Women's Basketball | 12/18/2015 11:00:00 AM

DETROIT -- The Wayne State University women's basketball program concludes a three-game homestand Sunday against No. 7 Lewis (9-1, 2-0 GLVC).  The Warriors fell, 71-63, to the Flyers in the second round of the NCAA Tournament last March.  Last weekend, WSU split a two-game GLIAC showdown versus North Division rivals.  The Warriors overcame a seven-point deficit in the final quarter to win 61-58 against Northern Michigan on Dec. 10 to notch their first GLIAC victory of the season, before falling, 71-65, to Michigan Tech on Dec. 13.

IN THE RANKS 
As of Dec. 16, WSU was nationally ranked in the top-35 in three statistical categories.  The Warriors were 30th in steals per game (11.1) and 35th in both field-goal percentage (43.8 percent) and opponent field-goal percentage (35.0 percent). 

In the GLIAC, the Warriors were ranked first in opponent field-goal percentage, while second in offensive rebounds per game (15.0) and third in total rebounds per game (41.6). 

LAST  WEEKEND
Northern Michigan Recap
Wayne State (5-2 overall, 1-2 GLIAC) hosted its first league game of the season against Northern Michigan (2-5, 1-2 GLIAC) on Dec. 10 inside the Matthaei. The Warriors overcame a seven-point deficit in the final quarter to win 61-58 and notch their first GLIAC victory of the season.

WSU's second half defense led the way and held NMU without a field goal from the 4:04 mark of the third quarter until the 52-second point of the fourth quarter, a span of 13:12.

A triple from Shannon Wilson three minutes into the contest started the scoring.  NMU took its first lead of the night (10-7) after a three-pointer from Emily Schramek with 4:25 left in the opening quarter.  Nina Foster split a pair of free throws to trim the Wildcats' lead to 12-10 to end the first stanza.

Payton Birchmeier connected on a jumper to begin the second quarter to tie the game at 12-12.  After a Bre Gaspervich trey, Ashley Wilson answered with a triple of her own to tie the game at 15-15 at the nine-minute mark.  Birchmeier kept the momentum rolling as WSU regained the lead, 18-15, with a three-pointer one minute later.  Back-to-back jumpers from Kristen Long and Christina Green extended the home lead to 22-17 at the 6:33 mark of the second period.  

Ashley Wilson drilled another triple to keep the Warriors five-point lead intact.  With just under two minutes before halftime, Green's lay-up put WSU on top by a game-high seven points.  The Wildcats cut the deficit to two, 29-27, after a quick 5-0 run.  A buzzer-beater from Birchmeier to end the half slowed NMU's run and gave the Warriors a 32-27 lead at the break.

An Ashley Wilson bucket at the 7:25 mark of the third quarter returned the Warriors to a seven-point lead, 36-29.  However, a 7-0 run by the Wildcats would tie the game at 36-36 with 5:28 to play in the period.  The NMU run reached 12-0 as NMU sprinted out to a 41-36 advantage.  WSU weathered the storm and pulled within two, 45-43, with 1:12 left in the quarter on a jumper by Birchmeier.  The final seven NMU points of the period came at the free throw line and the Wildcats led 48-43 after 30 minutes.

NMU would continue to make its living at the charity stripe, adding two more to begin the final stanza to take a 50-43 lead.  A lay-up from Ashley Wilson with 4:54 left to play pulled the Warriors within three (52-49) and started the comeback.  A conventional three-point play from Green tied the game at 52-52 with 3:56 on the clock.  WSU's defense continued to get the stops it needed and a triple from Long gave WSU its first lead since the 5:56 mark of the third quarter.  Back-to-back lay-ups from Brittany Streetman extended the lead to seven, 59-52, with 1:48 remaining.  

Gaspervich connected on a 12-foot jumper to trim the deficit to three, 59-56, at the 52-second mark.  The jumper was NMU's first field goal in over 13 minutes.  Gaspervich followed with a lay-up to pull the Wildcats within two, 60-58, with 12 seconds to play.  Streetman knocked down one of two free throws and a game-tying three-pointer from Tess Weatherly rimmed out as time expired.

