Game Information
Cornell at Binghamton
Tip Off: Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2012; 7:00 p.m.
Location: Events Center (Vestal, N.Y.)
Records: Cornell (1-1, 0-0 Ivy); Binghamton (0-1, 0-0 America East)
Series Record: Binghamton leads, 8-4
Last Meeting: Binghamton won 61-48 (11/30/11)
Live Stats: BUBearcats.com
Video Webcast: BUBearcats.tv

Cornell vs. Syracuse
Tip Off: Friday, Nov. 16, 2012; 5:30 p.m.
Location: Newman Arena (Ithaca, N.Y.)
Records: Cornell (1-1, 0-0 Ivy); Syracuse (1-0, 0-0 Big East)*
Series Record: Syracuse, 13-4
Last Meeting: Syracuse won 86-45 (11/15/10)
Live Stats: CornellBigRed.com
Live Audio: RLMSports.net
Video Webcast: CornellBigRed.com

* Records prior to Wednesday, Nov. 14

Game Notes (PDF)

THE MATCHUP: For the second week in a row, the Big Red women's basketball team will open the week with a game on the road before returning for a late-week matchup at Newman Arena. Cornell will take on Binghamton on Wednesday, Nov. 14 at 7 p.m., before welcoming in-state rival Syracuse to Ithaca on Friday, Nov. 16 at 5:30 p.m. The game on Friday will be part of a double-header with the men's team, which takes on Saint Peter's at 8 p.m. 

THE SERIES VS. BINGHAMTON: Cornell and Binghamton have met 12 times in women's basketball history with the Bearcats winning the last four outings to take the 8-4 advantage in the series. The Big Red won the first two meetings, which occurred in the late 1970's, when the Binghamton squad played on the Division III level. Cornell renewed its rivalry with the Bearcats during the 2001-02 campaign, the same season that Binghamton transitioned to Division I status. The Bearcats won that meeting, 66-61, and defeated the Big Red again the following season, 66-48, but Cornell reclaimed the edge in the series history with a 50-43 victory during the 2004-05 season. Binghamton took the temporary lead in the series with two straight victories during the 2005-06 and 2006-07 seasons, before Cornell evened the series at 4-4 during the 2007-08 campaign.

SCOUTING THE BEARCATS: Binghamton (0-1) was picked to finish eighth overall in the America East after losing its top-three scorers from a team that made a run to the America East semifinals last year. Junior Jasbriell Swain is the team's top returning scorer, averaging 6.3 points per game to go with 6.4 rebounds. The Bearcats fell to St. Bonaventure in their season opener, 61-34, but freshman forward Morgan Murphy was named the America East Rookie of the Week for her 12-point, seven-rebound performance in her collegiate debut.

CORNELL VS. THE AMERICAN EAST: Cornell slipped to 15-20 all-time vs. the current members of the America East Conference, after dropping a pair of games to America East teams last season (New Hampshire, Binghamton). The Big Red holds a winning record vs. Albany (5-1) and UMBC (2-0), while its series record with Stony Brook (1-1) is tied. Cornell holds a losing mark vs. Binghamton (4-8), Maine (0-1), New Hampshire (0-3) and Vermont (3-6), but has never faced Boston University or Hartford ... Coach Smith is 4-10 all-time vs. the America East.

A CORNELL WIN OVER BINGHAMTON WOULD:
• improve the Big Red's record to 2-1.
• snap a four game skid against the Bearcats.
• cut Binghamton's lead to 8-5 in the all-time series.
• end a six-game losing streak to America East teams, dating back to a 50-46 victory over Albany on Nov. 19, 2008.
• improve Coach Smith to 5-10 against the America East.

THE SERIES VS. SYRACUSE — Cornell's rivalry with Syracuse is one of the oldest in the history of the women's basketball program. The series began during the 1972-73 season, just the second year of women's basketball for both schools, with a 64-24 Big Red victory. Cornell would win the next two meetings as well, giving the Big Red its longest winning-streak (three games) against the Orange. Syracuse would win the next nine meetings, a streak which was halted during the 2003-04 campaign when Cornell defeated the Orange 82-62. Syracuse has won the last three meetings to improve its lead in the series to 13-4.

SCOUTING THE ORANGE (courtesy SUAthletics.com): Syracuse was picked to finish seventh in the BIG EAST in the annual women's basketball preseason coaches' poll, and senior center Kayla Alexander was named to the preseason All-BIG EAST team. Coming off a 22-15 season in which it went 6-10 in conference play,  the Orange returns four starters and welcomes a five-member freshmen class ranked sixth-best in the country by ESPN Hoopgurlz. Alexander was named to the conference's second team last season, was a first-teamer as a sophomore in 2010-11 and was named All-Rookie in 2010-11. The Milton, Ontario native led the conference in blocks in 2011-12, setting a Syracuse single-season record with 96, while ranking 10th in scoring (14.8 ppg), ninth in rebounding (7.5 rpg), 14th in field goal percentage (.495) and 12th in free throw percentage (.747). The Orange were 1-0 entering Tuesday's contest vs. Maine.

