DePaul University Athletics
Blue Demons and Hokies Tangle in NCAA Tournament First Round
3/20/2005 12:00:00 AM | WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
2005 NCAA Tournament First Round
No. 5 DePaul (25-4) vs. No. 12 Virginia Tech (17-11)
Sunday, Mar. 20 - 7:17 p.m. EST/6:17 p.m. CST
Comcast Center - College Park, Md.
TV - ESPN2 and ESPNU (coverage information)
Internet Audio
Game Notes
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The DePaul Blue Demons return to the NCAA Tournament for the third straight year and 10th time in school history. The No. 5-seeded Blue Demons take on 12th-seeded Virginia Tech in the Chattanooga Region First and Second Rounds at the Comcast Center in College Park, Md. The fifth seed is the highest in program history for DePaul surpassing the No. 7 slot in the 1996 Mideast Region. A win over No. 12 Virginia Tech moves the Blue Demons into the second round against the winner of No. 4 Penn State and 13th-seeded Liberty on Tuesday night.
DePaul enters the NCAA Tournament at 25-4 overall with victories in 19 of their last 21 games. The club is ranked No. 17 in both the AP and USA Today/ESPN/WBCA Coaches’ top 25’s. DePaul’s 14-game winning streak came to an end with the 87-77 loss against TCU in the Conference USA Tournament semifinals on Mar. 5 in Charlotte, N.C.
Both the first and second round can be heard live online at depaulbluedemons.com. For the third consecutive year, all 63 games of the NCAA Tournament will be broadcasted live on ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU. The DePaul-Virginia Tech matchup will be televised on ESPN2 and ESPNU on Sunday night with Pam Ward and Van Chancellor calling all of the action from College Park, Md. Jeff Friedman and Sarah Kustok handle the internet broadcasting duties.
Sizing Up the Field: DePaul is 6-3 in nine games this season against eight NCAA Tournament teams. The Blue Demons posted wins over Southern California, Richmond, Holy Cross, Louisville, Houston and TCU while falling to Purdue, Tennessee and TCU in the C-USA Tournament.
Of the three possible opponents in College Park, the Blue Demons have faced Penn State four times and Virginia Tech once. A potential second-round game with Liberty will be the first meeting between the two programs. Penn State leads the series, 4-0, while Virginia Tech won the single meeting during the 1981-82 campaign.
Tough Start: A quick look at the brackets sees the traditional 5-12 matchup in each of the four regions. A closer look shows that the Chattanooga’s 5 vs. 12 game is unlike any this year. According to the WBCA/Summerville RPI, Virginia Tech enters the tournament at No. 28 behind DePaul at No. 27. The Hokies slot at No. 28 is higher than 35 of the 64 teams in this year’s tournament, including seven of the eight teams with a No. 8 or No. 9 seed. The three other No. 12’s, Middle Tennessee, Montana and Eastern Kentucky, are ranked 54th, 55th and 70th, respectively.
Tourney Tidbits: The No. 5 seed is 16-4 in first round games over the last five NCAA Tournaments... nine teams in the five slot have made the Sweet Sixteen in that same span, including Southwest Missouri State’s Final Four run in 2001... DePaul is the lone school in this year’s field making their 10th NCAA Tournament appearance... Conference USA has four teams in the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year... the Blue Demons are joined by Louisville, Houston and TCU... starting next season, the program joins the BIG EAST Conference which also placed four teams in the 2005 Tournament... DePaul has played just one team, George Washington, more than once in the NCAA Tourney... the NCAA series between the Blue Demons and Colonials is tied 1-1... a potential second-round meeting with Penn State would be the second all-time in NCAA play against the Lady Lions... Penn State won the previous meeting, 77-54, in University Park, Pa. in 1992.
