America East Quarterfinals

No. 1 MAINE vs. No. 8 NEW HAMPSHIRE

Time, site: Thursday, 6 p.m.; Chase Arena, West Hartford, Conn.

Records: Maine 22-6; UNH 11-17

Series, last meeting: Maine leads UNH 38-15; Maine 63-50 on 2/11/04

Key players: Maine – 6-1 F Heather Ernest (16.9 ppg, 8.5 rpg, 1.9 spg), 5-9 G Melissa Heon (11.0 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 2.8 apg, 1.7 spg), 6-1 G/F Julie Veilleux (7.7 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 2.6 apg, .854 FT pct.), 6-0 F Monica Peterson (7.6 ppg, 5.7 rpg, .538 FG pct.), 5-9 G Missy Traversi (7.3 ppg), 5-7 G Kim Corbitt (5.9 ppg, 3.6 apg, 1.6 spg); UNH – 6-3 C Maren Matthias (15.9 ppg, 7.8 rpg, .574 FG pct.), 6-0 F Ray Williams (8.7 ppg, 6.0 rpg, .557 FG pct.), 5-9 G Ebony Woods (8.0 ppg, 3.4 rpg, .756 FT pct.), 6-0 F Danielle Clark (7.3 ppg, 3.8 rpg), 5-8 G Kate Poulin (3.9 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 3.4 apg)

Outlook: The Bears, seeking their first league crown since 1998, are faced with the challenge of beating an opponent for the third time this season. UMaine must bottle up Matthias inside without letting the Wildcats’ outside shooters heat up. The Bears must rebound well and get their running game going. UNH has lost nine of its last 10 and is the worst free-throw shooting team at .533 in league games. The Bears continue to boast AE’s top defense, giving up only 42.1 ppg on .368 shooting in league games while topping the conference in rebounding margin at plus-4.2. UMaine will be better rested, as UNH defeated Stony Brook 74-65 in overtime in a first-round game Wednesday night at 9:30. The Bears’ seniors are 2-3 in their previous five league tournament games dating back to 2001.