DePaul University Athletics
Women's Hoops Hosts Northwood in an Exhibition
10/29/2010 12:00:00 AM | WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Oct. 29, 2010
CHICAGO -- The DePaul women's basketball team opens its 2010-11 season with an exhibition game against Northwood on Saturday at McGrath Arena. The women's game tips at 5 p.m., while it is part of a DePaul athletics tripleheader -- volleyball plays a BIG EAST Conference match against Connecticut at 2 p.m., followed by the women's game at 5 p.m. and the men's basketball team takes the floor against the Northwood men's team at 7 p.m.
Saturday's exhibition game is the first of two for the Blue Demons this season. DePaul hosts Illinois Weselyan on Nov. 7 at 4 p.m. The men's team will play their final exhibition game that night as well when it welcomes Lewis for a 6 p.m. game.
Noting the Blue Demons: DePaul is 653-386 (.628) all-time... the 2010-11 campaign is the 37th season of women's basketball at DePaul University... since the start of the 2003-04 season (225 games), the Blue Demons have held 63.1 percent of their opponents to less than 70 points (142-of-225)... in that span, DePaul is 120-22 (.845) when holding opponents to less than 70 points... in that same time span, DePaul has scored 70 or more points in 152 games... DePaul is 130-22 (.855) when scoring 70 plus points... in the last six seasons (195 games), the Blue Demons are 136-59 (.697)... in the last 61 home games against conference opponents, DePaul has posted 49 victories... over the last nine-plus seasons (318 games), DePaul has scored at least 80 points in 106 games... the Blue Demons hold a 101-5 (.953) record in those games... in the same span, DePaul is 42-1, including 40 straight wins, when scoring at least 90 points.
Looking at Northwood: Northwood is a NCAA Division II program located in Midland, Mich.… the Timberwolves play in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and posted an overall record of 13-14 last season… under the direction of head coach Jeff Curtis, who is in his seventh year at Northwood… Pam Wilson is the GLIAC Preseason Player of the Year... Wilson averaged 16.5 and 6.3 rebounds per game last season.
What's Back: DePaul returns all five starters from its 2009-10 roster while the Blue Demons welcome back its entire bench minus Courtney Webb (2.4 ppg, 6.5 mpg)... the Blue Demons averaged 68.3 points per game while they shot .421 from the field… senior Deirdre Naughton returns to the Blue Demon bench after the NCAA granted her a sixth season on Aug. 9, 2010... Naughton went down in the fifth game of the 2009-10 season at Northwestern with a torn ACL… senior Sam Quigley, a 2009-10 finalist for the Nancy Lieberman Award and a second-team All-BIG EAST performer... Quigley led the BIG EAST by playing 38.15 minutes per game which ranked third in the nation in 2009-10… Quigley ranked second in the BIG EAST with 5.1 assists per game and enters her senior season with 341 career assists which ranks No. 7 on DePaul's all-time list… Keisha Hampton, who led DePaul with 15.3 points per game during her sophomore campaign looks to continue her consecutive start run… entering her junior season, Hampton has started all 66 of DePaul's games in the last two seasons... Hampton has tallied 800 career points while her 68 blocks ties for the 12th on DePaul's all-time career list… an all-conference performer, Hampton is preseason All-BIG EAST selection this season… Felicia Chester ranked 16th in the league with 6.9 rebounds per game while her field goal percentage (.550) ranked fourth in the BIG EAST in 2009-10... Harry was a unanimous All-Freshman team selection after leading the Blue Demons with 7.9 rebounds per game... Anna Martin also returns to the starting lineup... Martin averaged 10.5 points per game while she registered a steal in 14 of DePaul's 16 conference games.
What's New: DePaul welcomes Jasmine Penny and Kelsey Reynolds this season… Penny is a 6-1 forward from Logansport, Indiana… led Indiana's North Central Conference with 24.5 points and 2.0 blocks per game during her senior season… Penny became Logansport's all-time leading scorer in girl's basketball and was named to the Indiana All-Star team and was a third-team Indiana Associated Press All-State selection… Kelsey Reynolds will sit out the 2010-11 season after transferring from Boston College… the sophomore will have three seasons of eligibility left after averaging 1.2 points and 8.7 minutes per game during her freshman season.
Season-Opening Notes: DePaul begins the 37th season of women's basketball by hosting Valparaiso in the Preseason WNIT on Nov. 12 at McGrath Arena... the Blue Demons are 27-9 all-time season openers and are 20-4 in season openers on their home floor… head coach Doug Bruno is 18-6 in the season's first game at DePaul… the Blue Demons have won their last three season openers… DePaul has won eight of its last nine season openers dating back to the 2001-02 season.
