Women's basketball wins Maggie Dixon Classic

The No. 19/18 DePaul Blue Demons women's basketball team left no doubt as to who the top team at the Maggie Dixon Classic was as they easily ousted the Samford Bulldogs 86-57 in the championship game on Saturday evening at McGrath-Phillips Arena.

Senior Keisha Hampton was in All-American form pacing the Blue Demons (2-0), scoring 20 points and pulling five rebounds. She was also named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.

Junior Anna Martin also picked up where she left off in the first game as she poured in 19 points, dished out four assists and had a team-high four steals. Martin and freshman guard Chanise Jenkins were named to the All-Tournament Team. Jenkins finished with a game-high five assists.

Head coach Doug Bruno was certainly happy with the effort on both ends of the court, but the defensive end had to be an especially pleasing sight. DePaul forced 25 Bulldog turnovers and scored 34 points off those turnovers.

"We're going to be pressuring people this year," Bruno said as he acknowledged how tough the Princeton offense, which Samford ran, is to defend. "We did a great job giving up no back door cuts."

Junior Katherine Harry also made her presence felt in this game, particularly in the second half. After going into the locker room at halftime with only two points, Harry came out in the second to nearly post a double-double. Her 10 points and eight rebounds were just a part of the gradual step towards more balanced scoring.

"A little bit," Bruno answered when asked if he believed the team made progress towards better inside-outside scoring. "I don't know that we're still even close to where we have to be regarding that concept of establishing an inside-outside balance."

The rest of the bench proved that there would be depth all the way down the line. Freshman Brittany Hrynko, who Bruno called an "injection of scoring" off the bench, finished with seven points and six rebounds.

"I really like this group," Martin commented about the incoming freshmen mixing with the veteran players. "I think we can play together a little bit better, but I think we're going to be really good this season. I think we're going to surprise a lot of people."

Winning this tournament has a special significance for coach Bruno and DePaul, because Maggie Dixon was an assistant coach with the Blue Demons for five years. This is one of three Maggie Dixon Classics, with the others being held in New York and San Diego. DePaul will participate in the New York edition as well, starting against Pat Summitt and Tennessee in December.

"We never want our team and our players to forget the contribution Maggie made to our program and to college basketball as a whole," Bruno said.

The Blue Demons will take to the road for the next four games, with the first three of them in Hawaii for the Jack in the Box Rainbow Wahine Classic. The first game is against San Diego State on Saturday night.