SFA Women Open Conference Tournament Play Against Lamar
3/6/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
March 6, 2007
NACOGDOCHES - After wrapping up the 2006-07 regular season with a 19-10 (.655) overall record and an 11-5 (.688) Southland Conference tally, the Stephen F. Austin Ladyjacks enter the 2007 O'Reilly Auto Parts Southland Conference tournament as the No. 2 overall seed. SFA enters the tournament winning five of its final seven games, but recorded a split in its final four contests. The Ladyjacks will face seventh-seeded Lamar Wednesday at Noon. The Lady Cardinals enter the postseason with a 13-16 (.448) overall record and an 8-8 (.500) league record. Lamar closed out the season winning their final two games. If the Ladyjacks defeat Lamar, they will face the winner of the No. 3 Texas State/No. 6 Texas A&M-Corpus Christi game Friday at noon. The SLC Championship game will tip off Saturday at 2 p.m. All games will be played at the Campbell Center in Houston, Texas.
Change of Plans: The conference changed the format for the 2007 O'Reilly Auto Parts Southland Conference Championship tournament. In past seasons, the tournament had been hosted by the higher-seeded teams at on-campus venues. The 2007 tournament will return to a neutral site for the tournament. Every game of the tournament will be played in Campbell Center in Houston, Texas.
The Ides of March: The Ladyjacks enter the 2007 SLC Championships looking to win their 16th SLC tournament title and make their 19th appearance in the NCAA Championships.
Been There, Done That: The 2007 Southland conference Championship tournament marks the 20th consecutive trip to the conference playoffs for SFA. In fact, SFA has advanced to the league tournament every year since joining the league.
SFA in the SLC Championships: The Ladyjacks have been the Southland Conference's most dominant team in the league tournament. SFA is 36-4 (.900) all-time in the SLC Championships. The Ladyjacks have earned the league's automatic bid into the NCAA Championships 14 times, with one runner-up finish.
Tradition of Winning: The SFA Ladyjack basketball program has been one of the most dominant programs in women's basketball history. The Ladyjacks are among the nation's all-time top 10 with 792 wins. The Ladyjacks are also among the all-time top 10 with a .729 winning percentage (792-294).
Tradition of Winning in the SLC: As dominant as SFA has been nationally, they have been just as dominant in the Southland Conference. The Ladyjacks are the conference's most dominant team, compiling a 289-49 (.855) all-time record. SFA has won 15 of a possible 19 SLC tournament titles and 14 regular-season titles. SFA has also recorded four undefeated seasons in league play and has had 44 players named All-SLC.
Riley vs. the SLC: Ladyjack head coach Lee Ann Riley has compiled a dominant record against Southland Conference foes. Riley is 74-30 (.712) against SLC teams during the regular season.
Home Sweet Home: The Ladyjacks are one of the nation's all-time winningest teams at home, with a 354-89 (.799) all-time record. SFA has won 31 of its last 39 games at home and was a perfect 14-0 at home last season. The Ladyjacks were 9-4 (.692) at home this season.
Being the Two Seed: The 2007 SLC Championship tournament marks the third time that SFA has entered postseason as the league's No. 2 seed (1995 and 2003). The Ladyjacks are 3-1 (.750) all-time in the tournament when entering as the second seed.
SFA vs. the No. 1 Lady Mavs: The Ladyjacks are 41-11 (.788) all-time against top-seeded Texas-Arlington. UTA has had some success in the series of late winning seven of the last eight meetings, including a sweep of the 2006-07 series. The Ladyjacks are 5-2 (.714) all-time against the Lady Mavs in the SLC Championship tournament.
SFA vs. the No. 3 Bobcats: The Ladyjacks are 48-6 (.889) all-time against third-seeded Texas State. The Ladyjacks have the last six consecutive games, including a series-sweep of the 2006-07 series. SFA is 4-2 (.667) all-time against the Bobcats in the SLC Championships.
SFA vs. the No. 4 Lady Lions: The Ladyjacks are 19-2 (.905) all-time against Southeastern Louisiana. SFA has recorded a split in the last four games against the Lady Lions. SFA recorded a 78-53 victory at Southeastern Louisiana in the only meeting between the two schools earlier this year. The Ladyjacks are a perfect 2-0 all-time against Southeastern Louisiana in the conference playoffs.
SFA vs. the No. 5 Roadrunners: The Ladyjacks are 29-6 (.829) all-time against Texas-San Antonio. The two teams have split the last eight meetings, but UTSA had the upper hand this season winning both regular-season games. The Ladyjacks are a perfect 3-0 versus UTSA in the SLC tournament.
