Game Information
Game #9: St. Francis (N.Y.) at Cornell
Tip Off: Saturday, Dec. 7, 2013; 1:00 p.m.
Location: Newman Arena (Ithaca, N.Y.)
Records: Cornell (5-3); St. Francis (N.Y.) (6-2)
Series Record: Cornell leads, 6-1
Last Meeting: Cornell won 74-56 (11/28/12)
Live Stats: http://www.sidearmstats.com/cornell/wbball/
Video Webcast: http://www.IvyLeagueDigitalNetwork.com

GAME NOTES (PDF)

THE MATCHUP: The Big Red women's basketball team will play its final game before entering a 14-day study break when it plays host to St. Francis (N.Y.) on Saturday, Dec. 7 at 1 p.m. Cornell defeated Binghamton earlier this week to improve to 5-3 on the season, while the Terriers have won back-to-back games vs. Hartford and Columbia to improve to 6-2 overall.



THE SERIES VS. ST. FRANCS (N.Y.): Cornell holds the lead in the all-time series with the Terriers, 6-1. The Big Red won the first-ever meeting, 74-48, in the 1985-86 season, and St. Francis earned its lone win in the series the following season, defeating Cornell, 49-44. Since then, the Big Red has won five consecutive meetings.

LAST TIME VS. ST. FRANCIS: Allyson DiMagno led three Big Red players in double figures with 18 points and 14 rebounds as Cornell pulled away in the second half for a 74-56 win at St. Francis (N.Y.) on Nov. 28, 2012. DiMagno posted her fourth double-double of the season and added five steals, two assists and a blocked shot. The Big Red backcourt of Shelby Lyman (15 points, four assists) and Spencer Lane (12 points, four assists) combined for 27 points and eight assists while making 12-of-19 shots for an offense that shot 50 percent from the floor on the evening (26-of-52). Taylor Flynn added eight points and Clare Fitzpatrick had seven points and three boards.Cornell's defense was also on display, as the visitors limited the Terriers to 34 percent shooting overall and 27 percent from beyond the arc (6-of-22). Sarah Benditti had 12 points to lead the home team, while Jessica Kaufman was also in double figures with 10.Cornell pulled away after halftime, shooting 61 percent from the floor (14-of-23) and connecting on five 3-pointers. The Big Red brought the lead to double figures early on in the second 20-minute stanza and gradually extended it, pushed the edge to as many as 22 in the final four minutes before both teams got a chance to empty their benches.

CORNELL VS. THE NORTHEAST CONFERENCE: Cornell is 22-6 all-time vs. the current members of the Northeast Athletic Conference. The Big Red is tied in the all-time series with Central Connecticut State (1-1), but holds a winning record vs. every other member, including Bryant (1-0), Farleigh Dickenson (2-0), Long Island (3-1), Mt. St. Mary (1-0), Robert Morris (2-0), Sacred Heart (1-0), St. Francis (N.Y.) (6-1), St. Francis (Pa.) (3-2) and Wagner (2-1) ... Coach Smith is 8-3 all-time vs. the NEC.

A CORNELL WIN WOULD:
• make the Big Red 6-3 overall and 4-1 in Newman Arena.
• be the sixth consecutive victory over St. Francis (N.Y).
• make the Big Red 23-6 vs. the Northeast Conference and improve Coach Smith to 9-3 vs. the conference.
• be the 365th victory in program history.

ROOKIE OF THE WEEK: On Dec. 2, Nia Marshall was named the Ivy League Rookie of the Week after helping Cornell defeat Loyola (Md.) and Drake, before falling by three points to Seattle. Over three games, she nearly averaged a double-double (12.7 points, 9.7 rebounds), setting career highs with 15 points vs. Seattle and 11 rebounds vs. Drake. It was her first career Ivy League weekly award and she became the first Big Red player to be the sole recipient of Rookie of the Week award since Stephanie Long on Feb. 28, 2011.

I'LL TAKE THAT: Cornell has posted 92 steals (11.5 per game) so far this season, which is up significantly from last year when the Big Red registered 8.1 steals per game … Prior to the game vs. Binghamton on Dec. 4, Cornell ranked 36th in the nation with 10.9 steals per game … Cornell's 18 steals vs. Seattle were the most since the 2001-02 season, and the most ever during head coach Dayna Smith's time at the helm of the program. In the Big Red's next game vs. Binghamton, the team finished with 16 steals, good for second overall during Coach Smith's tenure.

WINNING NOVEMBER: Cornell finished November with a 4-3 record overall for the second straight season, giving the Big Red a winning record in consecutive Novembers for the first time since 1999-2000 (4-1) and 2000-01 (3-2).

13TH TO 1,000: On Nov. 26 vs. Loyola (MD), senior Allyson DiMagno became the 13th player in Cornell history, and fourth under head coach Dayna Smith, to join the 1,000-point club … She currently ranks 12th overall in Cornell history for career points (1,043) and needs just 63 more to move into 11th place overall, surpassing Rhonda Anderson (1979-83).

