March 22nd, 2018: Duquesne at St. John's

Just the Facts, Ma'am: St. John's surged out to a big lead and held off a fourth quarter run to beat Duquesne 65-52 in the third round of the WNIT. Akina Wellere had a team-high 17 points while Maya Singleton notched her 18th double-double of the season with 11 points and 13 rebounds. Chassidy Omogrosso had 14 points to lead Duquesne.

For not letting things go, fantastically obvious inconsistency, amazing eyelashes, defensive prowess, the encourager of hesitancy, and gawky forwards, join your intrepid and uncertain blogger after the jump.


Man, this WNIT thing is a killer on the budget. Stupid Triple Crown jacking up prices. $12 per game adds up, and if there are discounts for season ticket holders no one told me about them. It's third-round action coming to you from Carnesecca Arena, as the Red Storm faces the Dukes of Duquesne.

Now, if you know all my ties, you know that Duquesne made life miserable for St. John's twice last year, and made it miserable for Seton Hall one year, and generally irks Fordham every year, and knocked Miami of Ohio out of the WNIT this year. In other words, DUQUESNE MUST SUFFER.

So far we're one for three on visiting bands. Duquesne doesn't seem to have brought theirs. We do, however, seem to be three for three on opposing fans who have decided that sitting across from the home bench is appropriate. One dude has been riding the refs all day. I think my favorite part is where one possession he yelled, "LET 'EM PLAY!" after Duquesne got called for an illegal screen, and two possessions later he demands "WHERE'S THE CALL?!" on a play that Maya was literally backing away from. Consistency may be the hobgoblin of small minds, but it's also hilarious when not applied. Duquesne's fans did not let up on the refs all night, and it got tiresome to hear "YOU SUCK!" and "I hope you don't sleep tonight!"

Nykesha Thompson's epic side-eye to the upper deck was worth most of the ridiculousness, though. Visiting fans don't realize how small the arena is. Or how good the acoustics are. Yes, the refs can hear you accusing them of cheating.

(And yes, I admit to riding the refs sometimes. But not for 80% of the game like these guys did.)

It's 34-17 St. John's at the half. Alisha Kebbe has a team-high nine points for St. John's, but shoutout to Imani Littleton with the 6 and 7. I see you, 'Mani. Chassidy Omogrosso has eight to lead Duquesne. She'd have more if she hit the shots she was getting. Duquesne is running a lot of screening action, but they're having trouble consistently setting the screens. Omogrosso looks like she's getting frustrated at teammates who aren't getting the play right.

We gave up a little too much in the fourth quarter for my liking, but that's Joe's tendency to slow the game to a crawl combined with Tiana's timidity, accentuated by our apparent inability to leave well enough alone by committing stupid fouls. We don't have the end-game ball thought right now to play those kinds of games, and Joe needs to be aware of that. But we made enough good defensive plays that we were able to hold down the fort.

Kiersten Elliott got into the game in the final minute and promptly committed a foul on the backcourt trap. I'm not 100% certain it wasn't a called play, though, so I'll cut her a little slack. I've seen coaches use the deep bench for that before. Judith Sole started getting heavy minutes at the end of the third quarter. She's a big body who's not afraid to use that bulk down low. She had a miserable night at the free throw line, and by the third or fourth miss, she was really starting to beat herself up about it. I felt really bad for her- she's a senior, so that was her last game, and that's not how you want to go out. Helmi Tulonen was one of the many tall, gawky forwards that Duquesne brought off the bench. They do seem to like their gawky, blocky forwards.

I honestly can't believe Amanda Kalin played for half the game- she didn't leave much of an impression, though the one shot she did hit fairly late in the game was on a nice runout. (She may also have been borrowing a teammate's jersey, because I swear #12 was out on the floor, but Anie-Pier Samson isn't in the box score. I have enough trouble with nameless jerseys, changing them on me is just not fair.) Libby Bazelak did a good job of going to the rack and getting the call later in the game, taking advantage of our defensive lapses. For her own defense, though, she does need to understand where the circle is, and if she's in it when she's trying to establish position. Eniko Kuttor seemed to have her coach's confidence for her rebounding. She kept leaving her feet to pass, though, and after the second time in rapid succession, Coach Burt took her out for a Teaching Moment. One presumes the Hungarian for "Stop doing that!" was involved at some point.

Kadri-Ann Lass finally got her shot working in the fourth quarter, but it was too little, too late. She was a mismatch for us, but we were confounding her equally- she was able to shake shorter defenders outside, but couldn't always hit with our shotblockers in her face. She and Conor Richardson both got dinged for illegal screens in the first quarter, which is a bit of a problem for a team that seems to rely heavily on screens to get their shooters open. Richardson really got the short end of the stick from the refs- there was a foul credited to her that I thought should have been on Sole, and somewhere along the line a foul got credited to her that I didn't even spot. She's tough, and I respect that; I think she was hobbled by the foul trouble and didn't get the chance to show what she could do. Paige Cannon was physical inside, which led to foul trouble for her as well. I thought she played a lot more than she actually did. Big and blonde and physical- that's all the impression she left.

Julijana Vojinovic had nice touch from the outside, or at least that was the shot she was most comfortable with. We left her alone a little too much for my liking. Chassidy Omogrosso seems to be the leader for this team, or at least she thinks she is. She drove hard and passed fast, and she was emotional on the floor. You could see her getting visibly frustrated with everything: the officials, the shots she missed, the teammates who weren't catching her passes. She's got talent, and she's got the ability to get around the defense, but she spent way too much time in her feelings and in her own head in this game to be truly effective for Duquesne. There was a lot of negative energy there.

On one hand, I'm surprised that Duquesne seemed so disorganized- most of their core players are juniors, and they've had time to play together. But there's always room for communication issues when you have as international a squad as Duquesne has. And if communications break down on a team that's relying on screens to get shooters open, then you've got a problem.

Kayla Charles is still raw, but I still see the potential in her to be a force inside. She just needs to pick up on-ball instincts. I'm also sort of starting to see where Shamachya Duncan fits in the scheme, at least with the guards we have now. Joe was using Sox in a similar role earlier, at the ends of quarters to soak up a couple of minutes for our beleaguered starters. If she can keep improving her defense, she might slot into a threes-and-D role next year.

I'm not sure if shooting about five seconds after popping off the bench for the first time is the world's greatest idea, Andrayah Adams, but you do you. I've said it before and I'll say it again- she might be shot-happy, but sometimes this team needs a heartless gunner. I'd rather she take the extra step back and take threes instead of settling for the quick long two. I do like the midrange game, but there's a difference between midrange and just the wrong side of the three-point line. Qadashah Hoppie had some rough luck with the rim in this one. Not her best day. Not her worst, but not her best.

Poor Akina Wellere keeps getting knocked in the face. I'm glad she's starting to go back to her outside shot more. She's been played out of position at the four too much for my liking, because Imani and Maya do have to rest at some point. But she was feeling it from beyond the arc- you could see her confidence in the follow-through of her wrist. I love watching her shot when she's in rhythm. Tiana England had some amazing passes in the fourth quarter down low, one to Maya and one to Imani. I think she also had a really good one to Alisha, but I can't remember if Alisha hit the shot or not. I'm still not thrilled with her propensity to slow the game down, but that's on both her and Joe. Alisha Kebbe started off hot offensively, which was a pleasant surprise. She was still solid defensively, too. Great game from her- exactly what we needed.

Maya Singleton was surprisingly passive on defense for stretches of the game. I guess the postseason grind is starting to get to her a little bit. I'm not used to her backing off plays as blatantly as she did. She took care of the boards, and her midrange game was working, but she didn't have the edge I'm used to. (And she still got the double-double, which says a lot about what she can do.) Imani Littleton brought the defense, and the grace under pressure. The length of her arms and her reach were on display tonight, whether it was with emphatic shot blocking or flicking away passes to get the breakaway. Emphatic Imani is best Imani.

(As an aside, I'm bummed Joe didn't give Sox a teeny bit of run to end the game. She's a senior; she deserves a send-off.)

There were definitely calls that we got the benefit of the doubt on. On the other hand, the officials stopped calling those illegal screens on Duquesne in the second half, and they didn't magically improve their screen-setting ability, so there's that. And we made some terrible decisions in the fourth quarter defensively. There's no good reason to stop the clock when you're up double figures in the final two minutes.

That being said, Joe, please let Tiana confirm the continued presence of all her teeth before you start lambasting her for that admittedly stupid foul.

Funny moment of the night: Imani committing a travel so blatant that even Qadashah was making the travel signal. Two points for honesty, I suppose.

So close on the raffle... just one digit away.

It's been confirmed that we don't get host-rights next round, no matter who wins, and looking ahead in the bracket, the schools around us are from bigger conferences and likely have bigger budgets, so this was probably our last home game. I loathe the uncertainty, but at the same time, I wish the kids well on their travels. (Just, y'know. With less traveling. Footwork is important!) Part of me wants to be there to see the seniors out, but on the other hand, I can't bear the heartbreak.

Let's go get 'em, Johnnies.

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March 19th, 2018: Penn at St. John's (WNIT)

Just the Facts, Ma'am: Strong defense and balanced scoring powered St. John's to a 53-48 win over Penn in the second round of the postseason WNIT. Qadashah Hoppie had a team-high 12 points off the bench for the Red Storm. Lauren Whitlatch had 12 of her 15 in the first half to spur the Quakers, who were led overall by the 15 points and 11 rebounds of Eleah Parker.

For senior warriors, superstitious whispering, nifty posters, defensive stands, injury added to insult, and the chance for vengeance, join your intrepid and squishy blogger after the jump.


Second round, here we go! This time St. John's is hosting the best the Ivy League has left to offer, the Quakers of Penn. I'm a bit nervous about their size. I don't know how well we match up with them. But let's see how it shakes out on the court.

The Penn warm-up shirts with the Palestra on the back are even cooler in person than they were on TV. They seem to have a lot of inactive players, which might bode well-ish for us? But goodness, there are a lot of them.

There's a Philadelphia team playing, so of course we have a Mel Greenberg sighting.

Curteeona, you are a sweetheart and your taste in jersey numbers is impeccable, but please don't ever wear that pink sweater with those moss-green slacks again. You look like an upside-down Hoppip.

