Thursday, February 29
Nacogdoches, TX
6:30 p.m.
Stephen F. Austin
vs
California Baptist University
Thursday Evening Clash Features Ladyjacks in Home Duel Against Lancers
2/28/2024 11:06:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Stephen F. Austin vs. California Baptist University
Date: Thursday, February 29th
Time: 6:30 p.m. CT
Live Stream: ESPN+
Stadium: William R. Johnson Coliseum
Series: CBU Leads 3-2
NACOGDOCHES, Texas. - The Stephen F. Austin Ladyjacks Basketball Team (18-9, 12-4) plays their third straight home game when they face-off with California Baptist University Lancers (22-3, 14-2) for a critical Thursday evening match-up with playoff seeding on the line.
Ladyjacks at a Glance:
The Stephen F. Austin Ladyjacks appear to be finding their stride as a team at just the right time, as they look forward to their final two home games of the season that will have major implications on seeding and final standings for the WAC. The 'Jacks have won their last three games, that was sparked by a rally on the road against the ACU Wildcats that saw Kyla Deck explode for a 34-point performance, a new career-high for Deck and the third highest individual scoring effort by a WAC player this season. Since that win, the Ladyjacks kicked off a four-game homestand that has seen them dominate both Seattle University and Utah Valley as they have won their last two games by at least 25 points. In their last game, the Ladyjacks steam rolled the Utah Valley Wolverines as they cruised to a commanding 84-35 win over the Wolverines at home. The 35 points allowed by SFA was the fewest they've allowed all season, and the fewest they've allowed since 2021 when they held Our Lady of the Lake to a mere 31 points. All in all, the Ladyjack offense has now scored at least 84 points in their last three games, and have nine games this season where they have surpassed the 80-point threshold as a team.
A large reason as to the recent dominance by the SFA offense has to be credited to Avery VanSickle who is playing the best basketball of her SFA career. A large reason for VanSickle's recent hot stretch of games can be contributed to her flawless three-point shooting that has seen her make nine triples over her last two contests. VanSickle set a new career-high in the opener of the four game home stand against Seattle as she knocked down four triples in route to an 18-point performance to lead all Ladyjacks, while setting a new career-high in rebounds with six against the Redhawks. However, she took it a step further in the blow-out win against the Wolverines as she drained a career-high five three-pointers against Utah Valley, which resulted in VanSickle resetting her career-high in points as she left last Saturday's contest with 24 points, and crashed the boards to help set a new career-high in rebounds with seven against the Wolverines. Kurstyn Harden has been her usual dominant self for the Ladyjacks as she is forming a dynamic scoring duo with VanSickle, with VanSickle providing the outside scoring and Harden being a menacing force in the low paint. Harden has posted double-digit points in seven of her last eight contests, and has surpassed 20 points in four of those matches. In the most recent win over Utah Valley, Harden posted her seventh double-double of the campaign as she scored 21 points, while pulling down 10 rebounds, and going a perfect 7-7 from the charity stripe.
However, the scoring recently for SFA has gone far beyond Harden and VanSickle as Mele Finau and Tyler McCliment-Call have both been equally dominant in the last two games with both hitting double-digit points in both games. McCliment-Call has been stuffing the statsheet recently for SFA, as she has posted at least 10 points, three rebounds, two assists, and one steal in her last two contests. Finau, has become a formidable outside shooting threat alongside VanSickle recently, as she has made at least two triples in back-to-back games, posting at least 14 points, four rebounds, and two assists while playing at least 30 minutes in both games.
Forcing double-digit turnovers is a key to winning games for the Ladyjacks, when the Ladyjacks force double-digit turnovers they hold a 15-6 record on the season. Thus, it should come as no surprise that over the last three wins, the Ladyjack defense has recorded double-digit turnovers forced in all three wins, highlighted by double-digit steals in all three games. A large part of the dominance on the SFA defense, Destini Lombard has been greedy on defense as she has recorded at least four steals in three straight games, while recording 14 steals over her last three. To top it all off, the Ladyjacks free-throw shooting has improved significantly over their past three games as they have shot over 80% from the foul line in all three wins.
Lombard's recent performance on defense has seen her rise to 28th in the nation in steals as she has recorded 68 on the season, while Kyla Deck has formed a nice compliment to Lombard as she is ranked 48th in the nation with 62 steals of her own, and ranks 18th in the country averaging 2.82 steals/game. Lombard also contributes just as much offensively as she ranks 32nd in the nation in assist/turnover ratio, as she sports a 2.34 ratio for the season. Kurstyn Harden's usual dominance in the paint is evidenced by her shooting percentage as she sits 28th in the nation shooting a healthy 55.81% from the field for the season.
