Bentley Women Back on the Road Wednesday, This Time at Saint Rose
WALTHAM, Mass. – After a 36-point win over Franklin Pierce University New Year's Day, it's back to the road for the Bentley University women's basketball team, this time for a 4:30 pm game at The College of Saint Rose Wednesday.
The starting time at Daniel Nolan Gymnasium has been moved an hour earlier and fans who don't make the trip to Albany can watch on the NE10 Digital Network (NE10NOW.tv).
Playing away from campus for the tenth time in 13 games, the Falcons have won two in a row and are in a three-way tie for first in the Northeast-10 with Assumption University and Southern New Hampshire University. Coach C White's team is 8-4 overall with five wins in six conference games.
They'll be taking on a Saint Rose team that is in the middle of the Northeast-10 with records of 5-5 overall and 3-3 conference. The Golden Knights have dropped three in a row, including 55-45 at Pace University Saturday.
White has made it a habit of going deep into her bench every game. Ten players average at least ten minutes a game and a another is at 9.3. Senior guard Ella Thompson (Greenwood, Ind./Center Grove HS) leads in minutes with her 29.6 average 28th in the conference.
Graduate guard Kari Brekke (Appleton, Wis./Appleton North HS) is coming off one of her best performances of the season in the Franklin Pierce game and has taken over the team scoring lead at 11.3. Against the Ravens, she dropped six of eight attempts from three-point range through the basket and matched her season-best with 20 points. The NE10 leader in three-point accuracy, she made 16 of 28 over the last five games and has climbed to 13th in Division II.
Bentley's other two double-figure scorers are Thompson and junior forward Maggie Whitmore (South Portland, Maine/South Portland HS). Whitmore averages 11.1 points and leads the Falcons in rebounds (6.9), assists (35) and steals (13). Thompson, a second-team All-Northeast-10 performer last year, averages 10.2 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.7 assists.
The 86 points against Franklin Pierce boosted the Falcons' season norm to 67.3 points a game, third best in the conference. Defensively, they are fourth (58.2) with the opponents being limited to only 3.5 three-pointers and a .236 accuracy mark from deep.
Like Bentley, Saint Rose has three players who average in doubles. Junior guard Isabel Sanchez, whose 15 three-balls are a team-best, tops the scoring list 12.9. Freshman guard Aniya McDonald-Perry and sophomore guard Catherine Faherty follow at 10.3 and 10.0. Faherty has been sidelined since the end of November.
Sophomore guard Ryley Blasetti, the team's playmaker, scores 8.6 a game and has 40 assists.
Saint Rose leads the conference in field goals made and attempted, and offsets its .380 field goal percentage by collecting an NE10-best 17.8 offensive rebounds. The Golden Knights are 11th in the conference in scoring and ninth in scoring defense.
Bentley is 23-9 all-time against Saint Rose with six straight wins and ten in the last 11 meetings. Last year's score was 60-40 with junior guard Janessa Gonzalez (Meriden, Conn./St. Paul Catholic HS) scoring 14 off the bench.
The Falcons will also be away from home Saturday, playing at American International.