Bulldogs host Catamounts Saturday at 1 p.m.

GAME NOTES

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The Bryant University women's basketball continues quest for the first win of the 2015-16 season, taking on America East competitor Vermont on Saturday, Nov. 21 at 1 p.m. in Smithfield.

ON TAP FOR 2015-16 SEASON

The Bryant University women's basketball team will look to work towards another record-breaking season and a return to the Northeast Conference Tournament for the fourth-straight year.

THE SERIES

Saturday will mark the 3rd all-time meeting between the Bulldogs and Catamounts. Bryant is 2-0 in the series, having won both in Smithfield and in Burlington. Last years' contest resulted in a significant victory for the Black and Gold, winning 72-55 on the road.

SCOUTING THE CATAMOUNTS

The Catamounts enter the match at 1-1, having beat Central Connecticut, 79-63, at home and losing to Columbia, 73-56, on the road. Vermont is led in scoring this season by sophomore guard Sydney Smith, with 25 points in the Catamounts' first two games. Vermont is averaging 44.5 rebounds per game, while shooting 39.6% from the floor and 36.6% from three.

FOUR QUARTERS

With the new NCAA rule changes, women's basketball has switched to four 10-minute quarters. Thus far, the Bulldogs have dominated in the middle two quarters, holding opponents to an average of 17.25 points in those quarters vs. an average of 23.5 points in the first and fourth quarter respectively.

The Bulldogs gave up 39 points to Seton Hall in the first quarter, but held them to 14 in the fourth. The opposite story happened against Cornell, holding them to 15 in the first, but allowing 26 in the fourth.

BOUNDS BY THE POUND

One of the Bulldogs' biggest strength is their performance on the glass, both offensively and defensively. In the first match of the season, Bryant outrebounded Seton Hall by 15 rebounds, with two players finishing in double digits. In the fourth quarter alone, the Bulldogs grabbed 10 offensive boards, with senior Breanna Rucker (Cincinnati, Ohio) leading the way. Junior Morgan Olander (Mansfield, Conn.) finished the game with 10 total rebounds, while Rucker ripped down 12. Both post players average double-digit rebounds through the first two games of the season.

Even the guards got into the mix, with senior shooting guard Tiersa Winder (Baltimore, Md.) averaging five and sophomore guard Ivory Bailey (Wyomissing, Pa.) at 4.5 per game. The Bulldogs finished as a team with 47 rebounds in their season opener on the road against Seton Hall and 42 in their home opener against Cornell, resulting in an average of 44.5 per game. Against Cornell, the Bulldogs out-rebounded the Big Red by 12, placing their rebounding margin at +13.5 in the first two contests.

PALMER FROM 3-POINT LAND

Freshman Kierra Palmer (Aberdeen, Md.) made a statement in the Bulldogs' 2015-16 home opener against Cornell, hitting four of six attempts from behind the arc, including three-straight treys to put the Bulldogs within one in the third quarter. Two of the three-pointers came from way downtown at the top of the key, showing the freshman's confidence in her shooting ability.

RAM-SURE-IS-ON

Junior point guard Chanel Ramcharran (Pickering, Ont.) was the spark off the bench for the Bulldogs in their 2015-16 season opener on Friday against Seton Hall, earning her the start against Cornell. The 5-3 point guard contributed five points, three rebounds and two assists in her 25 minutes of play against the Pirates. Ramcharran helped the Bulldogs hold the Pirates to 35 second-half points, while the Black and Gold put up 29 of their own points in the second half. The point guard finished with only two turnovers, while the team tallied 25 as a whole. Ramcharran played 17 minutes for the Bulldogs in their second contest of the season, primarily providing control over their offensive tempo. The junior did not see much time last year, but the upperclassman is set to make a difference when she does hit the floor for the Black and Gold.

THE STARTING FIVE

Returning to Bryant's starting lineup is reigning NEC Player of the Year Breanna Rucker and NEC Rookie of the Year Ivory Bailey. Joining them is center Morgan Olander and shooting guard Tiersa Winder, all of which started for the Bulldogs last year. The question mark in the starting lineup is at the point guard position. Junior Chanel Ramcharran came off the bench against Seton Hall and provided the leadership the Bulldogs needed. Although, last game against Cornell, freshman Kierra Palmer went 4-6 from downtown and helped mount the Bulldogs' comeback in the third quarter.

