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GAME INFORMATION
Game #4: Cornell at Fairfield
Tip off: Monday, Nov. 22, at 7:00 p.m.
Site: Alumni Hall (2,479), Fairfield, Conn.
2014-15 Records: Cornell (1-2, 0-0 Ivy); Fairfield (0-3, 0-0 MAAC)*
Series Record: Fairfield leads, 2-1
Last Meeting: Fairfield won, 77-61, on Nov. 19, 2010 (Fairfield, Conn.)
  *record prior to contest on Saturday, Nov. 22
 
THE MATCHUP: After winning its first game of the season at Colgate on Wednesday evening, the Big Red women's basketball team will look to get back to .500 when it travels to Fairfield on Monday, Nov. 24 for a game at Alumni Hall at 7 p.m. The Stags enter their Saturday game vs. Butler with an 0-3 record.
 
THE SERIES VS. FAIRFIELD — Monday's contest marks just the fourth meeting between the Big Red and Fairfield with the Stags holding the slim 2-1 advantage in the all-time series. The first meeting came during the 1996-97 season with Fairfield taking the 73-57 victory in the championship game of the 17th annual Warner's Classic at Alumni Hall in Fairfield, Conn. The rematch came 12 years later as the Big Red took the 58-54 victory in Newman Arena on Dec. 1, 2008.The Stags won the last meeting between the two programs with a 77-61 decision in Fairfield on Nov. 19, 2010.
 
SCOUTING THE STAGS: With six freshmen, two transfers, and an injury returnee who saw action in just three games last season on a roster of 14, a very young and inexperienced Fairfield team is off to an 0-3 start heading into Saturday's game vs. Butler. The Stags are averaging just 58.7 points per game, despite shooting 43.5 percent overall and 38.3 percent from 3-point range. Fairfield's opponents are averaging 72.3 points per game, and are grabbing nearly seven more rebounds per contest, as well as forcing 22.0 Stags turnovers per game with an average of 10.3 steals per contest. Fairfield was picked to finish fourth in the 2014 MAAC Preseason Poll, returning two starters from last year's squad that advanced to the Semifinals of the Women's Basketball Invitational (WBI). The team's lone senior Felicia DaCruz was named to the Preseason All-MAAC Second Team after finishing the 2013-14 season ranked fourth in the country in assist-turnover ratio (3.31) and 36th overall in assists per game (5.4). Kristin Schatzlein is the other returning starter for the Stags and so far this season she is the team's leading scorer, averaging 15.3 points and 3.3 rebounds per game.
 
LAST TIME VS. FAIRFIELD: A 25-5 Fairfield scoring run over a 10-minute span in the late part of the first half proved to be the difference as the Big Red fell to the Stags, 77-61, this evening at Alumni Hall in Fairfield, Conn. Cornell fought its way back in the second half, but could not come all the way back as it fell to 0-3 on the season. The Big Red had its best offensive outing of the season with four players registering double-figures, led by Stephanie Long's 16 points. Maka Anyanwu came off the bench late in the first half and played spectacularly, going 6-for-8 for 12 points and grabbing a team-high seven rebounds in 22 minutes. Shelby Lyman and Spencer Lane registered nearly identical stat lines with 10 points, three assists and two rebounds apiece. Fairfield was led by Katelyn Linney's 23 points. The sophomore guard connected on an impressive 8-of-11 from the floor and 5-of-8 from beyond the arc. Taryn Johnson registered an 11-point, 10 rebound double-double and Katie Cizynski finished with 11 points. The Stags shot over 50 percent from the floor (27-of-53) and 3-point range (8-of-16), but Cornell wasn't far behind, shooting a season high 41.4 percent overall and 40 percent from beyond the arc. Fairfield held the slight edge in rebounds (36-30) and forced 17 Big Red turnovers with nine steals. 
 
CORNELL VS. THE MAAC: Cornell improved to 15-32 all-time vs. the current members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference after defeating Manhattan during the 2012-13 season. The Big Red holds a winning record vs. Iona (1-0) and Monmouth (2-1), and is tied with Manhattan (2-2), but has a losing record vs. Canisius (1-7), Fairfield (1-2), Marist (2-7), Niagara (6-10) and Siena (0-3). Cornell has never faced Quinnipiac, Rider or St. Peter's in women's basketball ... Coach Smith's record against teams in the MAAC is 4-9.
 