Getting the gang back together: Sky Lindsay chilling on the bench with Da'Shena Stevens and Shenneika Smith. I'm squeeing right now. (Not squeezing, autocarrot. NOBODY ASKED YOU.)

Would it kill one of these Ivy League schools with their millions in endowments to put their band on the bus for a WNIT game? Pretty please with sugar on top? Half the fun of seeing an Ivy team is seeing their band.

Lost Quinnipiac fan is lost. Someone did not want to see UConn open up a can of whoop-ass on their squad, I see.

What is it about the row behind us that attracts fans of the opposing team? Is it my jersey? The St. John's flag I wave? My loud and vocal support for the home team? STOP IT. GO AWAY. There is an entire side of the arena closer to your bench.

It's 24-22 Penn at halftime. It could be worse. It could be better- we had a 16-8 lead- but Imani Littleton has been attached to Michelle Nwokedi like someone hit her with super glue. Penn's mostly beating us on three-point shooting- Lauren Whitlatch has 12 on four treys to lead everyone. We look terrified to shoot, which is where I think Penn's greater height is kicking in. Imani has gone all out. I love it.

We have enough alumnae for a starting five- I see you, Briana Brown and Kendyl Nunn. (Don't worry, Neika's used to playing stretch four.)

Penn's going to lose a lot with Nwokedi and Ross graduating. I think they'll take a step back next year. But Eleah Parker's got game, and once she learns to have better touch around the basket she'll be an anchor for them down low.

Tori Crawford got two very quick fouls in the first half, one defensive and one offensive, and that forced Penn to shorten their rotation more than I think they wanted to, at least in the first half. They did get good minutes out of Princess Aghayere, who was physical down low to tear away rebounds from our posts, especially in the second half when it was a bit less convenient for us to put up resistance to such handling. Phoebe Sterba lists as a guard, but I'm pretty sure she's taller than most of our posts, so that's a thing. I don't remember if she came in in the second half or not- I know she played briefly in the first.

Kendall Grasela had family in the stands, unless there was an unrelated reason why that one dude was wearing a #11 jersey. She was scrappy to a fault on defense (I, personally, object to defenders humping their assigned players, at least without asking politely and maybe bringing a nice bouquet of flowers) and seemed to get an awful lot of benefit of the doubt from the refs (but not the rim). I can't fault her motor, but I can question her judgment. Katie Kinum got herself a bucket late, on a wild putback in the lane if I recall correctly (which I may not). Beth Brzozowski saw brief minutes in both halves, and in a less contested game I would have liked to see her come back in at the end to get a proper senior send-off. I know it wasn't a home game for Penn and that's not always a thing you do on the road, but seniors deserve respect no matter who they play for.

Anna Ross played defense in the second half like her life depended on the ball not being in the hands of a St. John's player. She was everywhere on deflections, breaking up fast breaks and tipping passes like she decided to start moonlighting at cornerback. I remembered her being more of a shooter, but she concentrated her energy on defense, and it was spectacular. I think in the third quarter alone she had three big deflections. So much energy. Lauren Whitlatch decided to remind us all about the stereotype of guards from Indiana being three-point specialists by launching a whole bunch of threes- she killed us in the first half, and when she fired one off in the second half I started to get real nervous. Ashley Russell also got in on the... oh, I'm feeling polite, let's call it overambitious... Penn defensive rebounding.

I love what Michelle Nwokedi brings to the floor for Penn. She was held in check offensively for most of the night, but she rebounded well, and she does a lot of really heady things out there- there was one play that stuck out to me where she made a very precise save at the midline to prevent a backcourt violation. She's got a nice mix of power and shooting touch for her size. Shutting her down for most of the game was one of the biggest keys to the game; the times she scored were mostly when either we got caught on the switch, or when both of our starting posts were in foul trouble and it was time for Improv with Akina. Eleah Parker got off to a rough start on the inside, missing chippies, but was better able to take advantage of our defense in the fourth quarter (though I again note that our two bigs were both in foul trouble, so we ended up with a lot of Improv with Akina and Q, or with Imani backing away rapidly). She's got great size, and when she's able to take advantage of it she gets good position down low. She's not so good at dealing with people her own height yet, but she's a freshman. That's something that'll come with time. She's got incredible potential.

Very impressed with Penn's defense in this one. They made us very scared to shoot. I mean, that doesn't always take a lot, but they exploited our tendencies better than most teams do. I shouldn't be surprised that an Ivy League team plays smart, though, right?

I'm not exactly sure why Joe inserted Shamachya Duncan in the first half, though it did almost pay dividends at the buzzer. I thought answering a three-point shooter with a three-point shooter was not a good plan; I thought we needed more defense, and that's not Machi's strength. Kayla Charles gave some goot spot minutes in the post, though you can definitely still tell she's a freshman. There's a lot of work to be done with her, especially on defense, but I see the potential.

This was probably one of the best defensive games I've seen out of Qadashah Hoppie this year. For the first time I got the sense that she realizes she's tall for a guard and used it to her advantage. She was doing work out on the perimeter, and had an emphatic block on a Kinum drive. If she can get that defense working regularly, she'll be a terror out there, and I want it. I want it bad. Someone with her clutch shooting coupled with clutch defense... yes, please. Andrayah Adams got buckets, but more and more with her I'm getting the sense that her offense is not necessarily what the play calls for. Sometimes that's a good thing- someone on this team has to want to shoot- but seeing everything break down when she decides she's going up is not always fun.

Alisha Kebbe was all over the floor and the glass. Her shots weren't necessarily going down, but they were clutch when they did. She made big defensive plays and big plays on the boards. She's streaky on offense, but I'll take every ounce of the defense that she brings. Tiana England had some slick passes, but her willingness to slow the offense down played right into Penn's hands. She spent way too much time dribbling the clock away, and her hesitation at the timeline cost her in turnovers. She's got to look at the clock more and be aware that sometimes she needs to be the shooter. Akina Wellere got put into the unenviable position of having to guard Penn's posts for stretches, which is not her forte. Her lack of speed and mobility definitely shows there. She hasn't done well with teams keying on her, and last night she was a wee tiny bit too three-happy for my liking.

Maya Singleton got caught helping on defense one time too many- that was the source of a lot of her foul trouble, plus an ill-advised attempt to drive that fouled her out of the game. You can't realistically expect to get the benefit of the doubt when the player is that set and the play's not really that close. She was tough on the glass and hit a clutch midrange jumper. Stat lines be damned, though, Imani Littleton took over the night once again. Someone does not want her college career to end any time soon, and I love what I'm seeing out of her. This WNIT run really seems like the first time she's using her height to its full effect, deflecting passes and making monster blocks. Her defense has been the reason we've been in every game. She's going all out, and even when she loses the gamble on the swat, she gets back up and she does it again. She's got nothing left to lose.

I'm sorry if I'm a bit incoherent. The heart Imani has shown these last two games is making my heart all squishy.

I don't want to say we were getting the short end of the stick when it came to calls and physical contact, but even the refs were smacking us around with no consequences. No, seriously. Late in the game, one of the officials popped Akina Wellere in the mouth while making a call. I missed the entire sequence, but I saw him make the call, and then I saw Akina holding her mouth with a very confused expression on her face. Someone in the crowd was baying for a technical, which makes me wonder if they thought Akina initiated contact somehow. Either that, or she had the reaction that is to be expected when the ref hits you in the mouth and someone had the vapors over her language.

We've been a team that prides ourselves on our defense for a very long time. It's really stepped up in this postseason. Let's keep it going against Duquesne. Duquesne must suffer, after all. I still hold a grudge or two against them.

We're going to need a bigger crowd, though. I'm tired of being the loudest person in the arena. I don't know how much more of this my diaphragm can take.

Parting shot- Sky Lindsay doing small Rockette kicks as the band played the team out to "New York, New York". Never change, Sky.

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March 16th, 2018: Harvard at Fordham (WNIT)

Just the Facts, Ma'am: Bre Cavanaugh scored 19 of her 26 points in the second half to power Fordham to a 65-47 comeback win over Harvard in the first round of the WNIT. G'mrice Davis added 12 points and 12 rebounds. Taylor Rooks had 18 to lead the Crimson, but she was the only Harvard player to break double figures.

For traveling in the Bronx at rush hour, traveling in the Bronx after rush hour, hotshot freshmen, loud fans, free food, and the important questions in life, join your intrepid and hoops-satiated blogger after the jump.

All right, now the Big Dance is upon us. But no one's playing nearby, so I don't care. Instead, it's off to Fordham for their first-round WNIT match-up with Harvard. If yesterday's example is anything to judge by, we should be in for some fun from the Harvard band.

Fortunately, the police action at Tremont Road didn't hold us up for too long. Still made it around quarter past six.

Bre Cavanaugh's hair is still normal. I'm sort of disappointed. She must be planning something spectacular for deep into the postseason. The longer she keeps color out of it, the more epic I expect it to be when she does go for it.

Harvard seems to have traveled some fans, but I don't even see Fordham's band, much less Harvard's. I guess the husband and I will have to provide all the noise. We're used to that sort of thing.

At halftime it's 33-24 Harvard, and that's honestly an improvement. Harvard's passing has been phenomenal, faster and more accurate than our defense has been able to hang with. We're not fast and we're not deep, and without Zara Jillings in the first half we have as much depth as a tabloid headline. Taylor Rooks put up 10 in the first quarter and 12 overall to lead Harvard. Fordham seems unwilling to shoot the ball- we already have two shot clock violations and another couple of possessions that have been dangerously close. Bre Cavanaugh's seven points is the team high.

Well, Bre Cavanaugh looked at that halftime deficit and basically went, "Nope. Nope, nope, nope." Cold-blooded assassin that she is, she took over the game in the third quarter and turned the tide in Fordham's favor. More people need to be talking about her nationally. She does not get the love or respect that she deserves.

Nota bene: no matter how much time pressure you're under, no matter how good of an idea it seems at the time, attempting to type on a laptop while racing along the Bruckner on the Q44 bus will result mostly in friction burns, motion sickness, and putting the A's in Cavanaugh in all the wrong places. It is not a good plan.

So, Harvard. When they took jump shots, their offense did not look terrible. Their passing was crisp and quick, outpacing the defense. But anything that wasn't a jump shot seemed to be a risky floater in the lane or a wild heave that hit anything and everything except the bottom of the net. Glass, rim, side of the backboard- that ball was going all over the place. Late in the game, they broke out a chaotic backcourt defense that might have rewarded them with turnovers at a different point of the game, instead of the cheap foul calls they got under the assumption that they were trying to foul.

