Bringing you D I news, notes, from the teams as well as players.

Hoops News and Notes From the CAA

The Hawks Are Soaring

After starting the season 0-6, Monmouth pieced together a 3-0 homestand and followed it up with a road win over NJIT. Helping earn Cait Wetmore her first win as a head coach, Damaris Rodriguez’s 27 points against St. Peter’s propelled the Hawks to their first win. After a win against Lafayette, Monmouth continued its home stint defeating Rider, 52-36. The 36 points allowed were the fewest the Hawks have allowed since 2015, while Monmouth also grabbed a season-high 49 rebounds. ”I am proud that this team has stuck to it and has stuck together,” said Wetmore after the win against Rider. “They are applying all the things we have worked on in practice and the lessons we took away from our first six games. We have been working on our defense a lot, and I was proud with the defensive effort tonight.” During the four-game win streak, opponents are shooting just 31.0% (76-of-245) against the Hawks defense.

Delaware Defense Locks Down Delaware State
Delaware held it down defensively to earn its third win of the season over Delaware State. Winning 73-26, the points allowed were the fourth fewest in program history. The Blue Hens allowed two points in the first quarter, marking the fewest in school history, and 10 points against in the first half tied the lowest in the history of the Bob Carpenter Center for a women’s game, with the last coming on Feb. 3, 2017, against UNCW. Altogether, Delaware held its opponent under 30 points for the first time since Jan. 10, 2013, when it allowed 27 points against George Mason.

Growth of the Game

Although still early in the season, the CAA has seen incredible growth in attendance at women’s basketball competitions. Towson set a school record for most fans in attendance with 3,590 against UMBC, while North Carolina A&T played in front of 3,593 when North Carolina came to Greensboro. Two schools already are averaging over 2,000 fans regularly (NC A&T (2590) and Delaware (2,267), while eight schools are averaging more than 1,000 fans each game compared to last year’s four.

Average Attendance This Season

Program Attendance

1. N.C. A&T 2,590

2. Delaware 2,267

3. Towson 1,446

4. Hampton 1,314

5. UNCW 1,156

6. Charleston 1,143

7. Elon 1,088

8. Stony Brook 1,043

TEAM NOTES

Campbell
The Camels led by as many as 11 in a first half in which they shot 50.0 percent (15-of-30) and forced nine turnovers against Wake Forest.

Charleston
Lara Rohkohl is averaging a double-double with 11.3 points and 10.3 rebounds per game.

Delaware
Rebecca Demeke set career-highs in points (21) and steals (4) against Delaware State.

Drexel
Chloe Hodges’s eight assists against Lehigh are a career-high, topping a seven-assist performance against Campbell at the DAC on March 4, 2024.

Elon
Laila Adams matched her season-high in points with 10, while also grabbing six rebounds and making one steal against East Carolina.

Hampton
Hampton sits third in the CAA in steals per game, averaging 9.67.

Hofstra
The 50 rebounds against Howard are the most in a game for the Pride since pulling down 50 boards against New Orleans in 2022.

Monmouth
Divine Dibula set a career-high with 12 points and a season-high with eight rebounds against Rider.

N.C. A&T
Jordyn Dorsey is averaging a team-high 17.6 points per game on a .355 shooting clip from the field.

UNCW
Evan Miller and Jania Hall combined for 35 of the Seahawks’ 66 points against West Georgia.

Northeastern
Northeastern shot 53.3% overall (8-of-15), and 57.1% (4-of-7) from three against UMass.

Stony Brook
Shamarla King had 18 points against Holy Cross, marking her first double-digit performance this season.

Towson
Khady Leye finished with 18 points and 10 rebounds to secure the second double-double of her collegiate career against American.

William & Mary
Kayla Rolph netted a career-high 21 points in the win over SC State on 8-10 shooting from the field.

News and Notes From the American Athletic Arena

BURTON REACHES 200 WINS

North Texas head coach Jason Burton reached the 200-win milestone last week when the Mean Green defeated Tennessee State in Denton, 83-65. Burton is one of four coaches in the league that has 200+ wins - South Florida’s Jose Fernandez, UTSA’s Karen Aston and UAB’s Randy Norton.