No. 12 Virginia Tech Hokies: The Blue Demons and Hokies meet for just the second time on Sunday night in College Park. Virginia Tech enters the NCAA Tournament at 17-11 overall and posted a 6-8 record in ACC play. They closed the season with a pair of victories over then-No. 23-22 Maryland and Miami before falling to Wake Forest, 61-56, in the first round of the ACC Tournament. Erin Gibson leads a balanced attack with 11.3 points per game that features four players averaging in double-figures. She also pulls down 6.0 rebounds per game and is followed by Kerri Gardin with 11.1 points and a team-high 8.0 rebounds per game. Carrie Mason averages 10.5 points per game with 45 three-pointers while Dawn Chriss chips in 10.6 points per contest. Head coach Beth Dukenberger is in her first season as head coach at Virginia Tech following a three-year stint as head coach at Western Carolina.
The Series: The Blue Demons and Hokies meet for the just the second time in the schools’ histories. The only contest between the two programs resulted in 62-61 triumph for Virginia Tech on Dec. 29, 1981 in the Queens Invitational. At that time, DePaul head coach Doug Bruno was in his second season as an assistant men’s coach at Loyola-Chicago while Charlene Smith was one week old (born on Dec. 22, 1981). The remainder of the DePaul roster wasn’t born yet.
Common Opponents: The Hokies and the Blue Demons faced three common opponents this season in Valparaiso, Richmond, and Southern Miss. The Hokies opened up the season with a 64-57 win over Valparaiso on Nov. 19, while the Blue Demons took care of the Crusaders in a 75-49 win on Dec. 29 at the Blue Sky Classic in Hanover, N.H. DePaul took on Richmond the following day, notching a 61-55 victory, as Virginia Tech also took care of the Spiders on Feb. 2, with a 79-63 win. Fellow C-USA member, Southern Miss was hit with two losses thanks to the Blue Demons and Hokies, as the Blue Demons defeated the Golden Eagles, 90-63, on Jan. 23, and the Hokies hammered Southern Miss on Dec. 28 in a 105-40 triumph.
DePaul versus the Atlantic Coast Conference: The Blue Demons have historically struggled against ACC opponents, owning a 3-8 record against eight different programs. DePaul is 1-1 against Clemson and Duke, as well as posting a victory in the only meeting against Florida State. DePaul has dropped one loss a piece to Maryland, North Carolina, North Carolina State, and Virginia Tech. Virginia ranks as the ACC school who has given the Blue Demons the most trouble, remaining undefeated in two battles against DePaul.
In and Out: With the recent conference realignments, DePaul and Virginia Tech are passing each other in the shake-up. Virginia Tech is in their first season in the ACC after playing in the BIG EAST while the Blue Demons are in their final season of Conference USA before shifting over to the BIG EAST Conference next season.
All-Decade Honors: DePaul head coach Doug Bruno was named Conference USA’s Coach of the Decade in a vote by the league’s 14 head coaches. Houston’s Chandi Jones was named the Player of the Decade while DePaul junior Khara Smith and former All-American Lenae Williams were named to the C-USA All-Decade team. Bruno has led DePaul to a pair of C-USA regular-season championships while Williams was a four-time All-Conference USA honoree. Smith was one of two current players, joined by TCU’s Sandora Irvin, on the 11-member all-decade team and is the 2004-05 preseason C-USA Player of the Year. She also picked up Freshman of the Year honors and was a first team All-CUSA honoree as a junior and sophomore.
WBCA Recognition: For the second straight season, DePaul forward Khara Smith earned recognition from the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) as an All-America finalist. She was selected as one of six players from Region 4 that were named finalists for the 2005 NCAA Division I Kodak/WBCA All-America team. Joining Smith from the region are Ryan Coleman (Eastern Michigan), Jazz Covington (Louisville), Jessica Dickson (USF), Kate Endress (Ball State) and Sandora Irvin (TCU). A year ago, Khara was joined by her cousin, Charlene, on the Region 4 list.
Conference USA Honor Roll: The DePaul women’s basketball team placed a league-best three players on the three All-Conference USA teams prior to the league tournament in Charlotte, N.C. Head coach Doug Bruno was named the Coach of the Year while Allie Quigley earned Freshman of the Year honors. Khara Smith was named to C-USA’s first team while Jenni Dant picked up second team honors. Quigley was also named to the league third team and was joined on the C-USA All-Freshman team by Erin Carney.
