Wednesday, February 14
Nacogdoches, Texas
7:00 p.m.
Stephen F. Austin
vs
Texas A & M Corpus Christi
Ladyjacks Close Out Home Stand with Midweek Matchup Versus Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
2/13/2018 3:47:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Wednesday vs. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
7:00 p.m | Nacogdoches, Texas | William R. Johnson Coliseum
Live stats | Audio | Video | SFA Game Notes
7:00 p.m | Nacogdoches, Texas | William R. Johnson Coliseum
Live stats | Audio | Video | SFA Game Notes
NACOGDOCHES, Texas – In its last appearance at William R. Johnson Coliseum, the Stephen F. Austin women's basketball team put forth one of its most complete offensive games of the season in thrashing rival Northwestern State 83-48. Now sitting at 19-4 on the season, the Ladyjacks will look to win a third straight game with a midweek bout against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Wednesday.
Despite ceding the top spot in the Southland standings, the Ladyjacks are still very much in the mix for a conference title as the final stretch of the regular season takes shape. Wednesday also marks the second to last home game for the Ladyjacks, as the February 24 contest with Lamar will mark SFA's Senior Day and final home contest.
Wednesday's contest against the Islanders will be show on ESPN and broadcast on FM 94.7 KVLL, with Bobby Mauro providing the play-by-play call on both. Fans are also encouraged to check out the live stats link above, and follow the Ladyjacks on Twitter (@SFA_WBB) to see live score updates and other info.
The Islanders currently sit in fifth place in the conference standings at 15-8 overall and 8-4 in conference play. Riding a five-game winning streak into Wednesday's game, second only to Lamar, the Islanders are one of the hottest teams in the conference in recent play and come into the midweek bout full of momentum and confidence. At the helm is former Ladyjacks coach Royce Chadwick, who led SFA to seven NCAA Tournament Appearances, five Southland titles and 174 victories compared to just 43 losses in seven seasons. Now in his 34th season of coaching Chadwick boasts a 637-399 coaching record.
A matchup with A&M-Corpus Christi pits two very solid defensive squads against each other, as the Islanders rank second in the Southland in scoring defense (56.9), and the Ladyjacks fall in right behind in third at 57.3 points allowed per game. A physical team that looks to inhibit opposing offenses at every turn, the Islanders also rank at the top of the conference in field goal percentage defense at 36.9 percent, and are one of just five teams with a positive scoring margin in the conference.
A trio of double-digit scorers in Brittany Mbamalu (11.8), Emma Young (10.9) and Dalesia Booth (10.2) pace a middling Islanders offense that ranks eighth in the conference in scoring at 60.7 points a game. AMCC's 75 points scored in its most recent win over UNO was the first 70-point game for the team in the past five, and only the sixth 70-point game for the team this season. Corpus Christi also ranks near the bottom of the conference in field goal percentage (37.8) and three-point percentage (27.7).
"They're tough and very physical, they're a great rebounding that is near the top in our league in rebounding;" said SFA head coach Mark Kellogg. "Their identity is made up of toughness, rebounding and defense, and then they'll challenge us a bit offensively as well. They have some good athletes that can score in transition, if you want to slow it down they're happy to slow it down and run some sets. They'd probably rather play a slow-paced, half-court game, whereas we'd rather it be up and down, but I think we've proven that we can play multiple ways as well."
SFA's offense, on the other hand, has had no trouble scoring in bunches this season, with an average of 72.3 points per game that ranks second in the Southland Conference this season. Stevi Parker is the 'Jacks leading scorer at 12.5 points and 10.0 rebounds per game, while Chanell Hayes (11.9 points) and Taylor Jackson (11.0) each provide consistent scoring for SFA as well. The 'Jacks shoot the ball well (SFA's 44 percent clip from the field is the Southland's best), and the team has been steadily increasing its accuracy from beyond the arc as well, as evidenced by a season-high 13 made trifectas on 27 attempts. Six different Ladyjacks hit a three in the contest, and with a lineup full of individuals capable of making those shots, SFA's offense is hard to limit.
With an all-time series between the two teams consisting of 22 games dating back to the 2003-04 season, SFA has built up a 19-3 edge versus the Islanders. That includes a 14-game winning streak that began in 2008-09, as well as three wins in as many tries for Mark Kellogg since taking the helm at SFA. Stephen F. Austin owns a 9-2 all-time record at William R. Johnson Coliseum against AMCC, and has not lost to the Islanders there since 08-09. This season, the Ladyjacks have done well in keeping with the tradition of William R. Johnson Coliseum, running up a perfect 13-0 record there to add to the harrowing margin in the all-time record at SFA's home court.
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