Game No. 7: Canisius College (3-3) at University At Buffalo (2-6)
Date: Wednesday, Dec. 7, 2011
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Alumni Arena — Amherst, N.Y.
Audio: GoGriffs.com
         Mike Scott (p-x-p)
         (@MikeScottPXP)
Video: BuffaloBulls.com

QUICK HITTERS

• The Canisius College women's basketball team begins a three-game road stretch starting at cross-town rival the University at Buffalo on Wednesday night.
• Canisius owns a 27-7 lead in the all-time series. The Golden Griffins have won seven of the last eight between the teams, but the Bulls ended a seven-game Canisius winning streak in the series with a 79-59 win in the Koessler Athletic Center last season.
• Canisius junior Ashley Wilkes leads the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference in field goal percentage (59.5) and has shot 50 percent or better in three straight games.
• Canisius junior Ashley Durham is seventh in the MAAC in assists per game (3.5) while sophomore Jen Morabito is third in the conference in 3-point field goals made per game (2.3).
• Freshman Kayla Hoohuli was named MAAC Rookie of the Week on Monday, after averaging 12.5 points and 6.0 rebounds in two Canisius wins last week.
• Canisius topped the 60-point mark for the first time in Sunday's 63-42 win over Colgate.
• Canisius is averaging 23.5 bench points per game, which is 43.5 percent of its team scoring.  Both of those totals are the highest in the conference.
• In the last five games, Canisius has held its opponents to 31 percent from the field and 20.7 percent from behind the arc.
• Canisius ranks first in the MAAC and is 42nd nationally in field goal percentage defense (34.0). The Golden Griffins are also 70th in scoring defense (55.8). 
• In the last three games, Canisius opponents are shooting 10-for-60 on 3-pointers.
• Junior Allison Braun will serve as the team's captain for the 2011-12 season.
• The 2011-12 Golden Griffin roster features zero seniors for the first time since the 2004-05 team. Every other roster in the MAAC features at least two seniors.

SCOUTING THE GRIFFS

• Sophomore Jamie Ruttle, the 2011 MAAC Rookie of the Year leads Canisius in scoring (9.0) and has scored eight or more points in 20 of the last 27 games. Of Ruttle's 27 rebounds, 14 are offensive rebounds.
• Sophomore Jen Morabito, a MAAC All-Rookie Team selection, has made 14 of the team's 29 3-point field goals this season. Morabito has made three or more 3-pointers in three games.
• Junior Allison Braun, the team's captain for the 2011-12 season, is shooting 60 percent from the field in the last three games. Braun has at least five rebounds in four games and has at least one steal in each of the last five games.
• Junior Ashley Durham has 21 assists in the opening six games and is seventh in the MAAC in assists per game (3.5). Durham also ranks sixth in the conference in free-throw percentage (81.8).
• Junior Melissa Gardner has scored 10 points and recorded four rebounds while shooting 6-for-6 from the free-throw line in the last two games (19 total minutes played).
• Sophomore Jen Lennox has scored six or more points in 11 of the last 15 games, including seven of the last nine games. The 6-foot-3 forward has a block in 21 career games, including two blocks in each of the last two games.
• Sophomore Courtney VandeBovenkamp returned to the lineup against Eastern Michigan after missing the first three games of the season due to injury. VandeBovenkamp had five or more rebounds in 15 games as a freshman.
• Junior Ashley Wilkes has at least five rebounds in five of the team's games this season and has recorded at least one steal in each game. Wilkes has shot 50 percent or better in three straight games.
• Freshman Kayla Hoohuli is shooting 50 percent on two-point shots. Hoohuli has at least one steal in each of the last five games.  
• Freshman Brooke Angelos is averaging 6.2 assists per 40 minutes.

SERIES HISTORY VS. BUFFALO

• Canisius owns a 27-7 lead in the all-time series with Buffalo.
• Canisius has won seven of the last eight meetings with its cross-town rival, with the Bulls snapping a seven-game Canisius winning streak last season.
• Canisius lost 79-50 to Buffalo in the Koessler Athletic Center on Dec. 1, 2010. Kourtney Brown had 26 points and 25 rebounds. Jamie Ruttle led Canisius with nine points and eight rebounds.
• Wednesday's meeting will be the 35th between the teams, matching Colgate as the second-most common non-conference opponent in program history, trailing St. Bonaventure (44 meetings).

BUFFALO SCOUT

• Buffalo enters Wednesday's game with a 2-6 record and has dropped its last five games. The Bulls have defeated Niagara (65-54) and Bucknell (63-57).
• Buffalo has allowed 79 or more points in five games this season. 
• Brittney Hedderson leads the team at 16.8 points per game and also has a team-high 24 assists. Hedderson is shooting 46.2 percent on two-point shots.
• Nine different players have at least one start for the Bulls this season.
• Ephesia Holmes (6-for-12) and Valerie Majewski (7-for-15) lead the team in 3-point field goal percentage as the Bulls are averaging 3.8 3-point field goals made per game.
• Beth Christensen leads the team with a 6.6 rebounds per game average. 
• Buffalo is averaging 56.1 points per game and has a -7.7 rebounding margin and -5.9 turnover margin. The Bulls have a 32.4 offensive rebounding percentage and 56.5 defensive rebounding percentage.
• Linda Hill-MacDonald is in her seventh season as head coach at Buffalo, with a 68-121 record. Hill-MacDonald has previously coached at Temple, Minnesota, South Carolina and in the WNBA.