March 8, 2008
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A-10 WBB Championship Central
RHODE ISLAND IN THE ATLANTIC 10 TOURNAMENT
Tenth-seeded Rhode Island faces second-seeded George Washington in the quarterfinals of the Atlantic 10 Championship, Saturday, March 8 at 4:00 p.m. The Rams used a 61-49 opening-round victory over St. Bonaventure to advance to the quarterfinals for the first time since 2004. Rhody is 12-25 (.324) all time at the A-10 Championship.
RHODE ISLAND VS. GEORGE WASHINGTON
Rhode Island is 4-31 all-time against George Washington, having earned its last win - a 74-70 victory - at home on Feb. 25, 1996. Since then, GW has won 13-straight contests against URI, including a 48-45 come back victory earlier this season at the Ryan Center. Rhody is 4-14 all-time when facing the Colonials at home and 0-18 in Washington, D.C.
URI/GW VS. COMMON OPPONENTS THIS SEASON
Rhode Island and St. Bonaventure have played 14 common opponents this season. Against common teams, the Rams are 7-9 while the Colonials are 13-2.
SCOUTING THE COLONIALS
George Washington finished the regular season with an overall record of 24-5 and earned the #2 seed in the conference tournament after capturing a share of the regular-season title and turning in a 12-2 league record. GW faces the Rams after closing out the season with a four-game win streak. The Colonials last loss was a 63-60 defeat at St. Bonaventure on Feb. 16. The Colonials are 1-1 on neutral courts this season, 14-1 at home and 9-3 when visiting opponents' gyms. GW is led by Atlantic 10 Player of the Year Kimberly Beck (13.6 ppg/6.1 apg/3.0 rpg) and has three other players averaging double figures in the scoring column - Jessica Adair (15.6 ppg), Sarah-Jo Lawrence (13.2 ppg) and Antelia Parrish (10.6 ppg).
RHODE ISLAND ALL-TIME
In 32 seasons of basketball, URI has posted a 374-549 mark (.405). The team's all-time record at the Ryan Center is 32-44 (.421). This season, the Rams are 6-8 on their home court and 6-10 on the road (including a 3-0 record on neutral courts.
RHODE TO SUCCESS
For the Rams, there's not much to complain about concerning their draw in the A-10 Championship bracket as they faced St. Bonaventure (who they defeated earlier this season) in the first round and advanced to the quarterfinals to take on nationally-ranked George Washington. Rhody nearly upset the then-No. 13/13 Colonials on Jan. 16, falling 48-45 in the final minutes.
LAST TIME OUT - RHODE ISLAND VS. ST. BONAVENTURE
Safi Mojidi recorded her 185th career three-pointer to set a new Rhode Island record and help the women's basketball team to a 61-49 victory over seventh-seeded St. Bonaventure, Friday afternoon in the opening round of the Atlantic 10 Championship. Amanda McGrew led the 10th-seeded Rams with a team-high 12 points and game-best five steals as URI picked up its first A-10 tournament win since 2004. Mojidi entered the game with 183 career threes, just one behind Dayna Smith, and hit two treys to tie Smith and then take over the #1 spot in the Rhode Island record books. St. Bonaventure held a 9-3 advantage just four minutes into the contest but Rhode Island came back and scored 12 straight points to take a six-point lead (15-9) with 11:15 remaining in the half. The Rams then used a 12-7 run to go up 27-16 with 4:04 left in the half and took a six-point lead (30-24) into the break. In the second frame, Rhode Island extended its lead to 12 after McGrew hit a pair of free throws to make the score 40-28 with 14:35 left in the game. St. Bonaventure then tallied ten straight points while keeping the Rams off the board for the next seven minutes to cut URI's lead to two (40-38) with 7:26 to go. The two teams traded baskets over the next few minutes, but the Bonnies were unable to get any closer as Rhody broke away with a 20-10 run to take its largest lead of the game (14 points) with 1:44 remaining in regulation and outlasted SBU for the 61-49 victory.
MOJIDI BREAKS URI THREE-POINT RECORD
After swishing a pair of threes in URI's win over St. Bonaventure, Safi Mojidi tied and then passed former Ram Dayna Smith who was atop the Rhode Island career three-point list.
NO REST FOR THE WEARY
Safi Mojidi has seen more playing time than any other Ram in school history. To date, the senior captain has logged 3,799 career minutes - over 400 more than former #1 Shayla Johnson (3,380 mins).
