Men's Basketball | 1/30/2016 10:39:00 AM

WATCH BLOOMFIELD-PHILAU WOMEN'S GAME (2 p.m.)

WATCH BLOOMFIELD-PHILAU MEN'S GAME (4 p.m.) 

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (January 29, 2016) -- The ESPN Family of Networks and NCAA Division II picked an outstanding basketball doubleheader to broadcast on Saturday when Bloomfield College and Philadelphia University face off with the women's game at 2 p.m., followed by the men's contest at 4 p.m. The games, which will be held at the Gallagher Center on the PhilaU campus, will air live on ESPN3.

ESPN3 is ESPN's live multi-screen sports network, a destination that delivers thousands of exclusive sports events annually.  It is accessible online at WatchESPN.com, on smartphones and tablets via the WatchESPN app and streamed on televisions through Amazon Fire TV and Fire TV Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Roku, Xbox 360 and Xbox One.  The network is currently available to more than 99 million homes at no additional cost to fans who receive their high-speed Internet connection or video subscription from an affiliated service provider.  The network is also available at no cost to approximately 21 million U.S. college students and U.S.-based military personnel via computers, smartphones and tablets connected to on-campus educational and on-base military broadband and Wi-Fi networks.

Fans wishing to watch the women's game at 2 p.m. can CLICK HERE for a direct link to the broadcast on ESPN3.

Fans can also CLICK HERE for a direct link to the men's game at 4 p.m.

Both games in Saturday's doubleheader will feature four teams with their sites set on not just conference championship hardware this March, but also lengthy runs in the NCAA Division II Tournament East Regional.

The women's game will not only feature the first-place teams in the North (Bloomfield) and South (Philadelphia) Divisions, but also teams that are undefeated in conference play with identical 12-0 marks. Both are also 16-5 overall this season.

Bloomfield has won three straight and seven of its last eight entering Saturday's tilt. Each of Bloomfield's last five wins have come via double-figures with an average margin of victory being slightly over 19 points.

Tianna Smith is leading the team in scoring at 16.0 points per game, while Ariel Wilson follows at 10.6 points a night. Chyna Golden leads the Bears in rebounding at 9.7 boards an outing.

The Bears come into tomorrow's contest fresh off a 74-54 win over Dominican College on Tuesday. Smith led four double-figure scorers with 17 points, while narrowly missing a double-double with nine rebounds. Wilson just missed a double-double herself with nine points and 10 boards. Morgan Taylor chipped in a dozen points, while Golden and Iman Williams followed with 11 and 10, respectively.

PhilaU is riding a 10-game winning streak heading into the game, including a 61-53 win over Wilmington University its last time out on Tuesday. Bria Young pumped in a team-best 19 points, while Tori Arnao followed with 14. Rachel Day rounded out the Rams' double-digit scorers with 12 points. Mary Newell added 10 rebounds in the win.

A Rams' win on Saturday would prove to be a historic one for head coach Tom Shirley, as it would be career win No. 700. Shirley, who is also the Director of Athletics at the school, has been at the helm of the PhilaU women's program for 27 seasons. Overall, he is in his 35th season as a college head coach.

Bloomfield won the last meeting in this series, which came by way of a 76-69 decision last season in New Jersey. Smith and Taylor led the way for the Bears with 20 and 18 points, respectively, while Monica Schacker kept the Rams in it with a game-high 26 points powered by a 5-for-8 shooting clip from three-point range.

On the men's side, Bloomfield comes into the game in first place in the North with a 9-10 overall record and an 8-4 mark in league play. Don't be fooled by the team's overall record, as the Bears have been playing really well as of late by winning 9 of their last 14 after opening the year with five-consecutive losses. 

Bloomfield has won five straight entering Saturday with two of those wins coming in overtime and the other three coming by two-point margins each time. To say the Bears know how to win close games would be an understatement and will serve them well on Saturday in front of a national TV audience on ESPN3.

Claude Blue and Nick Davidson lead the team in scoring at 16.5 ppg and 16.3 ppg, respectively. Ignacio Diez tops the squad with 7.3 rebounds a game. Bloomfield picked up a 78-76 win back on Tuesday night versus Dominican, as Davidson helped power the way with 21 points.

The Rams have notched seven-straight wins entering the Bloomfield game and are 17-4 overall and 10-2 in conference action. 

The last time out for PhilaU saw it pick up a 71-58 triumph over WilmU, as Peter Alexis was 12-of-15 from the field and poured in a game-best 28 points. He also added seven rebounds. Philadelphia shot 58 percent from the field.

Four Rams are averaging double-figures in scoring this year, led by Alexis at 19.9 points per game. He is also shooting at a 63-percent clip this year. T.J Huggins paces the Rams at 9.1 boards a game.

Philadelphia won the last time both teams squared off, which came back in the 2014-15 season. The Rams picked up a 78-72 road win over the Bears, as Derek Johnson and Nick Schlitzer spearheaded the way with 22 and 21 points, respectively. Huggins and Alexis followed with 16 and 12. Marvin Williams had a game-high 26 points for Bloomfield, while Blue logged a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds.

The Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference is an NCAA Division II Conference composed of 14 institutions in Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. The member institutions are Bloomfield College, Caldwell University, Chestnut Hill College, Concordia (N.Y.) College, Dominican (N.Y.) College, Felician University, Georgian Court University, Goldey-Beacom College, Holy Family University, Nyack College, Philadelphia University, Post University of Waterbury, University of the Sciences, and Wilmington University.

story courtesy of Doug Debiase - Assistant Commissioner for Strategic Communications - Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference

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