The Guru NCAAW Report: Saint Joseph’s Flies Into Finals Soaring Over Maine

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

PHILADELPHIA — Not being around collegiate players all the time it can be easy to forget that this is the annual stretch for those pursuing their education while playing their sport that the onset of finals and and a grueling two-week period when classrooms take precedence over arenas can impact the finest offensive machines.

But none of that seemed to be a problem Monday night here on Hawk Hill at Hagan Arena where Saint Joseph’s went into the academic break with a date to take care of first, playing America East favorite Maine.

The fact that Laura Ziegler had familiar friends from Denmark on the opposing side was not disruptive either.

Paced by senior guard Mackenzie Smith from Nova Scotia, who delivered separation in the third quarter with 15 of her season-high 26 points, including three shots from deep near the end of the period, the home team, who shot 60 percent for the game, enjoyed a relatively smooth ride to a 74-48 victory.

If any rust sets in during the next 11 days, there will be two chances to shake it off at the annual Hawk Classic Dec. 20 and Dec. 21.

Saint Joseph’s (7-2) will meet MEAC-contender Howard at 11 a.m. a week from Friday on Dec. 20 followed the next day meeting either the College of Charleston, a Coastal Athletic Association school in Drexel’s conference that has been speculated as a potential replacement in the A-10 when Massachusetts goes off to the Mid-American Conference.

Or in another homecoming special, Northwestern from the Big Ten which is coached by Joe McKeown, who grew up in Northeast Philadelphia and had a long stint in the A-10 steering George Washington in the nation’s capital as a national powerhouse.

Then a week later VCU visits to launch the conference slate with little room for error, as last year’s slip down the stretch serves a reminder for a costly loss that put the Hawks on the wrong side of the bubble when it came time to fill the 68-team NCAA tournament field.

But watching coach Cindy Griffin’s veteran group perform Monday, one is mindful of Hall of Fame UConn coach Geno Auriemma at his post game press conference in Brooklyn Saturday night after his No. 2 Huskies had plowed Louisville.

Healthy at last after being injury-riddled for the last several seasons, Auriemma remarked of his group, “This is what we can be. Now it may not happen every night, but you get a sense of what it can be.”

Like certainly not on the same level, but adept enough that when it comes to playing other prominent mid-majors, this is what the Hawks can be.

Smith’s scoring total was built on a personal best 6-9 from beyond the arc while Ziegler equaled equaled her best of 16 boards with 16 points and six assists. Talya Brugler had 14 points and five assists.

Gabby Casey was also in double digits with 11 points, four boards, three assists, two steals and two blocks.

Maine (3-7), which opened at home beating La Salle, losing the next week to visiting Penn, got 17 points from Asta Blauenfeldt, while Olivia Rockwood scored 11.

The game here was the only one involving local action and there wasn’t much elsewhere.

The lone ranked team, No. 16 Kentucky, beat Queens, the school in North Carolina not outside Manhattan, 87-45, as Virginia Tech transfer Georgia Amoore scored 20 and Amelia Hart scored 19 for the Wildcats (8-1).

Queens fell to 5-4.

Seton Hall at home beat Sacred Heart 67-46 as Savannah Catalon scored 20 for the Pirates (7-2), while Ny’Ceara Pryor scored 17 for the opposition

Quinnipiac (7-1) at home beat Yale 76-50 as reserve Ella O’Donnell scored 16 for the Bobcats. Caranda Perea had 14 points and freshman Gal Raviv scored 13 with seven boards.

Looking Ahead

No locals are scheduled Tuesday but No. 11 Ohio State hosts Ball State at 6 p.m., and No. 6 Southern Cal hosts Fresno State at 9 p.m. on BTN.

On Wednesday, locally, Villanova is at Delaware at 6:30 p.m. on FloSports, while Princeton hosts Rhode Island at 7 p.m. (ESPN+) in Jadwyn Gym; Penn State is at Providence at 7 p.m. on FloSports, and and Rutgers at 7 p.m. (B1G+) hosts Fairleigh Dickinson.

No. 18 Iowa State (8-2) is at No. 21 Iowa (8-1) at 9 p.m.

The big game of the week that far out on Thursday is the Shamrock Classic as No. 2 Connecticut visits No. 8 Notre Dame at 7 p.m. on ESPN.

And that’s it for the moment.