District of Columbia Hosts St. Thomas Aquinas in “Think Pink” Game

2012-13 University of the District of Columbia Women's Basketball Game Notes

St. Thomas Aquinas (6-7, 2-1 ECC) vs. District of Columbia (6-7, 1-2 ECC)

Wednesday, January 9^th – UDC Gym (Washington, DC)

Opening Tip-Off

The Firebirds host East Coast Conference foe St. Thomas Aquinas on Wednesday night at 5 p.m. in the nation's capital for their annual "Think Pink" game. Think Pink tribute balls and bracelets will be on sale for $2, with 100-percent of the proceeds going directly to the Susan G. Komen Foundation.

Updating the Firebirds

District of Columbia has lost its last two games, including a 74-54 loss on Saturday at NYIT. Twenty-two turnovers committed by the Firebirds at Recreation Hall was their undoing against the undefeated Bears. The Firebirds, which shot 40-percent from the field offensively and held NYIT's leading scorer Nikki Jo Rotolo to less than half her season average, were still within 10 with just over five minutes to go, but the Bears closed the game out on a 12-2 run to win by their largest margin of the afternoon. Senior guard Janelle Junior (Administration of Justice – Riverside, CA/La Sierra HS) led the Firebirds at NYIT with 11 points, five rebounds and three assists. For the season, Junior leads the Firebirds in scoring with 12.8 ppg and ranks 3^rd in the ECC in steals with 32 and 6^th in three-point FG pct. at 35.7-percent. Meanwhile, District of Columbia's second-leading scorer with 9.9 ppg, sophomore guard Denikka Brent (Mechanical Engineering – Chesapeake, VA/Booker T. Washington HS), has struggled of late, scoring just 10 points over the last two games on 5-of-23 from the field. The team is 6-1 when she scores in double-figures and 0-6 when she does not.

Scouting St. Thomas Aquinas

The Spartans have won two consecutive close games in their last two outings. On December 30^th, they erased a 16-point second-half deficit with a 28-10 run and defeated host LeMoyne thanks to a Bianca Kowgios jumper with 18.4 seconds left in regulation and a blocked shot on the defensive end by Shpresa Liharevic. Then, on Saturday afternoon at Aquinas Hall, the Spartans withstood a 7-0 run over the final 4:32 to escape with a 63-62 victory over ECC newcomer, Roberts Wesleyan. STAC is led by its senior guard Shpresa Liharevic, who averages team-highs of 11.5 points and 5.2 rebounds per-game. The Spartans, under fifth-year head coach Kim Lusk, are well-coached, ranking No. 1 in the conference in fewest turnovers per-game (16.2) and 3^rd in personal fouls per-game (15.7).

The Matchup

Wednesday night's game pits the least turnover-prone team in the league, St. Thomas Aquinas, against the 2^nd ranked ECC team for forced turnovers, District of Columbia. The Spartans average just 16.2 turnovers per-game while the Firebirds force 22.2 per-game. These two teams split games last year, each winning on its home floor. The Spartans, who lost the second meeting in the regular season at UDC Gym, 54-44, upset the Firebirds in the ECC semifinals, 63-61, on a neutral floor at Queens in the third and final meeting of the season on March 3^rd.