George Washington University Athletics
GW, Saint Joseph's Meet for 50th Time Saturday
1/29/2010 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Jan. 29, 2010
GW at Saint Joseph's Notes 
| | Live Video
PHILADELPHIA, PA - The George Washington women's basketball team will go for its third consecutive victory with its first visit to Saint Joseph's newly renovated Hagan Arena Saturday at 2:00 pm.
In its most complete outing of the season, GW (5-14, 2-4 A-10) posted its second straight A-10 win with a 64-54 victory over Massachusetts in front of 2,521 at the Mullins Center Wednesday. Freshman Megan Nipe scored a career-high 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting to lift the Colonials to their second road victory of the season and fourth straight win over the Minutewomen. Sophomore Tiana Myers added 17 points and five assists and redshirt freshman Brooke Wilson registered her first double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds along with six assists and four steals.
GW shot 44.4 percent from the field - its third-best performance of the season - and committed a season-low eight turnovers while enjoying a 22-2 edge in points off turnovers. GW's season-low eight turnovers were its fewest since committing seven in a 2008 NCAA Tournament victory against California, a win which vaulted the Colonials into their second straight Sweet 16.
Through six league games, the Colonials rank first in the A-10 in three-point field goal defense at 24.7 percent.
Saturday's contest marks the 50th meeting between GW and Saint Joseph's. The series is GW's second longest, trailing only the 52 meetings with Duquesne, and is the only A-10 series in which the Colonials trail (24-25). Of the 22 meetings at Hagan Arena (formerly Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse), 12 have been decided by eight points or less, including a 61-53 victory in Feb. 2008 that aired on CBS College Sports. GW has won the last two meetings in the series after being upset by Saint Joseph's in the 2007 A-10 Championship semifinals.
Saint Joseph's (10-10, 3-2 A-10) won for the seventh time in its last 10 games with a come-from-behind 45-39 victory at La Salle Wednesday. The Hawks scored just 11 first-half points on 18.5 percent (5-27) shooting, but used a 24-6 run to begin the second half and held on late for the win. Brittany Ford paced the Hawks with 15 points and seven rebounds in 25 minutes off the bench. Ford averages a team-best 10.7 points despite starting just two of 20 games and playing 20.6 mintues per game.
Saint Joseph's head coach Cindy Griffin will go for her 200th career victory Saturday against GW. She won her 150th game at SJU with a 68-62 upset of Dayton Jan. 20 and is now 151-119 in her ninth season on Hawk Hill. Griffin went 48-33 in three seasons at Loyola (MD) from 1998-2001.
SJU reserve guard Katie Kuester (3.5 ppg, 11.7 mpg) is the daughter of current Detroit Pistons coach and former GW men's basketball head coach John Kuester. John posted 50-94 record in five seasons with the Colonials from 1986-90.
The Hawks are 8-3 in newly renovated Michael J. Hagan `85 Arena, renamed from Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse this past summer. SJU also opened the Dr. Jack Ramsay `49 Basketball Center and Casciato Basketball Practice Facility in the offseason.
