basketball program (women's or men's) has won a game over a nationally-ranked foe

2016-17 SEASON-IN-REVIEW
- At season's end, Quinnipiac achieved two more program-firsts as Quinnipiac earned the No. 23 ranking in the USA Today Coaches' Poll to earn a national-ranking for the first time in program history
- In addition, Quinnipiac was voted the top mid-major program in the nation in the College Insider Mid-Major Poll, marking the first time the program has earned the No. 1 ranking in the mid-major ranking poll
- The Bobcats finished 29-7 overall and 17-3 in league play to complete their sixth straight 20-win season while advancing to a fifth straight appearance in the conference championship game, sixth straight trip to a national postseason tournament and earning a third straight MAAC Regular Season title
- Quinnipiac clinched its third straight MAAC Regular Season title, winning seven straight games down the stretch of regular season play to edge out Rider (16-4 MAAC) for the top spot in the standings
- The regular season title is the Bobcats' fourth in the last five years dating back to the 2012-13 campaign where Quinnipiac was crowned the NEC Regular Season Champion
- The Bobcats joined a list of 12 programs across the nation to have won at least three straight conference regular season titles while Quinnipiac has dominated the MAAC with a mark of 54-6 (.900) in league games since 2014-15
- Early last season, Quinnipiac clinched their sixth straight 20-win season, an accomplishment only 26 teams in the nation can boast heading into 2017-18

LEADER OF THE PACK
Head coach Tricia Fabbri enters her 23rd season leading the Bobcats in 2017-18, as the four-time Coach of the Year (twice in four MAAC seasons) and all-time winningest coach in program history came into the new campaign with 379 career victories. Engineering a program that ranks 10th in the nation in total wins (134) over the last four seasons, Fabbri's Bobcats have reached the 20-win plateau in six straight seasons, won three conference titles in the last five seasons and earned three consecutive MAAC Regular Season titles.

ANOTHER NATIONAL POSTSEASON APPEARANCE
Quinnipiac's third trip to the NCAA Tournament last year marked the sixth straight national postseason appearance for the Bobcats and the seventh in program history. The Bobcats earned its first national postseason appearance with a trip to Iona in the 2008 WNIT Tournament and then made a second WNIT Tournament appearance in 2012 against Temple. The first NCAA Tournament berth came in 2013 as the Bobcats earned a No. 13 seed to play at No. 4 Maryland. Quinnipiac also took home the 2015 MAAC Championship, claiming a No. 12 seed and facing No. 5 Oklahoma. In the 2014 and 2016 postseason, the Bobcats advanced to the WNIT, defeating Maine, 90-44, in 2016 for the program's first-ever postseason win.

FIRST NATIONALLY RANKED WINS COME AT RIGHT TIME
The Bobcats are 2-12 all-time against nationally-ranked competition and own an all-time mark of 9-36 against teams in high-major conferences (ACC, BIG EAST, Big 12, B1G, Pac-12 and SEC). After going 0-for-9 in their first nine games against ranked foes, Quinnipiac won two straight games against nationally-ranked opponents in the 2017 NCAA Tournament before bowing out to the eventual NCAA Champions South Carolina (this year's non-conference schedule has included losses to nationally ranked Missouri and Ohio State). Quinnipiac had its first ranked win in an NCAA First Round victory over a Marquette squad that came in ranked No. 25 in the USA Today Coaches' Poll and followed that up with a road triumph over No. 16 Miami. The Bobcats' six other wins over high-major foes have come against Alabama, Minnesota, St. John's (NY), Syracuse and Providence (three times, including this season on Dec. 6).

ALL-TEAM-FIRST MENTALITY
Quinnipiac has long preached the mantra of team-first and last season certainly is no different. Upon the announcement of the All-MAAC Teams, Quinnipiac found themselves with three All-League players – Adily Martucci (Second Team All-MAAC), Aryn McClure (Third Team) and Jen Fay (Third Team) – but none on the All-MAAC First Team. This marked the second time in the last three seasons (all of which have ended with Quinnipiac standing as the regular season champion in the MAAC) without representation on the All-MAAC First Team. Armed with a 54-6 record in the league over the last three seasons, Quinnipiac has just one All-MAAC First Team selection in that span (Samantha Guastella 2015 – Bobcats went 20-0 in the MAAC that season). In the 2016-17 season alone, the Bobcats stand as the only team in the nation to have won their conference's regular season title outright and not have a First Team All-Conference player (32 conferences in the country).

HITTING THAT MAGIC NUMBER
Quinnipiac's 76-60 win over Siena last season clinched yet another 20-win campaign for Head Coach Tricia Fabbri in 2016-17. The 11th 20-win season in program history made it six in-a-row as well as the eighth in Fabbri's 22-year coaching career at Quinnipiac. Quinnipiac is one of just 26 teams across the nation and one of 11 mid-major programs to record six straight 20+ win seasons. Over those last six complete seasons, Quinnipiac has compiled a record of 158-46 for a .775 win percentage which ranks as the 13th-best overall mark in the nation.

