ORONO, Maine -- The University of Maine women's basketball team, which earned the No. 1 seed in the America East playoffs after clinching its second consecutive, and fourth in the last five years, America East regular season title, begins its championship defense when it hosts No. 8 New Hampshire in quarterfinal action at the Cross Insurance Center on Wednesday, March 6 at 7 p.m. The meeting marks the fourth-straight year in which the two teams have met in the postseason. The Black Bears swept this year's regular season series with New Hampshire and have won six in a row against the Wildcats. Maine is 10-1 in the conference tournament against New Hampshire and have won three-straight postseason games with the Wildcats. Maine has held New Hampshire under 50 points in each of the last five meetings.
Tickets are available by phone at 207.581.BEAR, in-person at the Alfond Arena box office or online at
GoBlackBears.com/tickets.
NOTE: On game day, tickets will be available for purchase at the Cross Insurance Center or online at TicketMaster.com only - no tickets will be available through GoBlackBears.com or the Alfond Arena box office on game day.
Maine enters the conference tournament as the No. 1 seed for the second-straight year. The Black Bears are 43-24 all-time in conference tournament action including a 25-17 mark in America East postseason play. Maine is 24-6 all-time as the No. 1 seed and will be looking to add to its record eight conference titles.
Tale of the Tape
| Maine |
Category |
New Hampshire |
| 22-7/15-1 |
Record/Conference |
6-23/3-13 |
| 67.2 |
Points Per Game |
53.0 |
| 58.6 |
Opponent Points Per Game |
64.7 |
| +8.6 |
Scoring Margin |
-11.7 |
| 42.8 |
Field Goal Percentage |
35.0 |
| 33.4 |
3-Point Field Goal Percentage |
26.9 |
| 70.7 |
Free Throw Percentage |
69.8 |
| 33.7 |
Rebounds Per Game |
31.7 |
| -0.7 |
Rebound Margin |
-6.7 |
| 16.4 |
Assists Per Game |
10.0 |
| 11.4 |
Turnovers Per Game |
15.7 |
| 2.9 |
Blocks Per Game |
2.6 |
| 8.9 |
Steals Per Game |
7.5 |
LAST TIME OUT:
The University of Maine women's basketball team (22-7, 15-1) clinched its fourth America East Regular Season Championship in the past five seasons while also earning the No. 1 seed in the upcoming America East Playoffs after defeating Binghamton (12-17, 7-9), 67-60 on Saturday afternoon.
Four Black Bears finished with double-digit scoring efforts. Maine, which picked up its 11th win in a row, was led by
Blanca Millan who poured in 23 points on 8-for-12 shooting, including a trio of 3-point field goals.
Fanny Wadling aided the attack with her fifth career double-double after tallying 11 points and 12 boards with a game-high five assists. Wadling has now recorded double-digit rebounding efforts in four of her last five outings.
Tanesha Sutton finished in double-figures for the fifth consecutive game with 11 points and nine rebounds while
Dor Saar added 11 points.
Maine turned in its best effort from the free throw line of the year, tallying a season-high 17 makes from the charity stripe before finishing 17-of-24 overall. The Black Bears, who never trailed in the game, tallied 11 steals while turning 17 Binghamton mishaps into 26 points. Maine tallied 40 rebounds in the victory, including 15 on the offensive end to lead to a 21-12 advantage in points in the paint.
A LOOK AT THE BLACK BEARS:
The Black Bears enter postseason play red hot and riding an 11-game win streak, their longest streak since stringing together 14 in a row back in 2016. After an impressive regular season run, several Black Bears received postseason honors. The list was headlined by
Blanca Millan who was named the America East Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year. Millan becomes just the fourth player in league history to collect both honors in the same year. Coach Vachon was named the league's Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season. In all, Maine earned three major awards, three all-conference selections, an all-defensive team honor and two all-academic honors.
Millan leads the way for Maine as she has turned in 23 double-digit scoring performances this season and enters as the league's leader in scoring at 17.6 points per game. The junior guard also leads the way in conference only scoring, averaging 16.9 points per game against league foes. Millan, whose 43.4-percent mark from the floor ranks fifth best in the league,has been equally as impressive on the defensive end. Millan leads the league in steals (2.8) and ranks second in the conference in blocks (1.4). Millan ranks 22nd nationally in steals per game.
Tanesha Sutton, who finished the year strong by capturing each of the final two America East Player of the Week awards, ranks in the top-10 among league leaders in scoring (5th-14.1), rebounding (3rd-7.2), assists (9th-2.6) and steals (9th-1.7). Sutton, who earned an All-Conference First Team selection, is shooting 50.3-percent from the floor, tops in the league and 58th nationally. Rossignol, who was selected to the America East Second Team, ranks 13th in the league in scoring (11.4) and leads the way from beyond the arc with a 41.2-percent mark from 3-point range. Her 2.2 three-point field goals per game rank fifth best.
