The Hall Heads To Hartford To Face No. 1 UConn

HARTFORD, Conn. - To be the best, you have to face the best.

The Seton Hall women's basketball team (7-1) will meet that challenge head-on this Saturday when it heads to the XL Center in Hartford to take on No. 1 UConn (8-0). Tip-off against the preeminent program in all of college basketball is set for 1 p.m. and will air on SNY in the NYC area and WatchESPN out of market with Eric Frede, Meg Culmo and Justine Ward on the call. The contest will also be available on the (internet) radio at WSOU.net.

The Hall is riding a three-game winning streak into Saturday's marquee match-up, sweeping a recent three-game home set with wins over St. Francis Brooklyn, UMass Lowell and Saint Peter's. The Huskies are coming off recent wins against then-No. 1 Notre Dame on Sunday before a 98-42 victory at Saint Louis on Tuesday. The Pirates have battled their former BIG EAST rival 59 times in program history with a 10-49 all-time record. The last meeting came in Connecticut's final season as a member of the league, a 90-30 win for the Huskies in Storrs in 2013. The Hall's last victory in the series was an upset of then-No. 8 UConn in 1994, which still stands as the highest ranked victory in SHU history.

SETON HALL TIP-INS

The Pirates are off to a 7-1 start and close non-conference play with three-straight away from home
Saturday will mark the first time The Hall has faced the No. 1 team in the nation since 2011
Seton Hall is top-15 nationally in scoring, assists, 3-pointers made, steals, turnover margin and turnovers forced
Nicole Jimenez (Miami, Fla.) is coming off a career-high 33 points and program-record nine 3-pointers on Sunday
Shadeen Samuels (Ossining, N.Y.) ranks top-five in the BIG EAST in points (17.0/g), rebounds (9.4/g) and field goal percentage (57.0)
On the year, Samuels, Jimenez (12.0 ppg) and Victoria Cardaci (10.3 ppg) all average double-figures

LAST TIME OUT

The Hall continued its impressive offensive play during the non-conference schedule on Sunday, rolling past Saint Peter's in a 90-47 rout
Nicole Jimenez led the day with a career and record-setting effort, scoring a career-best 33 points and setting The Hall's single game record with nine made 3-pointers
Jimenez went 9-for-13 point range to lead a 14-for-29 effort from downtown for the Pirates
The Hall also grabbed a season-high 51 rebounds, getting career-highs on the glass from Samuels (14) and Femi Funeus (12)
Joining Jimenez in double-figures was Cardaci with 12 points, while Desiree Elmore and Samuels both had nine
The Pirates finished with a 30-0 edge in fast break points thanks in part to 23 steals
Jimenez recorded the second-highest single-game steal total in program history with nine swipes and Elmore notched four

HUSKY HITS

Connecticut is 8-0 on the year and the unanimous No. 1 team in both major polls after its 17-point win at No. 2 Notre Dame on Sunday
Katie Lou Samuelson leads five UConn players averaging double-figures with 19.4 points per game, while Napheesa Collier averages a double-double with 18.5 points and 10.7 rebounds per night
As a team, the Huskies are shooting 52.3 percent from the floor and 41.1 percent from 3-point range
UConn has won its last 123 regular season contests

WHAT'S AHEAD
The Hall will have 12 days off for finals before returning to the hardwood on Dec. 20-21 at the West Palm Beach Invitational to face Georgia Tech and UNC Greensboro.