The honor was the first for Bruno in Conference USA. In two of the last three years, DePaul has claimed the league’s top freshman with Khara Smith taking the honor in 2003. TCU’s Sandora Irvin was named the 2005 C-USA Player and Defensive Player of the Year while Anne Stephens of Cincinnati was the Sixth Player of the Year.
Noting the Blue Demons: DePaul is averaging 82.9 points per game to lead the country... through games of Mar. 14, the Blue Demons also lead the nation with 19.6 assists per game and are second with a scoring margin of +21.6 and rebound margin of +12.0... the team is ranked among the nation’s top 13 in nine statistical categories... in the Conference USA statistical rankings, DePaul enters the NCAA Tournament leading the league in 12 of 19 categories and is the lone school to feature four players in the top 20 in scoring... the two regular-season tournament titles marks the first time since the 1987-88 season that a DePaul team has accomplished the feat... Jenni Dant played in her 100th career game at Northern Illinois and has started the last 91 contests... she is the only player in DePaul history to collect at least 1,500 points, 300 assists, 250 steals and 100 three-pointers... against TCU on Feb. 13, Khara Smith surpassed the 1,500-point and 900-rebound plateaus... dating back to last season (59 games), the team has scored at least 90 points in 21 games and owns a 48-11 record (.814)... the 48 victories are closing in on the two-year record of 50 wins from 1987-89 and 1986-88... the. 814 two-year winning percentage is the highest over that span in school history DePaul has scored at least 50 points in a half 11 times this season... at least four players have scored in double-figures in 19 of the 29 games... it happened in 17 games in 2003-04... five players have reached double-figures nine times and six have scored at least 10 points once... DePaul is victorious in 30 of the last 36 regular season C-USA games... over the last three seasons, the program is 41-1 at home with the lone loss coming in overtime to then-No. 2 Tennessee in December 2003.
Fun With Numbers: One player in the country is ranked in the top 20 in both three’s per game and three-point field goal percentage - DePaul freshman Allie Quigley... DePaul has outrebounded 25 of 29 opponents this season and are 23-2 in those games... DePaul is one of 19 programs to play in either the NCAA or WNIT in at least 14 of the last 17 seasons... the Blue Demons are 16-0 this season when scoring at least 80 points... over the last five seasons, the team has scored at least 80 on 56 occasions with a 53-3 record... when scoring at least 70 this season, the team is 23-1... on the flip side, when holding opponents to less than 60, the Blue Demons are 15-0... as a team, DePaul has made at least 200 three-pointers in six consecutive seasons... in 2004-05, the team has made at least five three’s in 26 of 29 games.
Top Records: DePaul’s 25-4 record through 29 games this season is tied for the best mark entering the 30th game. Just once prior to this season, a DePaul team won 25 of the first 29 games. A year ago, the club posted a program-best 22-2 mark in the first 24 games before dropping their third loss in the 25th game. The 1978-79 squad posted a 22-3 record and finished with a 23-4 mark while the 1987-88 team was 25-4 and completed the season with a program-best 27-4 record.
The 13-1 record in Conference USA play is also among tops in the 10 seasons. The 1995-96 squad finished with a 13-1 league record while a year ago, the team started 10-1 before finishing with a 10-4 C-USA record.
Stat Lover’s Delight: In the latest edition of the NCAA statistics, the Blue Demons rank among the nation’s leaders in a variety of categories. Through games of Mar. 14, DePaul leads the nation in scoring offense and assists per game, and is in the top 13 in scoring margin, rebound margin, field goal percentage, three-pointers per game, three-point field goal percentage, steals per game and winning percentage. Individually, freshman Allie Quigley is the nation’s only player in the top 20 in both three’s per game and three-point field goal percentage.
DePaul enters tournament ranked first in 12 of 19 Conference USA statistical categories and second in two others. The Blue Demons lead the league in scoring offense, scoring margin, free throw percentage, field goal percentage, three-point field goal percentage, three-point field goals per game, rebounding defense, rebounding margin, offensive rebounds, assists, steals and assist/turnover ratio. The team sports four of the top 20 C-USA scorers with Khara Smith third, Quigley ranked 13th, Jenni Dant at 14th and Jenna Rubino at 20th.
