The Guru Report: No Trap For Saint Joseph’s Either As Hawks Top Rider and Head Unbeaten into Saturday’s Big Five Showdown at No. 25 Villanova

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

LAWRENCEVILLE, N.J. — A night after No. 25 Villanova emphatically dodged any notion of being caught in a trap game by winless American University, Saint Joseph’s had to work a little harder but ultimately put the stops here to Rider attempted rallies and rang up a 60-53 victory over the Broncs in Alumni Gymnasium and stayed unbeaten at 9-0.

And so just just ahead out in the mainline suburb of Philadelphia looms a major collision at 2 p.m. Saturday afternoon, when two programs who put the Big in Big Five will go at each other in Villanova’s Finneran Pavilion in a meeting as special as any local men’s battles that have occurred in past decades.

Even when one or both programs are down, crowds have been drawn off players who have been rivals or teammates in area high schools and AAU squads reshuffled into their collegiate affiliations.

But this one that by the way Villanova and Saint Joseph’s have played to date is decorated with icing of national implications.

The host Wildcats are 7-2 and have been in the  47-year-old Associated Press weekly women’s poll for a month, slotted by a media panel after upsetting then nationally-ranked Princeton up the road from here in the Ivy League favorites’ Jadwin Gym. 

And the magnet in their attack is reigning Big East player of the year Maddie Siegrist, who is projected at some moments or same night in February to surpass the long-standing program scoring record held by the legendary Shelly Pennefather (2,408), the only player right now to collect more points than Siegrist (2085) at Villanova, and just a tiny step further the all-time Big Five career scoring title held by Penn’s Diana Caramanico (2415).

The Hawks, who have struggled in recent campaigns, have blossomed in launching a season start the best in Cindy Griffin’s 22 years at her alma mater and, ironically, a win short of matching the 10-0 start under her coach Jim Foster.

Each year since the women formed their own City Series in 1979-80 the round robin of the five schools playing each other consists of ten games, the previous two impacted by the pandemic notwithstanding, and if you were to rank by rivalry 1-to-10 all of them by far Saint Joseph’s/Villanova or Villanova/Saint Joseph’s (so stated to please each fan base) would easily be at the top.

Both Griffin and ‘Nova coach Denise Dillon have played in the wars for the schools they now coach.

“As they say, it’s the Holy War,” Griffin said of the rivalry.

With each team coming into this with Big Five records of 2-0 in the matchup, it’s basically the marbles game in that the winner will clinch a tie and have a chance to finish 4-0. 

La Salle will get a chance to be a spoiler or help determine the final standings playing Villanova on Dec. 21 and then on New Year’s Eve kicking off the Atlantic 10 slate playing the first of two games with Saint Joseph’s that also is the Big Five counter.

“I definitely know going into the season, we had a really good team but I we talk, winning is tough, so I don’t know if this was expected but it definitely feels good and we’re happy with our success,” said rookie Laurie Ziegler, who is enhancing a roster that had four make the A-10 rookie team, with Talya Brugler being rookie of the year.

“We’re just taking it one game at a time right now,” Brugler said. “Focusing on this one. I think we did a good job keeping the intensity and being relentless and selfless.”

Ziegler had a double-double 16 points and 11 rebounds while Brugler also scored 16 with four assists, a career high that was all collected in the first quarter. Mackenzie Smith scored 15. 

However, the one damper is sixth-year player Katie Jekot, who recently collected her 1,000th point, and in this one dished five assists, went down with an ankle injury likely to keep her sidelined Saturday, pending X-rays, but is hoped to be ok when the league schedule kicks in.

“You look at the schedule and you really like it, and then suddenly it looks tough,” said Griffin of playing the Broncs, whose longtime head coach Lynn Milligan one time served on her staff with the Hawks.

While the prospects of Jekot playing Saturday looked nil, Griffin did whimsically allow that perhaps miracles could happen.

“We got off to a hot start and then we got cold,” Griffin said of the flow of the game in which defense was key. 

Rider (3-5) trailed by double digits in the final quarter and then excited the home crowd rallying in the closing minutes to within three of Saint Joseph’s on a 12-3 run until the Hawks scored the final four points to preserve the win.

Makayla Firebaugh was the only Rider player in double figures with 12 points while Amanda Mobley grabbed eight rebounds and unintentionally entertained those within hearing distance when she crashed into press row under the Broncs basket and then bounced off and smiled, yelling, “I’m ok.”

“The fans saw a great basketball game tonight,” Milligan said. “We played a really solid three quarters. The first quarter, they dropped 22 on us, and after that we were defensively pretty strong. A couple too many turnovers and some missed opportunities.

“Every time you make a mistake, the Basketball Gods make you pay for it. We’re disappointed. It’s a home loss. We dug ourselves that hole in the first quarter and it was pretty even after that. You have to come out ready and throw that first punch.” 

