Feb. 22, 2008

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BOSTON - In a battle between the two most prolific scoring teams in the America East, the Boston University women's basketball team will travel to Vermont on Saturday, Feb. 23 for a 2:00 p.m. game on CN8. The Terriers will look to sweep the season series with the Catamounts after taking an 83-73 victory at Case Gym on Feb. 2. BU enters with a 14-10 overall record and 7-4 AE mark, while UVM is 18-7 overall and 9-3 in league play.

The Terriers and Catamounts have met a combined 58 times. It is tied for the second-oldest series in BU's program history with UNH, and behind only Maine (62 contests). BU leads the series, 31-27, and has won 10 of the last 12 contests. The series began on Nov. 29, 1978 in a 75-53 BU victory. The Terriers rattled off 16 straight wins in the series - going undefeated in the 1980s - before succumbing to Vermont for the first time on Feb. 3, 1990 by a 66-52 margin. The Catamounts made it two in a row with a victory on Jan. 19, 1991, 71-67, before the Terriers split the season series that year with a 54-53 decision. Vermont strung together six consecutive victories from Jan. 18, 1992 to Jan. 15, 1994. During the mid-1990s both teams traded wins, however, on March 3, 1996, Vermont began a streak of 15 consecutive wins that would be its longest in the series history.

The Catamounts rank second in the league with 66.4 ppg, while holding opponents to 59.0 ppg. In addition, their scoring margin (+7.3) is second only to Hartford. On average, UVM brings down 38.8 rpg with sophomore Courtnay Pilypaitis averaging a team-high 6.5 rpg. Pilypaitis recently made history by recording the program's first-ever triple-double with 18 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in a 69-66 victory over league-leading Hartford. In that win, classmate May Kotsopoulos poured in a career-high 26 points. Most recently, Vermont overcame a late deficit to defeat UNH, 61-54, on Tuesday, backed by Pilypaitis' 19-point effort and Kotsoploulos' 14.

The Terriers are currently averaging 69.3 ppg - tops in the conference - with junior Jesyka Burks-Wiley leading the way with 13.7 ppg. In conference games, sophomore Aly Hinton has posted 11.0 ppg, while junior Christine Kinneary has come on strong in recent contests and is now posting 9.5 ppg. Kinneary has posted three consecutive double-figure scoring games, which includes a career-high 23 points vs. Binghamton on Feb. 13. Kinneary is also seventh nationally in assists per game (7.0) and fifth in assist/turnover ratio (2.5).

Most recently, senior Cheri Raffo led three players in double figures with 18 points, as BU cruised to a 77-56 victory over Maine Tuesday at Case Gym. Junior Christine Kinneary and senior Kasey Devine chipped in 15 and 12, respectively. BU shot a season-high 56.9 percent from the field, while going 10-for-16 from 3-point range.

Raffo was 6-for-10 from the field and 4-for-5 from the arc to earn America East's Player of the Game honors, while Kinneary was 5-for-6 with nine assists and two steals. The Terriers shot 62.5 percent (10-for-16) from 3-point range, while also posting 36 in the paint. The Terriers played stingy defense, matching a season high for steals with 13. They forced 27 Maine turnovers and scored 26 points off the miscues.

The Terriers return to Case Gym to host New Hampshire on Wednesday, Feb. 27 at 7:00 p.m.