Monmouth Hawks (13-12, 8-8 MAAC) at Fairfield Stags (18-6, 15-1 MAAC)
Thursday, Feb. 24, 2022 – 7 p.m. EST
Webster Bank Arena, Bridgeport, Conn.
 
TV
ESPN+
Play-by-Play: JJ Duke
Analyst: Kate Abromovich
 
Monmouth Notes

OPENING TIP
-A Monmouth win would give the Hawks their first road win against Fairfield since Feb. 3, 2019.
-A victory over the Stags would also give Monmouth its seventh road win of the year, the most for the program since the 2018-19 team won seven.
-The Hawks are looking to rebound after a four-game skid that included losses to Niagara, Rider, Manhattan and Saint Peter's.
-The Stags sit atop the MAAC standings with just one loss in conference play. Fairfield carries an eight-game win streak and eight-game home win streak into Thursday's contest.     
 
INSIDE THE SERIES
-Thursday's matchup between Monmouth and Fairfield marks the 23rd all-time meeting between the two sides and the second this season.
-Fairfield secured the win in the first meeting in West Long Branch on Jan. 24, 61-54. Kaci Donovan led Monmouth in scoring with 15 points, while Lucy Thomas logged 14 in the scoring column with a team-best six boards. Ariana Vanderhoop also finished with double-digit points with 10.
-The Stags have won five in a row in the all-time series and three straight at home opposite the Hawks.
 
DOUBLE-DOUBLE
Sophomore guard Ariana Vanderhoop became the second Hawk this season to record a double-double after she went for 11 points and a career-high 11 rebounds against Saint Peter's this past Monday. Teammate Stella Clark has also posted a double-double this season in a game against Marist on Jan. 15. It's the first time since the 2019-20 campaign that multiple Hawks notched a double-double in the same season.
 
BLOCKED BY BELLE
After sending away four shots in the Hawks' most-recent outing at Saint Peter's on Feb. 21, sophomore center Belle Kranbuhl passed Jewonda Bright '04 for 10th in career blocks at Monmouth. This year, Kranbuhl has logged a team-best 46 blocks and ranks first in the MAAC and 36th in Division I in blocks per game (1.9). She currently sits in 13th at Monmouth in single season blocks. The Boonville, N.Y., native ended her rookie season ranked 20th in Division I with 2.5 blocks per game. She became the eighth player in program history to record over 40 blocks in a single season, a feat accomplished in just 18 games. The 45 denials were the 14th most in single season program history. Her 2.5 blocks per game were the most by a Monmouth player since Suzanne Johnson '91 averaged 5.1 during the 1990-91 campaign.
 
READY WHEN CALLED UPON
The Monmouth bench has contributed heavily over the Hawks' last three outings. The non-starters have combined to score 87 in the last three games, accounting for 51 percent of the team's scoring. The Hawks' bench scored a season-best 41 points in the Feb. 19 game against Manhattan. It was the most points scored by Monmouth's non-starters in a game since Dec. 6, 2017 when the bench put up 41 against Fairleigh Dickinson.
 
THOMAS ON A TEAR
Senior forward Lucy Thomas has elevated her offensive production over the last few games for the Hawks. Over her last five outings, the Ocean, N.J., native is shooting 28-of-44 (64%) from the field while averaging 13 points and five rebounds per contest. She led Monmouth in scoring in two of the five contests and spearheaded the Hawks' fourth-quarter comeback against Canisius on Feb. 10 by going a flawless 5-of-5 from the floor for 10 of the team's 29 points in the closing 10 minutes. From the 3:51 mark of the first quarter against Canisius until the one-minute mark of the fourth quarter at Niagara, Thomas made 15 consecutive shots without a miss.