George Washington (10-11, 3-4) @ RV/RV St. Bonaventure (21-2, 8-0)
Saturday, Feb. 4 | 1 PM | Reilly Center (5,480)
Game Notes: St. Bonaventure | George Washington | Atlantic 10
Follow & Interact: @Go_Bonnies | #Bonnies
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The game will be the Play 4Kay "Pink" contest as the Bonnies join the fight against breast cancer. Donations will be accepted, T-shirts will be sold and fans are asked to wear pink in support of the Kay Yow Foundation. Formerly the WBCA Pink Zone, the event was rebranded as Play 4Kay this month in honor of the late coach who spent 32 years at the helm of NC State.
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Sitting alone at the top of the Atlantic 10 standings, RV/RV St. Bonaventure will be looking to tie a program record with its 11th straight win as the Bonnies host George Washington Saturday in their Play 4Kay game to support the fight against breast cancer.
The Bonnies received 61 points in the Associated Press Poll released on Monday, finishing as the No. 26 team in the country. They were just nine points out of the No. 25 position occupied by Texas Tech – which lost on Wednesday night. In the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll, SBU checked in at No. 28 with 19 points. The No. 26 AP showing is the highest ranking of any men's or women's Big 4 basketball team (St. Bonaventure, Niagara, Canisius, Buffalo) since the Bona men were last ranked in January 1971 – before the women's program at Bonaventure even existed.
With a win over the Colonials, SBU would tie the program record for consecutive wins set by the 2009-10 club which started its campaign 11-0. Victories over GW haven't been easy to come by for the Bonnies as the Colonials have dominated the all-time series, 32-4. However, Bonaventure has won three of the last four meetings, including last year's 72-48 triumph in which SBU held GW to its lowest point total in series history.
The Bonnies are coming off a 58-53 win at Duquesne on Wednesday evening as they handed the Dukes their first home loss (11-1) while maintaining the nation's best road record (10-0).
Head coach Jim Crowley is currently in the midst of the best turnaround in women's college basketball. At one point during his 12-year tenure at Bonaventure, Crowley was 62 games under .500 (57-119). Since that time he is 61 games over .500 (118-57). Among active coaches who remained at the same institution, that is the greatest turnaround in terms of record in the entire nation. With a win today against GW, Crowley will complete the 180-degree turnaround (57-119 to 119-57) and even his record on the SBU bench for the first time since he began coaching the club in 2000-01.
Already the A-10's all-time leading 3-point shooter with 306 in her career, senior Jessica Jenkins is just six makes away from moving into the top-25 all-time in NCAA history. If she continues at her current pace of 3.3 made 3's per game, Jenkins will move into the top-15 before the end of the regular season, with still A-10 tournament and postseason games to play. The all-time record holder in NCAA history is Kansas State's Laurie Koehn with 392.
Scouting George Washington
~ The Colonials have played with six players for the past two weeks due to injuries; three players are out indefinitely
~ Senior Tiana Myers has 999 career points, one point shy of becoming the 26th Colonial ever to reach the milestone and the first since Jessica Adair in 2008
~ The Colonials posted a 7-7 record against non-conference opponents, their best out-of-league performance since the 2008-2009 season.
~ With 10 wins, GW has already surpassed its entire win total from the 2010-2011 campaign, when it posted an 8-21 overall mark; also it has already equaled its conference win total from last season (3-11)
~ GW's defense ranks second in the league in steals (10.6) and turnover margin (+3.8), and third in field goal percentage defense (.377)
Next Up
St. Bonaventure once again hits the road as it travels to Massachusetts to face the Minutewomen on Wednesday. The game is the first of a road doubleheader with the men. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m.