Jadyn Bush got the unenviable job of defending the interior against G'mrice Davis (and to a lesser extent, Johanna Klug and Mary Goulding, plus whoever was inclined to drive). She ended up fouling out, and I'm not terribly surprised. I wasn't impressed with her positioning on the floor. I wouldn't have believed Nani Redford played 10 minutes if I didn't see it in the box score, so you can tell how impressed with her I was. Sydney Skinner played most of the game- it looked almost like senior privilege was invoked on this starting lineup, but that would be a fatalistic approach to take in a single-elimination tournament. Skinner's sort of a tweener- big body and isn't afraid to knock people over, but also likes to shoot from the outside. If I remember her year correctly, she's not a senior, so she's going to be big for them next season.

Someone else at the game compared Katie Benzan to Leilani Mitchell, and I can sort of see where they were going with this. She's very tiny (I'm not used to people being shorter than Lauren Holden) and very fast. Her jumper's pretty nice and she pulls up in the lane. But I don't see the same kind of passing eye from her on the break that I did from Mitchell. Benzan seems more ball dominant than Mitchell. I wouldn't be surprised if she considered Becky Hammon a role model. Taylor Rooks did a great job of getting open and staying open- we switched an awful lot to try and keep up with their passing. She's another odd-sized tweener, but she's got a nice jumper.

Kirby Porter didn't play much, and since she was inserted back into the game at the end when Fordham made the line change, I'm going to assume she started out of courtesy. Senior privilege is a thing. I think she was part of the frenetic end-game defense Harvard threw up as in desperation. I will save you all the bad graphic design/printing industry puns about rastering versus vector artwork, and merely say that Madeline Raster shoots well and had a solid all-around game. Jeannie Boehm was big on the inside, but had trouble handling passes.

I'm starting to think Harvard is used to getting the foul calls when they throw up those wild shots at the rim. There's no other reason for players as smart as Harvard students should be to do such stupid things on the floor.

Fordham got the chance to clear the bench in the final twenty seconds, to the point where one of the subs got delayed because you can't sub for the free throw shooter. The deep bench didn't get much of a chance to shine in those twenty seconds or so, so no, you're not getting individualized analyses, guys. Sorry. I don't know what Zara Jillings did to get benched in the first half, during a stretch when we could have used her defense, but I trust Coach Gaitley's judgment. She had a gorgeous pass to G'mrice on the inside, just when we thought she needed to shoot the damn ball. Kendell Heremaia made a nifty defensive play to recover a loose ball, then really started feeling her oats and launched a three. (Poor Kenny. Had to clean up all the balls from shootaround, and G kept firing them at her.)

Why, yes, I am worried about the fact that our starters played such heavy minutes that I can sum up the contributions of our bench in one not-huge paragraph.

I love the hustle Mary Goulding brings to the floor. She had one putback that I can only describe as utterly ridiculous, but if I did attempt to describe it, might sound something like "so the ball bounced off the rim, and Mary and another player were going up for it, and I think there were three hands on the ball and two of them were Mary's, and it sort of ended up being set into the basket". She brought a lot of grit on the glass, so I can forgive some of the moments I can only describe as derpy. I've never heard G'mrice Davis be so loud demanding the ball before- she was letting out the kind of whoops I usually make when the other team is at the free throw line. She went hard to the rack and met with heavy opposition, so she was putting up a lot of contested shots. She was bound and determined to get those rebounds, though. Johanna Klug looked slow all night. I think she ran into the freshman wall and never did figure out how to climb over it- when the offseason hits, she needs to get her act together.

I'm not used to Lauren Holden being taller than anyone on the floor, but she was bigger and taller than Benzan. She does tend to argue fouls, even when it's obvious she's pushing. There were a couple of moments when I thought she was starting to indulge her propensity to start chucking deep threes for the fun of it, but she restrained herself and ran more clock. I still have no idea how she managed to set an illegal screen, though. Not used to itty bitty guards setting screens. And then there was Bre Cavanaugh, who showed once again that the blood in her veins is as cold as ice. She took the game over in the third quarter, driving the lane and draining threes, and she was the one who put the game away at the end of the fourth. She saw that everyone was terrified to shoot and decided that she was going to take over. I just love what she already brings to the floor- and she's only a freshman, folks. Redshirt, but a freshman nevertheless.

I know Fordham likes to run a very deliberate offense, but there comes a point when you do have to shoot, and we lost sight of that in the second quarter. G'mrice getting caught with the ball to draw a shot clock violation right after she had a putback disallowed on not beating the buzzer was... yes, well, that summed up much of our offense at that point. And just when we got some momentum near the end of the second quarter, Harvard clamped down on defense and we started losing the ball. I really thought we were goners. But then Bre.

I think Fordham definitely got the benefit of the doubt from the officials, who were not good at procedural calls and let an awful lot of contact go.

Shoutout to the family in front of us, who led cheers with glorious enthusiasm (and later totally tried to pin the yelling on their kids). We needed them, and they answered the bell.

There was free pizza and apple pie, but the apple pie was from McDonalds, so I'm glad I passed. (Also, the new wraps at Subway are delicious.)

If Robert Morris had beaten Drexel, I'd have had an impetus to get these notes done sooner, because Fordham would have hosted the Colonials. But Drexel gets the homecourt advantage against the Rams, and I just don't have it in me to head to Philadelphia this weekend.

If this was the last time I ever got to see G'mrice Davis, then it was worth it. I hope it isn't, of course; I hope we beat the scales off Drexel and get homecourt advantage in the next round. But I love what we showed in this game, and I think it'll be important to carry forward both through the WNIT and into next year.

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March 15th, 2018: Marist at St. John's (WNIT)

Just the Facts, Ma'am: St. John's started strong and never looked back in their 68-47 win over Marist in the first round of the WNIT. Andrayah Adams had 14 points off the bench to lead five Johnnies in double figures, with both Imani Littleton (12 points, 10 rebounds) and Maya Singleton (12 points, 11 rebounds) notching double-doubles. Maura Fitzpatrick of Marist led all scorers with 20 points.

For color coordination, a jump to the left, calling glass, offensive rebounding, and the little details on the floor, join your intrepid and soon to be freshly laundered blogger after the jump.

Good evening! The Big Dance has yet to begin, but the WNIT is upon us. St. John's has first-round hosting rights, and tonight we have Marist in the house.

Then again, Marist brought two busloads of fans and then some, so I'm really not sure we're using our host-rights to full advantage here. We've enticed students with ice cream, but they've been fairly quiet. Fortunately, band and a handful of students have stepped up.

Marist's band does an excellent rendition of the Time Warp. Of course, because I am petty and Iona is still one of my teams, I may have asked something along the lines of, "What, to when you were good and Quinnipiac wasn't eating your lunch?"

It's 37-22 St. John's at halftime. Imani Littleton started the game like her hair was on fire and she was taking the presence of every single Marist fan as a personal affront. Our offensive rebounding inside has been fantastic. Other than not being able to keep track of Alana Gilmer, and Maura Fitzpatrick's uncanny communion with the glass, we've been great on defense. Marist is doing a lot of little things well, in regards to floor positioning.

That awkward moment when one of your teams is coached by a fan/alumna of the opponent one of your other teams is playing. Hi, Stephanie, but go Red Storm, not Red Foxes.

That got a little dicey for a moment when Akina Wellere committed her fourth foul and had to come out of the game, but we hit a couple of big shots and put the Red Foxes away. My throat still hurts. You have to go hard when you're outnumbered in your own house. (You also get salty as Lot's wife, because, c'mon, people.)

I'm not used to Marist being this disorganized. Their passing game was... not good. Their shooting was ridiculously streaky- either the shot went in or it was a bad miss, no real in-between. There are a lot of little things they still do very well- no one draws charges better than Marist, no one tests the boundaries better than Marist. But the youth and inexperience of these players shines through, and I don't know if they know who their leader is, at least from what I saw in this game.

Kendall Baab came in at the end of the game, which was the best indicator to us that the game was over- give the senior one last hurrah before her career ends. She was marked pretty closely in her brief minutes, and she had trouble handling the passes her teammates sent her. We were almost hoping she would get a basket, but Imani Littleton was bound and determined that that wasn't going to happen. Gabi Redden saw a few minutes at the end of the game, and in the first half in relief of Alana Gilmer after Gilmer picked up the third foul. Big body, but way too tentative. Hasn't quite figured out that "play with your head" does not mean "deflect the pass meant for your teammate with your face".

Lovisa Henningsdóttir brings a different dimension off the Marist bench, and I think once she's fully settled into the Marist offense they'll be a lot better off. She gives them good height on the inside and on the glass while still providing the three-point offense they rely on. Allie Best played the bulk of the minutes off the bench at guard- smaller than most of the other players they put out on the floor, she ball-hawked more than the rest of her teammates.

I don't know what unholy spells Maura Fitzpatrick worked on the glass, but she had some of the best puck luck I've ever seen- two shots off the glass and one that danced all over the rim before dropping in. Granted, she also had some of the worst puck luck I've ever seen, with shots popping up out of the cylinder. She's a strange one. She did do a good job of driving the lane and drawing contact, usually off Akina Wellere, who didn't quite have the foot speed to keep up with her when she slipped screens. Rebekah Hand shoots pretty well, not surprisingly, but she also had some terrible shots that hit nothing. After her first airball, I was tempted to tell her she was embarrassing our shared, albeit differently spelled, name. I think she was the one who completely blew a gorgeous screen from one of her teammates and bricked the jumper.

Alana Gilmer started off red hot, even with her unconventional over-the-head jumper. She showed impressive evasiveness for a woman of her frame, getting Maya Singleton (one of our better defenders) turned around in the early going. We switched defenses on her a couple of times, and got better results both from the length of Imani Littleton and the speed of our guards. Three fouls in the first half didn't help her either, and I think she tightened up in the second half. Willow Duffell brings them height, but right now I don't know what else she's giving them. Most of what I remember of her on the floor were mistakes- fouls, bad passes, airballs, and such. I get the sense that she was pressed into service before she was fully ready. Grace Vander Weide swung between positions a lot, and swung from extremes of shooting multiple terrible airballs to making big steals in the passing lanes. Hers was the screen referred to earlier.

