Game Notes
Live Video
Live Stats
Live Audio
McPherson, Kan. – The McPherson College women's basketball team is currently in a five-game slump and have not won a conference game since the opener. On Thursday, January 8 the 'Dogs will look to get back on the winning path as they travel to Sterling College for a 6:00 p.m. (CT) contest with the Warriors; the junior varsity squad is set to play at 2:00.
MC will head into Thursday's contest coming off a tough 75-63 loss to York College this past weekend in the Coyote Classic. The Bulldogs held the early advantage but went into halftime trailing 35-30 after a late run by the Panthers; a 2-of-14 showing from behind the arc stopped a lot of McPherson's possessions.
In the second period McPherson continually charged at YC but could never bring their deficit back into single digits; each surge by the Bulldogs was answered by a big shot for York which ruined any confidence that Mac had accrued. In the end, the Panthers walked out of the gym with the 12-point victory. Another poor showing from deep, 3-of-15, was recorded by the Lady 'Dogs in the second half.
Mac ended the contest making 23-of 67 from the field and drained 5-of 29 threes (17.7%); they converted on 12-of-19 free throws. The team netted 46 rebounds with an impressive 21 coming on the offensive side of the floor. The Lady 'Dogs tabbed 16 turnovers, nine steals, nine assists, and three blocks.
Zatorian Abra's career-high 18 points came on 7-of 9 shooting including 2-of-3 from deep; she also made 2-of-3 free throws. Bailey Brown tallied 10 points on just 2-of-13; she had nine rebounds and a team-high four steals. Sunny Smart continued to struggle shooting the ball from behind the arc as she went 0-of-9; the junior did score nine points and racked up 10 rebounds to lead the team. Callie Atkins and Alicia Demaret each added eight points.
The first home KCAC game of 2015 is set for January 10th when Mac hosts the Ottawa University Braves at 5:00.
Scouting Sterling
The Lady Warriors sit at 5-10 on the year and are in the midst of a losing-streak themselves; the team has lost three straight with their most recent defeats coming against Benedictine University (Kan.) and Doane College (Neb.) at the Tabor College Classic. SC is 2-2 in conference play with wins against Southwestern College, 60-55, and the University of Saint Mary, 80-73.
In their most recent contest, Sterling fell to 9-9 Doane College. The Warriors trailed for the first 10 minutes of the outing but as the clock rolled into the 9's, they took the lead and got up by as many as nine by the four-minute mark. DC scored eight of the final 11 to pull the score to 34-30 at the break.
The second half was owned by the Tigers as they roared ahead in the opening minutes and quickly went up by seven. Sterling hung around but their deficit went to double figures with less than nine minutes remaining. Doane held their 10+ advantage the rest of the way and went on to win 71-56.
Sterling made 19-of-53 field goals in the 40-minute contest; they were 8-of-19 from deep and 10-of-16 from the foul stripe. DC connected on over 40% from the floor and scored on 20-of-24 from the foul stripe. The Warriors pulled down 30 rebounds with 12 being on the offensive end of the court. They tabbed 14 turnovers, nine assists, nine steals, and a pair of blocks.
Hailey Davis led the way in scoring for SC with her 18 points; the guard went 7-of-12 from the field and 3-of-7 from the foul line. Allie Faul tabbed a team-high four rebounds and was second on the team in scoring with eight; Jordin Greer also added in eight points.
As a team, Sterling nets 67.0 points a night but have a negative scoring margin of 7.1; they count 37.5% from the field and make 31 percent from the three-point line. The Warriors shoot in 76.4% of their free throws and lead the conference in that category. The team tabs 37.6 rebounds each time out and average 18.8 turnovers, 10.6 assists, 7.3 steals, and 1.9 blocks.
It is a very balanced scoring attack for the upper-classmen heavy unit. Davis leads the way with her 11.9 average; she has made a team-high 68 free throws on the year. Lori Dauer is next on the list with an 11.5 average; the senior has bucketed a team leading 57 field goals and also leads the way in rebounds at 6.5 per night. Faul is the last double-digit scorer as she puts in 10.0 each time out; she tops the Warriors in three-point makes and attempts with 30 and 78, respectively.
SC hosts Bethel College on January 10th for their next contest.