REMBERT’S GAME WINNER

The Charlotte 49ers won in heart-racing fashion on December 5th, using a last second shot to defeat Mercer 43-42. Redshirt junior Keanna Rembert hit a layup with 36 seconds left in the game to put the 49ers on top.

OWLS CLAIM BIG 5 CLASSIC

After defeating Drexel and La Salle earlier in the season, the Temple Owls advanced to the Big 5 Classic Championship to take on Villanova. Temple took down Villanova 76-62 at the Finneran Pavilion to win the Inaugural Women’s Big 5 Classic Championship.

EAST NAMED TO USBWA PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

Temple senior guard Tiara East made national headlines this week after being named one of the five USBWA Players of the Week. East scored 26 points on 10-of-18 shooting, while adding five rebounds and two assists to lead the Owls past Villanova.

ROADRUNNERS HOT START

UTSA defeated Sam Houston 79-36 on Saturday to improve to 7-1 on the season. The win was the largest margin of victory against an NCAA Division I opponent since 2008, while also securing a seventh straight win, the longest winning streak since 2013-14.

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 10

Tulane vs North Dakota State_______________________ 5 p.m.

Tulsa at San Jose State_____________________________ 9 p.m.

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12

East Carolina at Hampton___________________________ 11 a.m.

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 13

Rice vs Texas Southern_____________________________ 12:15 p.m.

Florida Atlantic vs Kennesaw State__________________ 7 p.m.

saturday, december 14

Memphis at Troy___________________________________ 3 p.m.

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 15

UAB vs Alcorn State________________________________ 2 p.m.

South Florida at 3/3 South Carolina___________________ 2 p.m.

Temple vs 15/13 West Virginia_________________________ 2 p.m.

Tulane vs Mercer__________________________________ 3 p.m.

Tulsa vs Kansas City_______________________________ 3 p.m.

East Carolina at Old Dominion_______________________ 3:30 p.m.

North Texas at Santa Clara_________________________ 5 p.m.

Wichita State at LMU_______________________________ 5 p.m.

MONDAY, DECEMBER 16

UTSA at RV/RV Stanford______________________________ 2 p.m.

Charlotte vs Winthrop______________________________ 7 p.m.

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 17

South Florida vs Northwestern State________________ 7 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 18

UAB vs New Orleans________________________________ 12 p.m.

Rice at 25/RV Georgia Tech___________________________ 2 p.m.

Florida Atlantic at Georgia Southern_________________ 2 p.m.

Wichita State at CSU Bakersfield____________________ 5 p.m.

East Carolina vs VCU_______________________________ 6 p.m.

Memphis vs 19/18 Tennessee_________________________ 8:30 p.m.

News and Notes From the Horizon League Hardwood

· Penguins Open League Play 2-0

o Youngstown State earned consecutive wins over Milwaukee and Northern Kentucky last week to start the first leg of League play undefeated. In its win over the Panthers on Wednesday, Jewel Watkins dropped a game-high 22 points, including six three-pointers. #HLWBB Freshman of the Week Sarah Baker and Erica King each contributed 16 points in the victory.

· Phoenix Get Out to Fast Start in Win Over Jaguars

o The Green Bay defense came to play in its 78-56 win over IU Indianapolis on Wednesday, not allowing the Jags to make a field goal in the first quarter. Their offense ran smoothly as well, with five players hitting double figures. Maddy Schreiber led the way with 16 points, while Maren Westin tied her career-high with 13 points off the bench.

· Lauren Ross Shows Who’s Boss

o #HLWBB Player of the Week Lauren Ross led Purdue Fort Wayne to two straight League victories with two great performances. Ross averaged 25 points, 7.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.5 steals in the Mastodons’ wins over RMU and Green Bay, all while shooting an efficient 65.2 percent from the floor, 68.8 from three-point range and 90 percent from the free-throw line.