There are things Marist still does very well. They rebounded off their missed free throws like they planned it all along. They still set up position outside the circle like someone built a tiny wall along its curve. They adapt their defense well. But I don't know if they planned to fiddle around in the backcourt for seven seconds almost every possession, or if they let our defense pressure them into that. Their shooting was unusually inconsistent, and their communication was off. They got looks, and either they went down or they most emphatically did not.

I'm glad Tamesha Alexander and Shamachya Duncan got to close the game out. I'm less glad neither of them got a shot off, though Sox did have a chance and promptly passed it off, because that's who Sox is and that's how she rolls. They're good kids. I'm passing fond of them. Kayla Charles has got to hang on to rebounds instead of tapping them around. Unless we have some tall people coming in next year's class that I don't know about, she's pretty much going to be the only post on the floor. She doesn't necessarily have anyone to tap the ball to.

Andrayah Adams did a lot of scoring in the fourth quarter, but I don't know if she was calling her own number or if there was some other perverse reason she was taking all the shots even when the deep bench was in the game. She spent way too much time driving one-on-everybody. She had better luck with her jumper, but even then it looked like she was just firing it off without thinking about the play sometimes. I feel like I'm being unreasonably hard on her, since we did win and she did lead us in scoring, but this was an unusually selfish game for her, and that's not necessarily a habit I want her to develop. Qadashah Hoppie hit a big three and did a good job of getting to the line, but I was most impressed with her defensive work. She stayed in front of the Marist guards and for the most part was successful in cutting off their drives.

Tiana England's hesitancy drove us a little bit crazy, but in a game like this where controlling the pace allowed us to milk the lead, it wasn't terrible. I wish her drives had gone down more often- she had a fantastic fast break off an interception that she just couldn't finish. But that inside pass to Imani Littleton was sweet- reminded me of some of the Liberty's interior passing under Laimbeer. Moments like those make me think she'll turn out all right at the point after all. Alisha Kebbe's so tough. I think her Philly is showing. She goes hard after loose balls, and the shots she comes up with seem to be at all the right times. She's got to work on her overall accuracy, but I'll take her toughness any day of the week. Akina Wellere had the three-ball working, and did some good work inside, but lost her mind on defense in the fourth quarter, committing three straight fouls, two of which were utterly unnecessary. We don't roll deep, 'Kina, we can't afford blatant reach-in fouls at the midcourt line. (I did enjoy her defense of her fourth foul, though; I think she was either arguing that the offensive player performed an illegal spin move or earnestly explaining to the ref that she needs a new dryer.)

I don't know how I feel about Maya Singleton's face-up game, but watching her own the shot clock like a boss on the one jump shot was pretty sweet. She was beasting on the glass. It was also very satisfying to watch her hit all of her free throws with the Marist band disconcerting her. But the player of the game was Imani Littleton, and what a time for her to shine. She took over on the inside, getting offensive rebounds and converting more of her opportunities than usual. She was assertive defensively, to the point of running herself out of plays. In every way she could, she made it abundantly clear that this was her game, her house, and her night, and she wasn't letting her career end here and now. I'm inordinately proud of how she played, and I hope we can keep seeing this through the WNIT.

Officiating was a bit ticky-tack for stretches, with stricter construction of the traveling rule than I've seen in a while (which made Akina's claim that the refs missed one even funnier).

I don't know who resents our spirit squads, but both cheer and dance had people knocked in the head with flying basketballs- cheer while in play, dance because someone's kid was messing around in the third deck without supervision. I am not okay with unsupervised children, by the way.

Perhaps we should minimize the use of our red-and-white chants when playing a team that shares our colors.

Too many Marist fans and not enough St. John's fans, but that's to be expected. Marist travels well and stays loyal. I remember some of those fans from my visits to McCann. And St. John's is not very good at expanding the fan base. Survive and advance. That's all that matters.

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March 19th, 2017: Harvard at St. John's

Just the Facts, Ma’am: Clutch free throws and critical stops helped St. John’s hold off Harvard, 62-57. Aaliyah Lewis of St. John’s posted game-highs of 16 points and eight assists, with Maya Singleton adding 13 points and nine rebounds. Katie Benzan led the Crimson with 13 points and seven rebounds; classmate Jeannie Boehm notched 11 points and seven boards before fouling out.

For tortured puns, alumna assistance, promising underclassmen, an unfortunate silence, going for broke in senior year, and teams not wearing colors they’re named after, join your intrepid and mildly confused blogger after the jump.

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls! We’re coming to you on the usual delay, though hopefully not as protracted a one as last game. It’s the second round of the WNIT, and this time the Red Storm play host to the Crimson of Harvard.

It’s a nice touch that Harvard has their school’s academic motto on the back of their warm-up shirts. Something about the material or the printing is rubbing me the wrong way, though that might just be a Nike thing. Nike’s equipment doesn’t usually match up to Adidas or Under Armour.

Harvard gives off this air of going through the motions, like they don’t want to be in the WNIT but feel honor-bound to represent the Ivy League and their institution.

Hi, Sky! Oooh, that’s a faux pas, you are not supposed to wear team colors if you’re broadcasting the game, and that sleeveless top is perfect Johnny red. Don’t get me wrong, Sky’s making it look good, but I don’t think this is supposed to be a home team broadcast.

So far it appears that Harvard has not brought any spirit groups. Given the propensity for Ivy League bands to gravely offend opponents, I’m not completely sure that this was willingly.

At halftime St. John’s is up 32-26, after Harvard went on a second quarter run. Scoring is fairly balanced on both sides. Lots of people have five points each. Early foul trouble on Maya Singleton and Jade Walker led to a lot of small ball.

I don’t think I like Kendyl Nunn as a first option on offense for four straight possessions. It’s not even like you’re planning for next year doing that. She was channeling Amber Thompson for a while on the inside, though.

Joe. Do not ever wear blue plaid pants again. Burn them or sell them to a vintage store.

Shoutout to Shenneika Smith still helping the squad by trying to sweet-talk the ref into reversing an out-of-bounds call.

I think we’ve got some of Jade’s family behind us. They’ve been on the refs, especially when the First Rule of STJWBB comes into play.

I’m not feeling this remix/cover/mash-up of “It Takes Two”.

That was closer than I felt it needed to be. Every time we made a run, Harvard was ready with a long-range jumper or a good find in the paint. They never gave up. I’d like to appreciate that about them, but I don’t think I like them enough to do that. I think they’ve got a lot of potential for the next couple of years, though; they have some very good freshmen.

Somewhere, there is a joke buried about Taylor Rooks transferring from Stanford to Harvard- wanted to be on the winning side? not challenged enough by the academics?- but I am too tired to find it properly. She gave them some good minutes off the bench. I didn’t even realize Mackenzie Barta played, and now I’m curious if she’s related to the Barta at Gonzaga. Nani Redford was an offensive spark in the first half. I really liked the sophomore guard Sydney Skinner. She might need to trim down a little bit (though she does know how to throw her weight around) but she’s got a really good head for the game, and spent a lot of time being in the right place at the right time. She’s going to be big for them, if this game is anything like her regular play. She put together a nice defensive takeback after Akina Wellere got a rebound, one that led to a trey for the Crimson.

I work in print production, which means I do a lot of work with graphics. Somewhere, there is a convoluted joke involving raster art versus vector art that I could cleverly apply to Madeline Raster. But I can’t quite get there. She set up outside quite a bit. Kirby Porter got on the board early, but she did most of her work in the first quarter. I think she was the player shuffled out to get Skinner and Rooks more minutes, especially in the second half. Katie Benzan is fearless, and tiny. These are not necessarily well combined when a a 5-6 guard attempts to go against post players. She has incredible speed- she was driving our players nuts most of the day. Her release is really fast too, and she showed good range. If this game wasn’t the outlier, she’s going to be something special for them.

Destiny Nunley had a nifty deflection late in the game, and set a good pick to open up Redford for a three. I’m not okay with her taunting after a bad out-of-bounds call went Harvard’s way, though. The petty part of me wants to tell her to pull her shorts down, and the really petty part of me wants to say, “well, she just played her last game, so her shorts don’t matter”, but I recognize that this is exceptionally petty. She’s good, and she was pretty solid for them. Jeannie Boehm has a lot of potential. They posted her up well, and she took advantage of her height. She has better body control than I would expect from a long freshman forward- she contorted her way around the defense multiple times. She was very physical, to the point where our players were getting frustrated at the non-calls.

I’m not sure why Joe has suddenly started trusting Kendyl Nunn in the last few games of the season. Is he making up for lost time or something? I’m happy to see her getting time, I’m just surprised and a little confused. It worked the first two times, and then she started taking jumpers. This did not go well. Jordan Agustus got early runin the first quarter. It was a little awkward, but she looked a lot better going to the basket than she had earlier in the season. She actually passed up a bad shot and fired off a good pass to Aaliyah (who promptly missed the shot). Crystal Simmons brought the defense, and I feel like maybe she’s starting to feel more confident in her offense? That would be cool. I’m worried about Andrayah Adams, though. She looks like she’s taken a step back.

After Jade Walker picked up the second foul in the first quarter, Joe sat her for the rest of the first half. Harvard sent the defense at her and never really let her get comfortable. She had a couple of strong post moves, but this wasn’t her day. It didn’t really need to be, though. Maya Singleton was efficient, though it was painfully clear that she doesn’t have a jump shot. That rather limits her offensive effectiveness if she can’t get at the basket. She makes so many great plays with her strength, though. Do not mess with Miss Maya.

I think I said this on Friday, and I’m going to say it again: Alisha Kebbe’s not going to take your breath away. She’s not going to be the star of the show. But she does everything, and she does it well. I especially love her nose for loose balls. The only thing I really worry about for her is durability- she’s been injured, and she seems to cramp up easily. (Da’Shena Stevens had similar problems, if I recall correctly- maybe now that Day is Coach Stevens, she can provide advice?) Aaliyah Lewis got a little jumper-happy, and I’m not sure how I feel about her becoming a primary offensive option this late in the game. You take what the defense gives you and all that, but I get the sense that she’s trying to go out with a bang. The season is finite; its absolute end is determined, and it can be cut even shorter at a moment’s notice. Akina Wellere has to work on her inside game, and on her handle, but she was great on help defense. That’s good to see out of her; much of her game has been, or at least has seemed to be, focused on the offensive side of the ball. I love when offensive catalysts find that second gear on defense. (See: Crystal Robinson.)

