Eagles Season Opener on Friday at Providence

Friday, November 13

Providence, R.I.

7:00 PM

Boston College

Providence

Eagles Season Opener on Friday at Providence

November 12, 2015 | Women's Basketball

Old rivalry renewed - Friday at 7 p.m. - BC at PC

BC at Providence
Friday, Nov. 13 at 7 p.m.
Alumni Hall/Mullaney Gymnasium - Providence, R.I.
Live Stream

The Boston College women's basketball team will open up the 2015-16 season on the road. The Eagles will play former Big East rival Providence on Friday at 7 p.m. at Alumni Hall. BC will return to Chestnut Hill on Sunday, Nov. 15 for the home opener at 1 p.m. against Maine in Silvio O. Conte Forum.

2014-15 REVIEW
The team won 13 games last season, the most victories in the last four seasons for the program. With three rookies starting, along with two sophomores a good portion of the season, the trend is turning positive for the Eagles program.

Last year, Boston College defeated No. 13/15 Duke on Jan. 22 at Conte Forum. It was the Eagles first win against a ranked team with Coach Erik Johnson at the helm. At Denver, Johnson's team defeated then 23rd ranked Vanderbilt in 2011. It was the first time BC has defeated a ranked team since 2011, when the Eagles defeated then-13^th ranked Maryland, 78-69, on Jan. 13. It was the first time since the 2010 season in which BC defeated Duke. That took place on Feb. 2 in a 61-57 win over a fourth-ranked Blue Devils team.

Prior to the season opener, the Eagles were selected to finish last in the conference by the ACC Coaches Poll and 13^th by the Blue Ribbon Panel. Head coach Erik Johnson led the team to five ACC victories, which placed the Eagles 12^th in the final regular season standings.

Coach Erik Johnson won his 100th career game in the overtime victory over Brown on November 28 at the Black Bear Thanksgiving Tournament.

2015-16 PREVIEW
This year's team returns a number of familiar faces but four new players on the court. The returning starters include – senior captain Nicole Boudreau, junior Kelly Hughes, junior Emilee Daley and sophomore Katie Quandt.

A four-year starter, Nicole Boudreau has already eclipsed the 1,000 point plateau and is one of the most accurate long-range shooters in program history. A native of Andover, Boudreau is currently fourth on the all-time list for most career three-pointers with 206. Last year Boudreau shot 37 percent from long range and 40 percent from the floor. She also had a team-high 81 assists and continues to be a strong rebounder at the guard position with a 4.5 average per game.

Fellow guard Kelly Hughes led the team in scoring with a 14.5 average. The 5-foot-11 guard also led the team in assists (131) and rebounds (6.8 per game). Hughes shot 39 percent from the floor and three-point line. She is seventh on the all-time list for most three-pointers made with 155. Hughes is closing in on the 1,000 point and 500 rebound marks.

Emilee Daley emerged as a third starter last year by mid-season. The 6-foot-1 junior will continue to play the slashing/shooter roll for the Eagles. She had career-highs in every category last year. She averaged 8.7 points, 3.6 rebounds, and had 31 assists while hitting 49 three-pointers (35%).

Another key returner for the Eagles will be senior captain Alexa Coulombe. The small forward is a solid shot blocker and can hit the mid-range jumper. She may not lead the team in scoring but there is more to Coulombe being on this team than points and rebounds. A native of Maine, Coulombe played in 28 games and was second on the team in blocks with 27.

Katie Quandt was another late bloomer in 2014-15. Fans probably remember when she hit the two free throws in the final seconds to seal the win over Virginia Tech. She started 18 games and averaged 5.4 points and 3.1 rebounds a game. She will have help in the middle this season with rookie Mariella Fasoula working her way into the system. The 6-foot-4 center is from Athens, Greece. She plays with her back to the basket and has a solid touch. The tandem should give the Eagles more of an inside presence.

Sophomore Martina Mosetti is expected to have a bigger role running the point for BC. The Italian guard is more comfortable on and off the court in her second year at BC. She played in all 30 games with 16 starts. Mosetti averaged 4.4 points, 2.1 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game last season.

Redshirt sophomore Rachel Gartner played in just nine games last year before suffering a season-ending injury. She can play both point and shooting guard.

