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McPherson, Kan. – After the first go-around of conference play, the Lady Bulldogs sit at 1-8 with their last win coming against the team they face this Saturday, Bethany College. Tipoff for the junior varsity is set for 1:00 p.m. (CT) with varsity starting at 5:00.
Mac was just a few possessions off of winning their last contest but unfortunately fell to the University of Saint Mary 66-61 in Leavenworth. The 'Dogs started the game on a 6-0 run and stayed ahead for the first few minutes. A 7-0 run by Saint Mary gave them the lead; the Spires took advantage of some poor shooting by McPherson and headed into the locker room up 36-22. MC put in 10-of-25 with just 1-of-11 three balls falling through; the team also struggled from the charity stripe as they connected on 1-of-7 tries. USM went 13-of-31 including 3-of-6 from deep; they were also 50% from the foul line, 7-of-14.
The Bulldogs came out strong in the second half and jumped on top with 12 minutes to play. Saint Mary regained the lead a few minutes later and a 9-2 run put them ahead eight shortly thereafter. MC clawed back but were unable to pull closer than five which is where the game ended, 66-61. Mac scored on 12-of-27 field goals with a much improved 6-of-15 from distance; they also shot much better from the foul line as 9-of-11 were counted. The Spires made 10-of-24 from the floor but went 0-of-5 from behind the arc.
The Bulldogs ended the night shooting a 42.3 field goal percentage, 22-of-52; they went 7-of-26 from behind the arc and 10-of-18 from the charity stripe. The team grabbed 34 rebounds with just six coming off the offensive glass. They tallied 21 turnovers, 16 assists, five steals, and one block in the contest.
Sunny Smart, after her second-half explosion, totaled a team-high 20 points on 8-of-18 shooting with four dropping from distance; she also had five rebounds for Mac. Bailey Brown made 6-of-8 free throws and 3-of-7 field goals for her 14 points; the junior rebounded a team-high nine balls and also had four assists. Georgia Smart had a solid game for MC as she bucketed 5-of-7 field goals and 3-of-5 foul shots for 13 points.
Bulldogs in the NAIA Rankings: With her four threes on Wednesday, Sunny Smart moved to 17th in total three-point field goals made at 52. Baily Brown is 21st in total scoring at 349. Alicia Demaret ranks 21st in total blocks with 34.
MC in the KCAC Rankings – Statistics are from league games only: The team is second in the conference in blocked shots per game at 4.0; they also sit 4th in assists a night at 12.3. Brown is second in the KCAC in scoring per game at 17.56; she has scored 158 total points in conference games. S. Smart is second in total threes at 21, 2.33 per outing; she is fourth in double-doubles this season with five. Demaret sits atop the league in blocks with her 21 stuffs, 2.33 a game. Whitney Jefferson ranks second in assists with 30 total, 3.33 each time out.
Mac will take host Bethel College on January 28th for their next outing; start time is set for 2:00 for the JV and 6:00 for the varsity.
Scouting Bethany
The Swedes have gone 1-20 this season and are losers of 13-straight dating back to their defeat to McPherson on December 4th; out of those 13 games, BC has lost by 10+ for 11 of them. They will head into the second round of KCAC games coming off a 70-65 loss to Sterling College.
Bethany scored the first six points and held a slim lead for the first 13 minutes; a 14-0 run by Sterling put the Warriors up eight with five to play in the opening period. SC took a 32-27 lead into the break. BC knocked in 11-of-25 from the field but were just 1-of-6 from range. Sterling counted 13-of-31 field goals with 3-of-10 going through from behind the arc.
The opening minutes of the second period were completely controlled by Sterling as they pushed their lead to double figures and then 16 by the midway point of the half. The Swedes didn't go away without a fight and put together an 18-4 run to pull within two with five minutes remaining. Bethany was eventually able to take the lead for a brief period but from the four-minute mark on, the Warriors scored five more points than BC and held on for the 70-65 victory. The Swedes made 11-of-28 from the floor; they converted on 4-of-8 threes and 12-of-13 from the stripe. SC connected on 9-of-26 field goals and 19-of-26 free throws.
For the game, Bethany made 22-of-53 with 5-of-14 three balls finding the bottom of the net; they were 16-of-18 from the foul line. The team grabbed 35 rebounds to go along with 26 turnovers, 14 steals, 13 assists, and five blocks.
Adriane Davis led the game in scoring with her 16 points; she was 1-of-2 from the free throw line and 6-of-12 from the floor with three from deep. Royce Shields scored 15 points for the Swedes on 4-of-12 field goals and 6-of-6 foul shots; she led the team in assists with four. Dominique Davis added nine points to the cause with most coming from the stripe where she was a perfect 6-of-6; she also made 1-of-1 three ball.
All statistics are KCAC games only.
On the year, BC is scoring a KCAC-low 53.6 points while allowing 70.7 for a -17.1 scoring margin, ninth in the league. They hit on just 33.5% from the field with 23.7 percent falling from deep; the team converts on 66.1% from the foul line. The Swedes bring in 33.4 rebounds a night which is at the bottom of the conference. They average 18.8 turnovers, 9.3 steals, 8.2 assists, and 2.2 blocks.
Davis is scoring 15.1 points through her nine KCAC contests; she has made 46 field goals with 16 coming from distance and also has connected on 28 free throws, all three are team-highs. Shields is the team's leading rebounder with her 3.4 average; she is scoring 12.7 points a night.
BC is at home next Wednesday for their matchup with Ottawa University.