We were just stalwart enough against Harvard. The decision to go small for stretches was interesting. I think it gave Harvard too much momentum at the end of the first half. But Harvard in turn committed a grave error late in the game by having someone with four fouls marking Aaliyah; they lost about twenty seconds because they didn’t dare have Benzan foul and foul out.

Officiating was a pile of hot garbage, though I think Jade’s family might have influenced my perceptions slightly. On the other hand, I’m fairly certain booty-bouncing one’s opponent is supposed to be frowned upon. I was uncomfortable with the type of physicality that was being allowed- trips and elbows are not cool. And I don’t know what Destiny Nunley did that had Aaliyah riled up, but when Aaliyah looks like she’s about to slap the taste out of someone’s mouth, something has gone wrong.

Survive and advance. That’s the name of the game. Survive and advance. On the road we go now, to see familiar faces in unfamiliar places, and thank the sweet hypothetical baby Jesus I don’t have to choose in person between the team I love and the friends I’ve made. (No, I’m not going to Ann Arbor. Not at this point.)

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March 17th, 2017: Sacred Heart at St. John's

Just the Facts, Ma’am: St. John’s erupted for 29 points in the third quarter to take control over Sacred Heart, winning their first-round WNIT game 72-43. Jade Walker and Akina Wellere each had 18 points to lead the Red Storm. Hannah Kimmel had 13 points and 14 rebounds to pace the Pioneers.

For lateness, similar colors, inappropriate drumrolls, and finding another gear, join your intrepid blogger after the jump.

Good evening, everyone! So we didn’t make the Big Dance. You blow your chance to win big games, that’s what happens. So we’re in the WNIT, what I like to call the Medium Dance. It’s Sacred Heart tonight; let’s hope the box score doesn’t mix them up with that other SHU like they did last year.

Buses are terrible evil things, so I missed the entire first quarter. All I know is that St. John’s is up 27-25 at the half, and Jade Walker needs help with that recto-cranial inversion again, and I love Maya Singleton so much.

Someone needs to remind the Sacred Heart drummer that you’re not supposed to be active during play. Lay off the drumroll after every basket.

What exactly makes visiting fans look at a section, see the home band, and look across at the home bench, and decide this would be a great place to settle down? Honest question. I see it more and more, and it is super annoying.

I see you behind the bench, Shenneika Smith. Don’t think I don’t remember. I’m not sure who the woman behind her who looks vaguely like Cappie is, but she looks familiar too (though maybe because, y’know, she looks vaguely like Cappie).

These kids in the biddy game are hitting the floor for loose balls harder than half our starters. Someone needs to have a pointed talk with Jade about hustling for boards.

So after halftime, St. John’s decided to start taking the game seriously, and the offense roared to life. Sacred Heart couldn’t contain the shooters, and the defense of St. John’s firmed up.

We saw a lot of the deep Pioneer reserves in the fourth quarter. Madison Cheatham looks like she can be a very interesting player for Sacred Heart if she settles into her body and maybe tones up a bit. She seems awkward, but she’s a freshman post- that’s always a tough combination. Allyson Murphy had a cheering section in front of us, so I couldn’t be mad when she got to the line. Kiana Ye was last off the bench, and unmemorable. Tykera Carter brought speed and on-ball defense- she had a beautiful steal for a fast break lay-up. I guess I shouldn’t feel so bad that she did it to both STJ and LIU. Erin Storck got blocked a lot. She hustled hard after loose balls- there was a save she almost made that turned out to be a turnover that was still really tough.

Hannah Kimmel saved the day for the Pioneers. She was everywhere on the glass, and solid on the inside. She was the star of the show. We threw a few different looks at her (my favorite was when Aaliyah Lewis was on her). I feel like I should remember more about Adaysha Williams- she was out there a lot, and I remember seeing a lot of the back of her jersey, but I don’t remember anything particular she did. Katherine Haines brought good interior offense, at least after I showed up. She got good post position and took advantage of it.

Kelcey Castro wasn’t afraid of contact, and with her build she’s pretty good at taking it. She drove headlong into the St. John’s defense, which did not always work out well for her. Driving directly into Jade Walker is not a good plan. Shelby Hickey was active, but unmemorable. I think I mixed her up with Kimmel a few times.

I have a hard time wrapping my mind around this game, because I missed the first quarter and because it took such a sudden turn in the third quarter. I never really got a grasp on the Pioneers. They relied on their seniors to carry them, and I think they’re going to change their style a good bit with the personnel they have returning next year.

We also saw the deep Red Storm reserves in the fourth quarter. I will miss the sheer joy Kendyl Nunn plays with. Her shot is quick, but not necessarily accurate. Jordan Agustus, still rocking the goggles, pulled down a rebound, almost by accident, and brought the hustle. The starters chilling out on the bench really wanted to see the reserves score, but especially Shamachya Duncan, and they were disappointed when her three fell short. I also still heart Tamesha Alexander, even if she’s over-aggressive on defense in blowout games. The kids aren’t ready for primetime, but I think Machi will be next year.

I do not like the plan of trying to turn Andrayah Adams into a point guard. She’s not a distributor. Her strength is in her scoring. Yes, her shot is inconsistent. She needs to work on that. But the solution is not to take that decision out of her hands. She doesn’t look comfortable as a distributor. Crystal Simmons was a one-woman fast-break destroyer. She blocked shots like no one’s business and was extremely disruptive on defense, even more so than usual.

Jade Walker was really frustrated for much of the first half. She was missing both inside and out, even during the halftime warm-ups. Akina Wellere had to try to take her in hand. Whatever Akina said, it worked. Jade came out much more confident and much more physical in the second half, going hard to the basket and all but abandoning the jumper. (I am okay with her abandoning the jumper until after she establishes her paint game.) Maya Singleton was fierce on the boards. I love her defense, and her rebounding, and her toughness, and her strength. She blocked shots with authority. Akina Wellere found her offense in the third quarter- nothing flashy, but steady and efficient. She’s got to be more careful with the ball, though.

Alisha Kebbe does a little bit of everything, and does it all well. I’m so looking forward to three more years of her. She’s not spectacular. She’s not necessarily going to do anything that’s going to make your eyes pop or make you gasp. She’s just going to do everything. Aaliyah Lewis hit big threes in the third quarter, but for a change she was more the recipient of pretty passes than the provider of them. She ran the offense effectively and kept the speed and pressure up so that Sacred Heart couldn’t keep up. (Also, Aaliyah as a screener is perhaps not the most effective option.)

I love the defense of this team. I love the players who go to the floor for loose balls. I love the leadership some of the young’uns are showing, as they realize they’re not going to have Aaliyah to rely on for that next year.

I had no real issues with the officiating. The Sacred Heart fan behind me did, and there were a couple of times when I thought he might have a point.

I don’t know how I feel about pep band Ricky Martin; on the other hand, “The Cup of Life” is certainly appropriate for a sporting event. I still don’t think I like this bit where other teams are sending their band and cheer to our house. It certainly threw off our cheer squad.

There will be no arriving late for the next game. And maybe the GNoD will actually be on time? Sorry, guys.

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March 22nd, 2015: Fordham at St. John's (WNIT)

Just the Facts, Ma'am: Aliyyah Handford had 23 points and 10 rebounds to power St. John's to a 77-63 win over Fordham in second-round WNIT action. Emily Tapio had 19 points to lead Fordham.

For bittersweet farewells, lost shoes, rhythmic clapping, wardrobe changes, dueling bands, and never winning raffles, join your intrepid and conclusive blogger after the jump.



Off with the blue, on with the red. Can't stay in the Big Dance, time to hit the Medium Dance. Still got some of our Jersey girls playing. Sleep off the heartbreak at Gampel, hit the road with hope for Carnesecca. It's a battle for the heart of the city, as the Fordham Rams come to Queens to play the St. John's Red Storm.

I think the event staff at every staircase is a little excessive today, given that we have approximately 20 people in the stands so far, not including the Fordham band.

The Mighty Sound of the Red Storm is back in action, and ready to rumble.

D'awww, one of the Fordham players is wearing the Senior Day shirt.

In addition to their band, Fordham brought their mascot and cheerleaders. Their cheerleaders have flags, unlike the poor guy from Seton Hall last night.

At halftime, St. John's is up 38-32, in a game that's been a lot faster than I think anyone expected. Fordham likes to slow it down, but they've been content to run with the Red Storm. Aliyyah Handford is back to herself, with 19 points and some athletic rebounds. She's such a joy to watch, honestly.

Fordham has brought a lot of fans along for the ride, and they've been loud. Fortunately, a fair number of Johnnies showed up to counterbalance them. I think some of the guys from the men's team have joined us.

Strong contender for worst feeling in the world: your raffle ticket is one off a winning number. There are a lot of raffles today, though. It's a fan appreciation day. All I want is the UA skyline socks.

Our over-quota dancers have been exiled to the bleachers during the game. At least it helps us get the crowd noise going.

Fordham found their offensive groove in the second half, stylistically, but the game was still moving fast enough that St. John's was able to maintain control, and by the end, we were able to penetrate their defense with relative ease.

Khadijah Gibson came in near the end of the game when it was a lost cause and the seniors were getting their curtain calls. Danielle Padovano got a lot less time than I was expecting and really made no impact. Danielle Burns was first off the bench in both halves, but was so little of a factor that my loyal traveling companion (who knows Fordham better than I do) thought she hadn't played at all. Asnate Fomina brought a little bit of shooting, but nothing on the defensive end. (The box score also shorted her a missed free throw.) Taryn Durant brought a little bit of defense, but not much else.

Tiffany Ruffin played with the speed and passion of a player who knew that this could be her last game, especially in the latter part of the second half. She drove through the lane fearlessly, though not recklessly. I have to admire her toughness on both ends of the floor. G'mrice Davis missed a couple of early shots and got bodied up a little by the defense, and I think that got into her head a little bit, or more than a little bit. She rebounded decently, but she was not fully engaged in the game. Samantha Clark stretched the floor a little, and was certainly tough on the inside (seriously, do not run headlong into this woman, it does not end well for you) but committed stupid turnovers. Hannah Missry put a scare into us early with her stroke, but that was all she could muster for Fordham- even her one 2-point field goal was a long jumper. Once we stayed on her, she was a non-factor. Emily Tapio was great- hitting jumpers and going to the basket, rebounding, setting screens. She threw a couple of really nice head fakes to get good passing lanes or space to move closer to the basket.

