Stevens Women’s Basketball set for NCAA matchup with No. 15/No. 16 Rochester
Charles O'Brien
ROCHESTER, N.Y. (March 1, 2018) – After capturing an Empire 8 Conference championship less than one week ago, the Stevens Institute of Technology women's basketball team returns to Rochester, New York for postseason basketball. This time, the stakes are even higher.
The Ducks will take on nationally-ranked University of Rochester in the first round of the 2018 NCAA Tournament Friday night at the Louis Alexander Palestra. It will be the first-ever meeting between the programs.
How'd We Get Here
The Ducks (15-12; 10-6 (Empire 8)) reached the national championship tournament after winning the Empire 8's automatic bid with a 52-47 victory over St. John Fisher on Feb. 24, in a game played less than five miles from UR's campus. Stevens returns to the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time in program history.
The University of Rochester Yellowjackets are making their third straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament and the 15th in program history. Rochester concluded the regular season with a 21-4 mark, including am 11-3 record in the University Athletic Association and received an at-large bid from Pool C. The UAA does not conduct a postseason tournament.
Revisiting History
The two programs could have met in the Elite 8 round of the 2016 NCAA Division III Tournament, which was Stevens' last trip to the NCAAs. The Ducks reached the Sweet 16, by defeating SUNY-Old Westbury and SUNY Geneseo in the Hoboken Regional. Rochester also hosted a regional and advanced with victories over Johnson & Wales and Stockton. Both programs were among four teams playing their sectional contests in Amherst, Massachusetts. Stevens would fall to then-No. 4 Amherst, 82-48, while the Yellowjackets topped Bowdoin, 60-53. Amherst downed Rochester in the section final, 78-50, to reach the Final Four.
"Meg-ging Them Pay"
Senior forward Megan Brown enters tournament play averaging a double-double with 14.4 points and 10.3 rebounds per contest. The Laurel, Maryland native was named Co-Player of the Year by the Empire 8 Conference and was named the Most Valuable Player of the Empire 8 Championship. Brown ranks among the top-45 in the country in double-doubles (42), free throw attempts (38), and rebounds (40). Over the course of her four-year career, Brown has shot 48 percent from the field, collected 33 double-doubles, and has gone to the free throw line 452 times.
Cleaning Both Sides of the Glass
Of Brown's 279 boards, 169 have come on the defensive glass, while 110 have come on the offensive end (39.4 percent). For her career, Brown has pulled down 37.6 percent of 914 career rebounds on the offensive glass.
No Longer Freshmen
Five first-year players are playing double-digit minutes for Coach Haughey. Sam Winter currently ranks second on the team in minutes played and is fifth on the team in scoring. Empire 8 Conference Rookie of the Year Christina Li is averaging 8.8 points per game and is shooting 37 percent from behind the arc. In the post, Maddi Hahn is second on the team in blocks (32) and Annetta Panayides is fourth on the team in rebounding and played strong defense in the waning moments of Stevens' championship victory over St. John Fisher. Lily Taeuber is averaging just under 16 minutes per game and is shooting 40 percent from the floor, including 50 percent on three-point attempts.
Well, Hello There - Fancy Meeting You Here
Stevens has never faced three of the four programs playing in Rochester this weekend. On the other side of the bracket, No. 17/No. 17 Marymount University takes on the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. MIT is the only program Stevens has played, with the Ducks coming away with a 62-49 victory in Cambridge, Massachusetts on Nov. 18, 2006.
Regarding Rochester
The Yellowjackets arrive at the NCAAs on a five-game winning streak after closing out the regular season with double-digit victories over Brandeis, NYU, and Emory. The season-ending winning streak ended a stretch that saw Rochester fall three times over an eight-day span. The three losses accounted for 75 percent of Rochester's setbacks this season.
Offensively, forward Alexandra Leslie leads the team with 15.3 points per game and 1.8 blocks per game. The senior is also second on the team with 7.2 rebounds. Senior Lauren Deming partners with Leslie to form a potent one-two tandem in the post. Deming averages 13.5 points per game and leads the team in rebounding. Senior Brynn Lauer runs the offense for head coach Jim Scheible and averages three assists per game. The team is averaging 69.4 points per game, while holding opponents to just 56.8, outscoring opponents by 12.6 points per game.
On Common Ground
Rochester and Stevens have four common opponents: Ithaca College, Nazareth College, New York University, and St. John Fisher College. The Yellowjackets went a perfect 6-0 against the five schools, while Stevens went 3-4. Four of Rochester's five victories came by double figures.