Dartmouth Squares-Off Against Hartford on Sunday; Hosting Food Drive

Dartmouth Complete Game Notes

The Dartmouth women's basketball team closes out its three game homestand against Hartford this Sunday at 2 p.m. Fans are reminded to please bring a non-perishable food item to benefit the Upper Valley Haven and that all those aged 65+ will receive free admission. More information on those promotions is available here.

Game 3: Dartmouth (1-1) vs. Hartford (2-1)
Date: Sunday, Nov. 22 • 2:00 PM
Location: Leede Arena • Hanover, N.H.
Multimedia:
Livestats • Live Video ($) • Radio (Scroll to WUVR Link)

Dartmouth-Hartford Series
Series Record: Hartford leads, 7-6
Last Meeting: 11/15/08 • West Hartford, Conn.
Result: Hartford W, 73-40
Streak: Hartford +4
The Hawks took the lead in the all-time series with a big win in the season-opener last year. The teams played an annual series from 2000-04, a stretch in which the Big Green went 4-2. Dartmouth has not played at home against Hartford since 2004, a 72-64 loss. They also played met in the 2006 Preseason WNIT in Connecticut, a 62-45 Hawks' win.

This Time Out: Game Number 886. Dartmouth closes out its three game homestand against perennial America East favorite Hartford today. It should prove to be a great New England battle as the Hawks have emerged as one of the premier mid-major teams in the nation, recently knocking off #19 Louisville.

Last Time Out: Dartmouth took its first loss of the season at the hands of A-10 foe Temple on Thursday night. The Owls, who also defeated Illinois and Auburn this month, capitalized on the Big Green's costly turnovers to build a big lead in the first. The game was much closer in the second but Temple emerged with the 64-38 win.

Next Time Out: Dartmouth hits the road for a long stretch, traveling to Vermont and Cincinnait before the 12-day final exam break. The Big Green plays at Stony Brook, Syracuse and at the USC tournament before its holiday break.

Dartmouth Probable Starters (2008-09 Stats):
*#10 Margaret Smith • SR • G • 6-1, 6.0 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 29.6 mpg
*#20 Brittney Smith • JR • F • 6-1, 14.1 ppg, 8.2 rpg, 35.6 mpg
*#21 Meghan McFee • JR • G • 5-10, 5.4 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 26.6 mpg
#24 Cassie Cooper • JR • F • 6-2, 4.0 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 15.9 mpg
#32 Betsy Williams • SR • G • 6-0, 5.1 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 25.1 mpg
*Returning starter

Quick Hits
• With two players yet to dress due to preseason injuries, Dartmouth has now used all 11 of its available players in the first two games.
• Sophomore Jalea Moses stepped up her game off the bench against Temple, scoring a career high seven points in a high of 18 minutes.
• Junior Cassie Cooper made her first career start against Bryant while senior Betsy Williams returned to the starting five for the first time since Jan. 4, 2009.
• In each of the first two games, Dartmouth has had a player haul in a dozen rebounds, with Margaret Smith doing so against Bryant and Brittney Smith leading the charge against Temple.
• The Big Green has picked up where it left off last season by getting to the free throw line often and keeping its opponents away from it. In just two games, Dartmouth has taken 45 free throws to its opponents 19.
• Dartmouth opens the 2009-10 season on the heels of yet another Ivy Championship season in which the team went 18-11 overall and 13-1 in Ivy play. The Big Green played a non-conference schedule rated as high as fourth in the nation in strength of schedule and it paid off down the stretch when the team won 15 of its last 16 games.
• The Big Green returns nine letterwinners and three starters from the 2009-10 squad, almost identical to last year at this point. Dartmouth must replace the All-Ivy duo of Koren Schram '09 and Darcy Rose '09. Junior forward Cassie Cooper is poised to step into Rose's role in the post while senior guard Betsy Williams has plenty of experience, having started nearly half of her career games played.

FRESHMEN MAKING THEIR MARK
Three of Dartmouth's four rookies have made their collegiate debut in the first two games of the season. Kylie Kufeld was the only freshman to play against Bryant, logging 13 minutes. She stepped it up against Hartford, scoring six points and dishing out two assists in 26 minutes - third most on the team that game. Faziah Steen made her first appearance against Hartford, scoring six points in 15 minutes and Kelsey Byrd, coming off an injury, played five minutes. The fourth freshman, Zakia Lghzaoui, has yet to dress for a game.

BIG BOOST OFF THE BENCH
The Big Green got a big surge from its players off the bench against Temple, with the six subs contributing 24 points. That was a bigger bench effort than Dartmouth ever had last season, with its highest total at 18 points in the win over Wagner on Dec. 30. Meghan McFee contributed 14 of those 18 points and one game later was in the starting lineup for good.

TURNOVER TROUBLE
Dartmouth's biggest problem in the loss to Temple was its turnovers, coughing up the ball 31 times including 20 in the first half. Defensively, the Big Green did a solid job of holding the Owls to just 12 points in the first 10 minutes, but could not capitalize offensively due to the turnovers. Temple capitalized with 31 points off turnovers and six fast break buckets.

TALE OF TWO HALVES
Despite its turnover troubles, the Big Green held a 22-11 advantage on the boards in the first half but the Owls improved on that in the second, leading 24-11. Dartmouth's offense struggled to just 10 points in the first but was within four of Temple in the second, 32-28. Coach Wielgus used all 11 available players significantly while Temple played nine athletes in the game.

BACK IN UNIFORM
Senior guard Michelle Meyer was the first player off the bench in the win over Bryant, making her return to the court for the first time since March 20, 2008. She tallied two points, three boards, an assist and a steal in 12 minutes of work against the Bulldogs. Meyer followed that up by starting the second half against Temple, hitting two triples. Last year, Meyer started off preseason in solid form, but was sidelined just after the first game with a knee injury that eventually cost her the entire season.

STARTING ON THE RIGHT NOTE
Dartmouth opened its 37th season of varsity women's basketball with a 57-47 victory over Bryant on Saturday, Nov. 14. The Big Green moved to 19-18 all-time in season openers, and 4-6 since 2000. It was the first season-opening victory since a 90-42 win over Quinnipiac in 2005. Being at home to start the season for the first time since 2005 helped as Dartmouth is now 13-4 all-time when opening the season at home, but 7-14 on the road.

RARE HOMESTAND TO START
Tonight Dartmouth closes out a three game homestand to open the 2009-10 campaign — the first such since the 1984-85 season. Such a homestand is so rare that the Big Green has only opened with two home games twice in that span, in 1985-86 and 2002-03.

BEFORE HITTING THE ROAD
The Big Green should enjoy the homestand while it lasts because the team won't be home again until it hosts the annual Blue Sky Classic on Dec. 29-30. Dartmouth has quite a road swing ahead, traveling to defending America East champ Vermont on Nov. 25 then a quick turnaround to Big East foe Cincinnati on Nov. 29. Dartmouth faces Stony Brook and Syracuse on the road after exams before heading west to the University of Southern California's pre-holiday tournament. The Big Green plays the host USC in the opening game.

HOME SWEET HOME
Dartmouth is in its 23rd season of play at Leede Arena and since opening the doors in 1987, the Dartmouth women are 13-10 in home-openers and 175-85 overall at home. The Big Green went 9-3 including a perfect 7-0 in Ivy play at Leede in 2008-09.

Schedules