I wasn't expecting Fordham to try and run with us, and I don't think they were either. Their offense became more deliberate, albeit not ponderous, in the second half.

Tonoia Wade sighting! I don't know what took Joe so long to find her at the end of the bench, but she came in near the end of the game and made a couple of nifty defensive plays. Tamesha Alexander came in around the same time. Kyra Dunn had some really good rebounds today- there were at least two that she seized with both hands and held on to, which is unusual for her. Imani Littleton played briefly and did nothing of import. Crystal Simmons looked really lost. Except for Kyra, this wasn't exactly a strong game for the Red Storm's bench.

Fortunately, when Aliyyah Handford drops 19 points in the first half, you don't necessarily need bench production. She looked more like herself, even in the second half when Fordham was doubling her. Her energy was back and her smile was back. Danaejah Grant had some issues with the rim, but got more of her shots to fall in the second half. Jade Walker committed dumb fouls and mistakes on defense, but her shot was going in nicely, both at the basket and from the midrange. Amber Thompson hit the boards and cleaned up missed shots. Aaliyah Lewis ran the show smoothly. I think I might have liked to see her take some more shots, but I think things worked out well today.

Not much to complain about with the officiating, other than that time Aliyyah took a forearm to the face from Fomina with no call.

Your funny moment of the game: as the second half was about to get started, Liyyah clapping along with "Thunderstruck".

Your maturity moment of the game: Crystal Simmons, badly out of position on defense, makes a weak swipe that ultimately results in Amber Thompson committing a foul. As soon as that whistle blows, Aaliyah Lewis calls everyone together and rips Crystal a new one for being out of position. I love that kind of leadership from a young player.

Your 'do not taunt happy fun band' moment of the game: Fordham's band played "Seven Nation Army", a major piece in our band's repertoire. As it happens, our band has recently added a bass. So, as the victorious Red Storm ran off the court, the band played not "Mars" (our fight song of sorts, because the Red Planet is appropriate for the Red Storm, and Holst is for the win), but... "Seven Nation Army", and proceeded to kick Fordham's butt in that regard as well. Seriously, do not mess with Kevin.

These will likely be the last Game Notes of Doom you'll see this year. St. John's is off to Villanova for the next round, and while I've done Philadelphia, I can't do it mid-week. So, if this is the end of my chronicles of the regular season, it's a good ending. I hope you've enjoyed my rambling, babbling, and incoherent muttering. And if you haven't, well, you've got a month or so's break before I head to Mohegan Sun for the draft, so you can sigh in relief.

To the teams that I love, thank you. Best of luck to my Johnnies and my Wolverines, still dancing in the WNIT. Best of luck for next year to my Pirates, my Gaels, and yes, my Rams. Thank you for the stars and the shining moments, the milestones and the magic numbers.

Thank you, Amber, Selina, and Kyra. Thank you, Janee, Ka-Deidre, Daisha, and Chizoba. Thank you, Damika. Thank you, Liz, Taryn, Tiffany, and Emily. Thank you, Shannon, Nicole, and Cyesha.

See you in the summer!

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March 19th, 2015: Army at St. John's

Just the Facts, Ma'am: 20 points from Aaliyah Lewis and an 18-point, 13-rebound performance from Danaejah Grant spurred the Red Storm to a first round WNIT victory over Army, 64-56. Kelsey Minato and Olivia Schretzman each had 19 for the Black Knights.

For deferral, splitting up the band, defensive energy, bad body language, ticket gripes, and tedium, join your intrepid and apathetic blogger after the jump.



You thought you were done with me, didn't you? You thought the time of Game Notes had safely passed and you could breathe a sigh of relief, safe from giant blocks of text and irrelevant observations.

You forgot about the WNIT.

Your intrepid blogger is once more ensconced in her familiar perch in section 2 at Carnesecca Arena as the Red Storm host the Black Knights of Army.

Because it's the WNIT, and thus technically sort of neutral, Army brought their band, and they did a rendition of the national anthem that gave me goosebumps. I guess that's to be expected, but still, rock on, West Point Band.

(The Mighty Sound of the Red Storm is not so mighty, since most of it is off to Charlotte for the men's tournament. It's, uh, actually kind of pathetic look I'm sorry guys but you have like eight people today.)

There's nothing quite as disconcerting as seeing an Army officer in dress start yelling his head off at a game.

When St. John's was making their run to end the half, I thought for sure Dave Magarity was about to Reeve his jacket, but the Defcon level was lowered in time to keep the jacket on the chair.

I am not thrilled with the $2 jack-up of ticket prices for this one, especially since for me it's more like a $7 increase, since I normally buy season tickets. I blame the WNIT and its organizers.

The crowd is uninspiring, and heavily in Army's favor. They brought family and officers, and even the SJU ROTC seems to be leaning towards their future employers instead of their present location.

Our dance team has been dislodged from their usual baseline, since that would be where Army's cheer squad would be if they joined us today.

The defensive energy is high for both sides, but St. John's looks like a hot mess on offense.

This was not a fun game to be at. By the end of the second half, I had reached a state of ennui where I genuinely no longer cared whether St. John's advanced or not, and was starting to slide towards, no, lose, end it, I'm tired and I want this to be over. The body language was awful. Maybe they all felt the way I did, but they get hefty scholarships to play basketball- you have to at least pretend to care, or at the very least, your coach has to pretend that he cares whether you care or not.

Fun moment before the game, though. ESPN was red-hatting the tip to extremes, and at one point I may have burst out, "C'mon, ESPN, some of us have to go to work tomorrow!" Or words to that effect. Whereupon Joanne Aldrich turned around with an amused smile and a gaze to the heavens, as if to say, what can you do?

Army brought excellent defense, but was tentative and unfocused on offense. Most of them didn't seem willing to shoot, and insisted on passing to one of the two scoring options.

I loved the defensive intensity of Janae McNeal. She was always on the ball and always moving. She's got great potential, and she's only a freshman. Brigette Ocran was a big body in the backcourt, creating some mismatches with her strength. Dani Failor possesses an unfortunate last name, but solid rebounding ability. Ciara Jackson played briefly in the first half and was so unremarkable that the PA announcer initially announced her as Jordan Elliott. Destinee Morris threw me off because I mistook her for who I presume is her twin sister.

Daizjah Morris left no impression, though, again, that might be because I had trouble keeping her and her sister straight. Aimee Oertner pulled down the boards near the basket. Jean Parker spent a decent amount of time in foul trouble, which opened the door for McNeal to get minutes. Olivia Schretzman got good looks near the basket and in whatever one calls the area between the high post and the low post, and took care of her turf. Kelsey Minato has good speed, and she shoots quickly, but I don't know what to think of her release- it seems a bit crossed up. I think Army also relies on her too heavily- when the game was still close at the end and winnable with swift offense, they passed the ball around too much, looking desperately for their leader to save them.

Imani Littleton saw daylight in the second half, and of course it was after her first positive play- a defensive disruption that ultimately led to an Army turnover- that Joe pulled her. Kyra Dunn played briefly in the first half, but was so ineffective that Joe pulled her in a hurry and started yelling in her general direction, at which point she evinced no indication that she was absorbing his words. Crystal Simmons saw some time and played very stiff.

Jade Walker hit some shots, but did not have what I would call the world's greatest shot selection, and fell into the trap of staring at her shot instead of following it. The only thing I'll say about that is that she seemed to be doing a lot of switching on defense, so she might have been short on energy. Amber Thompson rebounded all the things, hit some nice shots, and even dropped a slick dime to Aaliyah Lewis on a backdoor cut. Aliyyah Handford was hassled by Army double- and triple-teams all night. There were flashes of her unbridled athleticism in the second half when she hit the fast break and when she rebounded. But I'm more worried about her increased penchant for dramatics. Flopping isn't going to succeed as a long-term bodily protection strategy- in the end, you get fewer calls than you would otherwise. (Exhibit A: Coco Hart, who was once knocked briefly unconscious at center court by a West Virginia player without even a stoppage of play.) Danaejah Grant continues to be an enigma wrapped in a mystery wrapped in a mini-hawk. She's a brilliant scorer, and without her work at the basket and beyond the arc, Army would be visiting Fordham on Sunday. On the other hand, her body language was that of a woman who cared only for her numbers and had completely lost interest in the game. She consistently gave up on plays, and no one did anything about it. Two examples, both from the second half. First: Nae gets stripped of the ball and doesn't even bother to chase, preferring to marinate in her own pity party in the backcourt. Second, she's the one in an Army 2-on-1, with McNeal and Minato running. She bumps Minato and then immediately starts arguing with the ref that Minato bumped her... meanwhile, McNeal goes for the lay-up. Thank goodness we had Aaliyah Lewis, because Tiny Aaliyah fears nothing. She went to the basket and made plays, and she sealed the deal at the line. She took what she was given, and she took full advantage.

Officiating was loose. I think it was clear that everyone involved just wanted to go home already.

Cheer and dance were also split, with half of each team at the game.

Attendance was sparse, to be generous. Listed at 211, and that might include the West Point Band. I am not looking forward to Sunday.

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March 23rd, 2014: Princeton at Seton hall

Just the Facts, Ma'am: Sidney Cook converted a three-point play with nine seconds left, and Seton Hall made two defensive stands to stave off Princeton, 75-74. Michellle Miller led all scorers with 34 points on 11-13 shooting, while Alex Wheatley added 15. For Seton Hall, Ka-Deidre Simmons dropped 17 of her 23 points in the second half. Bra'Shey Ali just missed a double-double with nine points and 12 rebounds.

For tactical errors, hustle, passion, inciting the crowd, Greek myths, outgeeking the geeks, the repelling the boarding party, join your intrepid and sleep-deprived blogger after the jump.

Good afternoon, or evening, as you prefer! It's a battle for New Jersey at historic Walsh Gymnasium on the campus of Seton Hall University, as the Pirates take on the Tigers of Princeton on this chill spring day.