DEE-FENSE
Quinnipiac's defense led the MAAC all last season as the Bobcats allowed 58.6 points per game (56th-best mark in the nation). Quinnipiac allowed fewer than 60 points per game for just the third time in the program's Div. I history (2015-16 – 58.7, 2012-13 – 57.4, 2007-08 – 58.7). In MAAC regular season games, Quinnipiac allowed a miniscule 53.3 PPG while opponents shot just 35.3 percent from the floor in conference play, both standards that led the MAAC. For the season, Quinnipiac allowed opponents to shoot 36.9 percent (39th-best in the nation) while also ranking 21st in the nation in steals per game (10.8). Allowing 0.777 points per possession (best in the MAAC), Quinnipiac held opponents to fewer than 70 points in 29-of-36 games last season including 20 of the last 23 contests. The Bobcats had a run of 19 straight games holding teams to fewer than 70 points snapped in the MAAC Championship game win over Rider.

MAAC WIN STREAK
Quinnipiac saw its streak of 25 consecutive MAAC conference victories end in a 61-58 loss at Monmouth last season. An impressive streak nevertheless, the Bobcats strung together 17 straight wins to end the 2015-16 regular season and eight straight to open the 2016-17 season. That dominance is rivaled in recent time only by Marist who put together a 30-game unbeaten streak in the MAAC regular season that stretched from 2011-12 to an undefeated 18-0 record in 2012-13 and ending in 2013-14.

BIG MOVERS IN THE MAAC
Since joining the MAAC in 2013-14, Quinnipiac has reeled off a record of 78-14 (.848) in all games against MAAC opponents and 68-12 (.850) in regular season MAAC games, both records that currently lead all teams in the conference. The Bobcats rank well ahead of Iona who sits with the second-best mark of 63-25 (.716) in games against conference foes over the last four seasons and stand 58-22 (.725) in regular season MAAC play.

TOP SPOT IN THE MAAC
Quinnipiac finished last season with the lead in eight different statistical categories, while the Bobcats ranked no worse than third out of 11 MAAC teams in 17 out of 21 major team statistics. Quinnipiac led the MAAC in scoring offense (68.4), scoring margin (+9.7), field goal percentage defense (36.9), blocked shots (4.9), assists (16.2), steals (10.8), turnover margin (+5.00) and assist/turnover ratio (1.11).

GOTTA LOVE THAT HOME COOKIN
Quinnipiac's extended home dominance is particularly impressive when looking at games against MAAC opponents, as the Bobcats stand with a mark of 36-4 (.900) at home in league games since joining the conference in 2013-14. That prominence is only magnified when looking at the last three seasons, as the Bobcats are 29-1 (.967) at the TD Bank Sports Center in conference games since 2014-15, with the only loss coming two years ago to Manhattan. Heading into its conference opener at home against Siena (Dec. 28), the Bobcats are currently riding a 19-game unbeaten streak in home games against MAAC foes.

THE ULTIMATE CLOSERS
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. Overall, however, the Bobcats went 22-2 in the 2016-17 season to give Quinnipiac a mark of 67-2 since the start of 2014-15 in games in which Quinnipiac leads at the half, while this year's 4-0 record with halftime leads (Dayton, Richmond, Hampton, Providence), has improved that mark to 71-2 (.973).

THAT 70s SCORING SHOW
Since the 2007-08 season, Quinnipiac is 135-15 (.900) in games wherein the Bobcats score 70 or more points, including a 16-0 mark in 2016-17 and 59-2 (.968) combined since 2014-15. During 2016-17 (16-0), 2012-13 (18-0) and 2010-11 (8-0), the Bobcats compiled undefeated records in each respective season when reaching the 70-point scoring plateau. So far this year, Quinnipiac has won both of its games when scoring 70 or more, improving its win streak in those contests to 27 in a row (the last defeat was a 71-70 loss in overtime to Florida Gulf Coast in 2015-16 - the last regulation loss was to Oklahoma in the 2015 NCAA Tournament)).

Quinnipiac's Record in Games Scoring 70+ Points Since 07-08
Season Record
2017-18      2-0
2016-17    16-0
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) 135-15 (.900)

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 ranked in the top two in the MAAC in assist/turnover ratio in each of the last five seasons while ranking Top 50 in the nation four times. The prolonged trend continued in 2016-17, as the Bobcats led the MAAC and ranked 46th in the nation in assist/turnover ratio (1.11).. Quinnipiac is currently second in the MAAC (behind only Fairfield) with a 1.0 ratio this season, while Carly Fabbri leads the league individually with a 2.5 ratio (33 assists, 13 turnovers).

Assist/Turnover Ratio Last Six Seasons
Season Games APG TPG A/TO NCAA CONF
2012-13 33 16.9 14.5 1.17 10th 1st (NEC)
2013-14 34 16.3 13.1 1.24 20th 2nd (MAAC)
2014-15 35 19.6 13.3 1.47 5th 1st (MAAC)
2015-16 34 15.4 14.9 1.03 51st 2nd (MAAC)
2016-17 36 16.2 14.7 1.11 46th 1st (MAAC)
2017-18 9 14.4 13.9 1.04 -- 2nd (MAAC)
Total 181 16.8 14.1 1.20 -- --

NEXT UP
Quinnipiac will open up MAAC play at home on Dec. 28 against Siena.