CORNELL VS. THE BIG EAST — Cornell is 4-24 all-time vs. the current members of the Big East Conference, with all four wins coming against Syracuse. The Big Red holds a losing record vs. Cincinnati (0-1), Connecticut (0-1), DePaul (0-2), Georgetown (0-2), St. John's (0-2), South Florida (0-1), Villanova (0-1) and West Virginia (0-1). Cornell has only faced three Big East schools other than Syracuse more than once (DePaul, Georgetown, and St. John's) and has never faced Louisville, Marquette, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Providence, Rutgers or Seton Hall in women's basketball ... Coach Smith is 1-10 vs. the conference during her time at the helm of the Big Red program, with the lone victory coming against Syracuse, 82-62, during the 2003-04 season.

LAST TIME VS. BINGHAMTON:
• Viive Rebane had 17 points and 13 rebounds and Binghamton held off Cornell's second half charge en route to a 61-48 win over the Big Red on Nov. 30, 2011 at Newman Arena.
With the loss, Cornell slipped to 2-5 overall, while the Bearcats improved to 4-2.
• Clare Fitzpatrick had 14 points, nine rebounds and three blocked shots to lead Cornell, while Shelby Lyman notched 11 points.
• Allyson DiMagno had seven points and a season-high 11 rebounds, but the Bearcats still managed a 48-39 edge on the backboards.
• Cornell shot just 30 percent for the game and 19 percent (3-of-16) from beyond the arc.
• Binghamton shot just 38 percent, but used 16 offensive rebounds to score 13 second chance points.
• Jasbriell Swain chipped in 17 points and seven rebounds, while Andrea Holmes notched 10 points for BU.
• Binghamton work on the backboards in the first half helped them to build a 15-point lead, but a jumper by Fitzpatrick off a great feed from Spencer Lane got the home team within 37-34 with 10:45 to play.
• Rebane quickly answered with a pair of big shots on consecutive possessions, including a key 3-pointer, to spark an 11-2 run that essentially put the game away.

LAST TIME VS. SYRACUSE:
• The Big Red travelled to Syracuse on Nov. 15, 2010 and fell to the Orange, 86-45, at the Carrier Dome.
• It was the second consecutive game in which a young and inexperienced Cornell team showed moments of brilliance, but was outmatched by a team with greater experience, size and depth.
•Cornell gave the Orange all it could handle in the first half, staying within striking distance and taking a 27-26 lead at the 5:21 mark, but the home team closed the first half and opened the second half with 21 unanswered points to take the insurmountable 20-point lead.
• The Big Red was led by Stephanie Long's nine points, all of which came in the first half, and Aspen Chandler's eight points, all of which came in the second half.
Allie Munson finished with six points and a team-high six rebounds.
• Syracuse (2-0) was led by Kayla Alexander's 19 points, while La'Shay Taft and Iasia Hemingway added 13 and 10 points, respectively.
• Alexander, Hemingway and Shakeya Leary all registered eight rebounds apiece.
• Cornell shot just 30.2 percent overall and 34.8 percent from 3-point range, while Syracuse connected on 43.5 percent overall and 33.3 percent from beyond the arc.
• The Orange outrebounded the Big Red, 52-28 and forced 26 turnovers with 18 steals.
• All 12 Cornell players saw action and the Big Red assisted on 15 of its 16 baskets.

FOR OPENERS: The Big Red is 18-24 all-time in season openers. Coach Dayna Smith improved her record to 2-9 in season openers after defeating Colgate, 69-65 on Nov. 11, 2012. It was the first season-opening victory since the 2004-05 campaign.

WHAT WAS LOST: The Big Red graduated two players from the 2011-12 squad – Maka Anyanwu and Allie Munson. A junior college transfer, Anyanwu earned two varsity letters and finished her senior season with 211 points (7.8 ppg.) and 118 rebounds (4.4 rpg.). Munson was a four-year letter winner for the Big Red and played in 93 career games (13.3 mpg.). She averaged 3.2 points and 3.8 rebounds per game for her career and ranks 12th all-time in Cornell history for career blocked shots (42). 

WHAT REMAINS: Cornell returns four starters and nine letter winners from last season's squad. The Big Red returns 84% of its scoring (1,298-of-1,554 points) and 83% of its rebounding (813-of-975) from a year ago.

NO PLACE LIKE HOME: All but five of Cornell's victories since the beginning of the 2010-11 season have come at Newman Arena.

CLOSE CALLS: Since the beginning of the 2010-11 season, the Big Red has had 22-of-58 games (38%) decided by eight points or fewer. In those games, Cornell has posted an 11-11 record.