A CORNELL WIN WOULD:
• even the Big Red's record on the season at 2-2.
• make Cornell 2-1 in road games this season.
• even the series with Fairfield at 2-2.
• be the second in a row over a MAAC opponent.
• give Cornell a 16-32 record all-time vs. the MAAC.
• improve head coach Dayna Smith to 2-1 against the Stags.
• make Coach Smith 5-9 all-time vs. the MAAC.
 
SMARTY PANTS: Cornell led all Ivy League teams and ranked 20th nationally when the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) announced its Academic Top 25 for the 2013-14 season. Head coach Dayna Smith's team posted a cumulative grade point average of 3.420 in 2013-14. Cornell was one of three Ivy League schools in the rankings, joining Yale (23rd, 3.397) and Brown (24th, 3.394). The University of Missouri-Kansas City led the way with a 3.628 grade point average.
 
STARTING STREAK: With the graduation of Allyson DiMagno, sophomore Nia Marshall has the longest starting streak on the team, standing at just five games. Both Marshall and Kerri Moran started every game in 2013-14, with the exception of the Big Red's Senior Day on March 1, 2014.
 
NEW STARTERS: In each of the first three games this season, the Big Red has started four players – Megan LeDuc, Christine Kline, Maddie Campbell and Nicholle Aston – that had yet to start a game for Cornell previously.
 
BIG MINUTES: Not only have Nicholle Aston, Christine Kline and Megan LeDuc earned the first starts of their collegiate careers this season, but the trio has each roughly tripled their playing time from a season ago. Kline has seen the greatest increase, going from 7.4 to 34.3 minutes per game, while Aston has gone from 11.3 to 33.3 minutes per game, and LeDuc has gone from 11.5 to 34.3 minutes per game. 
 
ON THE SMALL SIDE: Cornell's roster of 14 players is one of the smallest in the Ivy League, with only Dartmouth and Yale featuring fewer players at 13 apiece.
 
ON THE YOUNG SIDE: Of Cornell's 14 players, 11 are underclassmen with just two seniors and one junior. No other team in the Ivy League has fewer upperclassmen, with the next youngest group being Yale with one senior and four juniors. Only one other team in the Ancient Eight has 11 underclassmen, as Columbia is identical to the Big Red with five sophomores and six freshmen, but the Lions also feature the largest roster in the conference at 17 players, with four seniors and two juniors to balance the team out.
 
LOW PERCENTAGE SHOTS: Since the beginning of the 2012-13 season, Cornell held 30 of its 59 opponents (51percent) to below 40 percent shooting from the floor, including 2-of-3 opponents so far this season.
 
MAY I ASSIST YOU?: So far this season, Cornell has assisted on 42-of-65 baskets (64.6 percent).
 
IVY LEADERS: As of Nov. 21, several Big Red players are ranked among the Ivy League leaders this season, including:
*Nia Marshall – eighth in scoring (12.7 points per game)
*Megan LeDuc – 14th in scoring (11.0 points per game)
*Nicholle Aston – 17^th in scoring (10.3 points per game)
*Nicholle Aston – fourth in rebounding (8.7 rebounds per game)
*Nia Marshall – 11th in rebounding (7.0 rebounds per game)
*Maddie Campbell – 19th in rebounding (5.0 rebounds per game)
*Nicholle Aston – third in field goal percentage (.619)
*Megan LeDuc – first in assists per game (4.7 assists per game)
*Kerri Moran – seventh in assists per game (3.0 assists per game)
*Christine Kline – 10th in assists (2.7 assists per game)
*Nia Marshall – fifth in steals (2.3 steals per game)
*Christine Kline – 10th in steals (1.7 steals per game)
*Megan LeDuc – 10th in 3-point field goal percentage (.300)
*Megan LeDuc – fourth in 3-point field goals per game (2.0 per game)
*Nia Marshall – fifth in blocked shots (1.0 blocks per game)
*Megan LeDuc – first in assist/turnover ratio (7.0)
*Kerri Moran – eighth in assist/turnover ratio (1.1)
*Nicholle Aston – fourth in offensive rebounds (3.0 per game)
*Nia Marshall – third in defensive rebounds (6.0 per game)
*Nicholle Aston – ninth in defensive rebounds (5.7 per game)
*Nia Marshall – second in minutes played (34.7 per game)
*Christine Kline – fourth in minutes played (34.3 per game)
*Megan LeDuc – fourth in minutes played (34.3 per game)
*Nicholle Aston – seventh in minutes played (33.3 per game)
 
CLOSE CALLS: Since the beginning of the 2010-11 season, the Big Red has had 42-of-114 games (37 percent) decided by eight points or fewer. In those games, Cornell has posted a 21-21 record (.500).
 
