Marist Red Foxes (9-13, 7-10 MAAC) at Monmouth Hawks (13-14, 8-10 MAAC)
Wednesday, March 2, 2022 – 7 p.m. EST
OceanFirst Bank Center, West Long Branch, N.J.
 
TV
ESPN+
Play-by-Play: Eddy Occhipinti
Analyst: Dei Lynam
 
Monmouth Notes

MONMOUTH COVID-19 POLICIES
Monmouth University has announced its campus-wide indoor event COVID-19 policies.
 
The following policies are in effect until further notice:

1. All fans 18 and over are required to provide proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test administered by a doctor's office or a clinic within 72 hours of the event time for indoor Athletic events. Home test kit results will not be accepted.
2. All event audiences must wear a mask that completely covers the nose and mouth of the participant. Face shields are not acceptable. This includes fans from 2-17 years of age.
3. Athletic events held in the OceanFirst Bank Center will be permitted to have food in the stands as long as masks remain on when the participant is not actively consuming food or beverages. Masks must be worn otherwise.
 
Men's and women's basketball season ticket holders will be mailed (and emailed) instructions on how to obtain a vaccine credential which will require them to show their vaccine cards once and receive a credential to speed up entrance to events. Season ticket holders who are not vaccinated will need to show proof a negative test within 72 hours of the event for every event attended.
 
Additionally, there will be separate entrances for students, season ticket holders and the general public. More information on those locations will be available on MonmouthHawks.com

OPENING TIP
-Monmouth is in search of its first win and first home victory opposite Marist since Jan. 2, 2017.  
-A victory against the Red Foxes would give the Hawks their eighth home win of the season, the most in West Long Branch since the 2015-16 squad won eight. 
-The Hawks are currently on a six-game skid and are looking to get back into the win column. 
-The Red Foxes had their bye over the weekend, but played to a 1-1 mark earlier in the week with a win at Rider before falling to Quinnipiac at home. Marist has just two road victories this season in 13 outings.
 
INSIDE THE SERIES
-Saturday's matchup between Monmouth and Marist marks the 49th all-time meeting between the two sides and the second this season.
-The Red Foxes claimed the last meeting between the two teams after besting the Hawks, 71-53, in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., on Jan. 15. Stella Clark recorded a double-double in the contest, scoring 13 points to pair with 12 rebounds while adding six assists to her stat line.  
-Marist has won each of the last nine matchups in the all-time series, with every game being decided by double figures.
 
BELLE'S EFFICIENCY AT HOME
Sophomore center Belle Kranbuhl has been Monmouth's most efficient scorer in home games this season. In 11 home outings, Kranbuhl is shooting 51 percent from the field while averaging 8.6 points per game. In the Hawks' most-recent outing against Iona, she shot 7-of-8 from the floor for a team-high 16 points, tying her season-best mark. It was the second time this season that she made over five baskets in a game while recording just one miss.
 
FINDING HER TEAMMATES
Through Monmouth's 27 games, graduate student point guard Stella Clark leads the team with 107 assists (4.1 APG), which ranks third in the MAAC. She is the first Monmouth player to dish out over 100 assists in a season since Helena Kurt '17 handed out 139 during the 2014-15 campaign. Clark is just one of three Hawks to accomplish that feat in the last 20 seasons.
 
BLOCKED BY BELLE
After sending away four shots in the Hawks' game 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 47 blocks and ranks first in the MAAC and 49th in Division I in blocks per game (1.8). 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.