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Piping Hot: Coming off its upset of No. 3 St. Thomas, the Saint Benedict basketball team is primed for a big run. However, they have certainly raised the collective eyebrows of the rest of the MIAC and can be ready for everyone's best shot, beginning tonight (Jan. 16) when they travel to Hamline for a 7:30 p.m. match-up. The Blazers enter at 9-4 overall and 7-3 in the conference, while the Pipers are 5-8 on the year and 5-5 in the conference.
About Hamline: The Pipers are currently tied for sixth in the MIAC, after stumbling out of the gates early this season, starting the year with a five-game losing streak. That included an 87-72 loss at the hands of the Blazers in Claire Lynch Hall. Despite the slow start however, the Pipers are 5-3 over their past eight, and are coming off an impressive overtime win over Concordia-Moorhead. Concordia's only other loss this conference season came to then the third best team in the country, St. Thomas. The Pipers have also struggled with consistency, having won back-to-back games only once this year.
Last Season: The Blazers swept the season series last year, and are currently on a three-game win streak against Hamline. In their first matchup last year the Blazers clawed their way to a 22-21 halftime lead and then poured it on in the second half, making nine-of-10 free throws down the stretch to help win the game 71-57 in St. Joseph. In early February the Blazers traveled to St. Paul for the team's second meeting of the year. The Blazers jumped to a 39-22 halftime lead and held on for a 70-51 victory to sweep the season series. The Blazers were led by
Tish Alexander's 15 points on an impressive 5-of-5 night from beyond the arc. Earlier this season, the Blazers took the lead midway through the first half and never trailed again to open MIAC play 1-0 with their
87-72 win on Nov. 28.
The Storyline: Can the Blazers go into the historic Hutton Arena and extend their current three game win streak to four against the Pipers? It should be a chance for the Blazers' prolific offense to dominate against a struggling Hamline defense. The Blazers are averaging 66 points per game this season while the Pipers are giving up 64, third worst in the conference. The Piper defense has shown signs of being dangerous however, as they are leading the conference with an average of 21 turnovers per game. On the flip side, the Blazers are one of the best teams in the conference in terms of ball protection, averaging only 16 turnovers per contest.
Who to Watch: The key to the game for the Blazers will be slowing guards Stephanie Pilgrim and Jordan Sammons. Pilgrim and Sammons are first and second respectively among the conference's leading scorers.
Brianna Barrett has led the team in scoring through eight of the past nine games. Her 14.3 points-per-game ties her for fourth among the MIAC conference leaders.
Morgan Dale has also been a big offensive contributor, scoring 7.1 points per game while also leading the team in rebounding. On the other side of the ball
Tish Alexander has been one of the craftiest defenders in the conference this year. Her impressive 3.0 steals per game is third-best in the conference.
Last Time Out: On Saturday, Claire Lynch Hall hosted the St Thomas Tommies, ranked third in the country. Clearly not intimidated by the Tommies national ranking, the Blazers came out ready to prove they belong among the MIAC elite. After jumping out to a 5-0 early lead the Blazers held on for a 31-24 halftime lead. The Tommies fought back in the second half, tying the score at 60 with less than four minutes remaining in the game. The Blazers used a jumper from Barrett and free throws from Dale and
Mattie Lueck to extend their lead, and then sealed the game when Canton's free throw extended the lead to four with 13 seconds to be played. Prior to the upset at Claire Lynch Hall, the Tommies had defeated all but one of their opponents by double-digit margins.