Who, When and Where: Eight of the Blue Demons 28 scheduled opponents played in the NCAA Championship in 2010… DePaul hosts 16 games at McGrath Arena, and travels to 12 road contests… the Blue Demons will not play on a neutral floor until the BIG EAST Championship, March 4-8… DePaul opens the 2010-11 season with the Preseason WNIT and host Valparaiso in the opening round on Nov. 12… the Preseason WNIT second round, semifinals and championship game sites and dates are to be determined… DePaul is scheduled to play eight home and eight road BIG EAST Conference games this season… the Blue Demons will play Marquette twice (Feb. 12 in Chicago and Feb. 26 in Milwaukee).
BIG EAST Conference Preseason Picks: The Blue Demons were picked to finish sixth in the conference by the league's 16 coaches… defending National Champion Connecticut was picked to win the BIG EAST, while West Virginia, Georgetown, Notre Dame and St. John's were picked to finished ahead of DePaul… of the five teams picked to finish in front of DePaul, the Blue Demons host West Virginia (Jan. 30), Georgetown (Feb. 20) and Notre Dame (Feb. 28) at McGrath Arena… DePaul travels to St. John's (Jan. 8) and Connecticut (Feb. 5) for games this season.
Preseason All-BIG EAST: Junior Keisha Hampton was named to the league's preseason team… she was also a preseason selection in 2009-10… Hampton is a two-time All-BIG EAST performer, earning All-Freshman honors in 2008-09 and second-team accolades as a sophomore… Sam Quigley and Deirdre Naughton were Preseason Honorable Mention picks… this is the first preseason league team selection for Quigley, while Naughton was selected prior to the 2009-10 and was an honorable mention pick prior to the 2008-09.
Preseason Wade Watch Top 30: Senior guard Deirdre Naughton's name appears on 2010 Preaseason Wade Watch Top 30 list again this season… also made the preseason 2009-10 list… Naughton enters the 2010-11 season with 1,470 career points (1,051 at DePaul and 419 at Wake Forest), and a career .430 field goal percentage. in her two seasons at DePaul, Naughton has averaged 15.3 points per game while her 124, 3-point field goals rank 12th on DePaul's all-time list… Naughton is one of five BIG EAST Conference players to appear on the top 30 list.
Home Cookin': Through nine seasons, McGrath Arena - formerly known as the DePaul Athletic Center - has proven itself as one of the toughest venues in the nation. The Blue Demons have posted a 118-21 (.849) record in the arena's 139 games. DePaul's .848 winning percentage entering the 2009-10 season ranks ninth among all active arenas and 11th all-time.
Beginning its 36th season of women's basketball at DePaul University, the Blue Demons have an all-time home court record of 382-105 (.784). Over 26 seasons at Alumni Hall, the women's basketball program won over 75 percent of its games with a 242-80 all-time record. At the Allstate Arena, the women's program has posted an all-time record of 22-4.
There have been 15 streaks of at least 10 straight home victories. The longest streak was the 33-game run that started on Dec. 19, 2003 with a 99-63 win over Alabama State and ended on Jan. 28, 2006 with an 84-75 defeat to #5/4 Connecticut. The Blue Demons' 11-game winning streak dating back to the 2006-07 season ended on Jan. 2, 2008 with the 102-68 loss to #3/3 Tennessee.
Over the last seven-plus years at McGrath Arena, the team is 96-14 at home with five losses to teams ranked in the top five. DePaul lost in overtime to #2/2 Tennessee on Dec. 17, 2003, before the Connecticut loss in Jan. 2006. Tennessee, ranked third in both polls, served DePaul its fifth defeat before the 77-76 loss to #1/1 Connecticut on Mar. 1, 2008. Maybe more impressive is that the Blue Demons' average margin of victory during that span that 20.1 points per game.
The Blue Demons have also posted 95 victories in the last 98 games over unranked opponents. West Virginia ended DePaul's 58-game streak over unranked opponents with a 74-63 decision on Jan. 9, 2007 before Pittsburgh and Louisville handed the Blue Demons defeats in 2007-08. During the 58-game streak, there were 54 victories at McGrath Arena and four wins at the Allstate Arena.
