St. John's University Athletics
St. John's Meets Monmouth For Wednesday Road Game
11/22/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Nov. 22, 2005
The St. John's women's basketball team takes its unbeaten record on the road Wednesday night when it travels to Monmouth for a 7 p.m. game. The Red Storm is coming off two victories last week over Boston University and Army and will return home to Carnesecca Arena on Sunday, Nov. 27 following the Thanksgiving holiday.
Noting the Red Storm
• With two non-conference victories over Boston University and Army, St. John's opened its season with a 2-0 record for the second year in a row.
• Pacing the Red Storm offensively over the two games was Kia Wright, Angela Clark and Danielle Chambers. Wright, a preseason All-BIG EAST selection, scored a game-high 17 points vs. Boston University then followed up with a 16-point performance at Army. Her 16.5 points per game average ranks her eighth in the BIG EAST so far this year.
• Chambers, meanwhile, had a career-night vs. Boston University as her 17 rebounds was a personal best. She followed up that performance with nine points and four rebounds at Army.
• Clark had perhaps the best all-around showing for the week, as she averaged a double-double (15.0 ppg, 12.0 rpg) and shot nearly 60 percent from the field. Both her scoring and rebounding averages rank her among the best in the league so far in the young season.
• Sophomores Tiina Sten and Andrea Peterson also played key minutes for St. John's, as Sten had back-to-back six-point performances and Peterson started both games at point guard.
• Head coach Kim Barnes Arico opened her fourth season at the helm of St. John's with a 2-0 record for the second year in a row. Last season, the 2004-05 squad won its first 11 games, going undefeated in non-conference play for the first time in school history.
• Prior to Friday night's tip-off, Director of Athletics Chris Monasch and university trustees and benefactors Donald and Eleanor Taffner presented Coach Barnes Arico with a replica of the WNIT banner that now hangs in Carnesecca Arena in recognition of her 2004-05 squad's postseason appearance.
• St. John's and Monmouth have not met since the 1982-83 season, when the Red Storm defeated the Hawks, 67-60, on Feb. 26, 1983. The only other meeting between the two teams was a 61-60 St. John's victory during the 1981-82 season.
• The Red Storm returns to the hardwood following Thanksgiving, when it hosts Niagara on Sunday, Nov. 27, in a 2 p.m. game at Carnesecca Arena.
EARLY FORECAST
• Rookie Monique McLean has enjoyed success in her first two outings as a collegiate player. In St. John's win over BU, the freshman guard reached double figures on 5-of-8 shooting for 10 points and also pulled down 10 rebounds. She followed up at Army with four points, four rebounds, three assists and a steal.
• The other two members of the Red Storm's freshmen class, Lisa Claxton and Angel Tate have also seen playing time. Claxton saw nine minutes vs. BU and 10 vs. Army, while Tate pulled down her first career rebound in Sunday's game vs. the Black Knights.
LOCAL TIES
• One of head coach Kim Barnes Arico's goals when taking over the Red Storm program was to keep the top players from New York close to home at St. John's. Three seasons later, her philosophy continues, as six out of 12 players on the roster are from the Empire State.
• High school teammates Angela Clark and Kia Wright hail from Copiague, Long Island, while freshman Lisa Claxton is from Hempstead, Long Island. Seniors Mercedes Dukes and Danielle Chambers are from the Bronx and Brooklyn, respectively, while senior Dana Petersen is a Staten Island native.
• Born in Mastic Beach, N.Y., Barnes Arico is also a New Yorker and has coached in or near the state during her entire career. She has moved up the coaching ranks from New Jersey's Fairleigh Dickinson-Madison to NJIT and out to Long Island at Adelphi University before making the move to Queens to take the reins of St. John's.
RED STORM IN THE RANKINGS
• Several Red Storm players are at or near the top of the BIG EAST statistical rankings.
• Kia Wright is currently eighth in the BIG EAST in scoring (16.5 ppg), while Angela Clark is third for rebounding (12.0 rpg), tied for 11th for scoring (15.0 ppg) and 15th for field goal percentage (.550). Danielle Chambers ranks eighth for rebounding with 10.5 per game.
• Rebounding has been a particularly strong suit for St. John's in the early goings, as the team ranks third in the conference for defensive rebounds (29.0 per game) and ninth in offensive rebounds (14.5 per game).
• As a team, St. John's ranks seventh in scoring offense (69.0 ppg) and field goal percentage (.446).
