Dec. 30, 2011
GAME INFO
St. John's vs. Boston University
Dec. 31, 2011
3 p.m.
Carnesecca Arena (5,602)
QUEENS, N.Y. - St. John's will finish out 2011 hosting the Boston University Terriers at Carnesecca Arena on Saturday, Dec. 31. Tip off is slated for 3 p.m. in this New Year's Eve non-conference match up. It is the last non-conference game for the Red Storm.
Saturday's Tip Off Quick Hits
• Saturday's contest will be aired live via an STJ-TV broadcast on StormTracker All-Access via RedStormSports.com. Follow all the action from Carnesecca Arena as Ralph Bednarczyk and Stephan Florival call the game courtside. Red Storm fans can also follow GameTracker stats and live twitter updates via @stj_wbasketball. Join the conversation with the hashtag #stjwbb.
• Saturday's meeting is the 17th between these two non-league opponents. St. John's has won the last four-straight contests including last year's 66-42 victory at Case Gym on Dec. 4.
• Going into the Red Storm's final non-conference game of 2011, St. John's is 7-5 against non-league opponents and 6-1 on its home court of Carnesecca Arena. St. John's only loss this season at home was in the season-opener against St. Bonaventure (Nov. 12). The Red Storm lost to the Bonnies 64-58.
• St. John's will be heading into Saturday's game looking to rebound off its pre-holiday loss at Harvard, 63-56 (Dec. 22). The Terriers will be playing its third game in as many days as Boston University participated in neighboring Fordham University's Christmas Tournament. In the first day of the tourney, BU lost to Coppin State, 59-44. The Terriers are set to play Navy at 1 p.m. on Dec. 30.
• Senior Da'Shena Stevens returned to play on Dec. 17 after missing the first 10 games rehabbing an offseason knee injury. Stevens has not yet appeared in the starting line up, but has averaged 7.0 points per game, 6.0 rebounds per game and 3.7 assists per game through three games played.
• During Stevens' return, the Red Storm has been missing its point guard, Nadirah McKenith, who injured her left knee against Baylor (Dec. 11). In McKenith's absence, sophomore Keylantra Langley has moved into the starting line up as point guard.
• St. John's head coach Kim Barnes Aricois 10 wins away from becoming St. John's all-time winningest coach.
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Red Storm vs. Terriers • Saturday's game is the 17th meeting between the Red Storm and Terriers in an all-time series dating back to 1979. St. John's holds a 13-3 record over Boston University with all three losses at "The Roof" of Case Gym.
• St. John's won the first meeting between the two schools, 72-56 on Feb. 3, 1979. BU won the very next year, 90-81 at Boston in a double-OT game - but did not win again until Feb. 24, 1988.
• In 1980-81, STJ and BU went into OT again, this time STJ winning, 104-94.
• The series was rekindled in 2005. Since then, St. John's is 5-1 over BU and has won the last four meetings.
Coaching Match Up
• 10th-year head coach Kim Barnes Arico is 159-130 (.550) at St. John's. She is 253-202 (.556) overall as head coach.
• Boston head coach Kelly Greenberg is in her eighth season at the helm of the Terriers' women's basketball program. She boasts a 132-96 (.577) record at Boston U. She is 216-150 over her 13-year career.
Scouting Boston University
• Boston University extended its visit to three days in New York City as the Terriers played back-to-back games in the Fordham Christmas Classic against Coppin State and Navy (Dec. 29-30), before heading over the Throgs Neck Bridge to play St. John's in Queens on New Year's Eve.
• Before losing to Coppin State, 59-44, the Terriers were previously riding a three-game winning streak, defeating Yale (59-54), Marist (49-36) and Boston College (70-62) during the span.
• With a 6-5 overall record heading into the Terrier's Friday match up against Navy, Boston U is 2-4 in road games this season, but are 4-0 at Case Gym.
• The BU scoring threat is headed by three Terriers who average in the double digits. Chantell Alford leads the pack with an average of 13.0 ppg. She is aided by Mo Moran with 12.2 ppg and Alex Young with 10.8 ppg. Caroline Stewart is the Terriers' main rebounder with 9.0 boards per game.
Against The America East
• In the Kim Barnes Arico Era, St. John's is 15-5 against BU's affiliates in the America East. In 2009-10, STJ went 2-0 over teams from the America East, with a win over Boston U and an 89-52 victory at Stony Brook in the season-opener.
• In 2010-11, St. John's only game against an America East opponent was against BU. In 2011-12, the Red Storm is 1-0 against the conference, with a 70-45 victory over Hartford at Carnesecca Arena (Dec. 4).
When Last They Met: St. John's vs. Boston U
• The Red Storm and Terriers last met on Dec. 4, 2010 at Case Gym, otherwise known as "The Roof" in Boston, Mass. Then-No. 20/24 St. John's took off to a 20-point lead, 32-12 with four minutes left in the first half.
• The Terriers could not rally back and St. John's led by as many as 28 points at the 7:32 mark in the second period, 60-32.
• St. John's was led by Centhya "Coco" Hart and Da'Shena Stevens with 15 points each. STJ took advantage of 21 BU turnovers to score 23 points. Hart and Stevens helped St. John's dominate the inside as the Red Storm outscored the Terriers, 38-12, in the paint.
• St. John's had 17 steals in the game.
• The Red Storm defense held point guard Mo Moran to just eight points and no assists, just two weeks after Moran recorded a triple-double vs. Yale for the Terriers.
Common Ground
• St. John's and Boston U hold a common opponent in Harvard. Both the Red Storm and Terriers lost to the Crimson. The Terriers lost 62-57 on Nov. 30, while the Red Storm lost 63-56 on Dec. 22.
BU vs. The BIG EAST
• The Terriers are 1-1 against the BIG EAST in 2011-12, defeating Providence 65-62 in the season-opener but losing to West Virginia 78-53 on Dec. 3.
Postgame Notes: Harvard
• Despite scoring first, the Red Storm lost 63-56 at Harvard on Dec. 22. It was the first-ever regular season meetings between the two teams. With less than a minute left, St. John's had rallied to cut the deficit to one possession, 59-56, but the Crimson prevailed on their home court.
• Rookie Amber Thompson tallied her third-career double-double with 13 points and a game-high 13 rebounds. Eugeneia McPherson led the Red Storm with a game-best 14 points, connecting on 3-of-5 from beyond the 3-point line. It was McPherson's eighth-consecutive double-digit scoring performance. Shenneika Smith also added 12 points to go along with seven rebounds, three blocks, three steals and an assist.
• Da'Shena Stevensled the team with five assists. The Crimson had four players net 12 points each, Emma Golen, Victoria Lippert, Brogan Berry and Christine Clark.
Up Next
• St. John's will ring in the New Year with its first home conference game against Providence on Jan. 4. St. John's is 0-1 in BIG EAST play this season, losing to DePaul on Dec. 7, 52-69.
• Tip off between the Friars and Red Storm is slated for 7 p.m. at Carnesecca Arena.
