MORAGA, Calif. – Saint Mary's Women's Basketball will host their annual Thanksgiving Classic this Friday and Saturday at UCU Pavilion. SMC will host two neutral site games at 12:00 p.m. both days, followed by their game at 2:00 p.m.
 
The early game on Friday will be between the University of Maine and Kansas, and on Saturday at noon Maine will play Niagara University. The Gaels will play Niagara on Friday and Kansas on Saturday.
 
THE DETAILS
Saint Mary's (2-2) vs Niagara (1-2)
Friday, November 25 at 2:00 p.m.
UCU Pavilion – Moraga, Calif.
WATCH | LIVE STATS |TICKETS
 
THE DETAILS
Saint Mary's (2-2) vs Kansas (3-0)
Saturday, November 26 at 2:00 p.m.
UCU Pavilion – Moraga, Calif.
WATCH | LIVE STATS |TICKETS
 
 
LAST TIME OUT
Saint Mary's Women's Basketball had a nice bounce-back game at home on Sunday, but the Cal Bears slipped past the Gaels in a 69-66 loss for SMC.

The Gaels led from the final minute of the first quarter to the final minute-and-a-half of the game, before the Bears hit some clutch shots late to get the win. SMC shot one percent better than Cal from the field, were 6 of 10 from three compared to the Bears' 4 for 15, were only out rebounded by one, and committed just four more turnovers than Cal.
 
The tiniest of margins made the difference in the game, with Cal winning just the fourth quarter on the afternoon, 20-13. In the fourth, Cal shot 42.9% to SMC's 36.4% and were 6 of 7 from the free-throw line to the Gaels' 4 of 6.
 
But Cal would take the lead with just under a minute-and-a-half to go on a basket in the paint to make it 67-66 Bears off of a Gaels' missed shot. Saint Mary's had a chance to tie or take the lead on a pair of free throws but were unable to convert on both attempts.
 
ABOUT NIAGARA
Following Niagara's first trip to the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Semifinal Round since 2013, they were selected to finish third in the MAAC this season based on a vote by the league's coaches.
 
The Parker sisters, Angel Parker and Aaliyah Parker, were selected to the Preseason All-MAAC First Team and Preseason All-MAAC Second Team, respectively.
 
For the second season in a row, Angel Parker is a preseason favorite to land on the All-MAAC First Team at year's end. Parker led Niagara in points (17.0), assists (4.9), and steals (4.0) per game while also ending the 2021-22 season second in the nation in steals per game.
 
The Cheektowaga, NY, native was top-four in the MAAC in 10 different statistical categories. She was fourth in assist/turnover ratio (1.14), third in field goal attempts (445), field goals made (173), free throw attempts (140), free throws made (97), points per game, and first in steals (116) and steals per game.
 
Parker set the Niagara single-season record with 116 steals while also setting the single-game steals record with 11 against Saint Peter's on Feb. 24.
 
Reigning MAAC Rookie of the Year, Aaliyah Parker, was selected to the Preseason All-MAAC Second Team. A year ago, Parker quickly became known as one league's best first-year players, winning MAAC Rookie of the Week eight times en route to being a consensus selection to the MAAC All-Rookie Team.
 
The Cardinal O'Hara product finished her freshman year with 11.9 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.2 steals, and 1.7 assists per contest. Her 6.3 boards per contest were best on the team, and ranked 12th in the MAAC.
 
Friday's match up will be the first ever meeting between the Gaels and Purple Eagles in women's basketball.
 
ABOUT KANSAS
Saint Mary's will play the Kansas Jayhawks for just the third time in program history. SMC last played the Jayhawks - who went 21-10 last season - on the road in Lawrence, Kan. in December of 2019. KU defeated Saint Mary's 82-58 on January 4, 1985 in Moraga as well.
 
KU's leading scorer and rebounder through three games is Taiyanna Jackson, who had 10 points, eight rebounds and two blocked shots in their last game after recording double-doubles in each of the Jayhawks' first two games.
 
Zakiyah Franklin scored seven points off the bench and now sits at 999 career points. With her next point, Franklin will become the 31st player in program history to score 1,000 points in a Jayhawk uniform.
 
Kansas returns four starters and 11 letter winners from the 2021-22 season. They returned to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2013 under the tutelage of Big 12 Coach of the Year Brandon Schneider. Schneider enters his eighth season as the head coach at Kansas in 2022-23, which is his 25th season overall as a head coach. Last season, he guided Kansas to the largest win improvement in program history (+14) and a fifth-place finish in the Big 12 at 11-7.
 
2022-23 YEARBOOK
The 2021-22 Saint Mary's Basketball Yearbook is available HERE. This contains all of your information on both Saint Mary's basketball programs, coach and player profiles, as well as Saint Mary's, administration, and fan information.
 
#GaelsRise — 2022-23 tickets and ticket packages are on sale now! To purchase tickets, click HERE. If you have questions, contact the ticket office by email smctickets@stmarys-ca.edu or call 925-631-4689.