Monmouth Hawks (4-4, 0-0 MAAC) at Iona Gaels (2-3, 0-0 MAAC)
Saturday, Dec. 18, 2021 – 1 p.m. EST
Hynes Athletic Center, New Rochelle, N.Y.
TV
ESPN3
Play-by-Play: Chris Lynch
Monmouth Notes
OPENING TIP
-The Hawks are looking for a bounce-back win after falling to No. 23 Oregon State, 72-58, in their most-recent outing on Dec. 10 at OceanFirst Bank Center.
-Iona has yet to play a game this month and will look to get back into the win column after dropping three straight contests to UMass, Stony Brook and Bucknell.
-The Gaels' last victory came on Nov. 13, when Iona topped Winthrop, 67-45, at Hynes Athletics Center.
INSIDE THE SERIES
-Saturday's matchup between Monmouth and Iona marks the 25th all-time meeting between the two sides as well as the MAAC opener for both teams.
-Monmouth has claimed two of its last three conference openers, with the last coming during the 2019-20 season when the Hawks bested Manhattan, 62-60 on Dec. 17.
-Iona took both of the contests against Monmouth a season ago, topping the Hawks on back-to-back days in West Long Branch on March 4-5.
-Monmouth has won each of the last three outings versus the Gaels in New Rochelle, N.Y., including a 56-50 victory on Feb. 11, 2019.
KEEPING PACE WITH RANKED FOE
Despite falling to No. 23 Oregon State on Dec. 10, the Hawks stayed within striking distance for much of the game. The 14-point loss (72-58) was the closest Monmouth has finished against a ranked opponent in program history. The closest prior final score between the Hawks and a ranked team came on Nov. 21, 2011 when Monmouth was topped by Georgetown, 64-44.
A PAIR OF REBOUNDING GUARDS
Graduate student
Stella Clark and sophomore
Ariana Vanderhoop have been two of the Hawks' top rebounders this season, combining for 29 percent of Monmouth's boards. Clark is averaging 7.8 rebounds per contest over the last four outings, while Vanderhoop is averaging 7.7 rebounds per tilt over the last three games, which includes a pair of 10-rebound performances.
THREE HAWKS A SCORING
Three Hawks reached double figures in the scoring column against No. 23 Oregon State on Dec. 10 led by
Jen Louro's 15. It marked the third time this season that Monmouth had three players hit that mark in the same game. It was an occurrence that happened just three times a season ago.
