WSU Women's Basketball Game Notes (PDF)
GAME STORYLINES
The Warriors finish off a three-game road trip Thursday at Ferris State. WSU returns home Saturday to host Grand Valley in a game to be aired on Comcast CN 900. Wayne State has lost two out of its last three games, including dropping an 84-69 contest at Northern Michigan in its last outing on Feb. 15.
Entering Thursday's contest, Wayne State has a one-game lead for the overall GLIAC lead at 16-3. Michigan Tech is one game back at 15-4, with two of those losses coming against the Warriors. WSU is just one conference victory shy of matching the 17 league wins Wayne State achieved during the 2012-13 season.
The Green & Gold were included in the USA Today Sports' Top 25 poll for the sixth straight week, receiving 152 votes to earn the No. 21 spot. WSU is the lone GLIAC team to receive votes in the poll.
The Warriors have already clinched a home quarterfinal game in the GLIAC Tournament. WSU will host an opponent to be determined in a first round matchup at the Matthaei Center on March 5.
SCOUTING FERRIS STATE
The Bulldogs recently ended a five-game losing streak, defeating Lake Superior on the road in double overtime, 72-68, on Feb. 15. Ferris State is just 3-5 at home this season and 7-11 in the conference overall.
Senior Sarah DeShone is fourth in the GLIAC in scoring at 17.3 points per game. She is also second in the conference in assists per game (4.3) and first in the GLIAC in free throw shooting (90.9 percent).
Sophomore Dena Droste also averages in double figures (12.3 ppg) for the Bulldogs, and has converted on 46-of-102 three-point attempts (45.1 percent) in 2013-14. Droste and DeShone combined to score 57 points, converting 9-of-16 three-point attempts, during WSU's first outing against Ferris State this season.
Sophomore Christina Branch leads the Bulldogs in rebounding, averaging 6.8 boards per game.
Colleen Lamoreaux-Tate is in her second season as head coach and has a 20-26 record at FSU.
ALL-TIME SERIES VS. FERRIS STATE
Wayne State has won its last four games against Ferris State, including an 88-83 win last month on Jan. 30 at the Matthaei Center. WSU is 12-20 in games played in Big Rapids and 30-34 in the series overall.
Carrie Lohr is 4-1 all-time against the Bulldogs in her Warrior coaching career.
SCOUTING GRAND VALLEY
Heading into Thursday's home contest against rival Saginaw Valley, the Lakers have won their last three games. Senior Dani Crandall had a career game in GVSU's 70-67 overtime victory over Northwood on Feb. 15, scoring 36 points 11-of-19 shooting. She was also 13-of-16 from the free throw line.
Crandall is the lone Laker to average in double figures, scoring 14.0 per contest. She also leads at 6.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game. She is shooting 51.2 percent from the field this season.
Freshman Kayla Dawson is second on the team in both scoring (9.9 ppg) and rebounding (5.2 rpg). Junior Kat LaPrairie has made 42 three-point attempts this season and is shooting 35.0 percent from beyond the arc.
GVSU head coach Janel Burgess has a 116-74 record in her seventh season as head coach of the Lakers.
ALL-TIME SERIES VS. GRAND VALLEY
The Warriors are 16-15 at home against GVSU and 25-40 all-time against the Lakers. Wayne State earned a 78-76 win over the Lakers in Allendale earlier this season, on Feb. 1.
Shareta Brown had 26 points and 10 rebounds in WSU's win over Grand Valley.
In their last matchup in Detroit on Jan. 26, 2013, WSU earned a 72-59 victory over the Lakers.
Carrie Lohr is 2-2 against GVSU.
IN THE RANKINGS
Wayne State was ranked in the USA Today Sports Top 25 Coaches Poll for the sixth consecutive week on Tuesday, Feb. 18. Prior to this season, no Warrior team had been ranked in the Top 25 in the national rankings. Wayne State has been ranked as high as No. 18. The Warriors were also ranked No. 39 in the Bennett Rankings and were No. 24 in the Massey Ratings.