The Princeton band will be in attendance today, as are a passel of Princeton fans and family. We're expecting Walsh to get loud. Student Activities has attempted to bribe students into attending with one of their favorite things: free pizza. So far it's having a minimal effect, but I'm hopeful.

The Princeton band has arrived, in their orange plaid jackets and black pants. Even the drums are plaid, except for the bits with tigers on. Some of the band members are even wearing tails, and I don't mean the excessively formal jacket kind of tails. I mean tiger tails, curling long and low from their backs. I still think Cal rocks the hats better.

The folks who know us also know that we're St. John's fans, so we're hearing a lot about Briana Brown's three from the corner against USC. Not that I ever get tired of hearing about Briana Brown's three from the corner against USC.

Princeton, we're going to make you tear down that "Play Like Champions" banner and eat it with salt and barbeque sauce.

At halftime, Seton Hall is up by two, 38-36, and it's been a great, back-and-forth game. Michelle Miller has 22 for Princeton; Tabatha Richardson-Smith has 13 for Seton Hall. The bands have been going at it, back and forth, Princeton testing the bounds of artificial noisemakers with their drumsticks at the edges of their drums. Place is loud. I love it. That's what college basketball is about: the fire of competition and the energy of the crowd.

What a game. What a finish. Heart and hustle and passion and Ka-Deidre Simmons having brass ones the size of Jupiter and Tara Inman having ice water in her veins and nerves of steel and Bra'Shey Ali deciding that ALL the rebounds were hers. Melissa Miller unable to miss and Princeton finding the open man. Scrambling and scrapping and scraping and clawing, everyone wanting the ball, everyone wanting the game, everyone wanting the season. This is why the WNIT exists; in a way, this is why basketball itself exists. It's not all for one shining moment- it's for the next moment, and the next, and if it shines that's because there's sweat on it and the lights are hitting it just right.

I was surprised Nicole Hung was playing so little. I remember her being a firestarter for them in the last couple of years, but she only played in the second half, and only briefly. Vanessa Smith came in at the ends of halves- I think she might be a three-point specialist, but I don't know about Princeton to judge. Taylor Williams made a nuisance of herself on defense, committing a lot of fouls (really, just ask Janee next time before you start grabbing her, she's friendly) and being annoying. Kristen Helmstetter was a big body in the middle, with nice touch and utter determination to claim things around her rim- not necessarily the opposing rim, mind you, but the offensive glass was hers.

Oh my God, Michelle Miller. Seriously. Oh my God. I don't know if I've ever seen an offensive performance like that. She couldn't miss. I've seen huge offensive performances by the greatest in the game, but I don't know if I've ever seen one quite so efficient. We couldn't stop her. We couldn't get close to her. She fired off shots and nailed them clean. I swear one of those threes was from the general vicinity of Atlantic City. They didn't ask her to do much else, but what she did was almost enough to win them the game. Annie Tarakchian was a big body on the inside- they list her as a guard, but with those broad shoulders, she's definitely more of a forward. She fouled out of the game late, and I think that was a turning point- she was helping make the space that Miller needed. Alex Wheatley very quietly took care of business on the inside, stretching a little every so often to the midrange. Pretty much any performance gets lost behind 34 points on highly efficient shooting, but Wheatley was excellent. Amanda Berntsen didn't play much and didn't make much of an impression. Blake Dietrick seemed to be the facilitator and the decider, but Seton Hall's defense forced her into bad passes.

In general, Princeton seemed to be a little sloppy, a little unfocused- throwing passes to players who were nowhere near the destination of the pass, throwing passes low, throwing up bad shots (though those might have been for the sake of rebounds). Not the kind of execution I've come to expect from Princeton. They moved well without the ball.

Tara Inman is a good on-ball defender. She needs to stay on her man, though, and keep her feet moving. She sank the free throws after subbing for Ka-Deidre Simmons, her only points of the game, cool as a cucumber and clean as a whistle. Sidney Cook's shot selection left something to be desired, right until the end of the game when she hit the three-point play. She rebounded hard, though. (But seriously, Sid, the one-foot fallaway doesn't work for Cappie Pondexter, it's sure not going to work for you.)

Bra'Shey Ali had no luck with the rim, but she was determined that ALL the rebounds were going to be hers. She was tough on the inside, taking care of business. Janee Johnson went after loose balls ferociously- her shot choices were a bit questionable, but you put Janee in the game because you want hustle, and if you take her out it's because she's got her head stuck somewhere it shouldn't be. Tabatha Richardson-Smith had her three-point mojo going today, and they were falling soft and sweet. She did a nice job on the boards, too, tough and determined. Alexis Brown had a lot of shots fall off the rim, but she was all over everything and carrying her team. She's got such a nice first step. Fun to watch. Ka-Deidre Simmons took over the game in the second half. She decided that Seton Hall wasn't going to lose that game, and she made sure that her team was in position to win when Sidney Cook hit that shot for the three-point play. She took hard hits into the stanchion and got back up, though that second time scared us whens he couldn't put weight on her leg initially. But she was our heart and soul tonight, with jumpers that were perfectly on line and her free throws going down.

The Pirates fed off the crowd, I think, and they fed the crowd. Alexis and Janee both got the crowd going, and those of us in the lower deck followed their lead and Breanna Jones's to raise the noise level. The official attendance has something like 620, but we were all a loud 620, even the Princeton fans.

There were stretches of the game where I agreed with the Princeton band's assessment of the officials having the visual acuity of a blind Cyclops, but I suspect it was for different reasons. We did have an interesting moment at one point where two different fouls were called on two different plays at the same time- a flagrant on Alex Wheatley off the ball for smacking Sidney Cook, and an on-ball foul on Seton Hall. The officials eventually determined that the flagrant superseded the common foul, and Sid proceeded to miss the free throws, because this is how every single damn one of my teams rolls.

They were not losing. Plain and simple. Seton Hall wasn't letting it end that night. Ka-Deidre Simmons would not permit it and she would not permit her teammates to allow it.

20 wins. 20 wins in a season for the first time in 19 years for Seton Hall. It's a magic number. Let's keep the magic alive.

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March 20th, 2014: Harvard at Iona

Just the Facts, Ma'am: An offensive explosion in the second half powered Iona to a 12-point comeback- but Christine Clark went coast to coast and gave Harvard the first-round win with 00.8 seconds left, 90-89. Damika Martinez led the Gaels with 29 points, while Aleesha Powell added 21 points and six assists off the bench. Temi Fagbenle had 26 points and eight rebounds to pace Harvard; Erin McDonnell had 24 points and seven assists.

For offensive outbursts, a sudden stylistic shift, so many shots, the potential misuse of endowments, a moment of inattention, gritting it out, and fond farewells, join your intrepid and exhausted blogger after the jump.


Good evening, fellow travelers! As it turns out, your intrepid blogger isn't as done with college basketball this season as we all thought. Knoxville is a little rich for my blood, but when both Seton Hall and Iona are hosting first round games, well, what's an intrepid blogger to do but go say hi to some friends in New Rochelle? I hit my connections like the fist of a vengeful god, and made it from southwestern Queens to Grand Central in 40 minutes flat. I even bought maroon pants for the occasion. (The fact that they and others of their ilk were on clearance played into it too, I admit.)

$6. Much better, Iona.

We've got a bench priest tonight. Father, put in a couple of good words with your Boss for us?

The –insert-team-name-here- Way shirts are pretty boss by adidas. I kind of need all of them in my life.

Spencer Gray really does bear an eerie resemblance to Kia Wright. I keep doing a double-take when I see her.

I think Haley's family is across from the bench tonight. I'm not expecting Damika's or Aleesha's, though. Stupid weeknight game. There's maybe 50 people here. Maybe. I haz a sad. Of course, one of those 50 people is a creepy old dude who does not take me moving away as a hint that I do not wish to continue conversation with him. (All right, we got us some reinforcements. Either Haley or Christina's family has arrived.) (And Damika's family arrived too! Right after she committed a dumb turnover, of course.)

At halftime, Harvard is up 36-33 behind hot shooting from Erin McDonnell (10 points) and excellent rebounding on both ends of the floor. We have had a lot of trouble boxing out. The dude ref is not particularly competent. Down by contact is not a WCBB rule, dude, no matter how Christine Clark sells that touch on Sabrina Jeridore. We need to stop standing there watching shots. We don't have pretty enough shots to do that. Damika Martinez has 13 for the Gaels, who have seven triples at halftime. Live by the three, die by the three. It's a dangerous high, and not one that this team is made to sustain.

Why are you jacking my style, Iona? You're not Storm. You're the wrong kind of Gaels for "Thunderstruck".

It's hard to gauge whether I would have missed it for the world, knowing what I know now, feeling my heart lying shattered in my chest and my fingers freezing because the 9:03 was early and the 9:33 is late. We did things I've never seen a team do, we found seven minutes of fire and blood and rained down threes like a judgment from heaven, we held our own and held down our homecourt... and we wrecked it in the 5.3 seconds it took Christine Clark to race coast-to-coast untouched, undefended, unchallenged, uncontested, and toss in the game-winning lay-up. And something in our bleachers died, something in our hearts turned to ash, and one of the greatest seasons in Iona history ended with a late Damika Martinez heave that went under the backboard and nailed a student worker.

I'm a bit embittered by Harvard- someone from their team, possibly even the coach (they were calling her Kathy) was talking about how many players they were missing due to injury or illness, this starter and that starter, and I'm standing in the cold waiting for my cab and thinking, You won the game. Christine Clark pulled that game out of her... hat... for you, and you're making excuses. Take the win, shut up, and move on.

Kit Metoyer gave good minutes, especially in the second half- she had a couple of big threes to keep Harvard in it. Elise Gordon was one of the first players off the bench in the first half, but I don't think she played much, and I don't think she came back in in the second half. As you can see, she didn't make much of an impression. Anne Marie Healy brought a little bit of size in the middle, making the baseline uncomfortable for Iona's players and shutting down drives- she had a vicious block of (I think) Aleesha Powell that spurred a Harvard break.