Coach Doug Bruno Court: Beginning in the 2010-11 season, the Blue Demons will play their home games at McGrath Arena on the Coach Doug Bruno Court… DePaul's Director of Athletics, Jean Lenti Ponsetto made the announcement on Nov. 16, 2009 and the court will be formally dedicated on Saturday, Nov. 6, 2010… the 2010-11 season marks Coach Bruno's 25th season at DePaul while he is also on track to record his 500th career win this season… Bruno enters 2010-11 with 458 collegiate wins and 40 wins as the head coach of the Chicago Hustle (WBL - Professional Team in Chicago)
Dishing it Out: Sam Quigley enters her senior season with 341 career assists which ranks No. 7 on DePaul's all-time list… needs two more to move into sixth place and tie Jenni Dant (2001-05)… Quigley needs 13 to tie Sally Anderson (1984-87) for fifth (354)… the younger Quigley needs to dish out 86 assists (427) to tie her sister, Allie Quigley (2004-08) for third all-time.
Coaching on the same side, coaching separately: DePaul head coach Doug Bruno and Connecticut head coach Geno Auriemma's teamed up this summer to help the USA National Team win Gold at the FIBA World Championship in the Czech Republic on Oct. 3, 2010... Auriemma served as the team's head coach while Bruno was an assistant along with Jennifer Gillom of the WNBA Minnesota Lynx and Marynell Meadors of the Atlanta Dream.
Taking Advantage from Beyond the Arc: Since the start of the 2005-06 season (163 games), the club has knocked down 1088 (6.7 per game) trifectas compared to just 820 (5.0 per game) for the opposition... with three 3-pointers against San Diego State at the NCAA Championship in San Diego, the team clinched the 10th straight year with at least 200 three-pointers... a 0-for-8 showing against Houston on Feb. 11, 2005, ended DePaul's streak with a three-pointer at 259 games... at the time, it was the nation's seventh-longest active streak... more recently, the Blue Demons 0-14 showing at Northern Illinois ended a 144 game streak with a 3-pointer, while they were also 0-11 against Arkansas... including the Houston, Northern Illinois and Arkansas games, the Blue Demons have tallied a three-pointer in 429 of the last 432 games… DePaul has made 200 or more free throw in 10 of its last 11 seasons… the 2009-10 team tallied 163 to end DePaul's streak at 10 seasons.
Regular Season Tournament History: DePaul is 71-26 all-time in regular season tournaments dating back to 1980-81 season... the Blue Demons have played in 44 regular-season tournaments and won 24... finished in second eight times… DePaul plays in the Preseason WNIT (Nov. 12-21) and hosts the Maggie Dixon Classic (Nov. 26-27) this season.
Streaking: Dating back to last season and in some cases, the last couple of seasons, the Blue Demons have put together various streaks. Listed below are some current active streaks heading into the 2010-11 season:
- 56 straight victories over unranked non-conference opponents at home
- Eight consecutive NCAA Championship appearances
- Against the State: DePaul has seen recent success against in-state opponents… over the last 63 games against Chicago State, Illinois, Illinois-Chicago, Illinois State, Loyola-Chicago, Northern Illinois, Northwestern and Southern Illinois, the Blue Demons have posted 61 victories… DePaul's 36-game winning streak against programs from the state of Illinois came to an end when Northwestern defeated the Blue Demons 59-55 in Evanston on Nov. 24, 2009… prior to the loss at Northwestern, the last loss to a state program was on Dec. 4, 2002, when Illinois defeated the Blue Demons in Champaign by a 71-67 score... during the 61-game stretch, two losses were at Illinois with the last home loss to an in-state program was on Nov. 20, 1998, against Northwestern… the Wildcats defeated the Blue Demons at Alumni Hall by a score of 62-61 and then most recently at Welsh-Ryan Arena in 2009.
Marching Along: DePaul made its eighth consecutive and the program's 15th NCAA Championship appearance in 2010… the Blue Demons were one of seven BIG EAST programs in the field of 64... the conference led all leagues along with the SEC with teams earning bids... the program is 7-15 (.318) all-time in NCAA Championship play...DePaul is one of 13 teams to appear in each of the last eight tournaments... joining the Blue Demons on the list of 13 teams with eight straight NCAA's are Connecticut, Duke, Georgia, LSU, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Rutgers, Stanford, Tennessee and Vanderbilt... the eight straight appearances are a program record for consecutive NCAA's... DePaul earned four consecutive NCAA berths from 1990-93 followed by a three-year run from 1995-97... the program is 4-9 entering in its last eight tournament appearances, including a 2006 NCAA Regional Semifinal appearance in San Antonio, Texas.