BENCH MARKS
In each of their games so far this season, the Rams have had significant contributions from the bench as the Rhody reserves have combined for double-digit point totals in all but two contests (Saint Louis and Temple) to date. URI's non-starters have tallied 20-or-more points eight times - in games against Sacred Heart (27), Siena (43), Holy Cross (22), Brown (41), Central Connecticut (22), Kent State (30), Canisius (31), Massachusetts (27), Dayton (24), La Salle (24), Duquesne (37) and Saint Joseph's (25).
DOUBLE VISION
Sierra Cooper recorded her first-career double-double with 13 points and a career-high 14 rebounds against Stony Brook on Dec. 29. It was the Rams' first double-double of the season.
BUIZZER BEATERS
Safi Mojidi has scored the game-winning basket for Rhode Island three times this season. She first helped the Rams to a 56-55 win over Stony Brook by netting her shot with 13 seconds left in the game. The following afternoon, Mojidi hit a three-pointer with nine seconds remaining to lead Rhody to a 50-47 victory over Lehigh. Most recently, Mojidi nailed the game-winning shot with three ticks left on the clock in URI's 57-55 win at Fordham.
HOMETOWN HERO
Megan Shoniker tallied a game-high 18 points while recording five rebounds and two assists in Rhody's loss at Canisius. A native of nearby Rochester, N.Y., Shoniker wowed her hometown crowd with a 5-for-8 performance from beyond the arc, including sinking four-straight three-pointers in the second half.
CLOSE, BUT NO UPSET
Safi Mojidi scored a team-best 16 points and Tanja Licina recorded a season-high 11 rebounds as the Rhode Island women's basketball team fell to No. 13/13 George Washington, Jan. 16 at the Ryan Center. After GW jumped out to a 10-point lead (16-6), the URI defense held the Colonials scoreless until Sarah-Jo Lawrence was fouled with less than a second left on the clock. Lawrence sank both of her free throws, sending Rhode Island into the break with a 22-18 advantage. GW, which failed to connect from the field for the final 5:42 of the half, shot just 21.2% (7-33) and scored a season-low 18 first-half points. The second half featured seven lead changes with the Colonials taking a 44-43 advantage with 1:24 to go. After a turnover by Rhode Island, Lawrence hit a jump shot but the Rams countered with a driving layup by Bellinger that pulled URI within one (46-45) with 21.2 seconds left. The Colonials were able run down the clock, moving the ball around before Rhody fouled Kimberly Beck with 10.9 seconds remaining. Beck made both shots to secure the 48-45 victory.
MAKING WAVES AGAINST TULANE
Sierra Cooper turned in a career-best 17-point performance while Safi Mojidi pulled down eight boards to tie her career high rebounding total in URI's loss to Tulane. As a team, Rhode Island shot a season-best 47.4% from the field (27-58) against the Green Wave.
RAMS WIN CHRISTMAS CITY CLASSIC
The Rhode Island women's basketball team claimed the 11th Annual Christmas City Classic championship title with a 50-47 victory over host Lehigh, Sunday afternoon (Dec. 30) at Stabler Arena. Prior to defeating the host team, URI knocked off Stony Brook, 56-55, on Saturday afternoon (Dec. 29). Sierra Cooper was named the tournament MVP and Safi Mojidi was named to the All-Tournament team.
ONE FOR THE ROAD
URI earned its first road victory in the form of a 74-57 win over Central Connecticut in New Britain, Conn. on Nov. 28. The Rams battled back from a three-point halftime deficit and outscored the Blue Devils by a 41-21 margin in the second frame, denying CCSU of a win in its home-opener.
MOJIDI NAMED A-10 PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Rhode Island senior guard Safi Mojidi was named Atlantic 10 Women's Basketball Player of the Week on Jan. 21, after averaging 23.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.0 steals in a 1-1 week for the Rams. Mojidi opened the week with a team-high 16 points (four 3-pointers) to go along with a game-high four steals as URI nearly pulled off an upset victory over No. 13/13 George Washington. The Rams held the Colonials to just 18 first-half points (a season-low for GW) before falling in the final minutes, 48-45. Three days later against St. Bonaventure, Mojidi tallied a season-high 30 points and was a perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line while adding six rebounds, two steals and just one turnover in 32 minutes on the floor. For Mojidi, the weekly A-10 award was the fifth of her career as she was named the league's Player of the Week once last season and earned three Rookie of the Week accolades in 2004-05.