Lancers at a Glance:
As hot as the Ladyjacks are, the California Baptist Lancers are just as hot as SFA as they come into Thursday evening's match-up at the Sawmill riding a three-game winning streak of their own. The Lancers have won nine of their last ten contests, with their only loss during that stretch being a mere three-point loss to the Utah Valley Wolverines. The Lancers in their last game demolished the Tarleton State Texans 97-64 at home to keep their home record a perfect 13-0 on the season. In the win over the Texans, the Lancers shot an astounding 50 three-pointers, making an impressive 20 of them, as seven different Lancers made at least one three-pointer in the dominating win.
Chloe Webb led the scoring for the Lancers per usual, as she finished last Saturday's game with 20 points, adding three rebounds, three assists, and one steal. Webb has been dominating the WAC all season long, as she leads the WAC in points per game at 21.4 points/game, which ranks her 14th in the nation, and has scored double-digit points in all but two games this season. Webb has four 30-point performances this season, and has 12 instances where she has recorded 20 points in a game. In seven of her last eight games, Webb has scored at least 20 points scoring over 30 points in three of those seven games. Kinsley Barrington finished second on the team in scoring with 19 points against the Texans, pulling down seven rebounds, and adding two assists. Nae Nae Calhoun and Nhug Bosch Duran helped power the Lancers remarkable day from downtown as they combined for 11 three-pointers, with both making at least five triples and both finishing with 18 points to round out the top scorers for CBU. Filipa Barros pulled down a team-high 12 rebounds while adding five steals defensively.
Four different Lancers average double-digit points this season for CBU as Chloe Webb leads the pack with her 21.4 points/game average. Meanwhile, Filipa Barros, and Khloe Lemon both average over 12 points/game for the Lancers, while Kinsley Barrington averages a precise 10.0 points/contest. Webb, unsurprisingly, leads the team in a number of other significant statistical categories as she leads the team with 53 three-pointers on the season, leads the team with 127 free-throws on the campaign, and has pulled down 192 rebounds, and recorded 69 steals both of which also lead all Lancers. Filipa Barros has formed a nice compliment to Webb as she ranks second on the team in three-pointers (33), rebounds (139), assists (82), and steals (47), while Anaiyah Tu'ua has blocked a team-high eight shots this season.
Series: Thursday evening's match-up will mark the sixth time these two programs have squared off with each other, and the second time this season they will face-off. The Ladyjacks claimed the first two games of the series, but the Lancers have turned it into a different gear the last three games as they have won the previous three meetings. These two schools met earlier this season with the Lancers claiming a 97-75 win at home over SFA, as the Ladyjacks look for some revenge in their home meeting with the Lancers. This match-up will feature no shortage of offensive fireworks as the top two scoring offenses in the WAC will be on full display at the Sawmill on Thusday evening, with the Lancers the no.1 scoring offense and the Ladyjacks the no. 2 scoring offense in the WAC.
Date: Thursday, February 29th
Time: 6:30 p.m. CT
Live Stream: ESPN+
Stadium: William R. Johnson Coliseum
Series: CBU Leads 3-2
NACOGDOCHES, Texas. - The Stephen F. Austin Ladyjacks Basketball Team (18-9, 12-4) plays their third straight home game when they face-off with California Baptist University Lancers (22-3, 14-2) for a critical Thursday evening match-up with playoff seeding on the line.
Ladyjacks at a Glance:
The Stephen F. Austin Ladyjacks appear to be finding their stride as a team at just the right time, as they look forward to their final two home games of the season that will have major implications on seeding and final standings for the WAC. The 'Jacks have won their last three games, that was sparked by a rally on the road against the ACU Wildcats that saw Kyla Deck explode for a 34-point performance, a new career-high for Deck and the third highest individual scoring effort by a WAC player this season. Since that win, the Ladyjacks kicked off a four-game homestand that has seen them dominate both Seattle University and Utah Valley as they have won their last two games by at least 25 points. In their last game, the Ladyjacks steam rolled the Utah Valley Wolverines as they cruised to a commanding 84-35 win over the Wolverines at home. The 35 points allowed by SFA was the fewest they've allowed all season, and the fewest they've allowed since 2021 when they held Our Lady of the Lake to a mere 31 points. All in all, the Ladyjack offense has now scored at least 84 points in their last three games, and have nine games this season where they have surpassed the 80-point threshold as a team.
A large reason as to the recent dominance by the SFA offense has to be credited to Avery VanSickle who is playing the best basketball of her SFA career. A large reason for VanSickle's recent hot stretch of games can be contributed to her flawless three-point shooting that has seen her make nine triples over her last two contests. VanSickle set a new career-high in the opener of the four game home stand against Seattle as she knocked down four triples in route to an 18-point performance to lead all Ladyjacks, while setting a new career-high in rebounds with six against the Redhawks. However, she took it a step further in the blow-out win against the Wolverines as she drained a career-high five three-pointers against Utah Valley, which resulted in VanSickle resetting her career-high in points as she left last Saturday's contest with 24 points, and crashed the boards to help set a new career-high in rebounds with seven against the Wolverines. Kurstyn Harden has been her usual dominant self for the Ladyjacks as she is forming a dynamic scoring duo with VanSickle, with VanSickle providing the outside scoring and Harden being a menacing force in the low paint. Harden has posted double-digit points in seven of her last eight contests, and has surpassed 20 points in four of those matches. In the most recent win over Utah Valley, Harden posted her seventh double-double of the campaign as she scored 21 points, while pulling down 10 rebounds, and going a perfect 7-7 from the charity stripe.
