Eagles Welcome Maine in Opening Round of WNIT

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. - The Boston College women's basketball team hosts Maine in the first round of the WNIT on Thursday at 7 p.m. in Conte Forum.

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Promotions
Tomorrow's game is free admission for students and $2 hot dogs!

About the Eagles
Last Time Out
The Eagles fell to Florida State in the second round of the ACC Tournament.Trailing by 13 with 4:15 left in the game, the Eagles surged back with a 12-1 run that sliced the deficit to just two, 55-53. BC scored eight points in 21 seconds at one point and forced four miscues in the comeback. Soule and Dontavia Waggoner scored 10 of the 12 points during the spurt.BC kept the lead to one possession until the Seminoles pushed the lead to six, 61-55. Swartz's 3-pointer once again put the score back to a one-possession game, but Morgan Jones' layup sealed the victory for FSU.

Postseason Hysteria
The WNIT bid is the 11th postseason appearance in school history and the first since 2010-11 when the Eagles were in the WNIT. BC is 6-3 in three WNIT appearances, including a 4-1 mark in Conte Forum.

A Win Would
- Give the Eagles a 20-11 mark and their second 20-win season in the past three years.
- Give BC its 12th, 20-win season in program history.
- Advance Boston College to the second round of the tournament.
- Give BC its first postseason win since 2010-11.
- Improve the Eagles' mark to 8-3 against Maine.

By the Numbers
3 - It's the first time in school history that BC has had three, 1,000-point scorers on the team at the same time. Taylor Soule, Cameron Swartz and Makayla Dickens all reached the milestone this season.
20 - Boston College is 5-2 this season when Soule scores 20 or more points, while they are 8-3 when Swartz reaches the 20-point mark.
50 - The Eagles are 12-3 this season when shooting 50 percent or better from inside the arc.
65 - Boston College is 39-3 when holding its opponents to 65 points or less under Bernabei-McNamee.
100 - The Eagles are 12-0 when their offensive rating is above 100.

What to Watch for
- Watch if the Eagles can get to the line on Thursday, as the Black Bears are 2-7 when opponents attempt at least 18 free throws.
- In the last three games, Maria Gakdeng is averaging 15.0 points, 7.3 rebounds, 2.3 blocks, 1.3 steals while shooting 64.5 percent from the field. Watch if the freshman can continue her solid play.
- See if the Eagles can push the pace against one of the slower-paced teams in the country. BC is 43rd in the country, averaging 73.8 possessions per 40 minutes compared to the Black Bears' pace of 65. Maine is 1-4 this season when the pace of play is above 70.
- Watch if BC can come away with second-chance opportunities, as the Eagles are 15-5 when their offensive rebounding percentage is above 33%. The Eagles are 37th in the nation at 36.7% in offensive rebounding rate.
- See if BC can get off to a fast start. The Eagles were outscoring their opponents by an average of 12.4 points in the first half during their 4-1 stretch before the ACC Tournament. BC was outscored by eight against the Seminoles in the first half.

Scouting Maine (20-11, 15-3 America East)
- The Black Bears are 20-11 and went 15-3 during the season in the American East Conference.
- Maine won the America East regular-season title but fell to Albany in the tournament final.
- Anne Simon is leading the team with an average of 16.1 points per game, while Maeve Carroll is pouring in 11.0 points and a team-high 8.5 rebounds per game.
- Maine has been solid on the road with an 11-3 mark.
- The Black Bears are 35th in the country in scoring defense, allowing 56.4 points per game.
- Maine is the sixth-slowest team in the country in terms of pace at 64.6 possessions per 40 minutes.
- It's the sixth WNIT appearance for Maine, while the Black Bears are 1-7 in the tournament.

Series History
Boston College is 7-3 all-time against Maine and 4-1 at home. The Black Bears captured the last matchup in 2017, 60-41.

What's Next
With a win, the Eagles would face the winner of Rhode Island and Quinnipiac in the second round.

Eagles Welcome Maine in Opening Round of WNIT

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Players Mentioned

Makayla Dickens

Maria Gakdeng

Taylor Soule

Cameron Swartz

Dontavia Waggoner