BLOCKS A LOT: Senior Clare Fitzpatrick currently sits in 10th place in Cornell history for career blocks (51), having surpassed classmate Kristina Danielak, who is now sitting in 11th place with 49 blocks.

I'LL TAKE THAT: So far this season, Cornell has averaged 8.5 steals per game, up slightly from last year when the Big Red averaged 8.4 steals per game. Last season's total was the best team average since the 2001-02 team finished the year with 11.0 steals per game.

HELPING HAND: So far this season, the Big Red has assisted on 28-of-45 baskets (62%), which is slightly down from last year when Cornell had assists on 366-of-576 baskets (64%).

STARTING STREAK: Junior Allyson DiMagno has a 53-game starting streak, which is by far the longest current active streak on the team, nearly doubling senior Spencer Lane's 32-game streak.

RACE TO 1,000/500: Senior Clare Fitzpatrick is aiming to become the seventh player in Cornell history and second ever under head coach Dayna Smith to register at least 1,000 points and 500 rebounds for her career. She currently has 888 points and 481 rebounds.

LOW PERCENTAGE SHOTS: So far this season, Cornell has held both of its opponents to below 40 percent shooting from the floor. The Big Red closed the 2011-12 season by holding its opponents to 40 percent or below from the floor in 12 of its final 18 games.

HOME SWEET HOME: The games against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and the University of Texas will serve as a home coming for Lone Star State natives Kristina Danielak (Georgetown, Texas) and Aspen Chandler (Dallas, Texas).

COACHING HISTORY: With the victory over Ithaca on Jan. 1, 2011, head coach Dayna Smith became the all-time winningest head coach in Cornell women's basketball history with her 81st career win. Smith surpassed Marnie Dacko (1995-2002) to take the record. She has since upped that total to 98 victories.

STUDYING THE OPPONENTS: Since the 1980-81 season, the Big Red is 12-19 coming out of Cornell's two-week study break. However, Coach Smith's teams have fared much better, posting a record of 7-3 in the first game back from exams … This season, the Big Red will face Texas A&M-Corpus Christi coming out of the break. Cornell is 1-0 all-time against the Islanders with a 66-40 win during the 2007-08 season.

100 THREES: For the past five seasons, Cornell has hit at least 100 3-pointers as a team. The Big Red has registered at least 100 3-pointers in all but one season under head coach Dayna Smith, with the 2006-07 squad coming up just short with 98 treys.

BASKETBALL PEDIGREE: Junior Stephanie Long isn't the only member of her family to play collegiate basketball. Her father Dennis played basketball for three seasons at UConn.

ALL IN THE FAMILY: Junior Aspen Chandler comes from a long line of athletes. Her father, Brian Hopgood, had a successful professional basketball career playing in the various domestic and overseas leagues. Collegiately, he played at University of Louisville and Oklahoma City University. While at OCU, he led his team to the NAIA national championship and was a two-time All-American. Her cousin Shelton Johnson plays football for the University of Wisconsin and her grandfather Wayne Long ran track and field in college.

PRESEASON HONORS: Clare Fitzpatrick and Allyson DiMagno were both named to the College Sports Madness Preseason All-Ivy team, with Fitzpatrick earning first-team honors and DiMagno snagging a place on the second-team.

NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK: The Big Red adds three players to the 2012-13 squad: Allison Bockrath (Dayton, Ohio), Molly Meriggioli (Waunakee, Wisc.) and Jen Wahleithner (Highlands Ranch, Colo). The class of three come from three different states and consists of two guards and one forward.

TICKLE THE (ALL) IVY: Forward Clare Fitzpatrick and guard Allyson DiMagno were each named honorable mention All-Ivy League following the 2011-12 season. Fitzpatrick ranked 12th in the Ancient Eight in scoring (10.8 ppg.) and was fourth in rebounding (6.9 rpg.). She also ranked third in the circuit in blocked shots and registered five double-doubles. Her basket with less than four seconds to play helped down Brown. DiMagno was 13th in scoring (10.7 ppg.) and second in rebounding (7.3 rpg.), leading all guards with her work on the backboards. She also ranked 10th in the Ivy in assists (10th) and steals (seventh) and was just outside the top 10 in blocked shots. Her basket with three seconds left pushed the Big Red over Fordham.

HI, MY NAME IS: Cornell has a new face on the bench for the 2012-13 season, as Daan de Heus joins the women's basketball staff as an assistant coach. A native of Eindhoven, The Netherlands, de Heus played for the Dutch national youth basketball teams before going on to serve as an assistant coach for the Netherlands at the 2009 high school basketball world championships, held in Istanbul, Turkey. He was also the head basketball coach of a variety of youth and senior basketball teams at Almonte, from 2005-2011, wining two championships at the U16 and U18 level.

UP NEXT: Cornell will welcome Manhattan College to Newman Arena on Tuesday, Nov. 20 for a contest at 7:00 p.m.