Taking Advantage From Beyond the Arc: Since the start of the 2001-02 season, the club has knocked down 889 trifectas compared to just 445 for the opposition. Over the last six years, the team has totaled at least 200 three-pointers in each season. With a 0-for-8 showing against Houston on Feb. 11, DePaul’s streak of games with a three-pointer ended at 259 games. At the time, it was the nation’s seventh-longest active streak.
In 29 games this season, the Blue Demons have outscored their opponents by 276 points from three-point range (9.5 ppg). DePaul is 211-556 (.379) from behind the arc while opponents are a combined 119-387 (.307). The squad averages 7.3 three’s per game while the opposition makes 4.1 treys per contest.
Senior Jenni Dant moved into the program’s all-time top 10 list against TCU on Feb. 13 and is now ninth with 104 three-pointers. Jenna Rubino and Allie Quigley are on the horizon to enter the DePaul record books as Quigley has 74 three’s followed by Rubino with 68 three-pointers.
Giving to Charity: Along with the accuracy from behind the arc, the Blue Demons also rank among the best in Conference USA from the free throw line. Over the last five seasons, DePaul finished either first or second in the league in free throw percentage. A year ago, the Blue Demons were second with a .724 (480-663) team mark. The squad finished the 2002-03 campaign ranked second with a .718 (425-592) season percentage. Prior to finishing second, DePaul was a combined 384-520 (.738) from the free throw line in 2001-02 to rank first among Conference USA schools for the second straight season.
The team ranks first among Conference USA teams this season with a .737 percentage from the line. DePaul is a combined 400-of-543 from the charity stripe. The team single-season record is .738 set during the 2001-02 season. Individually, Allie Quigley is 33-for-34 in her collegiate career while Jenni Dant and Khara Smith rank among C-USA leaders with Dant at .796 (109-137) followed by Smith at .729 (97-133) from the line. Against TCU, Dant knocked down her 423rd career free shot to move into second all-time at DePaul.
20-20 Vision: With all of the points being scored this season, a player has scored at least 20 points on 25 occasions. Khara Smith leads the way with 11 games of at least 20 while Jenni Dant has six 20-point outings followed by Allie Quigley with five 20-point games. A total of six players have at least one 20-point game this season. Six times this season two players have tallied at least 20 in a game with the most recent coming against USF on Jan. 30 where Smith scored 24 and Dant dropped in 23 points. On the flip side, there have been 10 games where no player has reached the 20-point mark. The Blue Demons are 7-3 in those games and include in that total the East Carolina game where six players scored in double-figures with Quigley totaling a game-high 16 points. A three-game run against Tulane, Southern Miss and UAB saw five score at least 10 without a player tallying at least 20 points.
Final C-USA Season: The 2004-05 season is the 10th and final campaign for the Blue Demons in Conference USA. DePaul enters the BIG EAST Conference beginning next season with fellow C-USA members Cincinnati, Louisville, Marquette and USF. The 16-team lineup for the 2005-06 BIG EAST consists of Cincinnati, Connecticut, DePaul, Georgetown, Louisville, Marquette, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Providence, Rutgers, St. John’s, Seton Hall, USF, Syracuse, Villanova and West Virginia. The recently approved scheduling format consists of each team playing each opponent once with one repeat opponent. The top 12 teams qualify for the BIG EAST Tournament at the Hartford Civic Center in Hartford, Conn. BIG EAST women’s teams have won the last five NCAA titles.
DePaul is 85-55 all-time against the 2005-06 lineup of BIG EAST Conference members. Of the 140 games against future BIG EAST opponents, the Blue Demons have played Cincinnati, Louisville, Marquette, Notre Dame and USF a total of 130 times. The program is 5-5 all-time against Connecticut, Georgetown, Pittsburgh, Providence, Seton Hall, Villanova and West Virginia. DePaul will play Rutgers, St. John’s and Syracuse for the first time beginning next season.
