January
15, 2013
EMMANUEL VS. MOUNT IDA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL PREVIEW
Setting
the Scene
The Emmanuel College Saints will once again enjoy the
confines of the Jean Yawkey Center in Boston on
Tuesday night as they host the Mustangs of Mount Ida College at 7 PM. The
Saints will be playing their third game of a four game home stand. The Saints
come into the game with a 9-4 record including a 1-0 record in the Great
Northeast Athletic Conference. The Saints are coming off a 72-41 win in their
GNAC opener on Saturday over Albertus Magnus
College. Mount Ida comes into Tuesday’s
action with a 6-7 record with a 0-1 record in the GNAC. The Mustangs dropped
their last game 76-46 to Norwich in their conference opener.
Defensive
Dominance
When the Saints are at their best, they dominate
defensively. This was on display on Saturday in their impressive thirty-plus
point win over Albertus Magnus. In the first half,
the Saints allowed just 17 points on 3-18 shooting. That’s right, just three
made baskets allowed. The Saints forced 19 turnovers, 11 of which were steals,
and blocked three shots. The Mustangs are currently averaging over 18 turnovers
per-game, while the Saints force over 22 per-game. Couple that with the fact that the Saints only allow 54 points
per-game and a clear pattern can be seen. When the Saints play defense,
they are tough to beat. Emmanuel will
have to pay close attention to Mount Ida guard Evebonee Acosta, who was selected this week’s GNAC Women’s
Basketball Player of the Week. Acosta is
leading the Mustangs with an average of 19.9 points, 6.8 rebounds and 5.4
assists per game.
Spread
the Floor
This may seem simple, but when the Saints spread the
floor they are a far better offensive team. When shooters like Laura Benvenuto, Chenae Earle and Britni Mikulanecz are aggressive
for the Saints, the middle of the floor is opened up for their 2012 All-GNAC forward
Fiona O’Dwyer.
Former
Saint
Mount Ida College coach Leah Lipschitz
is in her first season as the Mustangs head coach and will be returning to her
alma mater on Tuesday. Lipschitz played two seasons
for the Saints and Coach Andy Yosinoff. Lipshitz appeared
in 48 games with 10 starts and averaged 4.7 points and 3 rebounds per-game.