No. 17/17 Women's Basketball at the Williams Shooting Touch Tournament
Friday, December 2 vs. Bridgewater State | 8 p.m.
Saturday, December 3 vs. Keene State or Williams | 1 or 3 p.m.
Chandler Gymnasium | Williamstown, Mass.
WHAT TO KNOW
• No. 17/17 Babson travels to Williamstown, Mass., to compete in the Williams Shooting Touch Tournament for the third time since 2019 on Friday and Saturday.
• Friday's matchups feature the Beavers taking on Bridgewater State and the host Ephs against Keene State.
• Saturday's consolation and championship games are set for 1 and 3 p.m.
SERIES HISTORY
vs. Bridgewater State
• Babson is 17-4 all-time against the Bears in a series that dates back to 1988.
• The Beavers have won two straight against Bridgewater State, which includes a 68-59 victory in the first round of the NCAA Tournament back in 2012 that gave head coach Judy Blinstrub her 500th career win.
• Babson and the Bears met in 16 consecutive seasons from 1993-2008 but have met just once over the last 14 years.
vs. Keene State
• The Beavers are 1-0 all-time against the Owls thanks to a 63-50 win at the Middlebury Tournament on November 13, 2021.
vs. Williams
• Babson is just 4-15 all-time against the Williams, which includes a 63-56 loss on December 4, 2021, in Williamstown.
• The Beavers have dropped two straight in the series and have never defeated the Ephs in Williamstown.
SCOUTING THE BEAVERS
• No. 17/17 Babson (4-0) returned from an 11-day break to defeat Brandeis, 85-56, on Wednesday night.
• Senior Megan Bauman scored a season-high 22 points to lead five players in double figures and classmate Samantha Smith added 15 points and a game-high 14 rebounds for the Beavers, who opened the game with a 22-4 run and led by as many as 24 in the second quarter.
• Smith (14.3 pts, 9.5 reb, 2.0 blocks) is shooting 54.2 percent from the floor, Bauman is averaging 13.8 points and 4.8 assists and junior Kelly Walsh (11.5 pts, 3.8 reb, 2.5 ast) leads the team with nine steals.
• The Green and White is averaging the fewest turnovers in Division III (10.5) and also ranks ninth in field goal percentage defense (28.6).
SCOUTING THE BEARS
• Bridgewater State (6-1) bounced back from its only loss of the year by defeating UMass Dartmouth, 95-91, on Tuesday night.
• Kylie Grassi led five players in double figures with 27 points and Sydney Bradbury finished with 20 for the Bears, who outscored the Corsairs 15-3 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter.
• Grassi (17.9 pts, 4.6 reb, 3.1 ast) is shooting 46.3 percent from the floor, Bradbury (15.6 pts, 4.0 reb, 3.1 ast) has scored in double figures in six straight outings, and senior Kylee Piche is averaging 10.6 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.4 assists.
• Bridgewater State ranks ninth in Division III averaging 81.1 points and is shooting 43.1 percent on the year.
SCOUTING THE OWLS
• Keene State (2-3) has won two of its last three games and is coming off a 71-61 victory over Rivier on Tuesday.
• Aryanna Murray scored 18 points, Kenzie Durnford added 16 and Rylee Burgess finished with 11 points and 13 rebounds for the Owls, who shot 51.6 percent in the second half.
• Murray is averaging team highs of 13.2 points and 3.2 assists, Durnford is contributing 9.4 points and 7.2 rebounds and Burgess (8.0 pts, 8.0 reb) is shooting 58.6 percent from the floor.
• Keene State is holding opponents to just 56.4 points per game and 32.2 percent shooting.
SCOUTING THE EPHS
• Williams (4-2) has dropped two of its last three games and is coming off a 70-56 setback at Skidmore on Tuesday.
• Arianna Gerig scored 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting and Mia Holtze added 15 points for the Ephs, who were outrebounded 51-29 by the Thoroughbreds.
• Holtze (14.3 pts, 4.2 reb) has scored in double figures in five of the first six games, Gerig (12.3 pts, 4.7 reb, 4.0 ast) is first on the team with 13 steals, and Maddy Mandyck (12.0 pts, 8.7 reb) is shooting 56.4 percent from the floor.
• Williams ranks sixth in Division III in blocked shots per game (6.3) and 12th in three-point percentage connecting on 37.7 percent of their attempts.
BENCH PRODUCTION
• Sophomores Abby Miller and Kiara Simone Davis combined to go 5-of-10 from beyond the arc on the way to scoring 21 points in Wednesday's win at Brandeis.
• Miller knocked down three triples and matched her season high with 11 points to go along with three steals, while Davis contributed 10 points and two assists in 14 minutes.
PERFECT AT THE STRIPE
• The Beavers went 17-of-17 at the free throw line against Brandeis to finish perfect for the first time in over a decade.
• Babson ranks 10th in Division III in free throw percentage (78.3) and is 45-of-54 (83.3 percent) at the charity stripe over its last three outings.
MILESTONE WATCH
• Head coach Judy Blinstrub picked up the 697th win of her career on Wednesday at Brandeis and is now three shy of becoming the 11th coach in Division III history to reach 700 victories.
• She ranks fourth in Division III and 17th in all divisions among active coaches in wins.
NUMBERS TO KNOW
• The Beavers are 4-0 for the third year in a row but have not started the season with five straight wins (excluding the 2020-21 COVID season) since 2012-13.
• Babson has held three straight opponents below 30 percent shooting and has won its last 51 games when doing so.
• The Beavers have outscored their first four opponents 145-79 over the first two quarters this season and has led by at least 19 points on three occasions.
• Babson is 38-3 since the start of the 2018-19 campaign when scoring 70 points or more.
UP NEXT
• The Beavers return home to take on Framingham State on Tuesday at 6 p.m.