SFA vs. the No. 6 Islanders: The Ladyjacks are 2-2 (.500) all-time against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, with the Ladyjacks sweeping the 2006-07 season series. The 2006-07 season marks the Islanders' inaugural season in the Southland Conference.
SFA vs. the No. 7 Lady Cardinals: The Ladyjacks are 39-3 all-time (.929) against Lamar. SFA has won 14 of the last 15 meetings, but Lamar recorded an 81-71 win in the only game between the two schools this season. The Ladyjacks are 1-0 all-time against Lamar in the SLC Championships. SFA recorded a thrilling 54-53 win over the Lady Cardinals in the first round of last year's tournament.
SFA vs. the No. 8 Lady Demons: The Ladyjacks are 43-16 (.729) all-time against Northwestern State. SFA has won three of the last four meetings, including a 62-59 decision in Natchitoches earlier this season. The Ladyjacks are a perfect 8-0 all-time against Northwestern State in the SLC Championship tournament.
SFA in Opening Round Games: The Ladyjacks are 16-3 (.842) all-time in opening round games of the SLC Championships.
Players of the Week: The Ladyjacks were honored by the league on three separate occasions with the SLC Player of the Week award. Senior Evelyn Edwards received her first-career honor Tuesday, Nov. 21st. Classmate Charity Egenti received the award on Monday, Dec. 11th and Tuesday, Jan. 9th.
SFA in Televised Games: The SLC Championship game will be televised on Fox Sports Southwest Saturday, Mar. 10th. If SFA advances to the championship game it would mark the 27th time that SFA has played in front of a televised audience. The Ladyjacks 16-10 (.667) all-time in televised games. SFA went 1-2 (.333) in televised games this season.
All-SLC: The Ladyjacks placed three players on the 2007 All-SLC team. Senior Charity Egenti earned first-team honors and was named 2007 SLC Player of the Year, while junior Nikki Carr received third-team honors. Egenti finished second in the league in scoring (16.9 ppg) and blocked shots (1.8 bpg) and led the SLC in rebounding (9.5 rpg). Carr was second on the team averaging 10.6 ppg. She finished seventh in the league averaging 3.8 assist per game, and was second in the SLC in steals (2.6 spg). Senior Evelyn Edwards earned honorable mention all-conference honors during her senior season.
Double-Doubles: The Ladyjacks recorded 19 double-doubles as a team in 2006-07. SFA was led by senior Charity Egenti who finished second in the league with 11. Classmate Evelyn Edwards added four double-doubles, while junior Nikki Carr recorded two and seniors Natalie Kizzee and Jennifer Simpson each recorded one.
Crashing the Boards: The Ladyjacks are the league's top rebounding team. SFA led the conference averaging 44.1 rebounds per game, and also led the league with a +5.9 rebounding margin. The Ladyjacks pulled down at least 50 rebounds in a game nine times this season, including a season-high 59 against McNeese State.
SLC Leaders: The Ladyjacks led the league in a few other statistical categories other than rebounds and rebound margin. SFA also led the league in defensive rebounds (27.3 rpg), field-goal percent defense (.367) and blocked shots (4.17).
Windex Award: Senior Natalie Kizzee came provided head coach Lee Ann Riley with some solid minutes off the bench Saturday in San Antonio. Kizzee finished the game with eight points, on 4-of-6 (.667) shooting, and also pulled down 10 rebounds. It marked the third time this season that Kizzee has grabbed double-figure rebounds.
Need Assistance: Junior Nikki Carr only scored two points Wednesday against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, but she was heavily involved in the Ladyjacks' offense. Carr dished out a career-high 11 assists in the win. It marked the first time a Ladyjack has recorded double-figure assists in a game since Latisha Prater dished out 10 in a victory against Nicholls State during the 2001-02 season.
20-Something: Senior Charity Egenti led SFA with 24 points in the victory over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. It marked the 10th this season, that Egenti has scored at least 20 points in a game. She has scored in double-figures in all but two of the Ladyjacks games this season. Egenti recorded a career-high 28 points against Lamar earlier this season.
Nacogdoches Block Party: Senior Charity Egenti recorded three blocks last week, which places her among the school's all-time top 10 in that category. Egenti is eighth all-time at SFA with 83 career swats. Teammate Evelyn Edwards is currently tied for 10th all-time (66) at SFA.
Arc Angel: Nikki Carr is among the school's list of all-time three-point shooters and she is only a junior. She is currently seventh all-time with 93 career three-pointers.
Up Next ... If the Ladyjacks win the SLC tournament, they will receive the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Championships. The first round of the tournament will be Saturday, Mar. 17 and Sunday, Mar. 18. The NCAA Women's Championship selection show will be Monday, Mar. 12 at 7 p.m. Central time on ESPN.
