Bryant faces Brown in pre-Thanksgiving tilt

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BRYANT WELCOMES BROWN IN PRE-THANKSGIVING TILT

SMITHFIELD, R.I. - Off to its best three-game start in its brief Division I history, the Bryant University women's basketball team will welcome Brown University on Tuesday night at the Chace Athletic Center looking to down its nearby rival for the first time in four tries.  The Bulldogs are off to a 2-1 start on the season, while the Bears picked up their first win against Albany on Saturday night.

SERIES HISTORY

Since joining the DI ranks in 2008, Bryant and its nearby rival Brown have faced off three times, meeting once in each of the last three seasons.  Brown has won each of those contests, most recently earning 57-49 victory at the Pizzitola Sports Center on Nov. 23, 2010.

The closest Bryant has come to knocking off the Bears came in the 2008-09 season, when Brown walked off with a two-point, 64-62 win on its home court.  

BULLDOGS OUTLAST BLACK BEARS

Led by career-setting performances by a pair of sophomores, the Bulldogs cruised to a 65-53 victory over the University of Maine on Sunday, Nov. 19.

Classmates Naana Ankoma-Mensa and Courtney Schissler paced the Bulldogs with 20 and 17 points, respectively, with both players setting new career scoring highs with their efforts.  Schissler, who came off the bench, played one of her finest games with the Black and Gold, as she scored 12 of the team's final 14 points shot 7-of-10 from the field and went 2-for-3 from long range.

Bryant took advantage of 24 Maine turnovers, scoring 26 points off giveaways and 13 second-chance points.  For the third time this year, the Bulldogs were strong in the paint, scoring 30 post points while both teams finished even in boards with 36 apiece.

The Bulldogs finished having shot 24-of-59 from the field for a season-high 40.7 percent, but went just 13-for-21 from the charity stripe for a 61.9 percent free-throw mark.

SCOUTING THE BEARS

Looking to vie for an Ivy League title this year, 24-year head coach Jean Marie Burr welcomes back all five starters from 2010-11, with no players from last year's group lost to graduation.

Sophomore point guard Lauren Clarke will lead the backcourt again this season after a successful rookie campaign where she earned a spot on the Ivy League's All-Rookie team.  Through three games, she ranks third on the team in scoring (10.0 ppg).  

Junior Sheila Dixon, the team's Most Valuable Player and leading scorer and rebounder last season, is off to a torrid start, pacing the team in scoring (16.7 ppg) and rebounding (8.3 rpg).  She earned four double-doubles last season and led the squad in scoring and rebounding nine times.  

The Bears dropped their first two games of the season before picking up a 65-53 win over the University at Albany on Nov. 19.  Clarke led the Bears over the Great Danes with a team-high 17 points and nine rebounds.  She scored 13 of those points in the second half and went 5-of-8 from the floor.  Dixon chipped in 14 points and eight boards while senior Hannah Passafuime added 12 points.  

MARY VS. JEAN MARIE

Tuesday's coaching matchup represents two of the active winningest coaches in Rhode Island women's basketball history.  With 282 coaching wins, Burke is Bryant's all-time wins leader, trailing Brown bench boss Jean Marie Burr by eight wins.  Burr recently recorded her 290th victory with the Bears.

LAST YEAR IN PROVIDENCE

Then-sophomore Meredith Soper recorded her second double-double of the season and senior Siamone Bennett added 13 points, but the Bryant University women's basketball team could not climb back from a slow start as the Bulldogs fell to Brown, 57-49, on Nov. 23 at the Pizzitola Sports Center.   

After a slow start that saw the Bulldogs down 10-4 early, sophomores Soper and Danielle Douglas kept the Bulldogs in the game with a combined ten points in the opening ten minutes. 

While the home squad looked to the long ball, the Bulldogs remained consistent with short jumpers and eventually looked down low to Bennett, who put her team to within three late in the first half, but Brown was able to pull away in the final stretch of the frame thanks to back-to-back baskets by Sheila Dixon to give the home squad a 35-25 advantage at intermission.

