BC Heads South to Face No. 2 Louisville
• Boston College continues a three-game road trip as the Eagles head to Louisville to face the second-ranked Cardinals Thursday at the KFC Yum! Center at 8 p.m.
• ACC Network has coverage of the game with Jenn Hildreth and Debbie Antonelli on the call.
• Thursday's game features the top two teams in the ACC in turnover margin. Louisville leads the ACC with +4.6 turnover margin per game, while BC is second with +3.5 turnover margin per game.
• BC looks to rebound from a 68-48 loss at Wake Forest Sunday afternoon while Louisville remained undefeated on the season with a 70-45 victory over Clemson on Sunday.
• Thursday's game marks the third game this season already versus a top-three opponent for the Eagles. BC played No. 3 NC State at Conte Forum on Dec. 13 (L, 75-69) and at the third-ranked Wolfpack on Jan. 3 (L, 76-57).
• BC's last victory over a ranked team was a 65-56 win at No. 14/14 Florida State last season (Jan. 30, 2020).
• The 2020-21 campaign is the 49th season of Boston College women's basketball. The program made its debut during the 1972-73 season on January 9, 1973 versus Eastern Nazarene.
Last Time Out
• Three Wake Forest players scored in double-figures as the host Demon Deacons defeated Boston College 68-48 Sunday afternoon in Winston-Salem.
• With the win, Wake Forest moved to 6-3 overall and 3-2 in the ACC while Boston College dropped to 5-5 on the season and 1-5 in the ACC.
• It was a tale of runs in the first quarter as BC jumped out to an 11-5 run to the start game. Wake Forest gained the momentum back as Taylor Soule went to the bench with two early fouls and the Demon Deacons ripped off an 11-0 run to close out the first quarter to lead 16-11.
• Wake Forest continued its momentum with a 31-6 run to take a 36-17 lead into halftime. The Demon Deacons held BC scoreless for the final 4:44 of the quarter.
• Boston College found its offense in the third quarter as the Eagles scored 20 points in the period, but Wake Forest kept pace as the Demon Deacons led 55-37 after three.
• Dickens led the Eagles with 14 points on the day while Cameron Swartz added 11 points. The Eagles shot just 36.8 percent from the field as Wake Forest shot 50 percent on the afternoon and held a 40-25 advantage on the glass.
Last Time vs. Louisville
• No. 5/6 Louisville claimed the ACC regular season title with a 68-48 victory over Boston College at the KFC Yum! Center on February 27, 2020.
• BC dropped to 17-11 overall and 10-7 in the ACC. Louisville improved to 26-3 overall and 15-2 in the ACC.
• Sophomore Taylor Soule posted her 10th double-double of the season with 11 points and 11 rebounds, while senior Emma Guy scored 10 points with four rebounds.
• Louisville shot 63.6 percent and outscored BC, 26-7, in the second quarter to pull away with a 46-24 halftime lead. BC never recovered as the offense never heated up and turnovers piled up.
• The Cardinals were led by Kylee Shook with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Jazmine Jones pitched in with 17 points. The two combined for 26 points for the Cardinals at the half.
Trending Up
• Boston College is in year three of the Joanna Bernabei-McNamee era and the Eagles are trending way up after a strong 2019-20 campaign.
• The Eagles are on the national radar after advancing to the ACC Tournament semifinals last season.
• Boston College was picked to finish 13th in the ACC prior to the start of last season. The Eagles crushed the low expectations with a 20-12 overall record and a record setting 11-7 conference mark. The 20 wins were the most for BC since the 2010-11 team went 20-13. The 11 ACC wins was a new program record since joining the ACC in 2006.
• Joanna Bernabei-McNamee was named the Atlantic Coast Conference Coach of the Year last season. Bernabei-McNamee earned the honor from both the ACC coaches and Blue Ribbon Panel.
• Bernabei-McNamee was the first BC women's head coach to earn conference Coach of the Year accolades since Cathy Inglese won the honor in the Big East in the 1998-99 season.
• The 20 wins were the most victories since 2010-11 when BC finished the season at 20-13. The 11-7 conference record set a new program record for most ACC wins. It was also the most conference victories since BC went 11-5 in 2003-04 in the Big East.
• The Eagles' fourth place finish was the best in program history since BC joined the ACC in 2005-06. Bernabei-McNamee also led the team to six ACC road wins, a new program record. One of the road wins was her first victory over a ranked team, No. 14 Florida State on Jan. 30.
Inside the Louisville Series
• Boston College and Louisville meet for the 10th time in series history Thursday night in Louisville. The Cardinals are 8-1 all-time against Boston College, including a 7-0 mark as ACC conference opponents.