TOP TEN REBOUNDS: Allyson DiMagno currently ranks third overall in Cornell history for career rebounds (756) and needs seven more to surpass Rhonda Anderson (1979-83) for second place … She already holds the school record for career defensive rebounds (481) and career offensive rebounds (275).

1,000/700: Senior Allyson DiMagno is just the fourth player in Cornell history, and first ever under head coach Dayna Smith, to register at least 1,000 points and 700 rebounds for her career. She is the first Cornell player to achieve that feat since Patti Froehlich ended her career with 1,194 points and 931 rebounds in 1989 – three years before DiMagno was born.

FRESHMAN [FOUR]CE: With two starters and two others contributing significant minutes, four members of the freshman class – Kerri Moran, Nia Marshall, Nicholle Aston and Megan LeDuc – are already putting their stamp on the 2013-14 season. All four average more than 12 minutes per game and as a group, they are shooting 34 percent (65-of-189) from the floor. The quartet is also contributing an average of 24.4 points, 12.1 rebounds, 5.5 assists, 5.4 steals and 1.6 blocks per game.

100 WINS AND COUNTING: Head Coach Dayna Smith is already the winningest coach in Cornell history, and she reached the 100-win mark for her career with the team's victory over Manhattan on Nov. 20, 2012. She has since added to that and has 115 career coaching wins.

IVY LEADERS: While it's still early in the season, several Big Red players are ranked among the top 10 in various categories in the Ivy League, including:
*Allyson DiMagno – ninth in scoring (12.9 points per game)
*Allyson DiMagno – fourth in rebounding 7.6 rebounds per game)
*Nia Marshall – ninth in rebounding (5.8 rebounds per game)
*Allyson DiMagno – 10th in field goal percentage (.486)
*Stephanie Long – seventh in assist per game (2.8)
*Allyson DiMagno – fourth in free throw percentage (.813)
*Aspen Chandler – eighth in free throw percentage (.762)
*Kerri Moran – ninth in free throw percentage (.756)
*Nia Marshall – second in steals (2.4 steals per game)
*Allyson DiMagno – fifth in steals (2.1 steals per game)
*Kerri Moran – sixth in steals (2.0 steals per game)
*Shelby Lyman – 10th in 3-point field goals made (1.3 per game)
*Nia Marshall – third in blocked shots (1.1 blocks per game)
*Allyson DiMagno – fifth in offensive rebounds (2.3 per game)
*Nia Marshall – ninth in offensive rebounds (2.1 per game)
*Allyson DiMagno – fourth in defensive rebounds (5.4 per game)
*Allyson DiMagno – third in minutes played (33.9 per game)

MAY I ASSIST YOU?: So far this season, the Big Red has assisted on 115-of-160 baskets (72 percent). That is well above last season, as Cornell assisted on 66 percent of its baskets (378-of-573).

STARTING STREAK: Senior Allyson DiMagno has an 87-game starting streak, which is by far the longest active streak on the team, with four others – Stephanie Long, Shelby Lyman, Kerri Moran and Nia Marshall – tied for second at eight games apiece. Both Long and Lyman had a starting streak ended in the final game last season.

CLOSE CALLS: Since the beginning of the 2010-11 season, the Big Red has had 36-of-88 games (41 percent) decided by eight points or fewer. In those games, Cornell has posted a 20-16 record (.556).

LOW PERCENTAGE SHOTS: Since the beginning of the 2012-13 season, Cornell held 21 of its 36 opponents (58 percent) to below 40 percent shooting from the floor.

HOME SWEET HOME: The Seattle University Delta Dental Thanksgiving Tournament served as a homecoming for senior guard Shelby Lyman, who hails from Snohomish, which sits approximately 45 miles from the Redhawk's campus.

DIMAGNO'S GOT CLASS: Allyson DiMagno has been selected as one of 30 candidates for the 2013-14 Senior CLASS Award in women's collegiate basketball. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the Senior CLASS Award honors the attributes of NCAA Division I senior student-athletes in four areas: community, classroom, character and competition. A captain for the 2013-14 season, DiMagno is an accomplished and well-rounded student with a 3.77 grade-point average in biological sciences (biochemistry emphasis) with a minor in business. She was an Academic All-Ivy selection in 2012-13, and she was also the first-ever Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-District first-team selection in the history of the Cornell women's basketball program. On the court, DiMagno was an All-Ivy selection a year ago after setting the school record for rebounds in a single season (321). In the community she has volunteered at special events, including the Special Olympics, the Make-A-Wish-Make-A-Swish event, and a Be The Match bone marrow drive. She is also involved in numerous volunteer projects each semester as a member of SAAC, and Quill and Dagger. The list of 30 candidates will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot. The Senior CLASS Award winner will be announced during the 2014 NCAA Women's Final Four.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK: After setting the Cornell school record with four Ivy League Player of the Week selections a year ago, Allyson DiMagno picked up the Ancient Eight's first weekly award of the 2013-14 season after helping Cornell to its second-straight season-opening victory over Colgate (76-62) on Nov. 8. She led Cornell with 20 points, nine rebounds and five assists. With her nine rebounds, she became just the fourth player in Big Red history to reach the 700-rebound plateau.

100 THREES: The Big Red has connected on at least 100 3-pointers in each of the last six seasons. Cornell 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.