Dor Saar gets Maine's league leading offense (67.2) moving as she ranks second in the league in assists (5.0) to go along with an impressive +2.5 assist to turnover ratio. Saar has posted five or more assists 16 times this season and has recently improved her scoring, averaging 9.7 points in league play and a league-best 44.9-percent mark from 3-point range.
Fanny Wadling has been a rebounding force for the Black Bears since returning from her mid-season injury. Wadling has recorded eight double-digit rebounding performances and ranks second among league-leaders in conference only rebounding (8.9).
Maine leads the league in scoring at 67.2 points per game and features a +17.4 scoring margin against America East competition. Defensively, Maine's 58.6 points per game allowed overall rank third in the league and 51st nationally. The Black Bears continue their impressive effort in taking care of the ball, ranking fifth in the nation in turnovers per game (11.4) and sixth nationally in total team turnovers (330) to go along with a sixth-best assist to turnover ratio (1.44). Maine is tops in the America East in field goal percentage (42.8), 3-point percentage (33.4) and 3-point field goals made per game (8.2). Defensively, Maine is second in the league at 8.9 per game.
A LOOK AT NEW HAMPSHIRE:
The Wildcats have lost five in a row entering postseason play after dropping their regular season finale to UMBC, 55-47. Offense has been a struggle for the Wildcats this season as they rank eighth in the conference and 342 out of 349 teams nationally at 53.0 points per game. New Hampshire ranks last in the league in field goal percentage (34.9), 3-point percentage (26.9) and second to last in rebounding (31.7). Defensively, UNH ranks last in the America East, allowing 64.7 points per game for an -11.7 scoring margin, also last in the league. Individually, the Wildcats are led by the America East Rookie of the Year, Kari Brekke. Brekke is averaging 11.4 points per game and a team-high 2.3 assists. Caroline Soucy is adding 9.1 points and 5.6 rebounds on the year. The Wildcats have been without Ashley Storey, who was injured after 15 games. Prior to her injury, Storey was averaging 17.1 points and 6.1 boards; both team highs.
SERIES WITH NEW HAMPSHIRE:
Maine and New Hampshire will meet for the 93rd time, and 12th in postseason play, in their storied history. The Black Bears enter play with a 57-35 advantage in the series and have matched up against UNH the second most times of any of its opponents (Vermont-94). Maine is 10-1 all-time against UNH in postseason play, including wins in each of the past three seasons. Dating back to 1985, Maine is 25-9 at home against the Wildcats. Maine has won six-straight in the series, including a 67-46 decision earlier this season in Maine and a 69-45 decision in Durham. This season against UNH, three Black Bears are averaging double-digits in the series; Rossignol (15.5), Sutton (14.5) and Millan (11.0). Overall, Maine is holding a +22.5 scoring margin over UNH this season.
The two teams first met in 1920, a 15-13 victory by the Wildcats. Millan, who has tallied double-figures in each of her seven outings with UNH is averaging 13.7 points per game in the series.
Tanesha Sutton is averaging 10.6 points and 5.9 rebounds in her seven previous meetings with New Hampshire.
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SEASON NOTES:
THE BLACK BEARS IN LEAGUE PLAY...
Maine finished league play at15-1, its most league wins since also capturing 15 in 2016. Maine ended the regular season riding a 11-game league winning streak, and a perfect 8-0 at home against league opponents. Against league foes, the Black Bears rank at the top in scoring offense (69.6), while ranking second-best in scoring defense, allowing just 52.2 points per game for a scoring margin of +17.4. Maine has defeated seven conference opponents by 20 points or more, with 13 of its 15 league wins coming by double-digits. Maine is shooting 44.6-percent from the floor in America East action and averaging 17.5 assists. Individually,
Blanca Millan (16.9),
Tanesha Sutton (14.3) and
Parise Rossignol (12.9) rank first, sixth and ninth among league leaders in America East scoring average.
COLLEGE INSIDER MID-MAJOR TOP 25 POLL - No. 18 (2/27/19)
The Black Bears have been ranked in every edition of the College Insider Mid-Major Poll this season. Following a five-game win streak, Maine peaked in the poll at No. 12 on Dec. 5, hanging strong at the position for two-straight weeks. The Black Bears have been the highest ranking America East school in the poll this season and are currently the only America East school ranked in the latest edition of the poll, released on Feb. 30. Maine currently sits at No. 18 in the most up to date poll.
