Big Green Opens 2011-12 Home Slate against New Hampshire

Dartmouth women's basketball opens a three-game homestand on Wednesday when it welcomes Granite State rival, New Hampshire, to Leede Arena for its home-opener. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.

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Game 6: Dartmouth (2-3, 0-0 Ivy League) vs. New Hampshire (2-2, 0-0 America East)
Date: Wednesday, November 30 (7 p.m.)
Location: Hanover, N.H. (Leede Arena)
Series: New Hampshire leads 18-16
Streak: New Hampshire has won one

Starting Five

1. The Big Green open the 2011-12 home slate with today's contest. Dartmouth spent the first five games of the season playing either road or neutral site games. This is the latest date the Big Green have opened the home schedule since the 2006-07 season when they opened on Nov. 29.

2. Today's meeting is the 35th meeting between the two teams. Dartmouth and New Hampshire have played each of the last seven seasons and first played in the 1972-73 season.

3. Dartmouth sports a very balanced lineup this season. On the season, each of Dartmouth's 10 players that have seen action, has scored at least four points and grabbed at least three rebounds. In the win over Vermont, each player tallied at least one point and one rebound.

4. The Big Green's freshman class continues to improve. Of the five-member class, four have seen action in at least three games. Tia Dawson has started each of Dartmouth's five games while classmates Kamala Thompson and Milica Toskovic have also seen time in the starting lineup.

5. Faziah Steen has been very strong from the free throw line this season. On the season she is 22-of-25 and against Vermont she was 10-of-12 en route to a career-best 32 points. Prior to her two misses against Vermont, Steen was 9-of-9 from the charity stripe.

Dartmouth vs. New Hampshire Notables

- Dartmouth and New Hampshire are meeting for the eighth consecutive season in tonight's game. The Big Green trail the all-time series 16-18 and prior to last year's win by the Wildcats had won the previous five meetings.

-New Hampshire is taking on its third Ivy League opponent when it travels to Leede Arena. The Wildcats have wins over Brown (62-57) in Rhode Island and Cornell (63-62) in New York. New Hampshire will also take on Harvard later this season

-The Wildcats are looking for their first win over Dartmouth in Hanover since the 2001-02 season.

A Win Would ...

1. Move the Big Green to 3-3 on the season and give Dartmouth its second consecutive home-opening win after defeating Vermont last season.

2. Cut New Hampshire's all-time series lead to 18-17 and snap the Big Green's one-game losing streak to the Wildcats.

3. Move Dartmouth's non-conference record to 3-3 and give the Big Green wins over regional rivals Vermont and New Hampshire. The last time Dartmouth defeated both the Wildcats and Catamounts in the same season was during the 1994-95 season.

Scouting New Hampshire
New Hampshire enters tonight's game with a 2-2 record after falling to Central Connecticut State, 83-44, on Sunday (Nov. 27). The Wildcats offense is led by Kelsey Hogan and Denise Beliveau who are averaging 12.5 and 10.5 points, respectively while Beliveau is leading the Wildcats on the glass with 8.0 rebounds per game. The Wildcats returned nine letterwinners and welcomed five newcomers to the squad this season after finishing in sixth place in the America East last season. Head coach Maureen Magarity is in her second year on the sideline in Durham.

Steen Named to Ivy League Honor Roll For Efforts Against Vermont, Providence
Junior guard Faziah Steen was named to the Ivy League Honor Roll for her efforts against Vermont and Providence. For the week, Steen averaged 20.5 points and 7.5 rebounds in a win over previously undefeated Vermont (Nov. 22) and a loss to Providence (Nov. 26). Against the Catamounts, Steen posted a career-best 32 points and 11 rebounds, for Dartmouth's first 30-point game since the 2006-07 season. Steen is leading the Big Green offense with 16.5 points per game and has been in double figures in three games this season.

Home Sweet Home
Today's game marks Dartmouth's 2011-12 home opener. The Big Green are 25-13 all-time in home openers and is looking for its third consecutive home-opening win. Dartmouth has a 17-9 record in home openers under head coach Chris Wielgus. During Wielgus' first stint from 1976-84, she was 7-1 in home openers.

Keeping It Balanced
One of Dartmouth's strength's this young season has been the balance. While only one player, Faziah Steen, is averaging double figures with 16.5 points, the rest of the team is also contributing. The Big Green have six players averaging at least 4.0 points per game and nine of Dartmouth's 10 players that have seen action this season are averaging at least 3.0 rebounds per game. Against Vermont, each of Dartmouth's players recorded at least one point and one rebound.

Turning a Corner in the TO category
With just five players entering the season with game experience at the Division I level, it's no surprise that the Big Green have struggled a bit in the turnover category. Entering the Providence game, Dartmouth was averaging 24.5 turnovers per game. Against the Friars, the Big Green turned a corner and posted a season-low 11 turnovers. In fact, Dartmouth's 11 turnovers was the fewest turnovers since last season when they recorded 10 turnovers on two occasions.

Doubling Up
Dartmouth has had success with players in double figures this season. Dartmouth has at least one player in double figures in four of its five games, the exception being the season-opener at Kansas State (Nov. 12). Faziah Steen has shouldered most of the offensive load this season with four games but Sasha Dosenko, Tia Dawson, Milica Toskovic and Kamala Thompson have each posted games in double figures. Steen has been in double figures in 14 of Dartmouth's last 17 games.

Schedules