EVERYBODY'S (ACADEMIC) ALL-AMERICAN: Allyson DiMagno was named a 2012-13 Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-District first-team selection during her junior season. A biological sciences major with a 3.7 grade-point average, she is just the second Academic All-District selection in the history of the Big Red women's basketball program, joining Virginia McMunigal '10, who was a second-team selection during her senior season.

FIRST NIGHT: Four members of the freshmen class saw action in the team's season-opening victory over Colgate. Kerri Moran and Nia Marshall earned the start, while both Megan LeDuc and Nicholle Aston saw significant action off the bench. The quartet played a total of 75 minutes and contributed 26 points, 11 rebounds, seven steals, five blocks, and three assists. They also hit 53 percent of their shots from the field, 67 percent from beyond the arc and 75 percent from the free throw line ... The final member of the freshman class, Taylor DePalma, saw her first collegiate action a week later at Syracuse.

FOR OPENERS: The Big Red is 19-24 all-time in season openers. After defeating Colgate in each of the past two season openers, Coach Dayna Smith's record has improved to 3-9 in the first game of the season. Cornell has now registered back-to-back season opening victories for the first time since winning three straight from 1998-99 to 2000-01.

OPENING AT 2-0: With the 79-72 win over Buffalo, the Big Red started the season at 2-0 for the first time since the 1995-96 campaign, and just the fifth time in program history.

ALL IN THE FAMILY: Senior 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 played football for the University of Wisconsin and her grandfather Wayne Long ran track and field in college.

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

HI, MY NAME IS: Cornell has a new face on the bench for the 2013-14 season – volunteer assistant Jim Sheehan – who spent the past two seasons serving as a volunteer assistant to Cornell's video coordinator. Sheehan is a 2010 graduate of Cortland with a bachelor of science degree in sports management.

NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK: The Big Red has added five players to this year's squad, as Nicholle Aston (Woodland Hills, Calif.), Taylor DePalma (Ithaca, N.Y.), Megan LeDuc(Vienna, Va.), Nia Marshall (Macedonia, Ohio) and Kerri Moran (Fair Hills, N.J.) have joined the team for the 2013-14 season. The class of five comes from five different states and consists of three guards and two forwards.

RECORD BREAKER: Last year, Allyson DiMagno set the Cornell single-season record for rebounds (321), defensive rebounds (196) and offensive rebounds (125) in a single season. She also set the school record for Ivy League Player of the Week selections in a season with four and set the Cornell mark for minutes played in a single game when she stayed on the court the full 50 minutes of the Big Red's double-overtime victory over Columbia

2012-13 SEASON RECAP: The 2012-13 season was one of steady improvement and individual accomplishments as a four-member senior class and a talented junior made their way up the Big Red record books. Led by Allyson DiMagno, who earned second-team All-Ivy honors following the season, the team posted a 13-15 record overall and a mark of 5-9 in the Ivy League to finish fifth overall in the conference standings. DiMagno, who moved from guard to forward prior to the season, went on to set the Cornell record for rebounds in a season. The team's seniors also left their mark on the program, beginning with Clare Fitzpatrick '13, who left Cornell ranking seventh in Big Red history in points (1,201), sixth in rebounds (609), fourth in free throws made (328), and fifth in blocked shots (68). She also became the first-ever player under Smith to reach 1,200 career points and 600 career rebounds. Spencer Lane '13, who led the Ivy League during her senior season in assists per game and assist/turnover ratio, finished her career ranking eighth all-time in Cornell history in assists (284) and 14th overall in career steals (113). Taylor Flynn '13, ended her career ranking eighth all-time in 3-pointers made (110), while forward Kristina Danielak '13 left Cornell ranking fourth all-time in career field goal percentage (.497) and 10th all-time in Cornell history with 55 career blocks.

TICKLE THE ALL-IVY: Last season, Allyson DiMagno was named second-team All Ivy after leading the Big Red in both points and rebounds, averaging a double-double for the season with 14.7 points and 11.5 rebounds per game. She finished the season with 16 double-doubles, the most by any member of the Ancient Eight since former Ivy League Player of the Year Judie Lomax of Columbia posted 21 during the 2009-10 season. DiMagno also ranked third overall in the Ivy League with 14.7 points per game, but was even better against conference foes, ranking second overall with 15.5 point per game in Ivy League contests.

WHAT WAS LOST: The Big Red graduated four players from the 2012-13 squad – Kristina Danielak, Clare Fitzpatrick, Taylor Flynn and Spencer Lane – and lost three other non-letter winners. The seven players accounted for an average of 28.2 points and 11.5 rebounds per game.

WHAT REMAINS: Cornell returns three starters and five letter winners from last season's squad. The Big Red returns 51% of its scoring (811-of-1,601 points) and 67% of its rebounding (645-of-968) from a year ago.

PRESEASON HONORS: Allyson DiMagno was named a College Sports Madness Preseason All-Ivy second-team selection.

UP NEXT: The Big Red will enjoy a two-week study break for exams before returning to action at Robert Morris on Saturday, Dec. 21 at 1:30 p.m.