ANNAPOLIS, Md. - The Navy women's basketball team will look to rebound within the friendly confines of Alumni Hall on Wednesday as the Mids (7-16, 4-9 PL) host the American University Eagles (15-7, 8-4 PL) in an important Patriot League regular season bout. Coming off of two tightly-contested road losses last week, the Mids are back home and are aiming to collect their third home win out of their four most recent opportunities. Wednesday's matchup will be a revenge game for Navy as American knocked off the Mids late by shooting 90.0 percent in the fourth quarter at Bender Arena in Washington, D.C. on Saturday, Jan. 29 and coming out on top by a score of 69-60. The action is scheduled for a 7 p.m. tip in Annapolis and will be streamed live via ESPN+.

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Parking / Shuttle / Ticket / Masking Information
Fans are reminded that the general public does not have access to drive their vehicles on to the U.S. Naval Academy. Fans may park at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium and take a shuttle that will run every 10 minutes starting at 9:30 AM and will continue running until one hour after the men's game is completed. Fans 18 and over need a government-issued photo ID. Enter Gate 5 off Taylor Ave. to park at the stadium. Masks will be required for all spectators that attend games at Alumni Hall regardless of vaccination status. Additionally, all fans will be required to wear a mask during their trip on the shuttle. 

Coleman's Record Watch
One of the nation's leading all-around players, senior Jennifer Coleman currently ranks second in double-doubles (18), third in defensive rebounds per game (8.9), fifth in minutes per game (38.06) and seventh in points per game (22.8). That statline has her locked in and ready to decimate the Mids' single-season record books. Coming into Wednesday night's game, she has already grabbed the most defensive rebounds in a season with 205 caroms (previous mark was 204) and stands just seven points shy of breaking the single-season scoring record as she has 524 points through 23 games. Courtney Davidson holds the all-time record with 530 during Navy's 28-game 2002-03 season. Once past Davidson, Coleman will turn her attention to the Patriot League's single-season top-10; the 10th position is occupied by Army's Madison Hovren (2018-19) and Holy Cross' Lauren Maney (1995-96), who tallied 574 points in a season.

Navy versus American
The Mids and Eagles have met 63 times in a series that began on February 16, 1978  ... All-time, American leads Navy, 39-24 though the Mids have won 18 of those contests at Alumni Hall ... Over the last eight matchups in Annapolis, the series is tied four games a piece ... Since the Eagles joined the Patriot League in 2001-02, American is 25-17 against Navy ... In the last 10 American-Navy game, the Eagles are 8-2 overall. 
    Last 5 Games:
    Jan. 29, 2022 (A): American 69 - Navy 60
    February 24, 2021 (A): American 65 - Navy 59
    January 17, 2021 (H): Navy 70 - American 67
    January 16, 2021 (H): American 61 - Navy 52
    March 7, 2020 (A): American 63 - Navy 53 *Patriot League Tournament First Round

Looking Back at Navy-American...  January 29, 2022 in Washington, D.C.
Finding itself in a one-possession game deep into the fourth quarter, the Navy women's basketball team was unable to slow an American University squad that shot 90.0 percent in the fourth quarter and fell on the road by a score of 69-60. Down 59-58 with two and a half minutes to play, the Mids couldn't pull out the victory over the Eagles at Bender Arena on Saturday afternoon in the nation's capital.
 
Sydne Watts and Jennifer Coleman led Navy's individual efforts against American as the pair combined for 39 points. Watts finished with 20 points, while Coleman was right behind with 19 points. The senior guard completed her 15th double-double of the season with 10 rebounds. She added six assists and four steals.

Navy opened the action on Saturday with strong offensive output as the Mids netted eight of the first 10 points by the 5:52 mark. After an American field goal the next time down the court, Watts increased her team's lead to seven points with a three-pointer from the wing at 5:13. Following a lull in the action where the Eagles scored the only two points in a run of nearly three minutes, Coleman tried her hand from long range as she swished home a trey to make it a 14-6 game at 2:27. American tightened the contest down the stretch as the period closed with a 16-11 score.
 
The game stayed at that five-point margin for the initial five minutes of the second quarter as each team converted two baskets. A steal and fast break layup by Coleman at 4:54 gave Navy a seven-point lead of 22-15. The Mids and Eagles traded three-pointer makes on the ensuing two possessions before Navy recorded its third straight basket, a Coleman layup, to go up nine, 27-18 at 3:55. The Eagles clawed their way back and drew within two courtesy of a 7-0 run going down to 1:36. Another steal and breakaway by Coleman helped Navy end that streak and take a four-point advantage into the halftime intermission.
 