Saint Joseph’s is 6-1 in the series, the one win coming several years ago for Rider in the Hawks’ annual holiday tournament.

Rider next goes up the road to visit Seton Hall at 11 a.m. Friday in Walsh Gym in South Orange, N.J.

La Salle Holds Off Monmouth: The Explorers bounced back off their Monday Big Five loss at Villanova, topping the Hawks of Central New Jersey in a 66-60 win at home in Tom Gola Arena, thriving off a 21-14 fourth quarter finish.

Three players for La Salle (7-4) had 13 as a lucky number as Claire Jacobs, Kayla Spruill, and Mia Jacobs all collected that number, while Jacobs and Spruill each grabbed six rebounds.

Briana Tinsley had a game-high 21 points for Monmouth (5-4) and Ariana Vanderhoop scored 13.

Next for  coach Mountain MacGillivray’s squad is a Saturday trip to Maryland-Eastern Shore (UMES) at 1 p.m.

Rutgers Downed at Illinois: The only local playing, the Scarlet Knights after a home-opening Big Ten loss to then-No. 4 Ohio State on Sunday took its first conference road trip, falling 80-62 at Illinois’ State Farm Center in Champaign.

Kaylene Smikle had 22 points for Rutgers (4-7, 0-2 Big Ten), while Awa Sidibe had 13 points and Chyna Cornwell had a double-double 10 points and 11 rebounds.

Adalia McKenzie had 22 points and 13 rebounds for the Illlini (8-2, 1-1) while Makira Cook scored 20. It was the home team’s first win over the Scarlet Knights since 2017 and first time since 2015 the winners posted 80 points in Big Ten competition.

Genesis Bryant scored 14 as the visitors were forced into 21 turnovers, Illinois collecting eight steals and blocking four shots.

“This was really a big game,” said first-year head coach Shauna Green hired from Dayton of the Atlantic 10. “I’ve been preaching to our team that we do not lose at home. It’s gonna be really, really hard to beat us at home, and I think they’re buying into that.”

On Saturday Rutgers returns home beginning a string of nonconference games hosting Hampton, then nearby Princeton next Thursday, and New Orleans a week from Sunday.

Nationally Noted: There were a bunch of geographical rival games, the most notable an upset as No. 16 Iowa beating visiting No. 10 Iowa State 70-57 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City.

Caitlin Clark had 19 points, eight rebounds, eight assists, and a tied personal best five steals for Iowa (7-3), while Monika Czinano had a double-double 18 points and 10 rebounds. 

The Hawkeyes have taken six of the last seven against the Cyclones (6-2), who got 15 points each from Emily Ryan and Ashley Joens, while Lexi Donarski got 10 as did Stephanie Soares with 11 rebounds.

Washington State on the road rallied for the largest comeback in Cougars’ history, erasing a 19-point deficit for a 69-63 over West Coast Conference contender Portland at the host Pilots’ Chiles Center in Oregon.

Only 5:40 remained in regulation when Washington State (7-1) came to life. It’s the best start for the visitors since an 8-1 spurt in 2015-16 and first win over the Pilots (5-5) in 37 seasons.

Washington State’s Charlisse Leger-Walker had 15 points, Bella Murekatete scored 14, Johanna Teder had 13, and Astera Tuhina had 12.

Alex Fowler scored 15, Maisie Burnham had 14, and Lucy Cochrane scored 10 for Portland.

No. 19 Baylor (7-2) won at home 91-36 against UT Arlington in Waco, Texas, the 55-points the largest victory margin since Nicki Collen took over the Bears when Kim Mulkey left for LSU. Sarah Andrews scored 20, Jana Van Gytenbeek scored 15 off the bench, Darianna Littlepage-Buggs had 11 points and 10 rebounds, and Caitlin Bickle dealt a career-high seven assists.

Columbia went out to Long Island and handled Stony Brook 84-68 as Jaida Patrick scored 21 for the Lions (8-2) and Kaitlyn Davis scored 19.

Looking Ahead: Penn on Thursday night will be after its fourth-straight win and .500 on the season when the Quakers host St. Francis Brooklyn at 7 on ESPN+ at The Palestra, while No. 4 Indiana in a Big Ten game visits Penn State at 7 on the Big Ten subscription network. 

Princeton at 7 p.m. on SNY is at No. 6 UConn at Gampel Pavilion on the Storrs campus as visiting Tigers coach Carle Berube returns to the campus she starred for the Huskies in the mid-1990s. As noted on the previous report Lafayette due to health issues had to postpone its visit from No. 5 Notre Dame, the two sides looking for a date to reschedule.

Nationally, on a schedule affected over the next week by academic finals, No. 20 Maryland is at Purdue in a Big Ten clash, MAC favorite Toledo is at No. 14 Michigan at 7 p.m. in Ann Arbor, No. 12 Arizona hosts Kansas at 8 on the PAC -12 network, and No. 21 Arkansas hosts Lamar.

And that’s your report.