IN THE CENTER

Morgan Olander made 30 appearances last season, starting in all of them as the Bulldogs' center. The forward has been instrumental in the Bryant defense, seizing 240 defensive boards, while recording 28 steals and 36 blocks last season. Olander also has a key offensive presence, scoring double-digit points on 19 occasions, including a season high of 19 against LIU Brooklyn (Jan. 26). The center averaged 6.5 points for the Bulldogs in their first two games of the season, while grabbing the team's second highest 10 rebounds per game.

CONSISTENT

Winder returns to the starting five, coming off a standout junior season, where she started all 31 games for the Black and Gold, sitting just behind Rucker for total points on the season, with 455. The versatile guard also dished out 61 assists, including a game-high of four on six different occasions. Winder put up the second highest points for the Bulldogs against Seton Hall, totaling 11 points on 14 shot attempts. The guard also seven rebounds, including five on the offensive end. Winder hit three threes against Cornell and went 100% from the line, finishing with 11 points in the contest.

DOMINANT

Breanna Rucker is coming off a dominant 2014-15 season, where she ranked top 20 in the nation in rebounds and double-doubles, with 22 in 31 games. This season, the senior is averaging 10.5 rebounds per game and 9.5 points per game, scoring a season-high of 12 against Cornell. The 5-11 swing player has recorded nine defensive rebounds and 12 offensive rebounds this season. The swing player is shooting 36.4% from the floor (4-11) and 91.7% from the line (11-12) in her 56 minutes of play.

THE GO-TO

Ivory Bailey is the Bulldogs' leading scorer through the first two games of the season, averaging 18 points per game. The 5-7 guard put up a season-high 21 points on the road against Seton Hall, while going 6-19 for 15 points against Cornell in Bryant's home opener. In an average of 37 minutes per game, Bailey is averaging 2.5 assists per game, 4.5 rebounds per game, while shooting 43.3% from the floor and 33.3% from behind the arc.

FROM THREE

In the Bulldogs first game of the season against Seton Hall, they went only 5-24 (20.8%) from behind the arc. Against Cornell, Bryant went 5-8 (62.5%) from downtown, led by the efforts of freshman Kierra Palmer, who hit four of her six attempts from three-point land.

Last season the Bulldogs shot 29.1% from three in their 31 games, finding that even if they were not on from downtown, they could still battle it out under the basket and come out with a win. With the addition of Palmer this season, the Black and Gold may be looking at even greater success from behind the arc. With numerous players capable of driving and kicking, the three will be open for the Bulldogs, it is just whether or not they will be able to seize the moment when they get it.

Last season, the team attempted 602 three-pointers, while their opponents were held to 515, nearly 100 less. Already this season, the Black and Gold have put up 55 threes in two games. If Winder, Bailey or Palmer get going, it could be a deadly weapon for the Bulldogs' scoring attack.

TURNOVERS

Under head coach Mary Burke, the Bulldogs look to push the tempo of the game and score in transition, which consequently can result in a hefty amount of mistakes. Last season, the Black and Gold averaged 16.1 turnovers per game, but also forced opponents into an average of 16.7 turnovers per game. This season the Bulldogs have given up the ball an average of 23 times per game, while their opponents have averaged 11.5 turnovers per game. 

"SUCCESS IS IN THE PREPARATION"

Head coach Mary Burke and the women's basketball coaching staff has put together quite the 2015-16 slate, going head-to-head with Big East foe Seton Hall in their first match of the season and A-10 competitor UMass Amherst. Both games will mark the first time in program history that the Bulldogs will face the two opponents.

The schedule also includes road games against nonleague, UMass Lowell, Holy Cross, Boston College, Maine and Providence College. Nonconference home games consist of Vermont, Cornell, Brown and New Hampshire.

The Bulldogs will face an array of opposition to get ready for conference games come January and post season play in March. The program will look to use their competitive schedule to become better prepared for tournament play and improve upon their three-straight NEC Tournament appearances and 2014-15 Regular Season Co-Champions title.

RECORD SETTING 2014-15 SEASON

For the first time in program history, the Bulldogs finished as NEC Regular-Season Champions, completing the regular season with a program's best 21-8 and 13-3 in the conference. The NEC Quarterfinal was played against #7 Mount St. Mary's, where the Black and Gold won, 76-54. The Bulldogs advanced to the semifinals for the second year in a row, where they faced #3 Robert Morris, losing 68-62, and resulting in a 22-9 overall record and 14-4 in the NEC.