Women's Basketball NEC Semifinal Tonight on ESPN3

The Central Connecticut women's basketball team will host the St. Francis Brooklyn Terriers tonight inside Detrick Gym for a NEC Tournament semifinal matchup. The first-seed Blue Devils (19-11, 14-4 NEC) and fifth-seed Terriers (13-8, 9-9 NEC) are scheduled to tip-off at 7:05 p.m. The game is being aired exclusively on ESPN3 and can also be watched on NECFrontRow.com. John Schmeelk and Sylvia Crawley will be on the call for ESPN3.

WATCH LIVE | LIVE STATS | CCSU GAME NOTES | SFBK GAME NOTES

Today's Game • The first-seed Blue Devils (19-11, 14-4 NEC) host the five-seed St. Francis Brooklyn Terriers (13-18, 9-9 NEC) for a NEC semifinal matchup inside Detrick Gym at 7 p.m. on ESPN3. It marks the fifth time in program history the Blue Devils have made the NEC semifinal game and the fourth time under the direction of head coach Beryl Piper.

Series History • Central won the two meetings against the Terriers earlier this season and own a commanding lead in the all-time Division I series history, 25-8. CCSU is 11-2 against SFBK with Piper at the helm and a perfect 7-0 under Piper inside Detrick Gym.

Earlier This Season • Today's game marks the third time the Blue Devils and Terriers will meet this season. Central topped St. Francis Brooklyn in both meetings this season, recording a 51-49 victory back on Jan. 26 and a 61-43 win at home on Feb. 9. In the first meeting this season, the Blue Devils survived a last-second shot attempt from SFBK's Jaymee Veney as time expired to edge the Terriers on the road. Freshman Camden Musgrave led Central with a game-high 12 points off the bench. In the rematch in February the Blue Devils controlled most of the game, leading for 29 minutes and by as many as 18 late in the second half. Senior Amanda Harrington paced the Blue Devils offense with a game-high 15 points and Musgrave added 13, connecting on three-of-four attempts from beyond the arc.

NEC Regular Season Co-Champions • The Blue Devils finished the regular season in a tie for first place with the Bryant Bulldogs to earn a share of the Northeast Conference regular season championship. The title marks the first time in program history the Blue Devils have finished on top of the NEC regular season standings.

#1 Seed • Following the Blue Devils 21-point victory over FDU on Saturday, Feb. 28 and a Bryant loss, CCSU officially clinched the first seed in the 2015 NEC Tournament. The Blue Devils held all of the possible tie breakers by sweeping the fourth-seed Sacred Heart Pioneers to assure them the first seed and home court advantage throughout the tournament.

Scouting the Terriers • The fifth-seeded Terriers were the lone team to score an upset in the quarterfinal round of the NEC Tournament, topping fourth-seeded Sacred Heart 77-59 in Fairfield. Prior to the NEC Tournament, SFBK took down both Bryant (62-52) and LIU Brooklyn (73-49) on the road to conclude the regular season and are currently on a three-game winning streak. The Terriers are second in the conference, just behind the Blue Devils in scoring defense against NEC opponents, allowing 57.9 ppg. They average 61.1 ppg on the offensive end  against NEC opponents to rank ninth in the league. They are currently the best shooting and free throw shooting team on the NEC circuit, connecting for 44.3% and 77.0% respectively. SFBK has three Terriers who average in double-figures on the season, led by senior Jaymee Veney at 14.5 ppg. She is joined in double-digits by Sarah Benedetti (13.7 ppg) and Eilidh Simpson (12.0 ppg). Veney also controlls the glass for SFBK, averaging a team-best 7.9 rpg.

NEC Honorees • Junior TeJahne Malone was named Second-Team All-NEC, freshman Camden Musgrave was named to the NEC All-Rookie Team and head coach Beryl Piper was named the Brenda Reilly NEC Coach of the Year on Friday afternoon in a vote amongst the league's coaches. Malone marks the fourth All-NEC Second-Team selection and Musgrave is the third NEC All-Rookie Team honoree under the direction of Piper. The Coach of the Year award for Piper also marks the first in her tenure.

Last Time Out • The Blue Devils topped LIU Brooklyn 72-51 in the NEC quarterfinal round held in Detrick Gym last Sunday. CCSU's defense held the Blackbirds to just 20.8% (5-24) shooting and allowed just 19 points in the second half to breakaway from LIU after leading by only three (35-32) at the break. Central went on a huge 25-3 run, fueled by 10 points from senior Kaley Watras. Watras finished with a game-high 20 points to lead CCSU to the win, shooting 7-of-9 from the floor, including 3-of-4 from three. The Blue Devils dominated the glass outrebounding LIU 48-32, led by 10 from junior TeJahne Malone. CCSU pulled down 22 offensive boards that led to 22 second chance points.