Mountaineers Travel to New York
December 29, 2010 10:31 AM | General
MORGANTOWN, W. Va. – It’s that time of basketball season again. Anticipation has begun to build as non-conference play starts to wind down, with only two games remaining for sixth ranked West Virginia before BIG EAST play begins in earnest.
The first of these two remaining non-conference games will take place on Thursday night at 7 p.m., against an old non-conference foe, St. Bonaventure. The two schools have met 20 times before, with West Virginia leading the series, 16-4. However, the last time they met in March of 2009, St. Bonaventure came away with the 68-63 win. Perhaps more significant, the win took place at Bob Lanier Court at the Reilly Center, where St. Bonaventure went 12-4 last year, and where Thursday night’s game will also be held.
The Bonnies (9-4) look to be led by Megan Van Tatenhove, a junior forward who has emerged as the team’s leader in nearly every category. She currently averages 14.5 points per game and 5.8 rebounds per game. She also leads the team blocks with 11, and is second in steals, with 16. She also ranks second in minutes played, averaging 30.7 minutes per game behind teammate Jessica Jenkins, who averages 32.7.
Jenkins, a junior and the team’s starting guard, averages 12.1 points per game, while also leading as the team’s three-point shooter, having made 30 baskets from outside the arc. Junior guard Armelia Horton and sophomore forward Chelsea Bowker round out the top four in scoring, averaging 7.6 and 7.3 points per game, respectively.
The Bonnies come into Thursday’s contest having won two-straight games over Texas-San Antonio and Sacred Heart. As usual, the Mountaineers will rely upon their stingy defense to change this momentum in their favor. They might also rely on confidence gained from averaging 73.8 points per game and posting a perfect 6-0 record so far for the month of December.
The West Virginia defense has done its part this season, holding all opponents to less than 60 points, including holding opponents to an average of 46.2 points per game in December. The offense has done its part as well, picking up the pace and putting points on the board when needed. Due to this combined play, the team is off to its best start and its best ranking in program history, now sitting at 12-0 and in the sixth position in the polls.
Once again, the team looks to be led by its top three scorers, Madina Ali, Liz Repella and Asya Bussie. Ali leads the team in scoring, having picked up four double-doubles on the season while averaging 14.4 points per game. She also leads the team in rebounding, averaging 7.7 boards per game, and steals, with 30.
Ali is followed in scoring by Repella and Bussie, who average 13.3 and 7.8 points per game, respectively. In addition, Repella has also been averaging 5.7 rebounds per game and has also helped out extensively on defense by notching 11 blocks and 29 steals.
The starting five is expected to remain the same, with Ali, Repella, Bussie, Korinne Campbell and Brooke Hampton starting out on the floor. Campbell holds the team’s third highest rebounding average, and has 12 steals so far on the season. And true freshman Hampton leads the BIG EAST in assist/turnover ratio, with 47 assists in contrast to her nine turnovers.
Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. at Bob Lanier Court at the Reilly Center in St. Bonaventure, N.Y. Live audio will be provided on MSNsportsNET.com with Travis Jones on the call.
The first of these two remaining non-conference games will take place on Thursday night at 7 p.m., against an old non-conference foe, St. Bonaventure. The two schools have met 20 times before, with West Virginia leading the series, 16-4. However, the last time they met in March of 2009, St. Bonaventure came away with the 68-63 win. Perhaps more significant, the win took place at Bob Lanier Court at the Reilly Center, where St. Bonaventure went 12-4 last year, and where Thursday night’s game will also be held.
The Bonnies (9-4) look to be led by Megan Van Tatenhove, a junior forward who has emerged as the team’s leader in nearly every category. She currently averages 14.5 points per game and 5.8 rebounds per game. She also leads the team blocks with 11, and is second in steals, with 16. She also ranks second in minutes played, averaging 30.7 minutes per game behind teammate Jessica Jenkins, who averages 32.7.
Jenkins, a junior and the team’s starting guard, averages 12.1 points per game, while also leading as the team’s three-point shooter, having made 30 baskets from outside the arc. Junior guard Armelia Horton and sophomore forward Chelsea Bowker round out the top four in scoring, averaging 7.6 and 7.3 points per game, respectively.
The Bonnies come into Thursday’s contest having won two-straight games over Texas-San Antonio and Sacred Heart. As usual, the Mountaineers will rely upon their stingy defense to change this momentum in their favor. They might also rely on confidence gained from averaging 73.8 points per game and posting a perfect 6-0 record so far for the month of December.
The West Virginia defense has done its part this season, holding all opponents to less than 60 points, including holding opponents to an average of 46.2 points per game in December. The offense has done its part as well, picking up the pace and putting points on the board when needed. Due to this combined play, the team is off to its best start and its best ranking in program history, now sitting at 12-0 and in the sixth position in the polls.
Once again, the team looks to be led by its top three scorers, Madina Ali, Liz Repella and Asya Bussie. Ali leads the team in scoring, having picked up four double-doubles on the season while averaging 14.4 points per game. She also leads the team in rebounding, averaging 7.7 boards per game, and steals, with 30.
Ali is followed in scoring by Repella and Bussie, who average 13.3 and 7.8 points per game, respectively. In addition, Repella has also been averaging 5.7 rebounds per game and has also helped out extensively on defense by notching 11 blocks and 29 steals.
The starting five is expected to remain the same, with Ali, Repella, Bussie, Korinne Campbell and Brooke Hampton starting out on the floor. Campbell holds the team’s third highest rebounding average, and has 12 steals so far on the season. And true freshman Hampton leads the BIG EAST in assist/turnover ratio, with 47 assists in contrast to her nine turnovers.
Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. at Bob Lanier Court at the Reilly Center in St. Bonaventure, N.Y. Live audio will be provided on MSNsportsNET.com with Travis Jones on the call.
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