Thursday, December 28
Nacogdoches, Texas
7:00 p.m.
Stephen F. Austin
vs
Southeastern Louisiana
Ladyjacks Set to Close Out 2017 with Conference Opener at Home
12/27/2017 4:54:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Thursday vs. Southeastern Louisiana
7:00 p.m | Nacogdoches,Texas | William R. Johnson Coliseum
Live stats | Audio | ESPN3 | SFA Game Notes | SLU Game Notes
7:00 p.m | Nacogdoches,Texas | William R. Johnson Coliseum
Live stats | Audio | ESPN3 | SFA Game Notes | SLU Game Notes
NACOGDOCHES, Texas—The Stephen F. Austin women's basketball team has a golden opportunity to finish the 2017 year with a victory on Thursday, when it opens the conference slate with a game against 1-10 Southeastern Louisiana. The 'Jacks (8-3) will look to tame the Lions at home in William R. Johnson Coliseum, where they have built up a perfect 6-0 record this season and outscored opponents 539-276 this season.
Doing so would add to an impressive edge in the all-time series with the Lions, in which SFA has won 35 of 40 matchups between the two teams. Furthermore, SFA's streak includes nine wins in the past ten matchups between the two teams, and a 18-1 record against the Lions at WRJ Coliseum. The game will be broadcast on ESPN3, and can also be heard on 94.7 KVLL, with Bobby Mauro providing a riveting call of all the action.
SFA enters the matchup off two victories at home versus non-Division I opponents in Texas A&M-Commerce and Central Christian College. In the win over CCC, SFA tied a season-high mark for points scored with 105, equaling the total from the win over Howard Payne to open the home schedule. Bullying CCC's undersized lineup down low, the 'Jacks scored nearly half (52 of 105) points in the paint and totaled a season-high 63 rebounds, with 26 coming on the offensive glass. Even still, the Ladyjacks continued to add to an impressive trend on the defensive end that carried them throughout the season.
The period of time leading up to Christmas is universally known as the season of giving, and yet the Ladyjacks have been doing far more taking this season, at least on the hardwood. SFA has developed a penchant for forcing turnovers this season that places them among the nation's leaders, and active hands on the defensive end have led to double-digit averages in steals per game for the Ladyjacks. On high display during the CCC game, the SFA defense forced 27 turnovers and led to 40 points off those turnovers for the home team, a trend that has become commonplace for SFA this season.
Facing the tall task of besting that SFA defense is a Southeastern Louisiana team that has compiled a wholly underperforming offense in the 2017-18 campaign. Averaging just 58.0 points per game, the Lions also averaged about 20 turnovers a game on the offensive end, providing an opportunity for the SFA defense to do what they do best. Senior guard Taylin Underwood is the lead act for the Lions on offense, ranking second in the Southland Conference in scoring at 18.4 points per game. Underwood leads the way in nearly every offensive category for SLU, and delivered the game-winning layup in the team's first win of the season versus Bethune-Cookman.
Unlike the offense of their opponents, the Ladyjacks feature more of a balanced scoring approach, with Stevi Parker leading the way at 12.1 points per game, and Chanell Hayes playing second fiddle at 10.9 points per contest. Featuring a variety of scorers across the roster, SFA has also relied substantially on bench scoring this season, with notable contributions from that unit in most games this season. Six players ended the team's most recent victory in double-figures in the rout, and the team has posted an average of 77.6 points per game.
In surmounting the present reality of the team struggling with its shooting, especially from beyond the arc, SFA has placed an increased reliance on defense and timely scoring to win games. Buoyed by an offense that has the ability to get hot in quick succession, as it did during a big win at home against South Dakota, the 'Jacks possess a skill on both ends of the court that instills confidence in head coach Mark Kellogg. Having reached the 300-win plateau for his career with the 'Jacks after the Commerce win, Kellogg has the team on track for another 20+win season, even as the goals for SFA's season extend beyond the overall record and into conference play. His counterpart at the bench for SLU is first-year head coach Ayla Guzzardo, who took the helm after spending last season as the top assistant for the Lions.
After opening the conference season with the home tilt against the Lions, SFA will hit the road for three separate trips to Louisiana for a three-game slate against Nicholls (Jan. 3), Northwestern State (Jan. 6) and the University of New Orleans (Jan. 10).
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Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Basketball
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