Women's Basketball 2/18/2012 5:49:00 PM Canisius College Athletics

Women's Basketball Hosts Fairfield Sunday

Game No. 27: Canisius College (12-14, 6-9 MAAC) vs. Fairfield University (19-7, 12-3 MAAC)
Date: Sunday, Feb. 19, 2012
Time: 2 p.m.
Site: Koessler Athletic Center (Buffalo, N.Y.)
Live Video: Golden Griffin Broadcast Network/MAAC.TV
Live Audio: GoGriffs.com
Mike Scott (p-x-p)
Garrett Layton (color)

QUICK HITTERS

The Canisius College women's basketball team continues its four-game homestand to end the regular season by hosting second-place Fairfield University in the Koessler Athletic Center on Sunday afternoon.
Fairfield defeated Canisius 55-43 in the first meeting between the teams on Jan. 15, in Alumni Hall and has won the last five meetings between the teams.
Sunday's game is a part of the Jesuit Basketball Spotlight - a nationwide effort to capitalize on basketball games between Jesuit schools and, through those games, bring greater positive awareness and exposure to Jesuit education and its shared mission.
Through Friday 's games, the Griffs are third in the country with an assist on 70.4 percent of their field goals. Canisius is averaging 15.0 assists per game in the last seven games.
Junior Ashley Durham leads the team with a 12.1 scoring average in MAAC play. Durham is averaging 6.0 assists in the last six home games and has reached double figures in points in seven of the last 10 games overall.
Sophomore Jen Morabito ranks 34th nationally in 3-point field goal percentage.
Freshman Kayla Hoohuli has made 49 3-pointers on the season, the most among all MAAC freshmen.
Sophomore Jamie Ruttle is averaging 14.4 points in the last five games and is shooting 56 percent on two-point shots since Dec. 18
Canisius ranks fifth nationally in free-throw percentage and currently leads the MAAC at 78.2 percent. Durham ranks 12th nationally and leads the MAAC at 88.5 percent.
Canisius is 6-1 on the season in games decided by five points or fewer or games that have gone to overtime.
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 (11.3) and rebounding (5.2). She has scored in double figures 18 times in her career against MAAC opponents and is shooting 56 percent on two-point shots in the last 18 games.
Junior Ashley Durham is second in the MAAC in assists per game (4.5). Durham has scored in double figures in seven of the last 10 games. She ranks first in the conference in free-throw percentage (88.5) - tied for the highest single-season percentage in program history.
Sophomore Jen Morabito, a MAAC All-Rookie Team selection, has made 57 3-point field goals this season, accounting for 74 percent of her made field goals. Morabito has made three or more 3-pointers in 12 games and has scored in double figures 15 times.
Freshman Kayla Hoohuli is shooting 44.9 percent on 3-pointers through 15 MAAC games, which is fourth in the conference, and is averaging 10.1 points per game in conference play. Hoohuli has drawn a team-high 10 charges on the season.
Junior Ashley Wilkes has grabbed at least five rebounds in 12 games this season and has recorded at least one steal in 16 games. Wilkes leads the team with a 47.4 field goal percentage, including a 53.6 field goal percentage at home.
Junior Allison Braun, the team's captain for the 2011-12 season, has missed the last nine games and is out indefinitely with a leg injury. Braun is shooting 50.7 percent from the field in her last 14 appearances and has at least one steal in 14 of her last 16 appearances.
Sophomore Courtney VandeBovenkamp has 23 rebounds in her last three appearances, with 12 of those coming on the offensive glass. VandeBovenkamp has made 27 of her last 29 free throws.
Sophomore Jen Lennox has scored six or more points in seven games this season. The 6-foot-3 forward has a block in 30 career games, including seven blocks in the last nine games.
Junior Melissa Gardner is averaging 12.5 minutes in her last 10 appearances and 8.3 rebounds per 40 minutes this season.
Freshman Brooke Angelos is averaging 4.4 assists per 40 minutes, averaging 11.5 minutes in the last four games.

FAIRFIELD SCOUT

Fairfield enters Sunday's game with a 19-7 overall record and 12-3 record in the MAAC.
The Stags won 56-50 at Niagara on Friday, bouncing back from two losses last week.
Senior Taryn Johnson is sixth in the MAAC at 13.0 points per game and third in the conference at 8.0 rebounds per game while leading the league with a 54.6 field goal percentage.
Senior Desiree Pina is 12th in the MAAC at 11.3 points per game and averages 3.6 assists.
The Stags average 62.2 possessions per game, the fewest in the MAAC.
Sophomore Alexys Vazquez entered the weekend first in the country in 3-point field goal percentage and is shooting 46.5 percent from behind the arc on the season.
In MAAC play, Fairfield is averaging 57.9 points while allowing a league-low 51.1 points. The Stags are shooting 43.1 percent and allowing 35.3 percent. The Stags are seventh in turnover margin (-1.3), third in rebounding margin (+1.9), fifth in defensive rebounding percentage (66.5) and sixth in offensive rebounding percentage (32.7).
Joe Frager is in his fifth season at Fairfield and the Stags have have two 20-win seasons under Frager, who won a Division II national title at Southern Connecticut State in 2007.

SERIES HISTORY VS. FAIRFIELD

Canisius and Fairfield are meeting for the 50th time, with the Stags holding a 29-21 lead in the all-time series.
Fairfield has won the last five meetings between the teams overall and the last three meetings between the teams in Buffalo.
The last Canisius win in the series came on March 7, 2009, in a 62-55 win over Fairfield in the semifinals of the MAAC Championship in Bridgeport, Conn.
The last Canisius win in the KAC came on Jan. 10, 2008, in a 58-57 win, when Canisius scored the final eight points in the last 75 seconds to win on Kid's Day.
In the most recent meeting between the teams, Fairfield defeated Canisius 55-43 in Alumni Hall (Jan. 15, 2012). Ashley Durham led Canisius with 16 points while Kayla Hoohuli and Jamie Ruttle each had nine points. Taryn Johnson had 22 points and 15 rebounds, going 18-for-24 from the free-throw line.