Feb. 20, 2003

Stony Brook, N.Y. - BACKDROP: The Seawolves come into Saturday's game fresh off a 66-54 victory over Hartford on Wednesday. The win gives Stony Brook a sweep of the Hawks in America East Conference play. However, the Seawolves face a tough task as they prepare to take on Maine, which leads the conference with a perfect 11-0 record.

ABOUT THE BLACK BEARS: Maine has steamrolled its America East competition, compiling an 11-0 record while beating its opponents by 16.1 points per game. Maine has not suffered a loss since Dec. 28 when they fell to Holy Cross by a single point. The Black Bears' 14-game tear is tied with Austin Peay for the fourth-longest active winning streak in the country. On Wednesday night, a 22-4 game-opening run helped the Black Bears cruise to a 60-45 win over Northeastern on the road. Junior forward Heather Ernest tallied a game-high 17 points on 8-of-15 shooting from the field. Junior forward Julie Veilleux finished the night with 13 points on 6-of-9 shooting. Sophomore forward Monica Peterson recorded 10 points and a game- and season-high 13 rebounds. Maine dominated the post, outscoring the Huskies 40-14 in the paint and earning a 42-25 advantage on the boards. Ernest's 19.4 points per game leads the conference while her 9.8 rebounds per game ranks her second overall.

SERIES HISTORY: The all-time series is even at 2-2.

LAST MEETING - Jan. 25, 2003:Maine used an early 16-2 run to coast to a 66-41 victory over Stony Brook at the SBU Sports Complex. The Black Bears scored 16 of the game's first 18 points, hitting seven of their first nine shots. Stony Brook was hampered by poor shooting, connecting on just seven first-half field goals, and trailed 34-18 at the break. Maine didn't let up in the second half, stretching the lead to 52-32 with 9:04 remaining. Stony Brook could not draw any closer the rest of the way, and the Black Bears extended the lead to as many as 25 on two occasions. Heather Ernest scored a game-high 13 points to become the 12th 1,000-point scorer in Maine women's basketball history. She also grabbed a game-high nine rebounds. Sherry Jordan led the way for Stony Brook with 12 points, eight rebounds and four assists, while Stephanie Barlett chipped in with 10 points and five rebounds.

INJURY UPDATE: Center Meghan Barrett is the only Seawolf who remains sidelined for Saturday's game. She has not practiced since Dec. 30 due to ankle problems and is out indefinitely.

A FORMIDABLE FOE: The Black Bears have won all 11 of their America East games thanks to leading the league in six different team categories. Maine's 69.4 points per game ranks first, as does the Bears' +12.7 points per game scoring margin. But Maine is also getting the job done on the defensive end, holding its opponents to 56.6 points and 36 percent field goal shooting, both conference-highs. Maine is also outrebounding its opponents by 7.7 per game.

LAST TIME OUT: Stony Brook never trailed in the second half as the Seawolves went on to a 66-54 victory over Hartford at the SBU Sports Complex on Wednesday evening. Jenna Gale's jumper at the 19:16 mark brought the Hawks to within 33-28, but back-to-back layups by Danyelle Ingram and Sherry Jordan ignited a 12-5 Seawolves run that extended the lead to 45-33 with 15:30 to go. Bridget Murray's three-pointer cut the lead to nine, but Danielle DeGiorgio responded with a jumper for the Seawolves. Stony Brook would lead by double digits the rest of the way. The first half was a see-saw battle that saw six lead changes and three ties. With 9:12 remaining before the break, the Seawolves broke a 19-19 tie with a 14-7 run. Two free throws capped the spurt and gave Stony Brook a 33-26 lead heading into the locker room. Stony Brook shot 58 percent in the first half and held the Hawks to just 36 percent (9-of-25) shooting. The Seawolves shot 55 percent (26-of-47) for the game.

LOOKING AHEAD: The Seawolves return home on Tuesday, Feb. 25, to take on Binghamton before traveling to face New Hampshire on Saturday, March 1.

SCORING BY COMMITTEE: Four Seawolves tallied double figures against Hartford, the most since Feb. 2 against New Hampshire. Jordan led the way with 20 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the field. She also grabbed nine rebounds and tied her career-high with seven steals. Bojana Bogetic scored 12 points on 6-of-7 shooting, while Danielle DeGiorgio and Danyelle Ingram each chipped in with 10 points.

BOBO IN THE MIDDLE: Sophomore Bojana Bogetic has scored double figures for the Seawolves in three straight games, the first time she has accomplished that feat since a three game span from Jan. 15 to Jan. 22. Bogetic has scored an average of 16.0 points in the last three games.

SJ LEADS THE WAY: Sherry Jordan's 20 points against Hartford marked her first 20-point outing since a 24-point performance against New Hampshire on Feb. 2. She has reached double figures in 12 of the 13 games she has played. Jordan has scored 211 points in 13 games on the season, more than any other Seawolf.

JORDAN WATCH: Sherry Jordan remains in in the No. 7 spot on the all-time scoring list with her 20 points against Maine. Jordan now has 1,203 career points and has quite an obstacle to reach the No. 6 spot. She needs 129 points to pass Joan Gandolf, who tallied 1,331 points from 1990-94.

JIBOWU BACK IN ACTION: After missing the last nine games with a stress fracture in her foot, senior forward Malica Jibowu played 10 minutes against the Hawks, hitting all three of her shots for six points and grabbing three rebounds. Ironically, the last game Jibowu played before getting hurt was also against Hartford in the conference opener on Jan. 8. In that game she recorded four points and four rebounds.

ON FIRE FROM THE FIELD: Stony Brook enjoyed its most accurate shooting performance on Wednesday against Hartford, hitting 55.3 percent (26-of-47) of its field goals. The Seawolves were especially lethal in the first half, drilling 14-of-24 shots (58.3 percent). On the season, Stony Brook has shot 50 percent or better four times, and 40 percent or better on six occasions.

SWEET SIXTEEN: Stony Brook's 11 steals against Hartford on Wednesday marked the 15th time this season the Seawolves have collected 10 or more steals. Stony Brook recorded a season-high 16 steals against both Northeastern (Feb. 5) and Brown (Jan. 5). The Seawolves average 10.0 steals per game, led by Sherry Jordan's 3.2.

BACK TO (ALMOST) FULL STRENGTH: The Seawolves have struggled all year with injuries, sometimes dressing as few as seven players. On Wednesday, Stony Brook had 10 available players for the first time since playing Richmond on Dec. 29. Both Malica Jibowu and Kelly McManus have recovered from recent injuries to rejoin the team. Now just freshman Meghan Barrett remains sidelined.

ON THE BOARDS: Although the Seawolves have held the rebounding edge in 10 games this year, Stony Brook has been outrebounded the last three games. Hartford held a narrow 33-29 advantage in the Seawolves' 66-54 victory. Boston University and Vermont both outdid the Seawolves on the boards in the two previous games. However, Stony Brook has won the battle on the boards in five of their seven victories with its most decisive performance against Hartford on Jan. 8. SBU finished with 48 rebounds compared to just 28 for the Hawks, as Sherry Jordan collected a game-high 15 to lead the way.

WINNING AT HOME: The Seawolves have won their last three home games after winning just one of their first eight home contests. The last defeat Stony Brook suffered at the SBU Sports Complex came at the hands of Maine, which earned a 66-41 victory on Jan. 25.