EXPERIENCE IS BACK
• St. John's has six players returning who averaged at least 20 minutes from last year's squad. At the top of the extremely deep roster is Kia Wright and Angela Clark. Wright was a second-team All-BIG EAST selection and led the team in scoring, while Clark registered more double-doubles than any other Red Storm player.
• Joining Wright in the backcourt is Andrea Peterson, who started 18 games during her rookie season.
• The Red Storm boasts five seniors on its roster: Greeba Barlow, Danielle Chambers, Mercedes Dukes, Dana Petersen and Tara Walker. Barlow, Chambers and Walker all spent time in the starting line-up last season, while Dukes saw key minutes in a reserve role and Petersen is the only player to have been on the team all three seasons of Barnes Arico's tenure at St. Johns.
MORE FAMILIAR FACES
• Now entering her fourth year at St. John's, head coach Kim Barnes Arico has put together a staff that is more than familiar with her coaching.
• Assistant coach Shannon Farley first played for, then coached under Barnes Arico at Adelphi University on Long Island before moving with her to St. John's. Director of Basketball Operations Jackie Smith has been with Barnes Arico from the beginning, as she begins her fourth season at St. John's as well.
• Assistant coach Jonath Nicholas begins his second season on the Red Storm sidelines this year, while assistant coach Joe Tartamella returns in a full-time role after serving as a graduate assistant in 2002-03 and 2003-04.
SCOUTING MONMOUTH
• Monmouth (1-1) bounced back from a season-opening loss to Delaware State with a 88-79 Nov. 19 victory over Navy. Niamh Dwyer led the Hawks with 23 points and 14 rebounds.
• The Hawks are led by Dwyer, who leads the team with 14.5 points and 10.5 rebounds per game, as well as Veronica Randolph (11.5 ppg) and Lindsey Zegowitz (9.0 ppg).
• St. John's leads the all-time series with Monmouth, 2-0, but the teams have not met since Feb. 26, 1983. That game was a 67-60 St. John's victory. Prior to that game, the teams met on Jan. 6, 1982 and St. John's prevailed, 61-60. Both games were played in Queens.
• Monmouth's head coach is Michele Baxter (St. John Fisher '87).
UP NEXT
• St. John's returns to Carnesecca Arena on Sunday, Nov. 27, at 2 p.m. for a game against Niagara.
PRESEASON NOTEBOOK
St. John's To Host Two Home Games At Madison Square Garden For First Time
• For the first time in school history, the Red Storm women's basketball team will host two regular-season BIG EAST games at Madison Square Garden. St. John's can be seen at the World's Most Famous Arena on Jan. 21 against Villanova and on Jan. 29 against West Virginia.
Storm Picked To Finish Eighth In New-Look BIG EAST
• St. John's was picked to finish eighth in the new-look, expanded BIG EAST as the league held its annual BIG EAST Women's Basketball Media Day on Oct. 27.
• Rutgers was chosen the preseason favorite, followed by Connecticut and Notre Dame. DePaul and Villanova rounded out the top five.
BIGGER Is Better
• This season, the BIG EAST Conference expanded to 16 teams for women's basketball, making it the largest conference in the nation. New for 2005-06 are Cincinnati, DePaul, Louisville, Marquette and South Florida. Twelve teams will qualify for the BIG EAST Championships, held March 4-7 at the Hartford Civic Center in Hartford, Conn.
Wright Named To The Preseason All-BIG EAST Team
• Junior guard Kia Wright was named to the preseason all-conference team, the league announced on Oct. 27. The Copiague, N.Y., native returns after a breakout first year in a Red Storm jersey. One of the most dynamic guards in the league, Wright was a second team All-BIG EAST selection in 2004-05 and led the Red Storm in scoring with 14.8 points per game while adding 4.3 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game.
Taffner Field House, New Home Of St. John's Basketball
• St. John's University opened the doors of Taffner Field House in September 2005. At approximately 43,000 square feet, the $16 million Taffner Field House includes four full size basketball courts and dedicated locker rooms for both student recreation and men's and women's basketball. It contains new offices and meeting rooms for the men's and women's basketball staffs, as well as weight training and medical training rooms. The facility also houses office and meeting space for Recreation and Intramural Sports.
EMAIL STRAIGHT TO YOU
• If you would like the latest St. John's women's basketball news emailed to you directly as soon as it breaks, email women's basketball contact Amy Mulligan at mulligaa@stjohns.edu with "Basketball Email" as the subject and you will receive every update distributed on the team.