However, the scoring recently for SFA has gone far beyond Harden and VanSickle as Mele Finau and Tyler McCliment-Call have both been equally dominant in the last two games with both hitting double-digit points in both games. McCliment-Call has been stuffing the statsheet recently for SFA, as she has posted at least 10 points, three rebounds, two assists, and one steal in her last two contests. Finau, has become a formidable outside shooting threat alongside VanSickle recently, as she has made at least two triples in back-to-back games, posting at least 14 points, four rebounds, and two assists while playing at least 30 minutes in both games.
Forcing double-digit turnovers is a key to winning games for the Ladyjacks, when the Ladyjacks force double-digit turnovers they hold a 15-6 record on the season. Thus, it should come as no surprise that over the last three wins, the Ladyjack defense has recorded double-digit turnovers forced in all three wins, highlighted by double-digit steals in all three games. A large part of the dominance on the SFA defense, Destini Lombard has been greedy on defense as she has recorded at least four steals in three straight games, while recording 14 steals over her last three. To top it all off, the Ladyjacks free-throw shooting has improved significantly over their past three games as they have shot over 80% from the foul line in all three wins.
Lombard's recent performance on defense has seen her rise to 28th in the nation in steals as she has recorded 68 on the season, while Kyla Deck has formed a nice compliment to Lombard as she is ranked 48th in the nation with 62 steals of her own, and ranks 18th in the country averaging 2.82 steals/game. Lombard also contributes just as much offensively as she ranks 32nd in the nation in assist/turnover ratio, as she sports a 2.34 ratio for the season. Kurstyn Harden's usual dominance in the paint is evidenced by her shooting percentage as she sits 28th in the nation shooting a healthy 55.81% from the field for the season.
Lancers at a Glance:
As hot as the Ladyjacks are, the California Baptist Lancers are just as hot as SFA as they come into Thursday evening's match-up at the Sawmill riding a three-game winning streak of their own. The Lancers have won nine of their last ten contests, with their only loss during that stretch being a mere three-point loss to the Utah Valley Wolverines. The Lancers in their last game demolished the Tarleton State Texans 97-64 at home to keep their home record a perfect 13-0 on the season. In the win over the Texans, the Lancers shot an astounding 50 three-pointers, making an impressive 20 of them, as seven different Lancers made at least one three-pointer in the dominating win.
Chloe Webb led the scoring for the Lancers per usual, as she finished last Saturday's game with 20 points, adding three rebounds, three assists, and one steal. Webb has been dominating the WAC all season long, as she leads the WAC in points per game at 21.4 points/game, which ranks her 14th in the nation, and has scored double-digit points in all but two games this season. Webb has four 30-point performances this season, and has 12 instances where she has recorded 20 points in a game. In seven of her last eight games, Webb has scored at least 20 points scoring over 30 points in three of those seven games. Kinsley Barrington finished second on the team in scoring with 19 points against the Texans, pulling down seven rebounds, and adding two assists. Nae Nae Calhoun and Nhug Bosch Duran helped power the Lancers remarkable day from downtown as they combined for 11 three-pointers, with both making at least five triples and both finishing with 18 points to round out the top scorers for CBU. Filipa Barros pulled down a team-high 12 rebounds while adding five steals defensively.
Four different Lancers average double-digit points this season for CBU as Chloe Webb leads the pack with her 21.4 points/game average. Meanwhile, Filipa Barros, and Khloe Lemon both average over 12 points/game for the Lancers, while Kinsley Barrington averages a precise 10.0 points/contest. Webb, unsurprisingly, leads the team in a number of other significant statistical categories as she leads the team with 53 three-pointers on the season, leads the team with 127 free-throws on the campaign, and has pulled down 192 rebounds, and recorded 69 steals both of which also lead all Lancers. Filipa Barros has formed a nice compliment to Webb as she ranks second on the team in three-pointers (33), rebounds (139), assists (82), and steals (47), while Anaiyah Tu'ua has blocked a team-high eight shots this season.
Series: Thursday evening's match-up will mark the sixth time these two programs have squared off with each other, and the second time this season they will face-off. The Ladyjacks claimed the first two games of the series, but the Lancers have turned it into a different gear the last three games as they have won the previous three meetings. These two schools met earlier this season with the Lancers claiming a 97-75 win at home over SFA, as the Ladyjacks look for some revenge in their home meeting with the Lancers. This match-up will feature no shortage of offensive fireworks as the top two scoring offenses in the WAC will be on full display at the Sawmill on Thusday evening, with the Lancers the no.1 scoring offense and the Ladyjacks the no. 2 scoring offense in the WAC.
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