Two familiar faces but new to the court will be redshirt junior Kailey Edwards and redshirt freshman Ella Awobajo. Edwards played two years at Denver before transferring to BC. She is a tough defender, can rebound and get to the basket. A native of Colorado, Edwards averaged 11.4 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game while playing for the Pioneers.

Awobajo, a native of Nigeria, is active on both ends of the floor. The 6-foot forward adds athleticism, hustle and tremendous rebounding ability to the lineup.

Freshman guard Stephanie Jones is a point guard from Connecticut. The 5-foot-7 speedster will play a backup role at the point. She averaged 21 points and 4.3 assists at Loomis Chaffee as a senior.

BC vs. PROVIDENCE
The two teams have played 51 times with the Friars leading the all-time series, 30-21 … The last time the Friars defeated BC was on Feb. 4, 1998 at Alumni Hall … Prior to rekindling the old rivalry in 2013, the last time the two teams played was on Jan. 24, 2005 … BC has won the last 12 meetings … Last year was the first time BC hosted PC since 2004. The Eagles defeated Providence, 79-51, behind 22 points and 10 rebounds from Kelly Hughes.

PROBABLE STARTERS

Sr., Guard – Nicole Boudreau
Jr., Guard – Kelly Hughes
So., Guard – Martina Mosetti
Jr., Forward – Emilee Daley
So., Center – Katie Quandt

RULE CHANGES

The women's game has made a number of significant changes that fans need to be alerted to, especially when you come to the home opener on Nov. 15 vs. Maine. Here are some of the key changes that fans need to be aware of:

There will now be four 10-minute periods instead of halves.
Option to Advance the ball - When a timeout is charged to the offensive team during the last 59.9 seconds of the fourth period and/or any extra period, the team has the option to advance the throw-in spot to the 28-foot mark in the frontcourt on the same side of the court as the scorers' table.
Media Timeout Format - In games using electronic-media timeouts, each team will have three 30-second timeouts and one full timeout (60 seconds in length). There is one electronic-media timeout in each period. The break between the first and second, as well as between the third and fourth periods, may be used as an electronic-media timeout. The first team-called timeout in the second half will become an electronic-media timeout.
Monitor Review - Timeouts are not to be granted when there is an instant replay review in the last two minutes of the game until the results of the review have been reported to both head coaches.
Bonus Free Throws. - A team is awarded two free throws for each common foul beginning with the fifth team foul in a period.
Violation – 10-Second Backcourt - The 10-second count shall reset on all stoppages of the game clock except when the defense causes the ball to be out of bounds, the offense retains possession after a held ball, or there is a technical foul assessed to the offensive team.

NEW STAFF
There will be a number of changes this season on the bench. Tom Garrick joined the program in early June as an assistant coach. Garrick, a former star at URI, also played in the NBA. Former BC forward Stefanie Murphy joined the staff in August. She will serve as the second graduate assistant. Murphy remains fourth on the all-time scorers list and second in rebounding at BC. The final new addition to the staff is Brandon Miller, will serve as the video production analyst for the program. Miller is a graduate of High Point in North Carolina but previously worked at North Texas as the Director of Operations.

FREE THROWS

Boston College will continue to be one of the most dangerous long range shooting teams in the country. The team finished 29^th in the country in three-point field goal percentage and 11^th in three-point field goals taken per game. The Eagles also broke the program record with 250 three's made last season. The old record of 240 was held by the 2013-14 team. BC set a team record of most three-pointers taken in a single game when the Eagles took 38 three's in the win over St. Mary's on Nov. 16 … Senior Nicole Boudreau became the 25^th player in program history to reach the 1,000 point plateau last season. Boudreau fittingly hit two three-pointers to surpass the mark on Feb. 26, 2015 at Louisville. She also became the fourth player in program history to make over 200 three-pointers. She is currently at 206 with the program record in sight at 252; set by Kerri Shields in the 2013 season … Sophomore Kelly Hughes is also closing in on 200 three-pointers. She has made 155 three-pointers after hitting 81 long range shots as a sophomore. Hughes was the first player since Carolyn Swords '11 to lead the team in points (14.6 ppg.) and rebounds (6.8 rpg.). Hughes is also nearing the 1,000 point mark as she has 771 career points … The Eagles set a program record for most blocks in a single season last year with 141. The old record was held by the 2008-09 team with 127 blocks in 35 games.

TICKETS INFORMATION
Group and individual tickets for the 2015-16 women's basketball season are available through the BC ticket office or online at bceagles.com.