THE BASICS:

SATURDAY:
GAME INFORMATION: Hartford Hawks (3-2) vs. Monmouth Hawks (1-2)
DATE/TIME: Saturday, Nov. 26 (2 p.m.)
COVERAGE: Live Stats  |  Game Notes  |  Twitter: @HartfordWBB

SUNDAY: 
GAME INFORMATION: Hartford Hawks (3-2) vs. Lehigh Mountain Hawks (4-1)/Norfolk St. Spartans (1-3)
DATE/TIME: Sunday, Nov. 27 (2 p.m./6 p.m.)
COVERAGE: Live Stats  |  Game Notes  |  Twitter: @HartfordWBB

OPENING TIP
The University of Hartford women's basketball team continues non-conference action this weekend with the Christmas City Classic, hosted by Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa. The Hawks open up the two-game tournament on Saturday, Nov. 26, with a 2 p.m. tilt against Monmouth. Action concludes on Sunday, Nov. 27, against the host-team Mountain Hawks or Norfolk State at either 2 or 4 p.m.  
 
SERIES HISTORY
Despite 55 combined previous matchups against the 11 teams that make up the MAAC, Saturday's meeting with Monmouth will be the first-ever between the two brands of Hawks. Sunday's matchup could also feature another inaugural meeting between two squads as Hartford has never faced Norfolk State in its 32 years as a Division I institution. A matchup between the Hawks and Mountain Hawks would be the fifth meeting between the schools, but the first since 1996. Hartford holds a 3-1 advantage over Lehigh.
 
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
Monmouth brings a 1-2 record into Saturday's tilt. After scoring a 13-point win over Robert Morris, the Hawks have since lost to St. Francis Brooklyn and Clemson. Tyese Purvis averages 15.3 points to lead all scorers and is the team's top threat from long range with nine makes. Monmouth has made 11 more three-pointers (31-20) than its opponents, but has 41 more attempts from downtown (91-50).
 
The host-team Mountain Hawks are 4-1 on the year. The team's lone setback came on opening weekend in a 63-49 decision to Duquesne. In its wins, Lehigh has averaged 77.8 points per game with an average margin of victory of 9.5 points. Two players are averaging in double figures for the Mountain Hawks, led by 19.4 points per game from Quinci Mann.

Norfolk State dropped a recent, 60-33 decision to George Mason to drop to 1-3 on the season. The squad's only win of the year was a 99-59 decision against Saint Augustine's on Nov. 15. Jordan Strode has a solid stat line for the Spartans with 13.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game while Dominique Harper adds 10.0 points per game. Khalil Ali has been dominant on the boards, pulling down 7.8 for a Norfolk State squad that averages 45.8 per contest.
 
A NEW ERA = A NEW STYLE
The Hawks began a new era in 2016-17 under the direction of first-year head coach Kim McNeill, who was named the program's eighth coach on May 25, 2016. Leading Hartford to a convincing season-opening win over Boston College in her coaching debut on Nov. 11, she spent the previous 16 seasons as an assistant coach at the Division I level. Fans were excited with the style of play that McNeill has instilled in her squad. Hartford's intense pressure on the defensive end was a key factor in the opening-night win. Hartford, which committed just 11 turnovers, forced 23 from BC, turning those miscues into 19 points on the other end.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Hartford dropped a 77-65 decision to visiting Providence on Tuesday at Reich Family Pavilion. Deanna Mayza scored a game-best 18 points for the Hawks, who were unable to recover from a third quarter that featured hot shooting by the Friars. Providence shot 71.4 percent in the decisive third stanza to take a 62-44 lead. The Hawks managed to trim that deficit down to six with three minutes left, but Providence held off the late charge.
 
NEXT ON TAP
The Hawks return home for a pair of games, beginning with a mid-week tilt against UMass on Wednesday, Nov. 30. The tilt, which is scheduled for a 6 p.m. tip from Chase Arena at Reich Family Pavilion, is part of a basketball doubleheader with the Hartford men's team, which is scheduled to host LIU Brooklyn at 8:30 p.m.
 
GRAND THEFT
McNeill's defensive-minded style of play has already been reflected in the stat sheet. As a team, Hartford is ranked first among America East squads in steals per game, averaging 12.4, three more than Binghamton (9.4). In each of the Hawks' five games this season, they have recorded double-digit steals, marking the first time since the 2011-12 campaign that the team has tallied 10-or-more steals in four-straight contests. That year, Hartford also accomplished the feat in five-straight contests, averaging 15.2 thefts from Jan. 28-Feb. 15, 2012.
 