COOPER RECEIVES MVP AWARD
Sierra Cooper received the tournament MVP award at Lehigh's Christmas City Classic (Dec. 29-30). Cooper averaged 11.5 points and 10 rebounds at the tournament while recording her first-career double-double (13p, 14r) in URI's opening -day game against Stony Brook.
ACADEMIC HONORS
Andrea Buck, Lindsay Harris and Whitney Hollis were named to the Atlantic 10 Commissioner's Honor Roll for the fall 2007 semester (in order to be recognized, student-athletes must have a semester grade point average of 3.5 or better). Additionally, these three - as well as Sierra Cooper and Tanja Licina - were honored at URI's 2007 Dean's List Reception, where all Rhode Island student-athletes on the Dean's List for the spring or fall (2007) semester(s) were recognized.
TWICE AS NICE
Junior forward Tanja Licina recorded her first - and second - career three-pointers in URI's win over Lehigh to take the Christmas City Classic. Additionally, Licina led the Rams with a team-high 12 points and 4 assists in the victory.
PERFECTION
Rhode Island was a perfect 10-for-10 from the line against Providence on Dec. 1. It marked the first time that the Rams have had a flawless free-throw percentage (three-or-more attempts) at the Ryan Center since going 12-for-12 from the line against Marquette on Dec. 11, 2004. Rhody also was a perfect 4-for-4 against Kent State on Dec. 22.
MOJIDI ON THE MOVE
Safi Mojidi entered her senior season ranked ninth all-time on the Rhode Island all-time scoring list. After a 23-point performance at Holy Cross, she passed former teammate Tanya Rhodes and took over the #8 spot. Mojidi most recently moved to third all-time, after netting 15 at Charlotte. She currently has 1,597 career points, ranks fifth on the career field goals list (559), is third with 352 assists and is first all-time at URI with 185 three-pointers.
REJECTED
Whitney Hollis entered the season ranked tenth on the Rhode Island career blocks list. The senior center has recorded at least one block 19 times this season and is currently ranked third all-time at URI with 63 career rejections.
ATLANTIC 10 HONOR ROLL
Five different Rams have earned spots on the Atlantic 10 Weekly Honor Roll this season. Megan Shoniker (Dec. 3, Dec. 28, Jan. 7) and Safi Mojidi (Nov. 19, Nov. 26, Jan. 28) lead the team with three mentions each while Amanda McGrew has two (Dec. 3, Feb. 25) and Sierra Cooper (Dec. 24) and Crystal Bellinger (Feb. 11) were recognized once each.
SMILE FOR THE CAMERA
The 2007-08 Rhode Island women's basketball schedule features three television games. Cox Sports will televise URI's games against Tulane (Dec. 5) and Xavier (Feb. 3) while CSTV will air the Rams Jan. 27th game against Temple.
MOJIDI A TWO-TIME ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAMER
After averaging 11 points and four rebounds - and scoring the game-winning baskets against Stony Brook (with 13 seconds left in the game) and Lehigh (nine seconds remaining) to help URI capture the championship title - Safi Mojidi earned All-Tournament honors at Lehigh's Christmas City Classic. The senior guard also was named to the URI Invitational All-Tournament team after leading the Rams to a second-place finish in the third-annual Thanksgiving weekend classic. Mojidi paced the Rams with a 21-point performance in the championship game against the No. 16/17 West Virginia Mountaineers and had eight points, seven rebounds and a game-high four steals in URI's win over Brown in the first round of competition.
BELLINGER SHINES AT BU
After recording two turnovers in seven minutes of action in the first half of URI's game at Boston University (Nov. 13), Crystal Bellinger returned from the break and led the Rams through the second frame with 14 points, four steals and three assists. All were career highs for the redshirt-junior transfer who was appearing in just her second game for Rhode Island.
RHODY OPENS WITH A WIN
URI opened the 2007-08 season with a 62-43 win over Sacred Heart, Nov. 9, at the Ryan Center. The win improved the Rams' record to 16-17 in season openers. Prior to defeating the Pioneers, Rhode Island had not won a season opener since posting a 75-58 win at Northeastern to start the 2004-05 season. In that game, Safi Mojidi made her first collegiate appearance, recorded a double-double (16 points, 10 steals) and played all 40 minutes. In last season's opening game, Rhode Island was paced by Tanja Licina's 10-point, 10-rebound performance, but fell to Virginia by a score of 69-56.