· Titans Unleash Triple-Threat Scoring in Win

o Three Titans scored 18 points in its 67-56 win over Wright State on Wednesday. Emaia O’Brien, Aaliyah McQueen and Makayla Jackson accounted for over 80% of Detroit Mercy’s points. O’Brien went a perfect 3-of-3 from the three-point line, McQueen added seven rebounds and six steals to her production, and Jackson shot an efficient 7-of-9 from the field.

· Vikings Extend Win Streak to Five

o Cleveland State has now won five games in a row after defeating Northern Kentucky and IU Indianapolis this week. Jordana Reisma led the Vikings in scoring with 18 points while Sara Guerreiro produced a 14 point-16 rebound double-double against NKU. Versus the Jaguars, Mickayla Perdue and Destiny Leo combined for 46 points, shooting 50% from the field and 53% from deep.

· Oakland Wins League Opener Against Wright State

o The Golden Grizzlies started League play with a win in the O’rena on Friday, defeating the Raiders 84-70. Maddy Skorupski finished with her third 20-point game of the season, dropping 21 points to go with five rebounds and eight assists. Macy Smith added 16 points with three three-pointers and Lianna Baxter contributed 14 points.

· RMU Wins Nail-Biter Over Milwaukee

o The Colonials squeaked past the Panthers in a 56-55 victory on Saturday. RMU’s Raissa Nsabua hit the game-winning free throw with six seconds left, while Micah O’Dell made the defensive stop to secure the victory.

#HLWBB ON THE HORIZON

· Wednesday, Dec. 11

o IU Indianapolis vs. Purdue Fort Wayne, 6:30 p.m. ET (ESPN+)

o Milwaukee vs. Green Bay, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN+)

· Friday, Dec. 13

o Cleveland State vs. Bethune-Cookman, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN+)

· Saturday, Dec. 14

o Youngstown State at #12 Ohio State, 11 a.m. ET (B1G+)

o Purdue Fort Wayne vs. Aquinas, 11 a.m. ET (ESPN+)

o RMU vs. Mercyhurst, 2 p.m. ET (ESPN+)

o Green Bay vs. Creighton, 2 p.m. ET (ESPN+)

o Detroit Mercy at #23 Michigan, 3 p.m. ET (B1G+)

· Sunday, Dec. 15

o Milwaukee at Marquette, 3 p.m. ET (FloSports)

o Northern Kentucky vs. Ball State, 3:30 p.m. ET (ESPN+)

· Monday, Dec. 16

o Wright State vs. Cleveland State, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN+)

Horizon League Basketball Players of the Week

Cleveland State’s Jordana Reisma and Purdue Fort Wayne’s Taeya Steinauer earned Under Armour #HLWBB weekly awards.

· Led all scorers with a career-high 25 points against Bethune-Cookman

· Went 11-for-13 from the floor

· Also added seven rebounds and four blocked shots

· Helped the Vikings remain perfect at home and extend their current home streak to 28 straight games

Averaged 10.5 points, 3.0 steals and 2.5 rebounds in a 2-0 week for the Mastodons
Shot 9-of-13 from the floor and 3-of-5 from 3-point range
Scored a season-high 19 points against Aquinas

2024-25 Under Armour #HLWBB Players of the Week

November 11- Myonna Hooper, Detroit Mercy

November 18 – Maddy Schreiber, Green Bay

November 25 – Natalie McNeal, Green Bay

December 2 – Mickayla Perdue, Cleveland State

December 9 – Lauren Ross, Purdue Fort Wayne

December 16 – Jordana Reisma, Cleveland State

2024-25 Under Armour #HLWBB Freshmen of the Week

November 11 – Sarah Baker, Youngstown State

November 18 – Sarah Baker, Youngstown State

November 25 – Kamora Morgan, Northern Kentucky

December 2 – Kamora Morgan, Northern Kentucky

December 9 – Sarah Baker, Youngstown State

December 16 – Taeya Steinauer, Purdue Fort Wayne

CAA Women’s Basketball Weekly Awards

Monmouth fifth-year forward Taisha Exanor, and Charleston freshman Leah Philpotts are the CAA women’s basketball weekly award winners for the week ending December 15.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Taisha Exanor, Monmouth

