ORONO, Maine -- Maine returns from its Holiday break and heads back out on the road to take on Tulane on Wednesday at 3 p.m. EST in the two team's first meeting since 1998. The Black Bears, making their first trip to Tulane since a 1987 meeting, will be playing game four of a six-game stretch away from home.
FOLLOW THE BLACK BEARS:
A LOOK AT THE BLACK BEARS:
Maine, winners of four of its last five, look to get back on the winning track after a 76-51 defeat at the hands of No. 11/12 Miami in the Championship of the Miami Holiday Tournament back on Dec. 20. In the loss, Maine was led by
Tanesha Sutton and
Julie Brosseau, who each tallied double-figures with 13 and 10 points, respectively. It was just the second time in the last seven games that an opponent scored 55+ points against the Black Bears.
Tanesha Sutton has led Maine in its last three outings as the redshirt sophomore enters action riding a three-game double-figure scoring streak. Over the run, Sutton is averaging 13.7 points, 6.0 rebounds and 3.7 assists along with shooting 66.7-percent (16-for-24) from the floor. Overall, Sutton is averaging 7.5 points and leads the Black Bears in rebounding (5.5) and is tied for the team lead with 2.5 assists. Sutton leads all Black Bears from the floor at 48.8-percent and 27 of her 71 rebounds have come on the offensive end.
Sigi Koizar continues to control the offense for Maine. Despite having her seven game double-figure scoring streak snapped against Miami (7 points), Koizar ranks fourth in the America East at 14.2 points per game. Her 87.5-percent mark from the free throw line is also good for fourth, and 37th among the nation's leaders, while her 21 makes from downtown tie her for 10th in the league. Koizar is also tied for the team lead with 2.5 assists. Freshman
Laia Sole, a three-time America East Rookie of the Week, is adding 9.2 points with a 45.5-percent showing from the floor. Fellow freshman
Blanca Millan is chipping in 7.0 points and leads Maine at 1.7 steals per game.
Julie Brosseau is a threat from beyond the arc, leading Maine and ranking 10th in the league at 39.6-percent and is tied with Koizar for the team-lead with 21 makes from 3-point range.
Maine continues to climb back to the upper echelon of defensive rankings that it is used to producing as it is allowing 59.3 points per game, third best in the America East and 85th in the nation. The Black Bears are shooting 29.0-percent from 3-point range and rank 93rd in the nation with 79 makes. Part of the reason for that is because they lead the league and rank 34th in the country with 272 attempts from downtown.
The Black Bears have faced one of the most challenging schedules in their history, already playing three teams ranked 11th or higher. The strength of schedule Maine has played already ranks it 40th in the nation, with the next highest America East team's SOS being Binghamton (65). Maine is 7-3 against unranked teams and is holding those 10 opponents to just 52.9 points per game, outscoring them by a +8.4 margin. Maine's RPI currently sits at 72; 75 spots higher than the next America East team (UAlbany - 147).
A LOOK AT TULANE:
The Green Wave return from their Holiday break and look to build on their current three-game win streak. Most recently, Tulane picked up a win over SEC member Auburn by a score of 61-59, to win the 21st Tulane Classic. Kolby Morgan was named the Classic's MVP after leading Tulane with 18 points in the finale. The Green Wave is a perfect 6-0 at home this season. Morgan leads the way at 17.9 points per game, 56th best in the country and fifth in the American. The offense begins with Leslie Vorpahl who's 6.7 assists per game rank her 16th nationally. Tulane is one of the best shooting team's in the country, checking in a 44.0-percent from the floor, good for 54th nationally.
ALL-TIME SERIES WITH TULANE:
Maine and Tulane will be meeting for the third time in history and the first since the Black Bears dropped an 85-76 victory back in 1998 at Tulane. The first meeting of the series came in 1987, a game played in Portland, Maine and won by the Black Bears, 65-57.
In the 1998 outing at Tulane, current Maine associate head coach
Amy Vachon tallied eight points, five rebounds and 12 assists in 37 minutes of action.
TOUGH SCHEDULE:
Maine has played by far the toughest schedule among its America East competition and one of the toughest in the country. Entering action at Tulane, Maine's schedule ranked 40th among SOS in the nation through games played this far. Maine's competition, which has featured three teams ranked 11th or higher, has compiled a 62.1 winning percentage (87-53). The next highest America East team is Binghamton at 65. In looking at RPI, Maine currently stands at 72; 75 spots higher than the next AE team (UAlbany - 147).
60's THE MAGIC NUMBER:
Maine is 7-1 when allowing 60 or fewer points this season. It's lone loss in the stat came in a 58-49 neutral site defeat to Hampton. Dating back to last season, Maine is 32-7 when it holds opponents under 60 points.
IT'S THAT SIMPLE:
Often it is just that simple. The Black Bears are undefeated (7-0) when committing fewer turnovers than their opponents and 0-5 when turning it over more than the opposition. Maine is averaging 14.3 turnovers per game and forcing 15.6.
ENERGIZER SIGI:
To keep par with last season,
Sigi Koizar again ranks among the nation's leaders in minutes player. Koizar is 37th in the country in minutes played per game (35.4) and ranks 10th in the NCAA with 460:00 total minutes.
SOLE COLLECTING HARDWARE:
In the early stages of her freshman season,
Laia Sole has proved to be one of the top newcomers in the America East. Sole is a three-time America East Rookie of the Week and was honored as a member of the Tipoff Tournament All-Tournament team. Sole currently ranks second among freshman scorers in America East. Through her first 13 games, Sole has bested double-digit scoring efforts on six occasions.
DEFENSIVE WINS:
A year ago, Maine limited its opponents to just 51.1 points per game. This season, when Maine's great defense has presented itself, it has ended in wins for the Black Bears. In its seven wins this season, Maine is holding opponents to 47.6 points per game while forcing 18.7 turnovers (a +6.7 margin). Overall, Maine ranks 85th in the country in scoring defense (59.3).
NEWCOMER SCORING:
Over its first 13 games, Maine has received 72.0% of its scoring from newcomers (7 freshman, 1 transfer) - with 58.9% of all scoring coming strictly from the freshman class. Eight of its nine top scorers are either freshmen or first-year players (Transfer-Sutton). Maine has received 539 of its total 749 points from newcomers.
-UMaine-
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