Women's Basketball at the Williams Shooting Touch Classic
vs. Middlebury | Friday, December 3 | 8 p.m.
vs. Williams | Saturday, December 4 | 3 p.m.
Chandler Gymnasium | Williamstown, Mass.
WHAT TO KNOW
• Babson will compete in tournament play this weekend for the second time this season, traveling to Williamstown, Massachusetts for the Williams Shooting Touch Classic. The Beavers will take on Middlebury on Friday at 8 p.m. and Williams on Saturday at 3 p.m.
SERIES HISTORY
vs. Middlebury
• Saturday's game will be third career meeting between Babson and Middlebury in a series that dates back to 1992, with each team winning one of the first two games.
• Babson captured the most recent meeting, 66-63, on the first day of the Babson Invitational on November 20, 2004.
• Middlebury took the first game, 88-76, on March 3, 1992, in the championship game of the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) New England Tournament.
vs. Williams
• The Beavers are 4-13 all-time against the Ephs in a series that dates back to 1997.
• The Green and White picked up its first win over Williams since 2001 on January 2019 in Babson Park, 67-51.
SCOUTING THE BEAVERS
• Babson (5-1) is back in action for the first time in 10 days since defeating Brandeis, 81-65, on November 23 at Babson Park.
• The Beavers won both games of their first tournament this season, defeating Keene State and Clarkson at the Middlebury Tip-Off Tournament on November 13-14.
• Sophomore Kelly Walsh has led the Beavers in scoring in four of the first six games. She is averaging 19.0 points per outing, shooting 54.0 percent from the field and 37.9 percent from three-point range.
• The Beavers have a balanced scoring offense, with six other players averaging between 9.0 and 5.7 points per game. Leading that group is junior Megan Bauman (9.0 ppg) and first-year Anika Chinthakunta (8.2 ppg).
• Babson has won 26 of its last 28 games going back January 25, 2020.
SCOUTING THE PANTHERS
• Middlebury (4-2) is coming off back-to-back victories Tuesday and Wednesday over Northern Vermont-Lyndon (86-38) and Eastern Nazarene (98-58), both at home.
• The Panthers opened the season with home wins over Clarkson and Keene State before suffering losses to Skidmore at home and at Castleton.
• First-year Alexa Mustafaj is leading the team in scoring with 20.8 points per game (57.7 FG%) after scoring 30 points in Wednesday's win over Eastern Nazarene. Also averaging in double figures are juniors Reagan McDonald (11.8 ppg) and Claire Miller (10.8 ppg) and first-year Augusta Dixon (10.3 ppg).
• Middlebury did not play any games last season due to the pandemic after finishing 12-12 overall during the 2019-20 season.
SCOUTING THE EPHS
• Williams (2-4) enters the weekend looking to snap a three-game skid after home losses to St. Lawrence, Framingham State and Springfield.
• The Ephs have posted wins this season over Mass. College of Liberal Arts and Vassar.
• Senior Maggie Meehan tops the team in scoring with 13.7 points per game, while first-year Arianna Gerig contributes 9.2 points and 9.2 rebounds and junior Maddy Mandyck has been good for 9.0 points and a team-high 12.2 boards per contest.
• Williams did not play any games last season due to the pandemic after finishing 20-8 overall during the 2019-20 season and winning two games in the NCAA Tournament before the remainder of the tournament was cancelled.
BABSON VS. THE NESCAC
• This weekend marks the first two of six games this season against schools from the NESCAC.
• The Green and White will travel to Connecticut College next Wednesday, host Tufts on January 9, visit Trinity on January 15, and host Amherst of January 25.
• Babson took two games from Connecticut College last February inside Staake Gymnasium after going 2-5 vs. the NESCAC in 2019-20.
CONSISTENTLY WALSH
• Walsh has scored in double figures in all six games this season, and 11 of her last 12 games dating back to last season.
• Including a career-high six three-pointers in her last outing against Brandeis, Walsh also has made at least one three-pointer in 11 of her last 12 contests.
NUMBERS GAME
• Babson has won 16 straight games dating back to last season when leading at halftime, and 15 in a row when leading after three quarters.
• The Beavers have won 24 consecutive games when shooting 50 percent from the field.
• Babson is 13-1 over the last two seasons when winning the rebounding battle.
A LOOK AHEAD
• Babson will play its last game before final exams and the holiday break next Wednesday at Connecticut College.
• The first games of the second half of the season will be on December 30-31 against Endicott and Framingham State in the Judy Pearson '85 Memorial Tournament at Staake Gymnasium.