Forward | Fifth Year | Chateauguay, Quebec, Canada / Dawson College

Helping Monmouth to a fourth-straight victory, Exanor earns her first CAA Player of the Week honor after recording a double-double in a 63-54 win over NJIT. The fifth year forward scored 17 points while shooting a season-high 57.1% from the floor and was strong on the glass with 11 boards. The rebound tally marked the fourth time this season Exanor has reached double digits, and contributed to her third double-double this year.

photo from monmouthhawks.com

ROOKIE OF THE WEEK

Leah Philpotts, Charleston

Freshman | Guard | New Haven, Conn. / Hamden HS

Philpotts takes home CAA Rookie of the Week honors after her first double-digit point performance in a 66-47 win over Jacksonville State. The Connecticut native had 11 points after shooting 2-3 from deep, and chipped in with two assists and two rebounds across her 22 minutes of play. The point tally was a career-high for the freshman.

photo from cofcsports.com

2024-25 CAA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL WEEKLY AWARD WINNERS

PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Nov. 11: Chloe Sterling, Hofstra

Nov. 18: Amaris Baker, Drexel / Raven Preston, Elon

Nov. 25: Olivia Tucker, Campbell

Dec. 2: Jasha Clinton, Hampton / Chloe Hodges, Drexel

Dec. 9: Taryn Barbot, Charleston

Dec. 16: Taisha Exanor, Monmouth

ROOKIE OF THE WEEK

Nov. 11: Jayda Angel, Elon

Nov. 18: Jasmine Felton, Campbell

Nov. 25: Jayda Angel, Elon

Dec. 2: Khady Leye, Towson

Dec. 9: Khady Leye, Towson

Dec. 16: Leah Philpotts, Charleston

American Athletic Conference Announces Women’s Basketball Weekly Award

Player of the Week

Amiya Joyner, Jr., F, East Carolina

Joyner had an impressive week for the Pirates, averaging 21.5 points and 13.5 rebounds in wins over Hampton and Old Dominion. Joyner led the Pirates to an overtime win over ODU, scoring 27 points and grabbing 17 rebounds. She also hit the game-winning layup with six seconds left in overtime.

photo from ecupirates.com

Freshman of the Week

Aniah Alexis, Fr., G, Rice

Aniah helped lead the Owls to a win over Texas Southern, scoring seven points on 3-of-4 shooting, while dishing out four assists and coming away with four steals and a block on defense.

photo from riceowls.com

Honorable Mention

Jada Moore, Gr., G, Florida Atlantic

Moore led the Owls to a win over Kennesaw State, scoring a season-high 20 points on 67 percent shooting.

Tommisha Lampkin, Sr., F, North Texas

Lampkin had a great performance against Santa Clara, scoring 25 points on 9-of-13 shooting.

Malia Fisher, Sr., F, Rice

Fisher scored 19 points and came away with nine rebounds in Rice’s win over Texas Southern.

Paige Bradley, R-Jr., G, Tulsa

Bradley led Tulsa to wins over San Jose State and Kansas City, averaging 16 points and eight rebounds.

Jayla Murray, R-Jr., F, Wichita State

Murray led the Shockers to a road win over Loyola Marymount, scoring 14 points, while grabbing six rebounds and dishing out four assists.

Sun Belt Conference Women's Basketball Player of the Week

James Madison’s Ro Scott helped the Duke’s improve to 7-3 on the season, averaging 19.0 points on the week to earn Sun Belt Women’s Basketball Player of the Week.

Player of the Week
Ro Scott
[Gr. | G | Earle, Ark.]

Scott averaged 19.0 points and 3.5 rebounds per game this past week as James Madison improved to 7-3 on the season. Against VCU, Scott scored a game-high 16 points to go along with four rebounds and two assists in a 55-42 win over the Rams. The graduate student then led all players on the floor in the Dukes’ matchup with No. 4 Texas. She dropped 22 points shooting .533 from the field and dishing out three assists.

