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McPherson, Kan. – The MC women's basketball team will complete the first round of KCAC play on Wednesday as they travel to Leavenworth, Kansas to take on the University of Saint Mary; start time is set for 6:00 p.m. (CT). The Lady Bulldogs have not won since game one of the conference season.
Mac will be heading into the special Wednesday night competition coming off a rough 96-61 loss to Friends University this past weekend. The Bulldogs led for the first 20 seconds as they made their first bucket of the night. However, from 19:30 on, the Lady Falcons held the advantage. McPherson had a tough time scoring in the opening minutes and didn't get to the 10-point mark until the game was passed the midway point. At the break, Friends led 54-28. MC scored on just 7-of-19 from the floor but did make 10-of-16 foul shots. The Falcons hit 21-of-38 field goals including 6-of-15 from behind the arc.
The second half was again controlled by Friends; the team led by 30+ for the final 17 minutes and won 96-61. Mac converted on 7-of-21 from the field with 3-of-11 from deep; they were 16-of-20 from the foul stripe. FU went 13-of-32 for the second 20 minutes and dropped in 9-of-18 three balls.
McPherson made 14-of-40 for the game including 7-of-22 from distance; they connected on 26-of-36 from the stripe. The Falcons doubled-up Mac in rebounding as the Bulldogs had just 21 boards, seven were offensive. MC turned the ball over 27 times to a very aggressive Friends defense; they also recorded 11 assists, three seals, and a pair of blocks.
Bailey Brown scored a game-high 22 points with over half coming from the foul line where she went 13-of-16; she made 4-of-7 field goals and also hauled in a team leading six rebounds. Sunny Smart dropped in 5-of-15 from the floor with 3-of-9 coming from deep; she also hit 3-of-3 free throws for her 16 points. Atkins cashed in on 3-of-6 from beyond the arc, adding nine to the cause. Whitney Jefferson dished out a team-high four assists.
MC in the Rankings: Alicia Demaret is now 18th in total blocks with 34 and is 23rd in blocks per game at 1.7. Sunny Smart is 18th in total three balls counted at 48. With her 335 total points, Bailey Brown ranks 21st in total scoring in the NAIA D-II
Mac will start a two-game home stand following their matchup with Saint Mary. The 'Dogs will host the BCs, starting with Bethany College on January 24th at 5:00 p.m.
Scouting Saint Mary
The Lady Spires are 3-12 this season and 2-6 in the KCAC. Prior to last Saturday's 65-44 win against Bethany College, USM had lost six-straight. Their other two wins this season have come against St. Gregory's of Oklahoma and Bethel College in early December.
In the contest with the Swedes, Saint Mary led from the get-go and pushed their advantage to double-digits a few minutes in. The Spires stayed up by 10+ for most of the opening period and led 36-23 at the break. USM connected on 13-of-20 from the floor including 4-of-9 three balls. BC went 9-of-28 with a pair of threes.
In the second half, the Spires quickly increased their lead to 18. The Swedes were never able to get their deficit back into single figures. An 11-0 run by USM pushed the score margin to 20+ which is where it sat until the end of the game. Saint Mary knocked in 7-of-21 from the field and converted on 12-of-20. Bethany made a mere 5-of-27 and went just 1-of-8 from distance; they were 10-of-15 from the stripe.
Imani Dixon scored a game-high 19 points on her 4-of-5 threes, 1-of-2 twos and 5-of-6 free throws; she also had three blocks, an assist, and a steal. Kelsey Switzer was next with 14 points; she made 6-of-12 field goals and 1-of-3 from the foul line; she led the team in assists with four. Rachel Emde also made it into double figures with her 12 points; she also tabbed a team-high six rebounds.
This year the Lady Spires are averaging 62.9 points a night and have a negative scoring margin of 8.7. They connect on 41.3% of their field goals including 31.1 percent from deep; 68.5 percent of their free throws are falling through. The team records 32.9 rebounds a night to go along with 19.3 turnovers, 12.3 assists, 5.7 steals, and 2.3 blocks.
Dixon is scoring a team-high 13.0 points per game and also leads the team in field goals made and attempted with 64 and 155, respectively; she averages 5.8 rebounds a night and has connected on 51-of-61 foul shots. Kari Devlin is second on the team in scoring at 11.6 points per contest but hasn't played since early January. Switzer averages 10.9 points and is second on the team in field goals made, 56, and assists, 40. The lone returning starter for USM is Shanice Palmer; the guard nets 10.5 points per game and leads the way in rebounding with her 6.1 boards a night. Mariah Marusak has counted a team-high 26 three balls on the year; she averages 7.4 points.
It's off to Bethel College for the team's next competition.
