St. John's University Athletics
Women's Basketball Travels To DePaul For Saturday Showdown
1/10/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Jan. 10, 2014
QUEENS, N.Y.- The St. John's women's basketball team is back in action on Saturday, Jan. 11, when the Red Storm (9-5, 2-1 BIG EAST) plays at DePaul (11-4, 2-1 BIG EAST) at 5 p.m. The conference showdown will be televised on Lakeshore Public Television in Chicago and nationally on Fox College Sports Pacific.
Last Time Out
- The Red Storm put four players in double figures for the second time this season, scored 34 bench points and shot 48.1 percent from the field on its way to a 67-48 victory in Wednesday evening's BIG EAST women's basketball contest at Carnesecca Arena. St. John's improved to 9-5 overall and 2-1 in the BIG EAST.
- Sophomore guard Danaejah Grant scored a season-high 16 points, junior forward Amber Thompson notched her third double-double of the campaign and 10th of her career with 11 points and 12 rebounds, senior Eugeneia McPherson added 11 points of her own and freshman Jade Walker added a career-high 10 points to pace a balanced Red Storm attack.
Scouting The Blue Demons
- DePaul comes into Saturday's contest against St. John's at 11-4, 2-1 BIG EAST after topping Providence 91-71 on Jan. 8.
- The Blue Demons were picked to finish first in the BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll, the first such honor for the program since joining the conference in 2005-06.
- Senior forward Jasmine Penny leads DePaul on the scoring front where she averages 16.9 points per game. Penny, who was named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll on Jan. 6, is also second on the team in rebounding with 5.5 boards per contest. Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year Brittany Hrynko leads the conference in assists (89) and assists average (5.9).
- The Blue Demons are led by head coach Doug Bruno, who in 28 seasons at DePaul has recorded 542 victories, 18 NCAA Tournament berths, two Sweet 16 appearances, four conference tournament championships and four regular-season titles.
St. John's & DePaul - The Series
- In the all-time series between the two programs, DePaul owns a 6-3 advantage.
- The Red Storm had fallen to the Blue Demons in three-straight meetings until last season when 20-point performances by Shenneika Smith and Amber Thompson propelled St. John's to a 67-54 victory at Carnesecca Arena on March 4, 2013.
- Junior forward Amber Thompson has been outstanding when facing the Blue Demons recording a pair of double-doubles in two showings as she knocked in 10 points and pulled down 16 rebounds in 2012-13 and scored 20 points and grabbed 16 boards in 2012-13.
McPherson Dishing It Out
- Since making her return to the hardwood, Eugeneia McPherson has averaged a team-high 3.9 assists per game and four of her five starts McPherson has recorded game-highs in assists each game.
Thompson Taking Over
- Junior Amber Thompson has kicked it into high gear since the Red Storm's upset victory over No. 24 Texas A&M in the Maggie Dixon Classic. In St. John's last five games, Thompson is averaging a double-double with 11 points and 10.4 rebounds per game. Scoring in double figures in three consecutive contests, the forward registered her ninth and tenth career double-doubles in wins over Delaware (14p, 15r) and Creighton (11p, 12r).
- In BIG EAST action, Thompson leads the team and is third in the conference in rebounding with 10.0 grabs per game and is adding 11.3 points per game.
Red Storm Against BIG EAST Foes
- The Red Storm sits at 2-1 in early BIG EAST action and has three student-athletes averaging double-digits when playing conference foes as St. John's owns a +7.7 scoring margin. Danaejah Grant leads the way in league play with 13.7 points per game, while Amber Thompson averages a double-double with 11.3 points and 10.0 rebounds per outing.
BIG EAST Leaders
- In the BIG EAST, St. John's sits atop the BIG EAST list for 3-point field goal percentage (.342) and field goal percentage defense after limiting opponents to just a 26.3 mark from behind the arc. The Red Storm is also ranked second in field goal percentage with a .440 mark after going 343-of-780 from the floor and second in rebounding defense (36.4).
- Individually, Aliyyah Handford is third in the league in scoring with 17.6 points per game, fifth in field goal percentage (.521), and is fourth in steals with 2.1 per game. After hitting 34-of-40 attempts at the charity stripe, senior captain Briana Brown is third in the BIG EAST with an 85.0 percentage in free throw percentage.
McPherson Nears 1,000 Points
- Senior guard Eugeneia McPherson has tallied 940 career points, 60 short of becoming St. John's 20th 1,000-point scorer. Were she to reach the mark, McPherson would become the third player to reach the 1,000-point plateau under head coach Joe Tartamella, joining graduated guards and the program's first ever WNBA draft picks Shenneika Smith and Nadirah McKenith, who achieved the feat in 2012-13.
- McPherson returns to the court after suffering a season-ending injury just five games into the 2012-13 season, which she opened with a 14-point, five-assist game against Texas in the WBI Tip Off Invitational. McPherson has averaged 8.5 points per game for her St. John's career and was the only player to start and play in all 34 games in the 2011-12 campaign, her last full season, finishing as the Red Storm's third-highest scorer with an average of 11.8 points per game and finishing with a team-high 32 3-pointers.
Up Next
- St. John's returns to Queens for its third home conference game of the season when the Red Storm welcomes Butler on Wednesday, Jan. 15, for an 11:30 a.m. tip in St. John's fourth annual Field Trip Day. The BIG EAST showdown will be carried live on ESPN3.
Players Mentioned
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