• BC is 0-4 all-time at Louisville.
• The series began with a 74-68 victory for BC on Dec. 28, 1985.
• Thursday's meeting marks the fifth straight game in series history BC is facing Louisville when the Cards are ranked in the top five.
From High School to the Heights
• Freshman forward Ally VanTimmeren was set to play her senior year of high school in 2020-21 before COVID-19 cancelled her high school season.
• VanTimmeren made the decision to graduate early from Jenison High School in Michigan and enroll early at Boston College for the second semester. With just two practices under her belt after arriving at BC on Dec. 26, VanTimmeren had an impressive debut in her collegiate debut Jan. 3 at No. 3 NC State.
• VanTimmeren is the youngest player in the ACC this season after she just turned 18 in November.
• She finished with 10 points, six rebounds and connected on two three-point field goals against the third-ranked Wolfpack.
• VanTimmeren was rated a four-star prospect according to ESPN. She ranked 17th nationally at her position in the ESPN rankings.
• She was listed as the No. 44 prospect nationally in the class of 2021 by Blue Star Basketball and the No. 10 prospect at her position in the country according to Dan Olson Collegiate Report.
• Prospect Nation's No. 76 prospect in the country, she was a three-year letterwinner and three-time all-conference selection at Jenison High School.
• A 1,000-point scorer, she was a three-year varsity starter for the Wildcats. She averaged 20.8 points, 10.1 rebounds and four blocked shots per game as a junior.
News and Notes (As of Jan. 12)
• Boston College is seventh in the nation and second in the ACC in free throw percentage (80.6 percent).
• The Eagles rank fourth in the ACC with 133 free throws made this season.
• The Eagles are 40th in the country and first in the conference with 20.3 turnovers forced per game.
• BC's 99 steals rank 31st nationally and first in the ACC. The Eagles' 9.9 steals per game rank second in the conference.
• The Eagles rank fourth in the ACC and 35th nationally in three-point field goal defense (24.9).
• The Eagles are 59th nationally and second in the ACC in turnover margin (+3.5).
• Taylor Soule is first in the ACC and 21st nationally in free throws made (51). She is first in the ACC and 26th nationally in free throws attempted (64).
• Soule is ninth in the ACC with 16.0 points per game.
• Marnelle Garraud is first in the ACC and 18th in the country with 27 steals this season. She ranks second in the ACC and 47th nationally with 2.7 steals per game.
• Makayla Dickens is 10th in the conference shooting 38.3 percent from behind the arc.
• Dickens' 23 three-point field goals are the fourth-most by any player in the ACC this season.
Welcome to the Show JoJo
• True freshman JoJo Lacey missed the first five games of the season with an ankle injury before making her BC debut against No. 3 NC State on Dec. 13.
• A five-star recruit according to ESPN, Lacey was rated sixth at her position nationally coming out of high school.
• A top-100 recruit, Lacey averaged 12.3 points, 6.9 rebounds and 2.2 steals per game as a senior at Westtown High School in Pennsylvania.
From Way Downtown, Bang
• Junior guard Makayla Dickens has been one of the ACC's best shooters in 2020-21. She is third on the team averaging 11.8 points per game along with 4.7 rebounds per game.
• Dickens leads BC with 31 three-point field goals this season and is shooting 38.3 percent from behind the arc.
• She is 10th in Boston College history with 147 made three-point field goals.
• Against No. 3 NC State on Dec. 13, Dickens led the Eagles with 20 points and connected on six three-pointers against the Wolfpack.
• In the 64-61 win versus Notre Dame on Jan. 7, she caught fire in the second half, leading BC with 15 points in the comeback victory.
Doing it All
• Junior point guard Marnelle Garraud has become one of the elite defenders in the country. The Lynn native is 18th in the nation and leads the ACC with 27 steals this season.
• Her 138 career steals rank 14th in BC history and she is just 11 steals shy of joining the top 10 in school history.
• Her 219 career assists rank 29th in BC history.
Ivey Continues to Grow
• True freshman point guard Kaylah Ivey is quickly showing everyone why she was one of the most coveted high school recruits last year.
• In the 88-38 win over UMass Lowell on Dec. 6, Ivey led the way for the Eagles as she recorded a career-high 23 points.
• Ivey was sensational in her fourth game as an Eagle, setting new career-highs in scoring (23), free throws (5-for-5), field goals (seven) and three-pointers (four).
