St. John's University Athletics
St. John's Hosts Sixth-Annual Chartwells Holiday Classic
12/13/2013 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 13, 2013
Game 1: SJU vs. Drexel, Saturday at noon
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Game 2: James Madison vs. Prairie View A&M, Saturday at 2:30 p.m.
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Game 3: Drexel vs. Prairie View A&M, Sunday at noon
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Game 4: SJU vs. James Madison, Sunday at 2:30 p.m.
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QUEENS, N.Y. - The Red Storm women's basketball team is hosting the sixth-annual St. John's Chartwells Holiday Classic at Carnesecca Arena on Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 14-15, when Drexel, James Madison and Prairie View A&M come to Queens. The four tournament games will be streamed live on ESPN3.
The Red Storm will open the tournament with a noon tip against Drexel on Saturday and round out the holiday competition on Sunday when St. John's faces James Madison at approximately 2:30 p.m.
Last Time Out
- The St. John's women's basketball team suffered its second defeat of the season on Dec. 6, falling 69-55 to the hosting Auburn Tigers in Auburn, Ala. The Red Storm now has a record of 5-2.
- St. John's bench outscored Auburn's 14-4 and the Red Storm shot 58.3 from the field in the second half and scored 34 points in the paint overall, but could not notch its second road victory of the season. The Tigers held St. John's to a season-low in halftime and total points, and turned 22 Red Storm turnovers into 22 points while shooting 50 percent for the game.
- Sophomore guard Aliyyah Handford netted a team-high 18 points on an efficient 7-of-12 shooting, and was a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line. Handford, who added four rebounds and three assists, has scored at least 18 points in each of the first seven games of the season.
Scouting Drexel
- Drexel sits at 2-5, 0-0 CAA entering Saturday's matchup against the Red Storm in the St. John's Chartwell's Holiday Classic.
- The Dragons, who are 1-4 on the road this season, fell at American, 47-41, in their last contest. Drexel shot 19 percent from beyond the arc and 30 percent from the field in the losing effort.
- Freshman forward Sarah Curran is the lone Dragon averaging double figures in scoring with 10.1 points per game. Senior guard/forward Fiona Flanagan leads the team in rebounding with 7.6 boards per contest and is second on the squad in scoring (9.9 ppg).
- Head coach Denise Dillon, who has BIG EAST roots as an All-BIG EAST performer in the mid-1990s at Villanova, enters her 11th season at Drexel where she owns a 181-140 overall record. The two-time CAA Coach of the Year led her squad to 2013 WNIT Championship last season.
St. John's & Drexel - The Series
- This is the first meeting between the Red Storm and the Dragons.
Scouting James Madison
- Coming into the weekend, James Madison is 6-2, 0-0 CAA including a 71-61 win on the road at Pittsburgh on Dec. 4.
- Junior forward Toia Giggetts, who is averaging 11.8 points and 5.5 rebounds per game, was named the CAA Women's Basketball Player of the Week on Dec. 9 after putting up a career-high 23 points on 10-of-15 shooting from the field in the Dukes' win over Pitt.
- Leading the team and second in the conference in scoring with 18.4 points per game is senior guard Kirby Burkholder. Burkholder also leads the squad in rebounding with 8.5 rpg.
- Head coach Kenny Brooks enters his 11th season in Harrisonburg where he has helped lead James Madison to eight-straight postseason appearances, including three NCAA Tournament berths in 2007, 2010 and 2011. Brooks was CAA Coach of the Year in 2007.
St. John's & James Madison - The Series
- Sunday's meeting will be the first ever meeting between the two programs.
St. John's and the Chartwell's Holiday Classic
- St. John's is 9-1 in the St. John's Chartwell's Holiday Classic dating back to the first Classic in 2008-09 when the Red Storm topped Buffalo and Boston College en route to the Holiday Classic title.
- The Red Storm's lone blemish in its Holiday Classic history was last season when St. John's fell on a last second layup in overtime to then-No. 14/17 UCLA, 53-52.
Red Storm 3-Point Defense Ranks Top-15 In The Country
- The Red Storm defense has been phenomenal in the early 2013-14 season, holding opponents to just 65.6 points per game. St. John's foes are hitting just 23.7 percent of their attempts from behind the arc, ranking the Red Storm 11th in the country in 3-point field goal defense. On the offensive side, St. John's is 27th in field goal percentage (45.9).
Handford Ranked 14th In The Nation In Scoring
- Handford is 14th in the nation in scoring after averaging 23.4 points per game and notching team-highs in points in the first seven games. The sophomore guard also ranks 27th in the country in field goal percentage (58.5).
BIG EAST Leaders
- In the BIG EAST, St. John's is ranked first in field goal percentage with a 45.9 mark after going 186-of-419 from the floor. The Red Storm also boasts the best 3-point field goal percentage defense (.237) in the conference.
- Individually, Handford leads the BIG EAST in scoring with 23.4 points per game and is fourth in steals with 2.3 per game.
Up Next
- Following the St. John's Chartwells Holiday Classic the Red Storm will head to Manhattan to play at Madison Square Garden in the Maggie Dixon Classic. St. John's is set to tip off at 11 a.m. against Texas A&M on Sunday, Dec. 22.
Players Mentioned
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