Trailing by ten with 12 minutes left on the game, the Bulldogs slowly climbed back into the game as an impressive fade-away jumper from Soper highlighted a 9-4 run to put the visitors down by three with just over five minutes to play.But the Bears calmly regained the momentum with a Nickel 3-pointer and went on to hold a consistent lead for the eventual victory.   

SUPER SCHISSLER

In three games this year, sophomore Courtney Schissler has had a profound impact off the bench, averaging 18.3 minutes while posting a 9.7 scoring average.  Her 17 points against Maine was a new career high, and she has been clutch from the field, leading the team with a 47.8 field-goal percentage.  The Branford, Conn., native has not been afraid to chuck the long ball either, converting on 5-of-11 chances from downtown (45.5 percent).

NIFTY NAANA 

Tabbed by head coach Mary Burke as one of the team's key younger players that the Bulldogs' success could hinge on this year, sophomore Naana Ankoma-Mensa put forth a fine effort in the team's 65-53 victory over Maine, leading all players with 20 points – a new career high – while recording seven boards in 35 minutes of action.

The Brampton, Ont., native has started all three games for Bryant, and ranks second on the team in rebounding (7.0 rpg) and scoring (11.0 ppg) while averaging a team-high 35.7 minutes per game.  

OFF ON THE RIGHT FOOT

While just three games into the season, Bryant's 2-1 record stands as the best three-game mark since the team began playing a full Division I schedule in the 2008-09 season.  That year, Bryant started the year 2-2, but lost six of its next eight games.  A year later, after the Bulldogs went 4-4 to start the season, they dropped six straight heading into conference play.  Last year, Bryant lost five straight before picking up its first win on Dec. 3, 2010, and headed into January with a 3-8 overall record.

40s...FINALLY!

Coming into Saturday's matchup against Maine, Bryant had ranked as one of the worst teams in the league in field goal percentage, but the Bulldogs finally eclipsed the 40-percent mark against the Black Bears…albeit, just barely.  Bryant shot a season-high 40.7 percent from the field, converting on 24-of-59 shots in their 12-point victory.

DON'T MAKE IT LOOK THAT EASY

And on that note, the Bulldogs' defensive FG% has not fared well either, as the team as allowed opponents to shot 43.7 percent (69-for-158) from the field in three games, a mark that ranks in the bottom-third of the league in that category.

Maine's 39.6 FG% was the lowest allowed by Bryant's defense this year, as Iona shot an impressive 44.1 percent, while Colgate was an even more impressive 47.1 percent from the field.

STICKY FINGERS

With 45 steals in three games, the Bulldogs have been masters of the takeaways early on this year.  The fewest amount of steals that Bryant has recorded this year was 13 against Iona on Nov. 15, while registering 17 and 15 steals against Colgate and Maine, respectively, in its other two contests.

Juniors Meredith Soper and Katie Whittington share the team lead in steals with nine apiece, while senior Brittany Stahura ranks third with eight takeaways.  

OFF THE BENCH LIKE A BOSS

Bryant has seen some tremendous performances off the bench this year, as non-starters have accounted for 75 total points in three games - or 38.7 percent of the team's total scoring.

Leading the pack are junior Katie Whittington and sophomore Courtney Schissler.  Whittington's 11.0 ppg are tied for second-best on the squad, while Schissler has shot a team-best 47.8 percent from the floor in three games.  Whittington averages a whopping 32.0 minutes per contest, while Schissler has logged 18.3 minutes of action through three games. 

ROAD WARRIORS

After going just 3-13 in both away games and neutral-site games combined in 2010-11, the Bulldogs have won both of their road matches to start this season.  Bryant started the year with a thrilling two-point win at Colgate on Nov. 11, and recently put forth its best effort of the year in a 12-point rout of the University of Maine on Nov. 19, winning that contest by a 65-53 margin.

UP NEXT

Following the Thanksgiving holiday, Bryant will lace up three days later, traveling to ACC foe Boston College for an afternoon affair on Sunday, Nov. 27.  Opening tip at Conte Forum is set for 2 p.m.

For continuing coverage of Bryant University women's basketball, check back at www.bryantbulldogs.com, and be sure to follow the Bulldogs on Twitter @BryantAthletics.