2017-18 Rider University Women's Basketball
GAME 11: Thursday, December 21, 2017
Rider Broncs (3-7, 0-0 MAAC) vs. Binghamton Bearcats (7-4, 0-0 America East)
Location: Lawrenceville, NJ – Alumni Gymnasium (1,650)
Tip: 7:00 pm
Live Video: BroncVision
Live Stats: SideArm Stats
Twitter: @RiderWBB & @RiderAthletics
Listen: 107.7 The Bronc
Tickets: GoBroncTix.com
Notes: Binghamton

What You Need to Know
- Rider returns to action on Thursday, December 21, with a home non-conference clash with Binghamton. The meeting is the first between the two teams since the 2014-15 campaign. The contest is the final out of league game for the Broncs this season and the first of three straight home tilts for Rider.   

- Binghamton enters the midweek tilt with a 7-4 overall record following a 68-58 overtime win at Cornell on Monday. The Bearcats are in the midst of a three-game winning streak. Binghamton is 3-2 in true road games this year and 4-3 overall away from home. All five starters for the Bearcats average over seven points per game led by senior guard Imani Watkins with over 20 per contest. Watkins is also averaging over three assists and just under steals per tilt. She has also connected on a team-high 28 shots from three-point range. Sophomore guard Kai Moon is the other Bearcat scoring in double figures, pouring in 11 per game. Moon is shooting over 40 percent from the field, including a team-best 36.7 percent from beyond the arc. In the post, senior center Alyssa James is a force for Binghamton. James is scoring over nine points per game, grabbing a team-high 8.6 rebounds per game and blocking an impressive 4.9 shots per game. James leads the nation in blocked shots and ranks second in blocks per game. As a team, Binghamton is shooting better than 31 percent from three-point range and grabbing more than 42 rebounds per tilt. The Bearcats also lead the country with over eight blocked shots per game.

- Binghamton and Rider are playing for the fifth time in the series history and for the first time since the 2014-15 campaign. The Bearcats and the Broncs have split the first four meetings. Rider has won two of the last three meetings between the two teams, but Binghamton won the last game the two played, 72-67, in the Empire State in December of 2014. The home team has won the last two games in the series.

- Last time out, Rider never trailed en route to a 79-64 road non-conference win at NJIT on Saturday. The Broncs jumped out to a 14-point first quarter lead and held off the Highlanders third-quarter charge to pick up their third win of the year. The Broncs shot an impressive 59.6 percent (28-of-47) from the field and knocked down a season-high 90.9 percent of their free throws (20-of-22). The team also tied a season-best with 18 assists.

- After a career-best performance against NJIT last week, redshirt sophomore forward Lea Favre was honored as the College Sports Madness MAAC Women's Basketball Player of the Week. Favre becomes the second straight Bronc to earn the distinction after Kamila Hoskova picked up the honor last week. The weekly accolade was the first of Favre's young career at Rider. Favre scored a career-high 22 points in a 15-point Rider win at NJIT on Saturday. She knocked down 8-of-10 from the field and was a perfect 6-of-6 from the free-throw line. Her eight field-goals made and six free throws were also career-bests for the six-foot redshirt sophomore. Favre also grabbed one rebounds and dished out one assist in the victory versus the Highlanders.

- After struggling from the field early in the season, Rider has shot 45 percent or better in each of its last three games. The Broncs shot 51.9 percent (28-54) at La Salle, 45.6 percent (26-57) at Mount St. Mary's and a season-best 59.6 percent (28-47) at NJIT. Versus Vermont on December 1, the Broncs hit eight three-pointers, against La Salle the team knocked down 6-of-12 attempts from beyond the arc and at Mount St. Mary's they shot a season-best 55.6 percent from three-point range and hit a season-high 10 shots from three-point range.

- Stella Johnson had three steals at NJIT. It marked her fourth straight contest with three or more steals and it was her sixth such game of the season. Johnson opened the year with six steals at home versus Bucknell. She leads the team with 28 steals this season is averaging 2.8 steals per game. She is currently second in the MAAC in both steals and steals per game.

- Kamila Hoskova scored a career-high 32 points on 11-of-20 shooting against Mount St. Mary's. It marked the second time this season that she has topped the 20-point plateau. Last time out, she poured in 17 points at NJIT. Hoskova has scored in double figures a team-high nine times and has led the team in scoring in five games. She has a team-best 16.6 points per game and also leads the team in rebounding with over six boards per contest.

- At NJIT on December 16, Rider shot a season-best 90.9 percent from the free-throw line (20-of-22). It marked the third time this season that the Broncs had hit 20 or more free throws in a game. Rider is 3-1 in 2017-18 when hitting better than 77 percent of their free-throw attempts in a game. On the year, the team has hit 73.4 percent (157-214) of the free throws, which ranks second in the MAAC.

- Hoskova ranks in the top-five in the MAAC in three different categories thus far this season. She is second in the league in scoring, pouring in over 16 points per game, fourth in free-throw percentage at 83.8 percent (57-of-68) and fifth in field-goal percentage at 45.5 percent (51-of-112).