The close competition persisted into the second half as the Mids slowly built its lead out to five points over the first 2:11. Watts capped that portion of the action with a three-pointer from the top of the arc. A 6-0 run by the Eagles flipped the scoreboard into the favor of the hosts at a 35-34 margin by 5:23. Another basket by Watts allowed Navy to re-take the lead the next time down the court. The back-and-forth play continued as the two teams jockeyed for the lead on the scoreboard over the next three-plus minutes. Tied 40-40 at 1:42, American scored five of the last six points to take a 45-41 lead through 30 minutes of action.
 
The Mids continued fighting and nearly pulled even with the Eagles when Coleman went three-for-three at the foul line at 8:51 to make it 47-46. The visitors eventually succeeded in that task and tied the Eagles at 53-53 following a Coleman layup at 5:42. The game was tied for a fifth time less than a minute later as both teams made baskets in their respective possessions. After a brief 4-0 run by American, Watts reached the 20-point plateau as she made a jumper and converted an 'and-one' free throw. With the score 59-58 at 2:38, the Eagles locked up the hard-fought victory with a 10-2 run to close the game. On its way to the nine-point victory, American shot 90.0 percent (9-10) from the field and 75.0 percent (3-4) at the foul line in the final period of play.
 
For the game, American outshot Navy, 49.0 percent (25-51) to 42.6 (23-54) from the field and 38.1 percent (8-21) to 22.2 (4-18) from three-point range. The Mids finished with a slight 83.3 percent (10-12) to 73.3 (11-15) edge in free throw shooting.

Comparing the Teams

Last Time Out: Navy at Army, Saturday, February 12
Three weeks after an exhilarating one-point game in Annapolis that saw Navy come out on top, Army evened the season series on Saturday afternoon with an equally exhilarating 70-66 decision. Playing before a national television audience on CBS Sports Network, as well as a packed and boisterous Christl Arena on Army's campus, the Mids fought for 40 minutes and had a lead with two and a half minutes to go before the Black Knights closed on an 8-2 run to claim the 2022 Star for women's basketball. The contest was part of the 2021-22 Star Series presented by USAA.
 
Playing in her final Star game, Jennifer Coleman had a hand in all aspects of Navy's effort on Saturday as she finished with 24 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists, while never leaving the court. The junior duo of Lindsay Llewellyn and Mimi Schrader joined Coleman in double figures as Llewellyn recorded 13 points in 40 minutes of action with Schrader adding 10.

Bolstered by a 9-3 run to end the first quarter ahead 20-15, Army added six early points over the initial 1:42 of the second period to go up 11 over Navy, 26-15. The Mids broke into the scoring column at the 6:21 mark when Coleman found Morganne Andrews deep in the post for an easy layup. Ensuing three-pointers by Schrader and Llewellyn drew Navy within three, 26-23 by 4:23. Army quickly responded to this threat with a 5-0 run of its own to go back ahead by eight. From that juncture at 3:29, the Mids closed out the half with nine of the final 11 points to make it a 33-32 contest in Army's favor. Coleman led that charge with seven of Navy's points.
 
The ultra-tight and competitive action continued in the second half as there were three lead changes and two ties, at 36 and 38 over the first 3:09. Ciera Hertelendy gave Navy its first lead of the half after grabbing a physical offensive rebound and nailing the putback layup at 9:29. With the score tied 38-38 at 6:51, the teams went nearly silent for the next three-plus minutes as the host Black Knights made just one three-pointer, while the Mids responded with a single made goal. Following a pair of free throws that put Navy behind 43-40, Coleman drove the lane and hit a wide-open Llewellyn on the wing for a game-tying three-pointer at 3:22. That basket sparked the Mids down the stretch as the visitors burst open a six-point lead with an 11-5 run. Llewellyn and Coleman did the heavy lifting for Navy with nine combined points.
 
Ahead 54-48 after three quarters of play, the Mids added a quick Andrews layup on their first possession to go up by a team-high eight points. Invigorated by its loud fan base within Christl Arena, Army scored nine of the next 10 points between 8:23 and 4:59 to re-tie the game at 57-57. Navy found its scoring touch over the next two possessions as Coleman dribbled into and out of congestion and kicked out to Schrader in the near corner for a three-pointer and then a lengthy two-pointer. With the score 62-59 at 3:35, Army fought Navy to even scores of 62-62 and 64-64 over the next two minutes. The Black Knights took their final lead of the contest with 1:29 remaining as Kate Murray hit her third three-pointer of the quarter. Down 67-64, an exciting and athletic individual effort, a steal and fast break layup, by Darryl Langford helped net the Mids' final basket with 27 seconds left in regulation. A 3-of-4 showing at the foul line by Army in the closing 18 seconds made it a 70-66 final score.
 
For the game, Army outshot Navy from the field, 45.1 percent (23-51) to 43.9 (25-57) from the field and 48.1 percent (13-27) to 41.2 (7-17) from three-point range. The Mids held a slight 81.8 percent (9-11) to 73.3 (11-15) advantage in foul shooting.