MOJIDI COMPETES FOR HER NATIVE NIGERIA
Nigeria-native Safi Mojidi represented her nation at the 2007 FIBA African Championship, where the championship team earned a spot in the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, China. Mojidi helped the Nigerian team post victories over DR Congo (69-56) and Kenya (73-70) before the squad was defeated by Mozambique (69-61) in the quarterfinals.
RYAN CENTER RECORDS
The Rams reached several Ryan Center records in their Dec. 22 win over Kent State. Individually, Crystal Bellinger tied the assists record with eight helpers while, as a team, URI dished out a record-tying 25 assists. Rhody also netted a record-setting 10 three-pointers on a Ryan Center-best 33 attempts.
RHODY DEBUTS
Four new Rams made their Rhode Island debuts in URI's 62-43 season-opening win over Sacred Heart. Redshirt junior guard Crystal Bellinger recorded seven points and four rebounds and earned the start in her first game in a URI uniform. Freshman guard Megan Shoniker registered two points and one rebound 11 minutes of action. Junior guard Aija Veiksane was 2-for-2 from three-point territory, recording six points overall in two minutes on the floor, while junior forward Ebony Evans grabbed a rebound in one minute of action.
MOJIDI EARNS PRESEASON HONORS
Senior guard Safi Mojidi was named to the Preseason All-Conference Second Team for the second-straight season after leading the Rams in field goals (158), threes (49), free throw percentage (.805, 95-118), points (460, 15.9 ppg), assists (109, 3.8 apg) and steals (58, 2.0 spg). Her assists total ranks fourth among all returning A-10 student-athletes. Mojidi scored in double figures in 22 of the teams' 29 games last season and recorded 30+ points three times. She also logged a team-leading 33.2 minutes per game.
URI PICKED 12TH IN PRESEASON POLL
The Rams were picked to finish 12th in the 2007-08 Atlantic 10 Conference race, according to a poll conducted by the A-10 head coaches and select media. Rhody finished the 2006-07 campaign with a 6-23 record (4-10 A-10) and finished tied for 11th in the conference standings.
RHODY RETURNEES
The 2007-08 Rhode Island roster features seven letterwinners who saw action in 24 or more games last season, and nine returnees overall. Four of the Rams' top-five scorers from last season are back, led by preseason All-Atlantic 10 selection senior Safi Mojidi (15.9 ppg). Juniors Amanda McGrew (8.9 ppg), Tanja Licina (5.8 ppg) and Sierra Cooper (5.7 ppg) all return as well. McGrew finished her sophomore campaign second on the team with 42 three-pointers while Licina was second with a .733 free throw percentage (22-30) and Cooper lead last year's squad with 164 rebounds (5.7 per game).
NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK
Rhody welcomes four newcomers to the lineup in 2007-08. Redshirt junior Crystal Bellinger will make her first appearance as a Ram, after sitting out last season as a transfer from Alabama. Freshman Megan Shoniker comes to URI from Rochester's Greece Arcadia, where she averaged 26.2 points and 8.7 rebounds per game. The Rams also have added two junior college transfers: Ebony Evans and Aija Veiksane. Last season at Miami Dade, Evans averaged 2.8 ppg and 5.5 rpg while Veiksane averaged 6.7 ppg and 1.6 rpg at Jefferson College.
ATLANTIC 10 FORMAT
The Atlantic 10 Conference consists of 14 member schools competing under one division. During the Conference schedule, each team will play one regular-season game against 12 of the Conference institutions and two regular-season games against one Conference institution designated as its travel partner (URI's travel partner is Massachusetts) for a total of 14 Conference games.
A-10 CHAMPIONSHIP
The 2008 Atlantic 10 Championship will be hosted by Saint Joseph's University and played at the Hawks' Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse in Philadelphia, Pa. First-round games will be played on March 7, followed by quarterfinals on March 8, semifinals on March 9 and the title game on March 10. The league's top 12 teams qualify for the tournament with the championship team receiving the conference's automatic bid to the 64-team NCAA Tournament.