TO BE THE BEST, YOU'VE GOT TO BEAT THE BEST:
The Black Bears challenged themselves with one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the country. Through its first 13 games, Maine had gone up against the 56th toughest schedule in the nation, out of 351 total Division I squads. Maine's rating percentage index (RPI) currently sits at 57 nationally, 55 spots above the next highest America East team, Hartford. RPI is used to rank teams based upon a team's wins and losses and its strength of schedule. Maine's 13 non-conference games included contests against 10 teams who appeared in the 2017-18 postseason in one form or another.
DURING THE STREAK
The Black Bears are currently riding an 11-game win streak where they've gone 5-0 at home and 6-0 in the road. Five of the 11 wins have come by 20 or more points. Over the stretch, Maine is averaging 70.7 points per game while holding its opponent to a 52.8 point showing. Maine's scoring margin differential during the win streak currently sits at 17.9. Maine has been impressive from 3-point range over the 11 games, shooting 36.3-percent from downtown while averaging 8.8 treys per game. Maine is holding a +6.4 turnover margin as it has averaged just 10.5 turnovers per game during the streak.
TOSSIN DIMES:
The Black Bears have tallied 20 or more assists in six of their last 11 outings. Over the 11-game win streak, Maine has racked up 201 assists to just 116 turnovers. Nine times this season Maine has surpassed the 20 assist mark in a single game.
Dor Saar ranks 45th in the nation at 5.0 assists per game and 26th with a 2.46 assist to turnover ratio. Over Maine's current 11-game win streak, Saar has recorded 54 assist to just 17 turnovers. On the season, Saar has tallied five or more assists on 16 occasions.
HOME SWEET HOME
The Black Bears have been impressive at home as of late. Maine is 57-6 on its home court in its last 63 outings, including a 38-3 mark in America East play over the past 41 league contests. Under Coach Vachon, the Black Bears are 29-3 at home. This season, Maine is 10-1, 8-0 in league play, at home with the lone loss being a three point decision to then No. 20 Duke. Maine is averaging 77.6 points per game at home. Millan is averaging 20.0 points at home while Rossignol is adding 16.9 on the home court. The Black Bears are shooting 47.6% on their home court and averaging an impressive 20.6 assists.
SUTTON REACHES 1,000 POINTS:
With a free throw in the second half at UAlbany,
Tanesha Sutton became the 21st player in UMaine women's basketball history to eclipse the 1,000 point plateau. The point total included her 28 points tallied as a freshman at Duquesne. In all, it took Sutton 116 games to reach the mark. If you look at only her time at UMaine, Sutton eclipsed 1,000 points in a Black Bear uniform on Feb. 24 against Stony Brook. With 19 points at UMass Lowell, Sutton moved into 20th on Maine's all-time scoring list. She now stands 38 points behind Melissa Heon (1,102) for 19th all-time.
FEATURED SCORERS - TOP 10
The Black Bears currently have two scorers ranked in the top-5 among America East overall leaders in leading scorer
Blanca Millan (1st-17.6) and
Tanesha Sutton (5th-14.1). Taking a look at conference only stats, Maine is the only school with three players ranked in the top-10 of the league's leaders in scoring with
Blanca Millan first (16.9), Sutton sixth (14.3) and Rossignol ninth (12.9).
TURNOVER EFFICIENCY:
Maine has been extremely impressive with its ball control this season. The Black Bears currently rank fifth in the nation, averaging just 11.4 turnovers per game as a team. Maine's 1.44 assist-turnover ratio is sixth best among the nation's leaders. In 16 of its 29 games, Maine has turned the ball over just 11 times or fewer, with eight of those performances ending with single-digit turnover totals. Maine had a season-low three turnovers in its win at Vermont. Against Binghamton, Maine tallied 23 assists to just four turnovers.
MILLAN QUICK TO 1,000 AND CLIMBING THE CHARTS:
On a three-point field goal in the first quarter at Harvard (12/4),
Blanca Millan became the 20th Black Bear in history to reach 1,000 career points. Millan did so in her 75th career game, making her the seventh fastest in UMaine history to eclipse the mark. With 15 points against Hartford, Millan moved into 10th on Maine's all-time scoring list. She currently stands just eight points away from passing Lauree Gott for 10th all-time (1,387).
MILLAN DOUBLE-FIGURE STREAK:
After starting the season with double-figures in each of Maine's first five games,
Blanca Millan has tallied double-digits in 23 of Maine's first 29, including back-to-back 20+ point efforts against Bryant (23) and #20 Duke (25), a 21 point showing at North Carolina, 26 points at Harvard, 27 against UAlbany and 23 at Binghamton. Millan's season-best effort came in a career-high 36 point showing against Brown and added her second 30 point effort with 31 points at UAlbany. Dating back to last season, Millan has posted double-digit scoring totals in 54 of her last 62. In all, Millan has finished in double-digits in 70 of her 96 career contests.
