EWING, N.J. - The TCNJ women's basketball team is set to host Rutgers-Newark in the first round of the NJAC tournament on Saturday. The Lions earned the No. 8 seed in the conference tournament and the accompanying home game against the ninth-seeded Scarlet Raiders. Tip is set for 1 p.m. in Packer Hall.

WELCOME BACK
TCNJ opens its NJAC playoff journey against a familiar foe: The same Rutgers-Newark squad it faced off against on Wednesday. The Lions are the No. 8 seed in the conference tournament and, with a victory today, would secure a trip to top-seeded Kean for a Tuesday night quarterfinal. TCNJ is 8-3 at home this season.

ABOUT RUTGERS-NEWARK
The Scarlet Raiders have dropped each of their last five games, including a 62-31 drubbing here on Wednesday. Junior guard Samiyah Horton (17.5 PPG, 5.5 RPG) is the third-leading scorer in the NJAC, although she missed the teams' meeting three days ago. Junior forward Ebony Odom Barnes (9.7 PPG, 8.3 RPG) ranks fourth in rebounding and senior guard Elisha India Cross is fourth in assists (77, 3.5 per game). 

ABOUT TCNJ
The Lions are led by junior guard Julia Setaro, who ranks sixth in the NJAC in scoring (15.2 PPG) and leads the league with 56 3-pointers on the season. Freshman guard Nina Branchizio is the team's second-leading scorer at 7.4 points per game but has come on strong down the stretch, averaging 16.3 points per game and making 15-of-28 from 3-point range over her last three contests. Junior Sydney Blum (4.3 PPG, 4.8 RPG) is TCNJ's leading rebounder and is fifth in the NJAC with 26 blocked shots. 

LIONS IN THE PLAYOFFS
TCNJ is making its fifth consecutive appearance in the NJAC playoffs, and the Lions have won a postseason game in three of the last four seasons. These two teams met in an NJAC semifinal in 2019, with the Scarlet Raiders scoring a 52-45 victory in Packer Hall. 

FILLING IT UP
Branchizio was on a tear from the outside last week, going 11-for-17 from 3-point range against Ramapo and William Paterson. She was a perfect 5-for-5 against the Roadrunners and added a career-high six triples at William Paterson, earning NJAC rookie of the week honors for her efforts. Branchizio nailed four more triples on Wednesday, giving her 44 on the season; that total ranks fourth in the NJAC. 

AMONG THE LEADERS
Setaro is in the midst of a strong season, one that has seen her ascend near the apex of the NJAC leaderboard in a number of categories. She leads the league in 3-pointers made (56) and ranks third in free-throw percentage (81.3) while ranking fourth in field-goal percentage (40.4).

NJAC TICKET POLICY
Tickets for Saturday's playoff game are as follows:

• $5 for adults
• $2 for children, students, and senior citizens
• TCNJ students are FREE

TCNJ INDOOR SPORTS COVID POLICY
In accordance with The College of New Jersey campus policy the below rules must be followed to attend indoor winter sporting events for the 2021-2022 season:

• Masks must be worn at all times indoors regardless of vaccination status
• Masks may be removed only when eating or drinking and put back on once finished
• Masks must be worn over nose and mouth
• If you do not have a mask, a disposable mask will be provided for you
• Failure to wear a mask or follow TCNJ indoor COVID policies will result in removal from the contest
• There are no indoor seating or occupancy restrictions at this time

LIVE LINKS
Links for a live stream of the game, as well as live stats, are available on tcnjathletics.com.