The Missouri Western women's basketball team wraps up its three-game homestand Tuesday as they entertain Newman at 5:30 p.m. inside the MWSU Fieldhouse. The Griffons look for their third consecutive win after getting back-to-back victories for the first time this season.
MWSU rolled past Missouri Southern last Thursday, 78-54, and then rallied to upset Pittsburg State Saturday, 68-64. The Griffons scored the final 13 points of the game against the Gorillas for their first win over a team above .500 this season.
Brionna Budgetts scored a career-high 16 points in the win over PSU, while
Logan Hughes was in double figures for the second straight game with 12.
Camille Evans and
Mychaell Gray added nine points each in the win.
Newman is 3-14 this season as they lost on Saturday at Central Oklahoma, 76-56. The Jets have lost eight consecutive games and they are just 1-7 on the road this season. This will be the first and only matchup between the two teams in the regular season. Brooke Haney leads NU in scoring at 10.5 points per game, while Faith Mason-Vestal adds 10.4 per outing. The Jets have struggled offensively as they are last in the MIAA in scoring (52.4) and field goal percentage (33.1%). Darin Spence is in his 9th season at Newman and he's 120-114 overall and 9-27 in the MIAA. This is the second season for the Jets in the MIAA.
Missouri Western is 5-0 all-time against Newman, including a 70-59 win at Wichita last season. The Griffons are 3-0 at home in the series.
RESCHEDULED GAMES
This is one of three games Missouri Western had to postpone last month after pausing all team activities. They made up their game from January with Fort Hays State last week and then had to push this game with Newman back one day. The game was originally scheduled for Thursday, January 21 inside the MWSU Fieldhouse. The Griffons home game with Central Oklahoma from Saturday, January 23, will now be played February 24 in St. Joseph.
FINDING THEIR OFFENSE
The Griffons are averaging 73.0 points per game in their last two games, which is their second best two-game scoring stretch of the season. They have shot over 45% in both games after doing that just once in their first 14 games. MWSU has also made 41.2% (14-of-34) of their three-point field goals in their last two games despite shooting just 29.2% from behind the arc this season.
DEFENDING THE 3
The Griffons are now second in the MIAA in three-point field goal percentage defense (26.9%) after holding Pitt State to 2-of-10 from behind the arc. Only three opponents have shot better than 40% from three this season. Western has held 11 teams to under 40% shooting overall and they've held 11 opponents to 67 points or less this season.
FORCING TURNOVERS
Missouri Western has forced 19 or more turnovers five times this season and 14 or more in ten games. They rank third in the MIAA in turnovers forced per game (16.0).
ON THE GLASS
MWSU is second in the MIAA in offensive rebounds (12.6) this season despite getting a season low four in their win over Pittsburg State. They are third in the league in rebounds per game (38.3). MWSU has had at least 38 rebounds in ten games and they've added 11 or more offensive rebounds in ten games this season.
YOUTH MOVEMENT
Missouri Western is relying on many young players this season after graduating six seniors and losing all five starters off their 21-8 team last season. The Griffons have nine first-year players and just six that played in a Griffon uniform prior to this season.
MINUTES PLAYED PER CLASS
Freshman - 1357 (42.4% of teams total minutes)
Sophomore - 629 (19.7%)
Junior - 369 (11.5%)
Senior - 845 (26.4%)
MINUTES PLAYED PER YEAR OF EXPERIENCE IN THE PROGRAM
1st Year – 1947 (60.8% of teams total min. played)
2nd Year – 1169 (36.5%)
3rd Year – 84 (2.6%)
POINTS SCORED PER CLASS
Freshman - 378 (39.2% of teams total points)
Sophomore - 266 (27.6%)
Junior - 114 (11.8%)
Senior - 207 (21.5%)
POINTS SCORED PER YEAR OF EXPERIENCE IN THE PROGRAM
1st Year – 598 (62.0% of teams total points scored)
2nd Year – 342 (35.4%)
3rd Year – 25 (2.6%)
