Bulldogs face Blue Devils on Senior Night with home-court advantage in quarterfinals on the line

SMITHFIELD, R.I. - The Bryant University women's basketball team wraps up the regular season by hosting Central Connecticut on Monday at 7 p.m. for senior night.

GAME NOTES

THE SERIES
This contest marks the 18th meeting between the Bulldogs and the Blue Devils with Bryant controlling a one-game edge in the series, 9-8. The outcome of the contest will help predict if the Bulldogs host the first round of the NEC tournament or hit the road for the playoffs.

SCOUTING THE BLUE DEVILS
Currently in sixth in the NEC standings and one game behind Bryant and Mount St. Mary's, Central Connecticut is vying to finish one spot higher. Win or lose, the Mount would finish higher than Central because Mount split with Saint Francis U. and Central did not. The Blue Devils top the conference in rebounding offense (40.1) and defensive rebounds (26.57) behind Reynoso Giocelis' 8.4 boards per game. CCSU is lead offensively by Aleah Epps, who averages 11.5 points per game. Kiana Patterson backs Epps with 11.0 points per contest, while Andi Lydon puts up 9.1.

LAST VS. THE BLUE DEVILS
After giving up a nine-point halftime lead, a pair of free throws by Kierra Palmer pulled the Bulldogs within one, 51-50, in the fourth. The next trip down Palmer pushed in transition, drawing the foul as she took it to the basket. The point guard's made buckets from the line gave the Bulldogs back the lead, 52-51, with 18 seconds to go. Lydon followed with a near-impossible shot over Morgan Olander to earn the lead back for Central, 53-52, with 6.5 seconds to go. The Bulldogs had a foul to give, when Naomi Ashley forced a CCSU turnover with 0.5 seconds left. In their last ditch effort, the Bulldogs inbounded the ball to Olander, who was unable to get the three-point attempt off in time, as Bryant fell, 53-52.

THE PLAYOFF PICTURE
The Bulldogs currently sit tied for fourth with Mount St. Mary's, posting a 10-7 NEC record. The Bulldogs have the tie-breaker, having split with top-seeded Robert Morris. Dependent upon the different scenarios, Bryant could finish as high as fourth and host the first round or as low as sixth and most likely travel to play at Saint Francis U. The only way the Bulldogs finish fifth is if the top-two seeds change.

Here is the full breakdown of who will lock in fourth place:

If MSM wins, BRY wins and CCSU loses... BRY #4, MSM #5, CCSU #6
If MSM loses, BRY wins and CCSU loses... BRY #4, MSM #5, CCSU #6
If MSM loses, BRY loses and CCSU wins... MSM #4, CCSU #5, BRY #6
If MSM wins, BRY loses and CCSU wins...MSM #4, CCSU #5, BRY #6

AT THE POUND
The Bulldogs hold the best home record in the league at 10-2, which boasts well for the Black and Gold, as they enter their final regular-season home game on Monday, as they fight for home-court advantage in the playoffs.

HOME ON THE RANGE
The Bulldogs are fresh off a four-game homestand, where they finished 4-0, including back-to-back wins over two top-three seeded teams in the league. During the four-game sweep, five Bulldogs managed higher points-per-game averages, including seniors Alex Klein and Olander, who put up 14.8 and 12.0, respectively.

After averaging 3.2 assists in the Bulldogs' previous five road losses, Palmer averaged 9.25 helpers during the stretch. The Black and Gold shot 41.6 percent from the floor, .344 percent from three and averaged an assist/turnover ratio of 1.1 during the team's longest win streak of the season.

NEC HOME VS. AWAY
The Bulldogs post a 7-1 league record at home, while sitting 3-6 on the road, heading into their final regular season home game. At home, Bryant has outscored league opponents in the second, third and fourth quarters, as well as in overtime, while only putting up more points in the fourth on the road. The Black and Gold have been significantly better in categories, such as points per game, scoring margin, assists per game and turnovers per game.

SHE MY SWAT QUEEN
Olander averages a team-high 1.43 blocks per game, placing her fourth in the league in rejections. The 6-2 center has recorded 3+ blocks on six occasions and has tallied a season-high four swats twice this season.