Erin McDonnell, where were you hiding at the St. John's game? I think I would have remembered a big blonde dead-eye shooter. I don't remember the passing that the assists indicate, but she was superb at finding or making space. Ali Curtis didn’t play a lot- I think Harvard realized the advantage they had with McDonnell and Healy in the game, and went big while Iona went small. It was an interesting combination of schemes. Jasmine Evans didn't get the rolls, but wow, did she have a fast first step, especially on defense. She cut a lot of lanes off. The better part of me is glad that Christine Clark is back for the Crimson after the injury she suffered at St. John's. Most of me did not appreciate the sheer number of calls she got in her favor (how different would this game have been if her tackle on Sabrina was called, and thence the foul on Aleesha's and-1 was her fifth?). She's a gamer and a fighter, no doubt about it, but I don't know that the best of her was on display this evening. Temi Fagbenle, on the other hand, showed off all her skills- going to the rack, the free throw line jumper, defense down low and up high, rebounding in the lane, even the occasional bit of ball-handling. I like the way she moves and the way she uses her length. About the only thing she didn't do well was hit her free throws, which I was totally okay with.

Harvard killed on the boards (no SAT/ACT jokes, please). They swarmed the glass and boxed out hard.

Aaliyah Robinson was the microwave tonight, firing off threes like they were nothing from the corner, especially in the second half. That comeback doesn't happen without Aaliyah. It also doesn't happen without Aleesha Powell. Unlike most of her teammates- most of whom are taller and bigger than she is- she drove inside fearlessly and went to the basket. That's how she got the team's only free throws, and why she almost won them the game. The funny thing is that I thought every sngle one of her shots was short, or off, or a bad idea, and then she hit them, and it was all good. Aleesha has that knack. She also picked up a pretty steal in the second half, getting into the passing lane for the break. I think it's a break we screwed up, but it was a break anyway.

Didn't see a lot of Sabrina Jeridore in the second half, but that was probably for the best, to be honest. She had a couple of big blocks, but her insistence on crossing the basket to take shots bit her in the ass a couple of times, and she looked distinctly disinterested in boxing out or playing defense. She didn't look like a player who was potentially playing in her last collegiate game. Haley D'Angelo tried to do too much on the offensive end- shooting is not her game and she forced too many shots, but she found her teammates on the wing, and I'll never, ever doubt her heart. There was a point late in the second half where she cramped up bad- you could see it cross her face, and she signaled that a sub needed to get up. Two possessions, one on each side of the floor, passed before there was a stoppage and the sub could get up. Wincing, moving with little hop-steps, Haley stayed in position on her man. She swung out of the way on offense, but her team needed her on defense, and she did her job. Cassidee Ranger was effective in the first half, but Harvard figured out that she needs space, if not time, to shoot, and stayed just close enough on her to make her life miserable. Joy Adams showed a distressing propensity to try to go to the right under the basket, and it cost her both shot attempts and baskets. She spends too much time bringing the ball down low- for heaven's sake, Joy, you're a long, lanky forward, keep the ball up! Damika Martinez was on fire, getting every roll, making all her good shots and a fair number of her bad ones. She made stupid defensive plays and bad passes, but made up for all of that with the shooting.

Someone found the switch at about the ten-minute mark. Suddenly, we were boxing out. The threes that we'd temporarily lost were falling again. We were playing defense. We were driving and dishing. For seven minutes, we were the MAAC mommas and no one could stand in our way. We let them back in, and then we fought back. We thought we had it when Aleesha finished the three-point play. We looked too far ahead.

The officiating didn't help, either. It's never fair to blame the officiating, but Joseph Vaszily made a lot of calls favorable to Harvard and few favorable to Iona, so you can imagine my eyebrows shooting up here. The 'down by contact' call was mentioned earlier. Fagbenle got away with a fair number of travels, too.

We rocked those bleachers. We did what we could for our team. I wish there was some way we could have done more. But now we're just left wondering. One guarded Fagbenle jumper. One more free throw. One more lay-up. One more hand up. One more whistle. One more play. One more would have meant one more round, one more night, one more game. One more. Instead, there's nothing more.

Thank you, Haley and Sabrina, for helping this program rise, for your years and your minutes and your time. Thank you, Sabrina, for four years of blocks and rebounds and defense. Thank you, Haley, for five years of leadership and hustle and sweet passes.

Christina, Aleesha, Aaliyah: it's going to take all of you to fill that void, to be the leaders, to find the right player at the right time, even if that player's not you. Spencer, I know you've got the defensive heart and grit.

Aurellia, Karynda: someone's got to be the big body in the middle so Joy can slide around. Your time is coming. Prove yourselves.

Damika, Joy: you're not secrets anymore. You're the stars, the inside-outside punch that powers this team. We need you to be those stars, faster, better, stronger next season.

We ain't dead yet. We'll be back. Watch out, Marist. Watch out, MAAC. There's a Gael force stirring again in the east.

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March 26th, 2009: Boston College at St. John's (WNIT)

Boston College Eagles 68, St. John's Red Storm 64

The Red Storm go out fighting, Carolyn Swords swings a mean pair of arms, and Stefanie Murphy owns the paint.


If it had to end, I'm glad it ended this way, on our home floor, knowing that we left it all out there in a game that was hard-fought to the last seconds. It's better this way.

Very disappointing crowd. I don't think the rain helped, and St. John's is genuinely crap at promoting events. BC brought some very loud fans, which only spurred the student section and the few, the proud, and the random to get even louder. Also, loved Crawley's suit. Considering the perfect fit and the fact that it matched her team colors, I'm going to guess that it was specially tailored. Well done.

The band did not suck tonight. This is some kind of miracle, but small miracles like that were in plentiful supply tonight. Of course, it figures that they'd save one of their better performances for the last game of the season. ;)

Carolyn Swords appears to have found her cojones. Now, if she'd just stop feeling them, she'd be twice as effective. She picked up four fouls I this game, and three of them were offensive. And they were nasty offensive fouls, too- I'm not sure Coco's seeing straight after that elbow she took to the face in the first half. She turns interesting shades of red- not quite Richie Adubato red, but definitely interesting colors. Stefanie Murphy was the difference-maker for the Eagles. Off the top of my head, I can think of four offensive rebounds that she went up and put back in. We just couldn't stop her. Da'Shena tried, Joy tried, Coco tried, Recee tried, and rarely were they effective. Constant double-teams and ball-hawking made Mickel Picco a non-factor- except that the people defending her then couldn't defend anyone else, which led to open shots for Thoman and Brown. Whitehurst off the bench was a defensive presence- in general, those big forwards and center for BC clogged the paint, which really fucked up our offense, and if we can't make that quick entry pass inside, we really don't know what to do next. Though we were trying to run them so that Swords would continue to turn those interesting colors, Crawley answered by going deep into her bench. They fed the post and crashed the boards, and ta-dah, they came away with the win.

But not without some friggin' amazing shots from St. John's. Sheree Ledbetter opened the scoring for the Red Storm with a deep heave to beat the shot clock. I think she was just as surprised as we were that it went in. And then there was Kelly McManmon's touch-pass putback as the shot clock was winding down, and then there was Britney Murphy's three near the end of the game, which banked off the glass and bounced off the back iron before going in. I'm really not making any of this up. But I'm worried about my girl Joy. Well, I'd be worried if we had more of a season coming up, but since we don't, she has the rest of the year until November to shake herself out of this slump, whatever it is, and I'm pretty sure she can manage that. She's still making a lot of the defensive plays I love her for, but for the last few games, she didn't contribute much on the offensive end. Kelly seems scared to shoot. Come out of your shell, Kelly! We need you! Sky really stepped it up on both ends of the floor, shooting, stealing, and blocking. I'm starting to think she's going to be our big game player for the next couple of years, and I hope she helps Da'Shena develop that kind of nerve. Da'Shena seemed out of sorts, and that might have had to do with the pressure, or that might have had to do with trying to defend those BC behemoths at one end and having them breathing down her neck on the other. Sheree continues to try and make things happen by being in the right place at the right time, with the mixed results you'd expect from a sophomore thrown into the starting lineup after the star senior decides to be a spectacular dumbass. (No, if you think I'm letting McLean off, even now, think again.) The bench played very well for us. Recee pulled her weight in the second half, though I'm starting to be annoyed at how often she goes to the fadeaway instead of taking a simple jumper. Britney got her feet under her. Coco, though her accomplishments won't show up in the boxscore, had a very good game. I'm rough on her, but she was in the right place at the right time a lot of the time.

Who did Bonita Spence and Denise Brooks piss off to get stuck working the WNIT? Not too many bad calls, and surprisingly few travels, given Bonita's propensities. I hope to see this crew, together or in parts, working in Trenton, because if we get stuck with incompetents like Enterline and Price while this crew's working the second-rate tournament, I will scream, and I will scream so loudly that the Scarlet faithful in Oklahoma City will perk up their ears at the cry of one of their own.

So after two false starts, this really is goodbye to Carnesecca for the year. This really was the end of the line. I'll miss my collegiate home court, the place I call my home base no matter how far afield I wander. I'll miss my friendly security guys, who are used to me and my mom and make small talk when we go through their inspections. I'll miss our DJ, no matter how many times he plays the same songs over again and misses the cues half the time. I miss the nice lady at the concession stand who always serves me when I get my pretzel or nachos. I'll miss the televisions, even when they're not on.

I'll miss Kelly's parents, who stubbornly trucked in from Massachusetts for every game, especially Kelly's friendly, optimistic mom. I'll miss Sky's mom, whose big hair, bigger boots, and even bigger personality make it very clear where Sky gets her personality (and rhythm). I'll miss our one-man noise section (though to be fair to SJU, more people did show up in the student section for some of the later games)- he may not have been very innovative, but he was loud and passionate.

So I guess it's time to say goodbye. Thanks for two years, Kristin Moore. You brought a steady hand to an unsteady backcourt, and your toes-forward, ball-behind-the-head jumper is one of my favorite shots ever. I'd have liked to see more of you, both in terms of minutes and in terms of years. Best of luck in all your future endeavors.

And... I guess, yeah. Thanks for three and a half brilliant years, Monique McLean, even if I do want to take a clipboard to your head right now. When you were on, you really were Little Sista Christon, and you really could have been drafted. Such a beautiful shot, such a sense of style, such a clutch player. Why did you have to go fuck it all up a month and a half before your NCAA career was scheduled to end? As the case may be, try not to be a fuckwit in the future, and good things may very well happen to you.

The rest of you? I'll see you in November, with your new friends. Thanks for the ride, Sky, Day, Britney, V, Kelly, Joy, Coco, Sheree, and Recee. As always, it's been a privilege flying with you.

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