DePaul WBB Goes to 12-4 in Play4Kay Game

With the Chicago temperature getting colder and the snow piling up, it took DePaul a little while to warm up and start piling up the points. A hot third quarter propelled the Blue Demons to an 82-76 victory over BIG EAST rival Seton Hall.

Seton Hall led 17-13 after the first quarter, but DePaul tied it at 31 at halftime. DePaul came out strong in the third quarter to lead 61-51 at the end of three. Despite a Seton Hall fourth quarter surge, DePaul was able to hang on to grab the win. Overall, DePaul held the lead for 28:09 compared to Seton Hall's 9:56.

Both teams were cold from three-point land, with DePaul hitting 2-13 and Seton Hall 1-12. Things improved for both in the second half, as DePaul went 6-14 and Seton Hall went 4-14 from beyond the arc. DePaul finished shooting 29,6%, while Seton Hall ended at 19.2% from three-point land.

DePaul shot 39.2% from the field and 84.2% on free throws, while Seton Hall shot 49.5% and 43.8% respectively. Seton Hall's poor shooting really was the difference in the six point victory for the Blue Demons.

Seton Hall held the advantage in points from turnovers (15-10), points in the paint (48-28), second chance points (15-10) and points from the bench (11-6). DePaul only led in fast break points (23-19).

DePaul's Dee Bekelja had a double-double, with 22 points and 10 rebounds, both leading the team. Other DePaul scorers included Sonya Morris (20), Lexi Held (17), Jorie Allen (10), Deja Church (7) and Darrione Rogers (6). 

Lauren Park-Lane paced Seton Hall with 24 points. Andra Espinoza-Hunter led the irates with 15 rebounds.

Held scored her 1,000th point for the Blue Demons. She also hit two clutch free throws with seconds remaining to ice the win.

“Double-Double Dee” Bekelja notched her second double-double of the season. It was also the third one of her career.

No. 19/22 DePaul improved to 12-4, 9-2 in the BIG EAST while the Pirates dropped to 9-6, 7-5. The Blue Demons return to action Wednesday night against Xavier at Wintrust Arena in Chicago.

One final important note about Monday's game was the focus on raising awareness  and funding to combat breast cancer by prominently featuring pink. The Play4Kay game honors the legendary former North Carolina State coach Kay Pow, who courageously fought cancer for 22 years before passing in 2009.

DePaul coach Doug Bruno talked about Coach Kay in the post-game press session. His respect for Coach Kay was obvious as he got emotional just speaking about the iconic coach.

Also in the presser, Bekelja discussed her big night and her new nickname. She also stated she probably would be celebrating the win with a pizza while the team stays at a hotel near Wintrust through Wednesday's game. Bekelja also discussed learning and growing from the experience of holding off the Seton Hall surge at the end of the game.

Held was next up in the presser. She talked about reaching the 1,000 point milestone. Held also discussed the pressure and satisfaction of nailing the two clutch free throws.

Go to DePaulBlueDemons.com for more info on Coach Bruno's squad. Also, check here, GlobalWomensSportsRadio.com, Patch.com and GlobalTravelerUSA.com for my recurring coverage.

DePaul WBB Cruises By St. John's 101-84

Last night, the DePaul Blue Demons cruised to an easy 101-84 win over St. John's. The win came after an eight day layoff caused by the postponement of games against Butler and Creighton. The Blue Demons showed absolutely no rust from the long break.

DePaul scored first and never lost the lead. Their biggest lead was 26 points midway through the third quarter.

DePaul led in most team categories, except for bench points, with St. John's outscoring DePaul 19-6. DePaul led in points in the paint (56-48), points from turnovers (27-12), second chance points (19-9) and fast break points (33-30).

The points off the bench discrepancy is a bit misleading, as DePaul relied heavily on their starters throughout the game. DePaul head coach Doug Bruno discussed the aggressive play of the Blue Demons, despite the large lead. It's about keeping the team sharp and consistent (as opposed to showing up an opponent). Bruno mentioned being on both ends of that situation, stating all coaches understand the mindset and nobody takes offense.

DePaul led 26-14 after one quarter, 51-31 at halftime and 82-60 after three quarters. DePaul shot 48.2% from the field, 36% from three point land and 75% from the free throw line.

Dee Bekelja topped the scoring chart for DePaul with 22 points, but Lexi Held was right behind with 21. Deja Church (18), Jorie Allen (17) and Sonya Morris (17) all hit double digits. Darrione Rogers, Jolene Daninger and Kiara Dallman added two points each. 

Church paced the team with nine rebounds and seven others grabbed at least one rebound. Morris had nine assists, missing a double double by one, while Held pitched in with seven assists. Seven Blue Demons had at least one steal in Bruno's suffocating defense.

Qadashah Hoppie (28) and Kadaja Bailey (22) were the only St. John's players to score double digits. Bailey also had eight rebounds and four assists.

Right from the opening tip, it seemed like the teams were in a race to 100 points. DePaul won that race with about a 30 seconds left in the game.

DePaul now stands at 7-3 and 4-1 in Big East Conference play. Coming into the game, the Blue Demons were ranked 19 by the Associated Press and 25 by the USA Today/Coaches poll.

Barring any more postponements, DePaul is set to return to action against Georgetown on Saturday, January 16 in Washington, D.C. The following games against Villanova (January 20) and Providence (January 23) have already been postponed, leaving Xavier in Cincinnati as the next game after Georgetown. Of course, things can change quickly in this pandemic.

