Posted: Jan 07, 2020

Merrimack up next for Bulldogs

NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – The Bryant University women's basketball looks for its second conference win when they travel to the newest member of the NEC Merrimack on Wednesday, Jan. 8 at 7 p.m.

THE MATCHUP
Bryant welcomes Merrimack into the Northeast Conference on Wednesday, Jan. 8 at 7 p.m. in North Andover. The two teams are no stranger to one another as they have met 48 times in Bryant's Division II era. The Bulldogs hold the series record, 30-18. Bryant looks to even the series record in North Andover as Merrimack holds the record, 12-11.

SCOUTING THE WARRIORS
Merrimack started its Division I era with a bang by topping UMass to start the season, 79-64, posting a 7-4 record in the non-conference schedule. The Warriors have yet to grab an NEC win, falling to both Sacred Heart and Robert Morris to start NEC play.

Senior Denia Davis-Stewart has proven to be Merrimack's stud on both ends of the court. At UMass, Davis-Stewart posted a triple-double with an explosive 31 points, 13 rebounds, and 12 blocks. The 6-1 forward followed the triple-double with three-straight double-doubles and has nine double-double performances so far this season.

LAST TIME OUT: FAIRLEIGH DICKINSON
The Bulldogs picked up their first conference victory over Fairleigh Dickinson, 57-45, on Saturday afternoon. Trinity Bravo (Bridgeport, Conn.) posted a career-high 14 points and was one of three Bulldogs to contribute double-figure scoring. Sydney Holloway (Morgantown, W.Va.) added 11 points while Nicole Gallagher (Foxboro, Mass.) trailed with 10. The two teams battled back and forth all game until the Black and Gold started to pull away in the fourth quarter. Bryant shot a season-best 18-of-28 from the foul line and 16-of-18 in the fourth quarter alone.

SEEING DOUBLE
Holloway posted her first double-double since November in Minnesota. Holloway netted 11 points, 12 rebounds at FDU for her third double-double this season and 39th of her career.

BEGINNERS LUCK
Gallagher posted back-to-back double-figure scoring performances in her NEC debut. Against SFU, Gallagher posted 14 points, four assists, and four rebounds. In Bryant's first conference victory at Fairleigh Dickinson, the rookie netted 10 points, six rebounds, and two assists. She now averages 12 points in conference play.

BRAVO!
Bravo had a career-game against Albany with 12 points and a career-best eight assists and four blocks before posting a new career-high in scoring at FDU with 14 points. The sophomore also tallied seven rebounds, two assists, and one block in Bryant's first NEC win.

I WANT KANDY
Junior guard Kandis Taylor (Sunrise, Fla.) has seen the court more this season than in previous years averaging 14.6 minutes a game. The 5-7 guard played a season-high 20 minutes at FDU scoring a career-high seven points shooting five-of-six from the stripe. Taylor has swiped nine steals in Bryant's last five games including three against Brown.