Under The Radar: Women's Basketball Part II

We had a quick interruption last week wit the trip to Indianapolis, but lets get back at with the Under The Radar series. Today we'll cover the women from Hartford, Maine and UMBC as we continue working our way through the league. Enjoy!

Hartford Hawks

The Hartford scoring attack is among the most balanced in the league, with no single player averaging more than 10.9 points and six averaging more than five points. This under the radar player is in that group and might be scoring more if not for some nagging injuries throughout the course of the season.

Amber Bepko is the second-leading scoring this year for the Hawks, despite missing seven games. The sophomore sharp-shooter is netting 10.1 points per game including 1.6 triples per contest. When she's out on the floor she brings another dimension to the Hartford offense, pairing with Nikkia Smith to form an inside-out attack. Her health will be key to this team down the stretch, as it takes aim at an America East Championship.

Liz Wood

Maine Black Bears

If you were to just look at the season-long stats, it wouldn't tell you the whole story with regard to how well freshman Liz Wood has been playing. Averaging a modest 9.1 points per game on the season, Wood has been one of the best players in the conference of late. Over her last six games, the forward is netting 16.5 points and 8.17 rebounds per game, including back to back games over the 20 point plateau.

While the last six games have been her coming out party, Wood is 10th in both scoring and rebounding since conference play began. This year has been a struggle for the Black Bears, but watching Wood's progress has to be very encouraging. Her and sophomore forward Danielle Walczak will form quite a one-two punch moving forward.

UMBC Retrievers

The Retrievers have formed quite the trio as the season has progressed, at times playing a lineup as short as five. Leading the cause are Brittany Crowell (12.9 ppg) and Raven Harris (11.5 ppg), but Bria White has been a rock-solid third option. The youngest of the three, White is posting 10.4 points per game on the season.

White's highlights this season include leading the team in scoring in back-to-back games early in conference play. One of those games was the Retrievers first America East win, coming against Maine. Currently tied with New Hampshire for fifth in the conference, UMBC is 2-2 over its last four games and discovering its identity on offense. With a third option as talented as White, these Retrievers could make some noise in the tournament.

Linked Up

Check out the matchups the Vermont and Albany drew in the Ramada Worldwide BracketBusters on ESPN.

The latest CollegeInsider.com podcast features Hartford men's basketball coach John Gallagher.

Stony Brook checks in at 22 on the CollegeInsider.com men's top 25 poll, with Albany and Vermont receiving votes.

Check out episode two of the new season of America East On Campus!

Baseball season is just around the corner and Hartford wants to take you behind the scenes for a look at the pitchers.