Friday, March 15
Las Vegas, NV
4:30 p.m.
Stephen F. Austin
vs
Grand Canyon University
Clash of Titans in WAC Semifinals: SFA and GCU Meet for a Third Time
3/15/2024 8:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Stephen F. Austin vs. Grand Canyon University
Date: Friday, March 15th
Time: 2:30 p.m. CT
Live Stream: ESPN+
Stadium: Orleans Arena
Series: SFA Leads 5-1
LAS VEGAS, NV. - The no. 3 ranked Stephen F. Austin Ladyjacks Basketball Team (21-11, 15-6) gets set for their semifinals matchup against the no. 2 ranked Grand Canyon University Lopes (24-7, 16-4) as the Ladyjacks will look to claim a third straight win over GCU this season and punch their ticket to the WAC Finals on Saturday.
Ladyjacks at a Glance:
The Stephen F. Austin Ladyjacks will enter Friday afternoon's semifinals matchup against GCU carrying plenty of momentum and confidence as they will come in on the heels of a commanding 70-58 win over the Tarleton State Texans in a win-or-go home elimination quarterfinals game in Las Vegas. In the win over the Texans, the Ladyjacks led the Texans in assists (14-13), steals (16-3), field goals (25-22), three-pointers (3-2), free-throws (17-12), points in the paint (42-26), points off turnovers (22-10), and fast break points (19-0). The 16 steals recorded by the Ladyjack defense tied their second highest steal total for a single game this season.
In the win over Tarleton, Kurstyn Harden continued to impose her will on opposing defenses with zero end in sight. Harden recorded her sixth straight game with over 20 points, leading the Ladyjacks with 25 points, adding five rebounds, two steals and one block to yet another vintage Kurstyn Harden performance. Destini Lombard showcased exactly why she won WAC Defensive Player of the Year as she recorded a game-high six steals against Tarleton, while being just as lethal offensively as she recorded 15 points, seven rebounds, and dished out a team-high eight assists in the win. Kyla Deck formed a nice scoring duo with Lombard as she did a little bit of everything in Thursday's game recording 14 points, one rebound, one assist, one block, and two steals, showing exactly why she joined Lombard on the All-WAC Defensive Team.
The Ladyjacks knocked down 25 shots from the field against Tarleton, draining three shots from beyond the arc, while continuing their strong free-throw shooting as they made 17 free-throws to cap off a strong offensive day. However, the defense did most of the dirty work for SFA as they limited the Texans to just 58 points, while never trailing after the first quarter and holding the lead for just a hair over 34 minutes. The Ladyjack defense turned 16 steals and four blocks into 22 points off turnovers, while Kurstyn Harden helped lead 42 points in the paint effort by SFA, and the Ladyjack transition offense operated smoothly and efficiently as they scored 19 fast break points, while committing just nine turnovers in the commanding win.
Lopes at a Glance:
The Grand Canyon University Lopes finished the season as the number two seed in the WAC following an overtime heartbreaker loss to eventual WAC regular season champion California Baptist University. Despite the loss to CBU, the Lopes still experienced a highly successful season that saw them win 24 games, while going 16-4 in WAC conference play and 13-4 at home, marking their third straight season they have won over 20 games and will be looking to make the WAC finals for the third time in the last four years.
A trio of Lopes finished the season earning end-of-season accolades for GCU. Tiarra Brown was named to the All-WAC First Team for the second straight season, while Laura Erikstrup won Sixth Woman of the Year honors for the WAC, while the GCU defense saw both Brown and Trinity San Antonio earn WAC All-Defensive honors.
Trinity San Antonio leads the Lopes in scoring average for the season as she averages 11.2 points/game, while Tiarra Brown has formed a solid scoring compliment to San Antonio as Brown averages 10.2 points/contest. Naudia Evans is GCU's deep shooting threat as she has drained 56 triples on the season, while Olivia Lane has pulled down a team-high 198 rebounds this season and made 106 free-throws. Defensively, it should come as no surprise than Brown and San Antonio lead the charge as Brown leads the team with 25 blocks, while San Antonio has recorded 62 steals this season.
Series: Friday's semifinals matchup will be the third time these two powerhouse programs have squared off against each other this season. SFA has won the previous two meetings between the schools this season and holds a 5-1 series lead over GCU. In their most recent game, the Lumberjacks rallied late in the second half to claim an 85-77 win over the Lopes on senior day at the Sawmill. This game will feature an elite offense butting heads with an elite defense as the Ladyjacks and their no.2 ranked scoring offense in the WAC, will clash with the GCU Lopes and their no. 1 ranked scoring defense in the WAC. It should feature plenty of efficient offensive scoring, however, as GCU and SFA both ranked inside the top-five in the WAC in field goal percentage this season, while both teams ranked inside the top three in the conference in steals this season as both teams averaged double-digit steals/game on the campaign.