IN THE SIXTIES
The offense has been productive early on this season for the Hawks. Leading the America East in points per game at 68.2, Hartford has scored 60-plus points in each of its five games this season, including a season-high 80 in last Saturday's win at Siena. It's been quite some time since the Hawks delivered 60-or-more points in five consecutive games, as the last time the feat was accomplished was in the 2013-14 campaign. During that stretch, which began with a 66-42 win over Binghamton on Jan. 23, the Hawks averaged 64.8 points.
 
DOUBLE-DIGIT SCORERS
Hartford has had 14 players reach double figures in the scoring column during each of its five games this season. Six of 12 players on the roster have hit double digits at least once through five games. Mayza is the only Hawk to finish in double figures in each game this season, while Sierra DaCosta has accomplished the feat three times.
 
TRIPLE THREAT
DaCosta, Kelly Douglass and Mayza have been highly successful from beyond the arc, combining for 26 of the Hawks' 32 makes from long range. The trio is shooting a combined 40.0 percent (26-for-65) from three-point range, taking all but 20 of the team's three-point attempts this season. Mayza has knocked down 14-of-30 shots from long range to lead Hartford in makes, while Douglass tops the squad in three-point field-goal percentage (50.0%) behind a selective 5-for-10 clip.
 
INSTANT IMPACT
Despite her freshman status, DaCosta has been an instant contributor for the Hawks through the opening part of the season. She has scored in double figures in three Hartford's five games, netting 11 in her debut against BC (Nov. 11) and 16 in the win at CCSU (Nov. 16) before adding 15 last Tuesday against Providence. Ranking second on the team in scoring with 11.0 points per game, DaCosta has made an impression on the defensive end as well, ranking second with 11.
 
THE SEASON FOR SHARING
Through five games, the Hawks have recorded an assist on 53.2 percent of their made field goals this season. Overall, Hartford has converted on 126-of-303 field goal attempts, totaling assists on 67 of those buckets. The Hawks have recorded double digits in helpers in all but one game, including a season-best 19-assist outing against Siena last Saturday.
 
PRODUCE OFF THE PINE
Despite carrying a 12-player roster, Hartford's depth has really prevailed after opening week. The bench has been pivotal to the Hawks' 3-2 start in 2016-17. The Hawks have gotten nearly 40 percent (37.8) of their scoring from non-starters, as the bench has produced 25.8 points per game, led by DaCosta's 11.0 scoring average. In addition, in each of Hartford's wins, the bench has outscored that of its opposition, including a commanding, 19-2 advantage in the season-opening win over BC (Nov. 11). Overall, the Hawks' bench has outscored their opponents' bench, 129-73.
 
SOLID TURNOVER
The Hawks' ability to create havoc in the backcourt has also been a key factor to the team's early success. Hartford currently leads the America East in turnover margin (+5.20), committing 71 miscues while forcing its opponents into 97. More impressively, the Hawks have been able to capitalize on their opponents turnovers, as 84 total points and nearly 25 percent (24.6%) of the team's scoring has come off of miscues forced by their defense.

MAYZA, FOR THREE!
Mayza is also climbing the rankings in Hartford's Division I record books in three-point field goal attempts and made three-point field goals. She recently moved past Bridget Murray for eighth in made three-point field goals with 111, needing 11 more to take over seventh place. In addition, her 349 attempts from long range rank seventh in the Hawks' record books.
 
DOING THE DISHES
Mayza has led Hartford in assists in four of the Hawks' five games this season, dishing out five-or-more on three occasions this year with eight against BC (Nov. 11), six against Florida Gulf Coast (Nov. 13) and seven in the most recent win at Siena (Nov. 19). She enters Saturday's tilt as the America East's leader in the category, averaging nearly one more than Stony Brook's Kori Bayne-Walker (4.3) with 5.4 per game, while her 2.3 assist-to-turnover ratio is also tops in the league.
 
MAYZA CLOSING IN ON 1,000
Mayza is on the cusp of becoming the 16th player in program history to reach 1,000 points. Scoring in double-figures in each of her five starts this season, the senior has 908 points on her career. If she were to accomplish the feat, she would be the first Hawk to reach the milestone since Amber Bepko in the 2014-15 season.
 
THE FUTURE LOOKS BRIGHT
McNeill announced part of her first-ever recruiting class as head coach of Hartford on Wednesday, Nov. 9. Five high school seniors signed National Letters of Intent, including a pair of Connecticut natives. Collectively, local products Jada Lucas (New London, Conn.) and Brielle Wilborn (Middletown, Conn.), as well as Courtney Dobrzynski (Bradley Beach, N.J.), Liz Garcia (Teaneck, N.J.) and Jade Young (Philadelphia, Pa.) are projected to be one of the most talented and versatile recruiting classes to have come through the program.