Scott is the league’s top scorer off the bench at 13.8 ppg and JMU’s second-best scorer behind Peyton McDaniel 14.7 ppg, who was the Sun Belt player of the week last week.

Sun Belt Women’s Basketball Players of the Week
Week 1 - Crislyn Rose, Arkansas State
Week 2 - Crystal Henderson, Georgia State
Week 3 - Aislynn Hayes, Marshall
Week 4 - Peyton McDaniel, James Madison
Week 5 - Ro Scott, James Madison

Big 12 Basketball Players of the Week

Iowa State's Audi Crooks (player of the week) and BYU's Delaney Gibb (freshman of the week) earned weekly awards for the last full week of non-conference play.

photo from cyclones.com

Crooks netted her third and fourth 30-plus point career games during the week, which led Big 12 players averaging 30.5 points per game. Against number 21 Iowa Crooks connected on 14-22 shots ending the night with 31 points. Facing Eastern Illinois Crooks shot 75% from the field (12-16) was perfect from the charity stripe (6-6) Facing Iowa she recorded her 850th career point in her 44th career game. This is Crooks' first weekly accolade of the season and her third league Player of the Week recognition of her career after shooting 68.4% during the week.

Gibb shot 63% from the floor and 55.6% from beyond the arc, Gibb averaged 20 points a game in two BYU wins, the most among Conference freshmen. Gibb scored 14 points on 6-of-11 shooting, going 2-for-4 from three to go along with four assists, two rebounds to help BYU defeat Utah Valley 76-36. Facing Washington State Gibb tallied a career-high 26 points at Washington State, she went 11-of-16 from the field and 3-of-5 three point land. Gibb scored ad 21 of her 26 points in the second half. This is her second weekly award this season.

MEAC Weekly Women’s Basketball Honors

Norfolk State guard Diamond Johnson was named the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Player of the Week, presented by Coca-Cola. Howard’s guard Saniyah King was named Rookie of the Week, while Norfolk States's forward Kierra Wheeler earned Defensive Player of the Week honors, respectively.

photo from nsuspartans.com

Johnson (G, 5-5, Gr., Philadelphia, Pa.) led the Spartans to a 2-0 record averaging 16.5 points, 7.5 assists, 6.0 rebounds and 3.5 steals. Johnson had a standout performance in the win over Shaw where she scored 22 points, dished out 10 assists, and shot 53 percent from the field.

King (G, 5-7, Fr., Washington, D.C.) delivered a stellar performance for the Bison in their hard-fought win over Army, recording 14 points, nine assists, and three rebounds while shooting 6-of-13 from the field.

Wheeler (F, 6-1, Sr., Minneapolis, Minn.) showcased her defensive prominence in two wins for the Spartans, averaging 17.5 points, 11.0 rebounds, 3.5 steals, 4.5 blocks and 2.0 assists. In the victory over Shaw, she tied her career-high 17 rebounds while adding 22 points, five blocks and four steals. Against North Carolina A&T, Wheeler added 13 points, five rebounds, four blocks and three steals to secure the win.

Other Top Performers

Laila Lawrence (CSU) registered a double-double against George Washington, with 21 points and 11 rebounds.
Kiarra McElrath (DSU) averaged 14.5 points and 2.0 steals in an 0-2 week for the Hornets.
McKenzie Stewart (DSU) totaled 21 rebounds, 12 points, two blocks and six steals over two games for the Hornets.
Brooke Barnes (DSU) totaled 16 points, four rebounds, two assists and three steals through two games.
Zennia Thomas (HU) collected 19 points and eight rebounds in a 1-0 week for the Bison.
Ashanti Lynch (UMES) contributed 17 points, nine rebounds, one steal and one assist while shooting 50% from the field, including a perfect 4-for-4 from beyond the arc.
Ce’Nara Skanes (UMES) eight of her 11 rebounds came on the defensive end during her double-double performance in the loss against George Mason.