DEFENSE = VICTORY
Over the past two years, Maine is 35-2 when holding its opponent to 60 or fewer points. The Black Bears are 43-5 in the Vachon era when limiting teams to 60 or less. This season, Maine is holding league opponents to just 52.2 points per game in America East play and is 16-1 when holding opponents under 60 points, 8-1 when opponents are held under 50.
CLOSING IN ON ANOTHER 3-POINT RECORD:
The Black Bears enter play just 17 three-point field goals away from tying the all-time mark of 256 triples made in a season, a mark set last season. Maine has tallied 200 or more 3-point field goals in six-straight seasons.
MILLAN CLIMBING THE ALL-TIME STEALS CHART:
Millan's four steals against UAlbany moved her into fifth on Maine's all-time steals list (236). She now stands 37 steals behind
Amy Vachon for fourth all-time (279).
SUTTON ON THE BOARDS:
Tanesha Sutton currently ranks third in the conference, at 7.2 rebounds per game. On Dec. 30 against Chattanooga, Sutton tallied her eighth career double-double, also tallying her 500th career rebound along the way. With her nine rebounds at Binghamton, she moved into 15th all-time (613). She now stands just eight rebounds out of 14th all-time (621) and 16 out of 13th (629). This season, Sutton has tallied double-digit rebounding totals in seven games while tallying six double-doubles. Â
RECORD BREAKING NIGHT FOR ROSSIGNOL - PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
On Jan. 30 against UMass Lowell,
Parise Rossignol set a new UMaine school-record with eight three-point field goal makes. Rossignol finished the game with a career-high 32 points. Hereight three-point field goals are tied for 13th most in a single game in the NCAA this season and tied for third in the America East all-time record books. The senior guard recorded 21 of her game-high 32 in the first half alone. Rossignol bounced back with a 13 point showing at UNH, helping her earn her second America East Player of the Week honor of the season.
A SCORING EFFORT FOR THE RECORD BOOKS:
On Dec. 8, 2018, the Black Bears defeated Brown by a 102-96 final in overtime at the Cross Insurance Center. That win marked the highest combined point total for a Black Bear women's basketball game in history (198). It also marked the second time an
Amy Vachon coached team hit the century mark, and the first 100 point effort for Maine against a Division I team since a 110 point effort in 1997 against Drexel.
RECORD NIGHT IN NORTH CAROLINA:
The Black Bears matched an all-time, single-game record for three-point field goals with 16 makes in their win at North Carolina on Dec. 2. Since then, UNC has gone on to defeat Notre Dame and NC State.
STORMING BACK TO WIN THE CLASSIC:
In both of its games at the Navy Classic (vs. NC A&T and vs. Penn), Maine trailed both at the half and with five-minutes to go. However, Maine was able to comeback in both games, winning each and capturing the Navy Classic title.
BLACK BEARS IN THE PROS:
Maine currently has five former players in the professional level in Europe.
Sigi Koizar ('17) - ZTE NKK (Hungary);
Milica Mitrovic ('16) - Partizan (Serbia);
Anna Heise ('16) - Jahn Muenchen (Germany);
Mikaela Gustafsson ('16) - Telge (Sweden);
Chantel Charles ('16) - Ciudad de la Adelantados (Spain).
TAPLEY COMPLETE JUNIORS PHASE OF MARINE OFFICER CANDIDATE SCHOOL:
In the summer of 2018,
Sierra Tapley completed the Juniors phase of Marine Officer Candidate School (OCS) at Quantico Marine Base in Quantico, Va. Tapley reported to Quantico on May 26 and completed the course on July 6. Tapley plans to complete a six week course next summer known as "Seniors", often described to be more difficult than Juniors due to the advanced physical standards and increased responsibility. Upon completion, she will graduate OCS with a goal of completing a six month period of training known as "The Basic School".
INTERNATIONAL VIBE:
As has been the norm over the last few seasons for the Black Bears, Maine features numerous players from around the globe on its roster including players from Turkey (Alper); Israel (Saar); Spain (Millan), Germany (Barra), Slovakia (Bolozova) and Sweden (Wadling).
VACHON INDUCTED INTO HALL OF FAME
On Oct. 5, 2018, UMaine women's basketball head coach
Amy Vachon was inducted into the 2018 University of Maine Sports Hall of Fame class. Vachon, who graduated from UMaine in 2000, was a two-time captain for the Black Bears, helping guide Maine to four-straight NCAA Tournament appearances. Vachon currently still holds the UMaine record for most assists in a single-season (234) and the UMaine and America East record for career assists (759). Vachon was also inducted in the State of Maine Sports Hall of Fame in 2016.
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