St. John's University Athletics
St. John's Continues Road Swing At UMass
11/17/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Nov. 17, 2009
QUEENS, N.Y. - The St. John's women's basketball team will look to continue its winning ways when it travels to face Massachusetts at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday at the Mullins Center.
• The game will feature a live video stream that can be accessed for a fee at the UMass Web site, UmassAthletics.com. Live stats will be available for free and can be found at RedStormSports.com or at the UMass Web site.
Barnes Arico Captures 200th-Career Win
• Head coach Kim Barnes Arico captured her 200th-career victory against Stony Brook on Nov. 15 with an 89-52 win. She accomplished the feat in her 14th year of coaching. Last season, Barnes Arico became the fourth Red Storm women's basketball coach to reach 100 wins and the ninth basketball coach - men's and women's - at St. John's to accomplish the feat. She reached the milestone on Feb. 1, 2009, thanks to an 89-84 win over Seton Hall.
The 25th Time In History
• St. John's opened its 2009-10 campaign with an 89-52 victory over Stony Brook on Nov. 15. The win marked the 25th time in history that the Red Storm started a season with a victory. Since its inaugural season in 1974-75, STJ is 25-11 in its season-opening contests.
History Lesson
• St. John's and UMass meet for the 12th time in history. The Red Storm has the edge in the all-time series, 8-3, including a 4-2 mark at home, a 3-1 slate on the road and a 1-0 record at neutral sites. The last meeting between the teams was on Dec. 4, 2007, at Carnesecca Arena, and STJ came away with the 84-68 victory.
Scouting The Minutewomen
• Massachusetts opened its 2009-10 campaign with a 79-73 overtime win at home over in-state foe and soon-to-be STJ opponent Boston University. The Minutewomen had four players reach double-figures in scoring. Kristina Danella led the way with a 21-point performance, going 5-of-10 from the field, 1-of-2 beyond the arc and 10-of-14 from the free-throw line. She also finished second on the team with eight boards. Kim Benton was a close second with 18 points, and Diatiema Hill and Nicole Jones scored 14 and 13 points, respectively.
• The Minutewomen were outscored 38-30 by BU in the opening half, but turned it on in the second half and overtime to outscore the Terriers 49-35. UMass shot 38.3 percent from the field, 31.3 from long distance and tallied a 75.7 free-throw percentage.
Picking Up Right Where She Left Off
• Da'Shena Stevens, the 2009 BIG EAST Freshman of the Year, picked up right where she left off last season, pouring in a game-high 22 points. She scored 14 of her 22 points in the first half, and her point total is the second-highest in history for the Stamford, Conn., native. The sophomore was highly effective from the field, going 9-of-10, and she also recorded three steals on the contest.
All In
• In the Red Storm's season-opening game against Stony Brook on Nov. 15, all 12 St. John's players saw action in the contest. All five freshmen logged minutes and four scored in the game. After sitting out last season rehabbing an injury, sophomore Elon Sidney made her debut and played three minutes.
What A Debut
• Rated the No. 7 overall prospect in her freshman class by ESPN.com, Shenneika Smith had a stellar outing in her first collegiate game against Stony Brook on Nov. 15. Smith was second on the team in scoring with 17 points, including 10 in the second half, and finished the contest 7-of-15 from the field, 2-of-2 from 3-point range and 1-of-4 from the free-throw line. She was also strong defensively, recording a game-high three blocks while finishing second on the team with eight boards. Smith logged 26 minutes of action and got the start in the contest, the only STJ rookie to do so.
Nearly A Double-Double
• Joy McCorvey came close to recording a double-double in the season-opener at Stony Brook on Nov. 15, scoring eight points and grabbing nine rebounds. McCorvey finished the game going 3-of-5 from the field and 2-of-2 from the free-throw line, and grabbed two offensive and seven defensive rebounds. The Brewton, Ala., native also recorded three assists, the second highest on the team, and tied for the game-high with three steals.
Running The Offense
• Nadirah McKenith came off the bench in STJ's season-opener at Stony Brook and made an impact at the backup point position, recording a game-high five assists in her debut. In 21 minutes of action, she posted a team-high-tying three steals and scored six points, all coming from the charity stripe on a 6-of-8 effort. McKenith also grabbed three rebounds.
Close To Entering The Record Books
• McCorvey is close to entering the St. John's all-time rebounding list. The senior currently has 557 boards and is only 38 away from tying Rita Haywood for 10th with 595.
All About The Offense
• The Red Storm offense got going early and often in its season-opening 89-52 win over Stony Brook on Nov. 15. STJ shot 52.4 percent from the field in the game, including a 54.5 percent clip in the first half. The Red Storm outscored the Seawolves 48-14 in the opening frame, including holding SBU to a 14.3 field goal percentage. STJ also took advantage of Stony Brook miscues, scoring 37 points off turnovers in the contest.
On Deck
• The Red Storm returns to Carnesecca Arena for its home opener on Saturday when it welcomes Boston University at 2 p.m. STJ leads the series 11-3, including posting a perfect 6-0 mark at home. Last year the teams faced off at BU and the Red Storm came away with the 74-66 win on Dec. 30.