GLIAC/NATIONAL LEADERS
Individually,
Shareta Brown is first in the conference in scoring (21.0 ppg), steals per game (2.3), total points (462) and field goal percentage (65.2 percent). Her field goal percentage mark also leads the nation. She is second in the GLIAC in field goals made (163) and rebounding (11.4 rpg). She is tied for eighth in the country in double-doubles (13) and is seventh in rebounding and 15th in scoring average nationally.
Jackie Jones is first in the league in assists per game (4.6) and total assists (105). She is also 19th nationally in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.1).
Imari Redfield and
Kayla Bridges are second and eighth, respectively, in the league in field goal percentage.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONORS
Shareta Brown was named GLIAC North Player of the Week on Tuesday (Feb. 4), following a week in which she had three consecutive double-doubles to lead the Warriors to a 3-0 record.
It's the second time this season that Brown has earned the weekly conference accolade and third time this season that a WSU player has been selected for the award.
Imari Redfield earned the award on Jan. 6, with Brown receiving it a week later on Jan. 13.
THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME
WSU is 9-1 at home this season and the Warriors are 21-4 in their last two seasons when playing at the Matthaei Center. Wayne State had a 17-game win streak over two seasons before falling against Saginaw Valley in its last contest at home on Feb. 8.
IN THE RECORD BOOKS
The Warriors are taking aim at a few team records this season. Wayne State is averaging 79.5 points per game, above the old mark of 77.3 set by the 2002-03 squad. WSU has a better field goal percentage (48.2) to this point than the current team record of 45.3 percent set during the 1994-95 campaign.
Junior
Shareta Brown is also making her mark on the record book in her first season as a Warrior. She is on pace to set the single season records for field goal percentage and free throws made. Delonda Little holds the field goal percentage mark at 59.1, which was set in 1994-95, while Ebony Vincent made 125 free throws during the 2003-04 season to hold that record.
LAST TIME OUT
The Wayne State University women's basketball team was out-scored in both halves on Feb. 15 as the Warriors dropped an 84-69 road contest at Northern Michigan University. The game was a back-and-forth battle in the opening 20 minutes, with Wayne State leading 22-19 midway through the first half. The Wildcats went on a 11-2 run, however, to take a 30-24 lead with 4:40 left before the break.
Wayne State shot 54.2 percent in the first half, but turned the ball over 10 times. Northern Michigan had a 37.1 percent shooting clip in the first half.
Shareta Brown led the Warriors with 13 points at the break, while
Imari Redfield added 10 points for WSU.
Wayne State pulled to within two points, 40-38, 22 seconds into the second half on a lay-up by
Ondrea Hughes, but Northern Michigan scored the next seven points to take a nine-point lead, 47-38. Northern Michigan soon went up by double figures and WSU would never get within 10 points the rest of the game.
The Warriors shot 44.8 percent in the second half and 49.1 percent for the game, but were just 2-of-11 from beyond the arc. WSU was also 15-for-19 from the foul line.
Northern Michigan missed just one free throw shot the entire game and none in the second half. The Wildcats were 26-for-27 from the foul line overall, including making all 17 shots in the second half. NMU also had the advantage in rebounding, 36-29. NMU was also efficient from three-point range, sinking 10-of-23 shots (43.5 percent).
Brown led the Warriors with 19 points and nine rebounds. Redfield added 17 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Hughes was the third Warrior in double figures with 11 points.
Ashley Wilson added eight points and five boards off the bench.
COACH LOHR
Carrie Lohr, who was named the 12th head coach in the history of women's basketball at WSU on May 11, 2011, is in her third season guiding the Warrior program. She was voted the 2012-13 GLIAC Coach of the Year by her peers after leading Wayne State to a share of the GLIAC North Division regular-season title, the first for the WSU women's basketball program since the 1980-81 season. Lohr also guided the Warriors to their first NCAA tournament victory (63-58 over Findlay) as well as the school's inaugural appearance in the NCAA Regional Championship game.
She recorded her 200th collegiate coaching victory on March 16, 2013, with WSU's 70-60 triumph over Wisconsin-Parkside in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. BCAM selected Lohr as the 2012-13 Women's College Coach of the Year.
COMCAST/XFINITY
Ryan Ermanni, Rod Beard and Joe Abramson will call the action Saturday against Grand Valley on Comcast CN 900. The Warriors broadcasted six games on television during the 2013-14 regular season.