In the post-game presser, Coach Bruno, Bekelja and Held answered game-specific questions, as well as usual. Bekelja also talked about feeling “on” early in the game and any extra fun from playng on national television. Held discussed the conditioning needed to play Bruno's aggressive defense for an entire game.

Bruno was his usual humble and respectful self. Despite the relatively easy win, he was quick to compliment St. John's. Even in discussing keeping the defensive pressure in high gear with such a big lead, Bruno passionately stated it is his style and everyone knows and respects it, just as he respects the styles of others. In the end, it is all about making the team better and preparing them for the rest of the season.

Bruno also talked about the loss of freshman Kendall Holmes, who went down with an Achilles tear earlier in the week. Everyone has to step up to help fill that void.

Check back here for my coverage of DePaul WBB. Also, see coverage on GlobalTravelerUSA.com, Patch.com and GlobalWomensSportsRadio.com. Also, go to DePaulBlueDemons.com for more info on the team.

On the Beat With DePaul WBB Game 6

Two days after upsetting No. 9 Kentucky, DePaul faced a Georgetown team playing their first game of the season. DePaul came away with a 72-54 victory, but it wasn't quite an easy win.

The Blue Demons were basically in control the entire game. DePaul led for 37:21 of the game,while Georgetown only held a lead for 1:28. Georgetown's biggest lead was 2 points, midway through the second quarter.

DePaul led 21-18 after the first quarter and stretched it to 39-31 at halftime. Georgetown started hot in the third quarter, scoring the first five points, but DePaul bounced back with a 10 point run and led 57-40 at the end of the third. A 15-14 DePaul fourth quarter secured the DePaul win.

Dee Bekelja was the star for DePaul, reaching a double-double with 19 points and 12 rebounds. She also added two assists, four steals and a blocked shot to her stats line.

Lexi Held was next with 16 points, while Deja Church and Sonya Morris added 10 each. Darrione Rogers (7), Jolene Daninger (4), Kendall Holmes (3) and Nadege Jean (3) also got in the scoring column. Coach Doug Bruno was able to give his bench valuable playing time, with four reserves seeing double digit minutes.

Yasmin Ott led Georgetown with 18 points. Kelsey Ransom had 14 points. Five other players had single digit point totals.

Despite the large amount of minutes DePaul's bench played, they were outscored 14-10 by Georgetown's reserves. DePaul had the edge in points in the paint (26-20), second chance points (9-3) and fast break points (28-16).

Another notable stat saw DePaul forcing a season high 32 turnovers against Georgetown. DePaul has forced 23 or more turnovers in every game so far.

DePaul now stands at 4-2, with a three game winning streak. Their next game, is their first Big East road game. DePaul travels to Creighton for a Tuesday night battle, which will be televised nationally on FS1.

Go to DePaulBlueDemons.com for more info on the team. Also, check here, as well as GlobalTravelerUSA.com, Patch.com and GlobalWomensSportsRadio.com for more coverage.

On the Beat With the DePaul Women's Basketball Team 11/28/20 & 11/30/20

When I last left the DePaul Blue Demons Women's Basketball team, I was ankle deep in confetti celebrating the Big Ten Tournament victory at Wintrrust Arena. The team, the fans and I were happy and looking forward to the NCAA Tournament. Of course, the Tournament and all else stopped shortly after that day.

Last Saturday, the Blue Demons were finally back in action. Unfortunately, they lost a tough game 93-91 to Texas A&M.

The post-game presser featured Coach Doug Bruno, along with players Deja Church, Dee Bekelja and Sonya Morris. Of course, they discussed the game, but other main topics included playing while wearing masks, the lingering pandemic situation and the long layoff.

Despite the loss, everyone just seemed so happy to actually have basketball back. As usual, Coach Bruno ended his session thanking all for covering the tam and women's sports. Coach Bruno is a class act and is genuinely appreciative of the support. He has thanked me personally several times off camera and I always appreciate him for that.

The DePaul Blue Demons bounced back from their season opening loss in grand fashion with a huge 128-66 win over Chicago State. Their first win included an all-time scoring record, among other accomplishments.

DePaul came out strong and the game was never really in doubt. The Blue Demons, who started the game with a five guard offense, came out shooting. Thanks to a 21-1 run, the Blue Demons jumped to a 24-5 lead and never looked back. The big lead allowed Coach Doug Bruno to empty his bench early in the second quarter.

Coming of the bench, freshman Kendall Holmes led all scorers with 23 points, including hitting 6 of 8 3-point attempts. Lexi Held and Sonya Morris were next with 21 points, followed by Dee Bekelja with 15, Darrione Rogers with 12 and Deja Church with 11, as six players scored in double digits. Hannah Purcell (8), Jean Nadege (8), Maya Stovall (5), and Kayla Caudle (4) also got in on the scoring binge. Only Jolene Daninger somehow did not score, despite playing more than 17 minutes. 

Not surprisingly, DePaul also dominated in team stats. DePaul's biggest lead was 63 points, compared to Chicago State's early 2 point lead. DePaul led for 38:39, while Chicago State had the lead for 52 seconds. There were only three lead changes in the game.

DePaul's Friday game against Villanova was postponed, but will instead play Louisville in the prestigious Women’s Jimmy V Classic at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. The game will be televised nationally at 6 pm CST on ESPN. DePaul also announced it has canceled the December 9 game at Kent State.

You can also follow my coverage of DePaul Women's Basketball on GlobalTravelerUSA.com, Patch.com and GlobalWomensSportsRadio.com. Also, check out DePaulBlueDemons.com for all DePaul news.