BULLDOGS LOOK TO CONTINUE WINNING WAYS AT MOUNT ST. MARY'S

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Date: Saturday, Jan. 14, 2012
Time: 3:30 p.m.
Place: Knott Arena, Emmitsburg, Md.
Watch: www.MountAthletics.tv

SMITHFIELD, R.I. - Fresh off two enormous conference victories that catapulted the team into second place in the Northeast Conference, the Bryant University women's basketball team travels south for its only two road games in the month of January.  First up for the Bulldogs is a tilt with Mount St. Mary's on Saturday (Jan. 14) before rounding out the weekend at Wagner on Jan. 16.

THE SERIES - Bryant has squared off against The Mount on three previous occasions and trails the all-time series 1-2.  But the Bulldogs roared to an overtime victory at home against the Mountaineers last season, posting a 79-76 win at The Chace on Jan. 29, 2011.  The teams will meet twice this season.

LAST TIME OUT: BULLDOGS DOWN ROBERT MORRIS

Bryant let an 18-point advantage evaporate but ripped off a late rally of its own to pull out a 75-71 victory over Robert Morris in Northeast Conference action on Jan. 9 at the Chace Athletic Center.

After surrendering the lead with 11:45 to go in regulation, the Bulldogs fell behind by six points in a wild final 10 minutes that saw the lead change three more times before the final buzzer.  But a jumper by junior Meredith Soper with 20 ticks to go put the home team ahead for good, and classmate Katie Whittington iced the contest with back-to-back free throws.

Soper's performance was particularly memorable, as the Bay Stater missed a triple-double by a mere one assist.  She finished the game with 12 points and 11 boards to go with nine assists.  It would have been the program's first triple-double performance since current assistant coach Lynne-Ann Kokoski last did so against Bridgeport on Dec. 19, 2007.

Whittington, meanwhile, finished the night five points off her career high in scoring, dropping 21 points on 6-of-13 shooting, including a 5-of-10 clip from beyond the arc and a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line.  

SCOUTING THE MOUNTAINEERS

Coming into Saturday's affair with a 6-9 record and an even 2-2 mark in the conference, Mount St. Mary's most recently dropped a 59-52 decision against Monmouth on Monday (Jan. 9).  The Mountaineers are 5-2 at home, while just 1-7 away from Knott Arena.

In that game against the Hawks, Sydney Henderson paced the Mount with 18 points after drilling six baskets from behind the arc.  The junior leads the team with 10.1 ppg, the lone Mountaineer to average double-digit scoring.  She has reached double figures in each of her last four games and is averaging 12.8 points per game in that stretch.

Bryant should be wary of the Mount's hot touch from beyond the arc, as the Mountaineers lead the NEC in 3-point field goals made (6.40) and rank fourth in 3-pont field goal percentage (.337).  Mount St. Mary's has been hot from behind the arc in its last three games, converting 27 of 64 attempts (42.2 percent).

LAST YEAR AGAINST THE MOUNTAINEERS

Down nearly all of the second half, Bryant stormed back to force overtime as Siamone Bennett's career-high 24 points carried the Bulldogs past Mount St. Mary's, 79-76, on Jan. 29, 2011 at the Chace Athletic Center.

Down by one point with 2:39 left in regulation, Bennett gave the Bulldogs their first lead of the second half on a lay-in down low but the Mountaineers forced overtime at the free throw line.

Once in overtime, Danielle Douglas put Bryant on top with a midrange jumper and Bennett followed with a conventional 3-point play on the next possession for the five-point lead at the 1:48 mark. The Mount answered with two quick baskets but the Black and Gold hit the necessary free throws down the stretch for their second consecutive victory.

Bennett added ten rebounds to her career-high 24 points for her second double-double in as many games while Douglas and Katie Whittington chipped in with 15 and 14 points, respectively. Brittany Stahura recorded 11 points and nine rebounds while Meredith Soper added 11 points to round out the double-digit scorers.  

HAVE A WEEK, NAANA

While difficult to single out an individual effort as the key to Bryant's huge week, which included a three-game winning streak and monumental victories against preseason favorites Saint Francis (PA) and Robert Morris, sophomore Naana Ankoma-Mensa could have a go at that honor by virtue of her team-high 38 points and nine steals, not to mention her 16 boards which trailed only one player's total during that span.

Against Robert Morris, the Brampton, Ont., native set a new career high with 21 points while missing a double-double by one rebound.  She also garnered three steals and the team's lone block in that victory over the Colonials.

WONDERFUL WHITTINGTON

Contributing a team-high 21 points against Robert Morris, junior guard Katie Whittington was nothing short of brilliant and instrumental in the team's first-ever victory over the Colonials.  

The Twinsburg, Ohio native made history by going 5-of-10 from long range - the most made three-pointers for a player this season.  It was also the first time since Whittington's career day against Colgate on Dec. 11, 2010 that any Bulldog had recorded five or more three-pointers in a game.  On that occasion, Whittington went a mere 7-of-13 from beyond the arc, finishing the game with a career-high 26 points that still stands as her personal best to this day.

Whittington hasn't just thrived from long range, as her 88.2 percent free throw percentage is far and away the best in the league.  She has converted 60 tries in 68 attempts at the line this season.

SOPER BARELY MISSES TRIPLE-DOUBLE

In one of her finest outings of the season, junior Meredith Soper was one assist shy of a triple-double against Robert Morris on Jan. 9. It would have been the program's first such accomplishment since current assistant coach Lynne-Ann Kokoski last did so against Bridgeport on Dec. 19, 2007.

CAN'T MAKE IT TO THE GAME?

Bryant University Athletics offers more ways than ever before to watch, listen or follow your Bulldogs during all the action even when you can't make it to the court!  Head to www.bryantbulldogs.tv for information about single-game and full- season broadcasting packages, where you can watch webcasts of the Bulldogs for most home games.  Live stats can be found at www.bryantbulldogs.com for every contest, and you can follow @BryantGameday on Twitter for score updates.