DePaul University Athletics
Friday, December 20
Chicago, Ill.
7:00 P.M. CT
DePaul University
at
Loyola-Chicago
No. 16/16 DePaul Looks to Sustain the Surge at Loyola
12/19/2019 1:44:00 PM | WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Hoping to carry momentum from UConn game into Gentile Arena on Friday night
CHICAGO – Maintaining momentum and sustaining the surge will be the top priorities for No.16/16 DePaul Friday night in its final game of the nonconference season.
The Blue Demons will renew their "Red Line Rivalry" with North Side adversary Loyola at 7 p.m. in Gentile Arena coming off their best second-half performance of the season.
After falling behind last Monday to the iconic No. 2-ranked Connecticut Huskies who usually proceed to bury opponents, DePaul (9-2) staged a furious second-half rally.
In a span of less than 13 minutes, the Blue Demons outscored UConn 37-15. Suddenly, with 7:17 left in the game and Wintrust Arena rocking, DePaul came within 70-66. Twice after that, Sonya Morris hit clutch three-pointers to make it a six-point and five-point game.
A Morris steal led to a Dee Bekelja three-point attempt that just missed making it a one-possession affair with 3:26 to go. The Huskies held on for an 84-74 win.
Coach Doug Bruno and his players are striving to bring that same competitive edge to Gentile Arena where an unbeaten Ramblers team will be lying in wait.
Loyola (9-0) is off to its best start since 1988-89 and emerged unscathed from a stretch of four consecutive road games and five out of six. The Ramblers did have some close calls including a 72-67 double-overtime win at Kansas City and a 78-64 overtime success at Portland.
They will encounter a DePaul team featuring stalwart seniors Chante Stonewall (17.5 points a game) and do-everything point guard Kelly Campbell who leads the team in rebounds, assists, bruises and floor burns.
The 5-foot, 10-inch Campbell leads the nation in assist-turnover ratio and is No. 5 in assists. Stonewall is No. 7 in the country in field goals and steals.
Right behind them are emerging sophomores Morris (16.9 points a game) and Lexi Held (13.1 points). Multi-talented junior guard Deja Church (9.5 points a game) is beginning to work her way back into the team flow after missing three games with an ankle injury.
Junior Dee Bekelja (9.6 points a game) is beginning to come into her own, acquitting herself quite well in seven starts. She has scored in double figures three games in a row, averaging nearly 15 points a game over that span.
Another junior who is making more and more of an impact with each passing game is 6-foot, 2-inch forward Kiara Dallmann. She missed the first seven games of the season with a calf injury, and her presence allows Stonewall to expand her game.
Providing quality minutes off the bench and deepening the Blue Demon lineup are Jolene Daninger, Maya Stovall, Keke Rimmer and 6-1 forward Kayla Caudle. The three guards allow Bruno to unleash his patented full-court pressure more extensively while Caudle is providing strength and depth in the paint.
A Loyola team led by Allison Day (14.3 points a game) and Abby O'Connor (14.3 points, 8.1 rebounds) will encounter a DePaul attack that leads the nation in assists and scoring (nearly 89 points a game) and is second in three-pointers, three-point attempts and threes per game.
The Blue Demons also get after it defensively stoked by a deep lineup of guards. They are No. 4 in the country in steals, No. 6 in turnover margin and No. 10 in turnovers forced. That last statistic certainly came in handy last Monday when Bruno's pressure tactics resulted in a season-high 21 turnovers for UConn.
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The Blue Demons will renew their "Red Line Rivalry" with North Side adversary Loyola at 7 p.m. in Gentile Arena coming off their best second-half performance of the season.
After falling behind last Monday to the iconic No. 2-ranked Connecticut Huskies who usually proceed to bury opponents, DePaul (9-2) staged a furious second-half rally.
In a span of less than 13 minutes, the Blue Demons outscored UConn 37-15. Suddenly, with 7:17 left in the game and Wintrust Arena rocking, DePaul came within 70-66. Twice after that, Sonya Morris hit clutch three-pointers to make it a six-point and five-point game.
A Morris steal led to a Dee Bekelja three-point attempt that just missed making it a one-possession affair with 3:26 to go. The Huskies held on for an 84-74 win.
Coach Doug Bruno and his players are striving to bring that same competitive edge to Gentile Arena where an unbeaten Ramblers team will be lying in wait.
Loyola (9-0) is off to its best start since 1988-89 and emerged unscathed from a stretch of four consecutive road games and five out of six. The Ramblers did have some close calls including a 72-67 double-overtime win at Kansas City and a 78-64 overtime success at Portland.
They will encounter a DePaul team featuring stalwart seniors Chante Stonewall (17.5 points a game) and do-everything point guard Kelly Campbell who leads the team in rebounds, assists, bruises and floor burns.
The 5-foot, 10-inch Campbell leads the nation in assist-turnover ratio and is No. 5 in assists. Stonewall is No. 7 in the country in field goals and steals.
Right behind them are emerging sophomores Morris (16.9 points a game) and Lexi Held (13.1 points). Multi-talented junior guard Deja Church (9.5 points a game) is beginning to work her way back into the team flow after missing three games with an ankle injury.
Junior Dee Bekelja (9.6 points a game) is beginning to come into her own, acquitting herself quite well in seven starts. She has scored in double figures three games in a row, averaging nearly 15 points a game over that span.
Another junior who is making more and more of an impact with each passing game is 6-foot, 2-inch forward Kiara Dallmann. She missed the first seven games of the season with a calf injury, and her presence allows Stonewall to expand her game.
Providing quality minutes off the bench and deepening the Blue Demon lineup are Jolene Daninger, Maya Stovall, Keke Rimmer and 6-1 forward Kayla Caudle. The three guards allow Bruno to unleash his patented full-court pressure more extensively while Caudle is providing strength and depth in the paint.
A Loyola team led by Allison Day (14.3 points a game) and Abby O'Connor (14.3 points, 8.1 rebounds) will encounter a DePaul attack that leads the nation in assists and scoring (nearly 89 points a game) and is second in three-pointers, three-point attempts and threes per game.
The Blue Demons also get after it defensively stoked by a deep lineup of guards. They are No. 4 in the country in steals, No. 6 in turnover margin and No. 10 in turnovers forced. That last statistic certainly came in handy last Monday when Bruno's pressure tactics resulted in a season-high 21 turnovers for UConn.
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Players Mentioned
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Forward
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Guard
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