LIU Brooklyn at St. Francis Brooklyn
Game Details	Saturday, Jan. 31 | Brooklyn Heights, N.Y. | 1:00 p.m. | Pope Center
Game Coverage	Video
LIU Brooklyn Links	Notes | News | Roster | Schedule
St. Francis Brooklyn Links	News | Roster | Schedule

BROOKLYN, N.Y. - The LIU Brooklyn women's basketball team (6-13, 3-5 NEC) comes home to Brooklyn Saturday, but not in the Steinberg Wellness Center. The Blackbirds will head up the road to Brooklyn Heights, taking on local foe St. Francis Brooklyn (5-15, 2-6 NEC), Saturday, January 31 at 1 p.m. The game is the first of a doubleheader, as the men's teams will tip off at 4 p.m. following the women's game. 

BLACKBIRD BITS
• Though this will be A battle in Brooklyn, it will not be THE annual Battle of Brooklyn game. The 22nd annual title game between the two teams will be hosted by LIU this year, in the final regular-season game of the year, Monday, March 2 at 7 p.m. 
• The Blackbirds staged a late rally in the Chace Athletic Center Monday night, forcing Bryant to overtime, but the Northeast Conference-leading Bulldogs persevered in the extra period, winning the game, 88-85. Four LIU players scored in double-digits in the loss, led by junior Sophie Bhasin, who scored 24 points.
• It was just the second time this season that LIU has had four players score 10+ points. Bhasin led all players with 24 points.
• Sophomore Brianna Farris had a career-high 15 points in the loss, while Shanice Vaughan had ten points, four rebounds and four assists.
• Freshman DeAngelique Waithe had a career-high 14 points, going 7-for-11 from the field. She also led the team with eight rebounds, six of which were offensive.
• LIU shot 52.9 percent from the field in the loss, including 54 points in the paint.

ALL-TIME SERIES 
• This is the 71st time that the two Brooklyn teams have met on a women's basketball court. LIU holds the all-time advantage, 47-23, but recent history is on the side of the Terriers. SFBK has won the last four match-ups between the two squads, including both in the 2013-14 season. 
• In the first of two last season, the Blackbirds dropped the game at the Barclays Center, 69-48. St. Francis was then ranked No.25 in CollegeInsiders.com Mid Major Poll. Senior Cleandra Roberts led all players in scoring in the game, as she hit a career-high with 27 points, along with six rebounds. But she was the only Blackbird with serious production, as LIU shot 31 percent from the field in the loss.
• And in the 21st Annual Battle of Brooklyn, LIU fell to the Terriers, 66-50. Sophie Bhasin led LIU with 21 points. St. Francis guard Sarah Benedetti was named the Battle of Brooklyn MVP, as she went 7-for-12 from behind the three point line to lead all scorers with 25 points. It was the second-straight Battle of Brooklyn title for the Terriers.

SCOUTING THE TERRIERS
• After a strong 2013-14 season, the Terriers have struggled early in this season. St. Francis comes into Saturday's game 5-15 overall, and 2-6 in the NEC. SFBK has NEC wins over Saint Francis U and FDU so far this season, while suffering relatively close losses to everyone else. Most recently, league-leading CCSU snuck away with a 51-49 victory over St. Francis Monday night. 
• The Terriers are currently number one in the conference in scoring defense, holding opponents to just 62.7 points per game. They also have the best free throw percentage of any team in the conference, hitting 76.4 percent of their shots from the charity stripe.
• St. Francis has four players who average in double digits in scoring. Senior guard Eilidh Simpson leads the squad with 13.8 points per game. She is also second in the NEC in overall free throw percentage, as she makes 87.5 percent of her shots from the line.
•  Senior guard Sarah Benedetti adds 12.1 points per game, while senior forward Jaymee Veney averages 12.1 points per game, and a team-high 8.2 rebounds per game.
• Junior guard Leah Fechko is another double threat, putting up 10.7 points per game, and snagging 8.2 rebounds per game. She's also a hot shot - she is currently second in the NEC in overall field goal percentage, at 49.0 percent