FIRST MINUTES: So far this season, just one freshman – Christine Ehland – has seen playing time, as she played six minutes vs. Hartford and scored two points.
 
I'LL TAKE THAT:
• So far this season, the Big Red is averaging 6.7 steals per game.
• In 2013-14, Cornell posted 253 steals (9.0 per game).
• A year ago, the Big Red finished the season ranked first in the Ivy League and 69th in the nation for steals per game.
• Last season, Cornell ranked second in the Ivy League and 69th in the nation in turnover margin (+2.29). 
 
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 125 career coaching wins.
 
FOR OPENERS: The Big Red is 19-25 all-time in season openers after its 48-46 heartbreaking loss to Hartford on Nov. 14. Coach Dayna Smith is now 3-10 in season openers.
 
RULE FOLLOWERS: Last season, the Big Red ranked second in the Ivy League and 20th in the nation in fouls per game (15.8).
 
FRESHMAN [FOUR]CE: With two starters and two others contributing significant minutes, four members of last season's freshman class – Kerri Moran, Nia Marshall, Nicholle Aston and Megan LeDuc – put their stamp on the 2013-14 season. All four averaged more than 11 minutes per game and as a group, they shot 42 percent (253-of-605) from the floor. The quartet also contributing an average of 24.1 points, 12.1 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 3.6 steals and 1.6 blocks per game.
 
100 THREES: The Big Red has amassed at least 100 3-pointers in each of the last seven 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.
 
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK NOTES
• In total, Nia Marshall was named Rookie of the Week  five times last season (Dec. 2, Dec. 9, Jan. 13, Feb. 3, Feb. 10) becoming the first Big Red player to earn five Rookie of the Week selections since Jeomi Maduka was chosen seven times during the 2005-06 season.
• Nia Marshall was named the Ivy League Rookie of the Week on Dec. 2 and Dec. 9, becoming the first Cornell women's basketball player to receive back-to-back Rookie of the Weeks awards since Jeomi Maduka in 2005-06.
• Nia Marshall was the first Cornell player to receive two Rookie of the Week awards in a single season since Lauren Benson in 2006-07.
 
WINNING NON-CONFERENCE SLATE: The Big Red finished the non-conference portion of its 2013-14 season with an 8-6 record for the second straight year, giving Cornell a winning non-conference record in consecutive seasons for the first time since 1999-2000/2000-01. It is just the third time in program history that the Big Red has had back-to-back winning non-conference records (1982-83/1983-84).
 
HI, MY NAME IS: Cornell has a pair of new faces on the bench for the 2014-15 season – assistant coaches Todd Goclowski and Brendan Burke. A coach with 15 years of experience, Goclowski came to East Hill after eight highly successful years Lebanon Valley College, where he was the winningest coach in the history of the program. Burke came to Cornell after three seasons at Boston University, where he served as the Director of Basketball Operations for two seasons.
 
NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK: The Big Red adds six players to the 2014-15 squad – Janée Dennis (Burlington, N.J.), Christine Ehland (Pittsburgh, Pa.), Jamie Hill (Montville, Conn.), Marisa Knox (Memphis, Tenn.), Janelle Odionu (Newmarket, Ala.) and Paige Samuelson (Rock Hill, S.C.). The class comes from six different states and consists of three forwards and three guards.
 
WHAT WAS LOST: The Big Red graduated five players from the 2013-14 squad – Aspen Chandler, Joelle Davidson, Allyson DiMagno, Stephanie Long, and Shelby Lyman – and lost one other non-letter winners. The six players accounted for an average of 37.7 points and 19.0 rebounds per game.

WHAT REMAINS: Cornell returns two starters and six letter winners from last season's squad. The Big Red returns 42% of its scoring (751-of-1,768 points) and 49% of its rebounding (488-of-988) from a year ago.
 
UP NEXT: The Big Red returns home to take on Marshall at Newman Arena on Wednesday, Nov. 26 at 5 p.m. The game will be part of a double-header, as the Cornell men's basketball team will face Canisius at 7 p.m.