• The Blue Star Basketball Report rated Ivey the nation's 14th best point guard prospect and the nation's 75th-best recruit overall coming out of Riverdale Baptist School last season. The Forestville, Md. native finished her prep career with 1,424 points and had over 500 assists in 122 games.
Career Day for Clara
• With the graduation of All-ACC standout Emma Guy, junior Clara Ford knew she had big shoes to help fill in 2020-21. The Virginia native wasted little time to show she is ready to help fill the void in the post for the Eagles.
• In her first career start vs. New Hampshire on Nov. 25, Ford finished with a career-high 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting from the field in the win. She added seven boards in just 14 minutes of action after getting into early foul trouble.
• Ford followed up the opener with a new career day against UMass on Nov. 29.
• She recorded her first career double-double - in the first half against the Minutewomen. The junior finished the game with 15 points and 16 rebounds. The points and rebound totals were new career-highs for Ford.
• Ford set a new career-best in scoring against No. 18 Syracuse, scoring 19 points.
Preseason All-ACC
• Taylor Soule was named Preseason All-ACC according to separate polls of the league's 15 head coaches and the Blue Ribbon Panel.
• Soule is coming off a breakout sophomore season and was named the 2019-20 ACC's Most Improved Player.
• She was instrumental in Boston College's turnaround last season, as she averaged 7.9 points per game as a freshman and has taken her game to the next level in her sophomore year, nearly doubling that total with 14.5 points a game.
• Soule scored a career-high 29 points in the Eagles' win against North Carolina, which ranked among the ACC's top individual scoring performances in a game last season.
• An All-ACC Tournament second-team honoree, Soule was named to the All-ACC Blue Ribbon second-team and All-ACC Honorable Mention following the 2019-20 campaign.
• The Atlantic Coast Conference announced on Nov. 30 that Soule was named the conference's women's basketball player of the week. Soule was sensational in BC's two victories, averaging 25.5 points per game in wins over New Hampshire and UMass.
• It marked the third time in Soule's career she has been named the ACC Player of the Week. The last time a BC player was named ACC Player of the Week was Soule on Feb. 24, 2020.
Watch List SZN ...
• Taylor Soule was named to the 2021 Women's Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy Watch List, the Atlanta Tipoff Club announced.
• Overall, the list of 50 women's players represents 11 national conferences.
• The midseason 30 team will be announced in early February; players who do not make the watch list are still eligible to be selected for the midseason 30 team. Then, the competition will be narrowed down to 10 national semifinalists on March 2, 2021, and four finalists will be named on March 19, 2021. The winner of the 2021 Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy for Women's Player of the Year will be announced on April 3, 2021.
Watch List SZN Continues ...
• Taylor Soule was one of 20 players to be named to the watch list for the 2021 Cheryl Miller Award. Named after the three-time Naismith Player of the Year and Class of 1995 Hall of Famer, the annual award in its fourth year recognizes the top small forwards in women's NCAA Division I college basketball. A national committee of top college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 20 candidates.
• A Preseason All-ACC selection, Soule is coming off a breakout sophomore season and was named the 2019-20 ACC's Most Improved Player.
• College basketball fans are encouraged to participate in Fan Voting presented by Dell Technologies in each of the three rounds. In early February, the watch list of 20 players for the 2021 Cheryl Miller Award will be narrowed to just 10. In early March, five finalists will be presented to Ms. Miller and the Hall of Fame's selection committee.
Offensive Explosion
• Boston College led the ACC last season in scoring with 73.7 points per game. The Eagles ranked 30th out of 349 teams nationally as well in scoring.
• BC returns four of its leading five scorers from last season's squad. Juniors Taylor Soule (14.5 ppg), Makayla Dickens (10.4 ppg), Marnelle Garraud (9.8 ppg) and Cameron Swartz (9.0 ppg) return to the hardwood for the Eagles this season.
• The Eagles scored 90 or more points in three games last season, including an ACC single-game best of 109 versus Delaware State.
2019-20 ACC Scoring Leaders
Team Points Per Game
1. Boston College 73.7
2. North Carolina 73.1
3. Louisville 72.8
2019-20 ACC Most Points Scored in a Game
Team Points
1. Boston College vs. Delaware St. (12.20.19) 109
2. Boston College vs. St. Fran. Brooklyn (11.10.19) 106
Wake Forest vs. Col. of Charleston (11.8.19) 106
Double-Double
• Taylor Soule leads BC with 12 career double-doubles. She has two to start the season.
• Her 10 double-doubles ranked tied for fifth in the ACC a season ago.
Schedule Update
• BC's game at Pitt on December 31 was postponed due to COVID-19 protocols at Pitt. The game has been rescheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 16 at 6 p.m.