Date: Friday, March 15th
Time: 2:30 p.m. CT
Live Stream: ESPN+
Stadium: Orleans Arena
Series: SFA Leads 5-1
LAS VEGAS, NV. - The no. 3 ranked Stephen F. Austin Ladyjacks Basketball Team (21-11, 15-6) gets set for their semifinals matchup against the no. 2 ranked Grand Canyon University Lopes (24-7, 16-4) as the Ladyjacks will look to claim a third straight win over GCU this season and punch their ticket to the WAC Finals on Saturday.
Ladyjacks at a Glance:
The Stephen F. Austin Ladyjacks will enter Friday afternoon's semifinals matchup against GCU carrying plenty of momentum and confidence as they will come in on the heels of a commanding 70-58 win over the Tarleton State Texans in a win-or-go home elimination quarterfinals game in Las Vegas. In the win over the Texans, the Ladyjacks led the Texans in assists (14-13), steals (16-3), field goals (25-22), three-pointers (3-2), free-throws (17-12), points in the paint (42-26), points off turnovers (22-10), and fast break points (19-0). The 16 steals recorded by the Ladyjack defense tied their second highest steal total for a single game this season.
In the win over Tarleton, Kurstyn Harden continued to impose her will on opposing defenses with zero end in sight. Harden recorded her sixth straight game with over 20 points, leading the Ladyjacks with 25 points, adding five rebounds, two steals and one block to yet another vintage Kurstyn Harden performance. Destini Lombard showcased exactly why she won WAC Defensive Player of the Year as she recorded a game-high six steals against Tarleton, while being just as lethal offensively as she recorded 15 points, seven rebounds, and dished out a team-high eight assists in the win. Kyla Deck formed a nice scoring duo with Lombard as she did a little bit of everything in Thursday's game recording 14 points, one rebound, one assist, one block, and two steals, showing exactly why she joined Lombard on the All-WAC Defensive Team.
The Ladyjacks knocked down 25 shots from the field against Tarleton, draining three shots from beyond the arc, while continuing their strong free-throw shooting as they made 17 free-throws to cap off a strong offensive day. However, the defense did most of the dirty work for SFA as they limited the Texans to just 58 points, while never trailing after the first quarter and holding the lead for just a hair over 34 minutes. The Ladyjack defense turned 16 steals and four blocks into 22 points off turnovers, while Kurstyn Harden helped lead 42 points in the paint effort by SFA, and the Ladyjack transition offense operated smoothly and efficiently as they scored 19 fast break points, while committing just nine turnovers in the commanding win.
Lopes at a Glance:
The Grand Canyon University Lopes finished the season as the number two seed in the WAC following an overtime heartbreaker loss to eventual WAC regular season champion California Baptist University. Despite the loss to CBU, the Lopes still experienced a highly successful season that saw them win 24 games, while going 16-4 in WAC conference play and 13-4 at home, marking their third straight season they have won over 20 games and will be looking to make the WAC finals for the third time in the last four years.
A trio of Lopes finished the season earning end-of-season accolades for GCU. Tiarra Brown was named to the All-WAC First Team for the second straight season, while Laura Erikstrup won Sixth Woman of the Year honors for the WAC, while the GCU defense saw both Brown and Trinity San Antonio earn WAC All-Defensive honors.
Trinity San Antonio leads the Lopes in scoring average for the season as she averages 11.2 points/game, while Tiarra Brown has formed a solid scoring compliment to San Antonio as Brown averages 10.2 points/contest. Naudia Evans is GCU's deep shooting threat as she has drained 56 triples on the season, while Olivia Lane has pulled down a team-high 198 rebounds this season and made 106 free-throws. Defensively, it should come as no surprise than Brown and San Antonio lead the charge as Brown leads the team with 25 blocks, while San Antonio has recorded 62 steals this season.
Series: Friday's semifinals matchup will be the third time these two powerhouse programs have squared off against each other this season. SFA has won the previous two meetings between the schools this season and holds a 5-1 series lead over GCU. In their most recent game, the Lumberjacks rallied late in the second half to claim an 85-77 win over the Lopes on senior day at the Sawmill. This game will feature an elite offense butting heads with an elite defense as the Ladyjacks and their no.2 ranked scoring offense in the WAC, will clash with the GCU Lopes and their no. 1 ranked scoring defense in the WAC. It should feature plenty of efficient offensive scoring, however, as GCU and SFA both ranked inside the top-five in the WAC in field goal percentage this season, while both teams ranked inside the top three in the conference in steals this season as both teams averaged double-digit steals/game on the campaign.
Players Mentioned
C
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball10.29.23 | Axe 'Em Insider Episode 17 x Women's Basketball
Friday, November 03
10.5.23 | Women's Basketball x 2023-24 Schedule Preview
Thursday, October 05
8.14.23 | Coach Bishop Italy Recap
Sunday, August 13
SFA vs UNO | WBB Highlights: Ladyjack Basketball
Saturday, January 28
