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McPherson, Kan. – After winning their first game in nearly two months, the Lady Bulldogs will attempt to keep things rolling on Wednesday as they take on Bethel College on January 28th at 6:00 p.m. (CT) in the Sport Center; JV will commence at 2:00.
Mac's most recent outing was a low-scoring victory over Bethany College. The 'Dogs jumped out to a commanding lead from the get-go as BC struggled to score. McPherson held the swedes to just 14 points in the opening period and led 32-14 at the break. The Bulldogs went 11-of-24 which includes 6-of-13 three balls. Bethany saw just four field goals drop through, they took 25 shots; the team went 0-of-9 from deep and 6-of-11 from the foul line.
It took over five minutes for either team to score in the second half. Once the scoring started, Bethany counted most of the points as it was McPherson's turn not to score. The 'Dogs fortunately shot well from the charity stripe to allow them to hold off a late push by the Swedes. Mac took the game 51-45. MC converted on just one field goal which didn't fall until there was 3:24 showing on the clock; they were 0-of-6 from distance but 17-of-25 from the line. The Swedes dropped in 11-of-37 with 4-of-15 tries from range making their way through.
For the game, the 'Dogs went 12-of-41, 29.3%, with 6-of-19 threes going down; they converted 21-of-30 free throws, 70 percent. McPherson pulled down 43 rebounds with 10 coming off the offensive glass. The team had 28 turnovers, nine assists, six steals, and four blocks in the win.
Both Sunny Smart and Bailey Brown tallied 12 points for Mac. Brown went just 1-of-9 from the floor but made 10-of-12 free throws; she also had eight boards. Smart cashed in on 2-of-8 threes and all six from the stripe; she led the team in rebounds with eight.
Bulldogs in the NAIA Rankings: Sunny Smart is 16th in the country in total three-point baskets with 54. Alicia Demaret is 22nd in total blocks with 35.
The following statistics are for conference games only.
Mac in the KCAC: The Bulldogs are second in the league in blocks per game at 4.0 and are fifth in free throw percentage at 67.5. Bailey Brown is second in the conference in scoring with her 17.0 average. Sunny Smart is second in the KCAC in three point makes with 23. Alicia Demaret ranks first in total blocks with 22. Whitney Jefferson sits fourth in total assists with 31 dimes.
McPherson will travel to Kansas Wesleyan University on the final day in January for a 5:00 p.m. matchup with the Coyotes.
Scouting Bethel
The Lady Threshers have had a very even year. They are currently 8-11 overall and 5-5 in the KCAC. The team has traded wins and losses dating back to the beginning of the year; they are heading into Wednesday's game coming off a win so McPherson is hoping that the trend continues.
BC took down the University of Saint Mary this past weekend 70-69 at home. Bethel jumped out to an early lead which they maintained for nearly the entire opening period; they headed into their locker room up 37-30. The Threshers went 14-of-33 with 2-of-5 three balls going through. USM cashed in on 9-of-22 field goals and 8-of-10 free throws.
In the second half, Bethel quickly jumped up 14 and looked to be rolling. The Spires had a different idea and went on a 13-0 run to tie things up with just over nine minutes remaining. BC again captured the lead and stayed in front by just a few until the final 30 seconds. A three-point basket by Saint Mary put them up one with just a few second to play. Bethel's Lauren Ulrich was fouled with a couple ticks left and hit both free throws to give the Threshers the 70-69 triumph. BC went 10-of-29 from the floor and 11-of-15 from the charity stripe in the final 20 minutes. Saint Mary converted on 12-of-31 field goals with 5-of-9 threes dropping; they went 10-fo-14 from the foul line.
For the game, Bethel scored on 24-of-62 from the field but made a mere 4-of-11 from range; they were 18-of-27 from the line. The team owned the boards as they pulled in 43 to USM's 27; 18 of the Thresher total came off the offensive glass. They also tabbed 24 turnovers, 18 assists, six steals, and a block in their win.
April Harpe scored a team-high 17 points on 7-of-9 field goals and 3-of-9 free throws; she also grabbed 16 rebounds to lead the Threshers. Lauren Ulrich bucketed 4-of-12 from the floor and hit all five of her free throws for 15 points. Both Taylor Durant and Jessica Ebenkamp scored eight. Brienna Zerger scored just one point but had seven assists.
All statistics are for KCAC games only.
This season, Bethel is scoring 62.2 points a night and have a negative scoring margin of 2.1. They are hitting 36.6% from the field and 25.3 from deep, both are eighth in the KCAC; their 59.2 free throw percentage is at the bottom of the conference. The team nets just 3.1 threes a game which is the worst in the league. The Threshers average 39 rebounds, 18.8 turnovers, 12.4 assists, 9.9 steals, and 1.0 blocks a night.
Harpe is leading the team in scoring with her 18.5 average; she has made 72 field goals and a team-high 41 free throws. The senior grabs 11.4 rebounds a night. Lauren Ulrich is second on the team in scoring with a 14.7 average; she has made 15 three balls this KCAC season along with 40 free throws. Durant nets 8.8 per contest to go along with her 5.7 rebounding average.
The Lady Threshers will take on Bethany College for their next competition.
