ORONO, Maine -- For the third consecutive season, the University of Maine women's basketball team opens its conference schedule against UMass Lowell when the two teams meet on Jan. 1 at 6 p.m. in Lowell live on NESN.

Maine has won eight-straight conference openers and nine of its last 10. Maine is 18-10 in conference openers dating back to the league's start in the 1996-97 season.

Thursday's game can be seen regionally on NESN and nationally on ESPN+. Additionally, Thursday's game can be heard on the Black Bears Sports Network at GoBlackBears.com and on 92.9 FM in the Bangor region.

Game 14 | Maine at UMass Lowell
Thursday, Jan. 1, 2025 | 6:00 P.M. | NESN/ESPN+ | 92.9 FM
Kennedy Family Athletic Complex | Lowell, Mass.

LAST TIME OUT:
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Adrianna Smith's buzzer beater at the end of regulation helped Maine push past Harvard on Sunday afternoon by a score of 59-57.

Smith led the way for the Black Bears with a 21 point, eight rebound, and seven assist performance. Asta Blauenfeldt also finished in double figures with 13 points, while Lala Woods (9), Sarah Talon (7), Olivia Alvarez (7), and Lizzy Gruber (2) all contributed in the scoring column.

The Black Bears went into the second quarter down 13-10 after shooting just 26.7% from the floor in the first. Maine would then find their shooting form going 19-38 throughout the rest of the contest.

Maine would end the contest shooting 43.4% from the field, 33.3% from beyond the arc and 46.2% from the free throw line.

Maine would be outrebounded by the Crimson by a 43-30 margin. This game would see 15 lead changes and 10 ties.

A LOOK AT THE BLACK BEARS:
The Black Bears, who have not played a game in 11 days, concluded non-conference play on a two-game win streak with key wins at Quinnipiac and at Harvard. Adrianna Smith continues to guide the Black Bears as she ranks first in the league in rebounding (10.0) and second in both scoring (18.4) and assists (4.6). Her seven double-doubles rank seventh in the country as she has posted double-figure scoring efforts in 12 of Maine's 13 outings and each of the last eight. Smith, who posted 18 points and 20 rebounds for her seventh double-double in the win at Quinnipiac, recently moved into 11th on Maine's all-time scoring list at 1,398 career points. Smith is only the second player in Maine history to eclipse 1,300 points, 800 rebounds, and 300 assists in a career. Asta Blauenfeldt carries a three-game double-figure scoring streak into Thursday evening and ranks 18th in the league in scoring (11.5) while checking in eighth among league leaders in triples per game (2.0). After not appearing in Maine's first 11 games, Lala Woods has provided a recent spark off the bench as she is averaging 8.5 points in her last two outings with five triples. Maine, which has won the turnover battle in eight games this season, rank second in the America East at just 13.9 giveaways per game.

A LOOK AT UMASS LOWELL:
The River Hawks have already doubled their win total from last season under first year head coach, Jon Plefka. UMass Lowell, 4-1 at home this season, closed non-conference action winning two out of three including a 109-45 decision over St. Joseph's Brooklyn on Monday evening. Jaini Edmonds leads the River Hawks at 12.5 points per game while Sabrina Larsson, UMass Lowell's top three-point threat (39.4), is adding 9.1 points to the balanced attack which features five scorers averaging 8.6 points or better. Maddie Rice is chipping in 9.5 points and a team-best 6.2 rebounds. The River Hawks enter play with the America East's seventh ranked offense (61.5 ppg) and fourth ranked scoring defense (60.8). UMass Lowell features the league's second ranked rebounding unit (37.2) and top-ranked three-pointers per game mark at 7.6 per outing. 

SERIES WITH UMASS LOWELL: 
Maine and UMass Lowell are meeting for the 27th time in history. Maine swept the River Hawks a year ago, winning the latest meeting 74-44 in Orono after taking a 54-39 decision at UMass Lowell.  Maine, 24-2 all-time against the River Hawks, won the first 13 games of the head-to-head series. Maine has won eight-straight in the head-to-head series, four in a row at Lowell. Maine last, and only, loss on the road in the series came in 2020. Since the River Hawks joined the America East in 2013, Maine is 10-1 on the road in the all-time series. The first-ever meeting between the two teams came on Jan. 23, 2014, a 75-66 victory by the Black Bears in Lowell. Maine and UMass Lowell have met twice in the America East postseason, with Maine winning each meeting. The Black Bears bested UMass Lowell by a final of 49-43 in the quarterfinals two years ago and took down the River Hawks in the 2020 semifinals.

-UMaine-