Ashley Wilson paced WSU's offense with 16 points.  Streetman finished with 13 points, while Green tallied 11 points and a team-high eight rebounds.  Birchmeier chipped in 10 points.  Shannon Wilson led the Warriors with four helpers.

NMU converted 26-of-28 free throws while WSU made six of its nine attempts.  The Wildcats also held a distinct advantage on the glass, out-rebounding the Warriors 56 to 32.  NMU tallied 21 second-chance points on 24 offensive rebounds, while WSU finished with 24 points in the paint compared to NMU's 10.

Michigan Tech Recap
Wayne State (5-3, 1-3 GLIAC) hosted North Division rival Michigan Tech (5-3, 3-1 GLIAC) on Dec. 13.  MTU used a strong second half to capture a 71-65 victory.  WSU led by 10 points at halftime, but MTU outscored WSU 28-12 in the third quarter on its way to the six-point victory.

Shannon Wilson tied the game at 5-5 on a lay-up three minutes into the opening quarter.  The lead changed hands on three occasions before MTU's Kerry Gardner connected from deep to give the Huskies a 13-9 advantage with 2:20 to play in the quarter.  However, two more baskets from Shannon Wilson gave the Warriors a 16-15 lead after the first stanza.

The opening points for WSU of the second quarter came courtesy of an India Hawkins three-pointer.  The lead reached five, 21-16, after a lay-up from Nina Foster.  The Huskies tied the game at 21-21, but Streetman answered with a 10-foot jumper at the 6:38 mark.  An 8-0 WSU run broke the game open and Streetman's fast-break lay-up capped the run, giving the Green & Gold a 33-24 lead.  Foster's jumper sent the Warriors into the break with a 10-point advantage (39-29).

Four minutes into the third quarter,  Michigan Tech had trimmed its deficit to four, 45-41, after a Danielle Blake lay-up.  MTU's Morgan Anderson pulled the visitors within one, 45-44, with a trey at the 5:48 mark.  The momentum stayed with the Huskies after a Kylie Moxley jump shot with just under three minute to play in the period gave MTU its first lead since the 1:23 point of the first quarter.  Back-to-back triples from MTU extended its lead to seven, 57-50, with 1:41 to play in the third quarter.  Brooke Wallace split a pair of free throws to cut the deficit to six, 57-51, to end the quarter.

Streetman drilled a three-pointer at the 9:28 mark of the final quarter to pull the Warriors within three, 57-54.  Ashley Wilson followed with a lay-up after grabbing her own offensive rebound to trim MTU's lead to 57-56.  Streetman beat the shot clock to keep WSU within two with 7:42 remaining.  Another Ashley Wilson bucket on the following possession made it 60-59 in favor of the Huskies.  

MTU answered with a quick 5-0 run to take a 65-59 lead prior to the media timeout.  Ajai Meeks connected on a turnaround jumper to trim the WSU deficit to five, 66-61, with 2:33 left in the game.  That would be as close as WSU would get the rest of the way.  An Ashley Wilson three-pointer with time expiring would complete the scoring.

Streetman finished with 20 points including two three-pointers to bring her career total to 100.  She is the 11th player in program history to reach that mark.  In addition, it was Streetman's third career game 20-point game.  Ashley Wilson pulled down a team-high 10 rebounds, while Kristen Long (Durand, Mich.) finished with four assists.

Four scored in double figures for MTU led by 15 points each from Gardner and Lindsay Winter.  Blake posted a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds, while Moxley collected a game-high 12 boards.

Michigan Tech used 15 second-chance points, while Wayne State scored 38 points in the paint compared to 14 for MTU.  The catalyst for MTU's comeback was its 12-of-34 shooting from behind the arc including seven made triples in the second half.  WSU also only shot 43.8 percent (7-16) from the free throw line.  WSU's bench was strong, scoring 22 points.

SCOUTING THE FLYERS
Ranked seventh nationally in the WBCA Coaches Poll this week, Lewis (9-1, 2-0 GLVC) is 4-0 in its last four games with two wins in the opening weekend of conference play for first-year head coach Kristen Gillespie.  The Flyers topped Saint Joseph's, 68-55, on Dec. 3 and defeated Indianapolis, 67-51, on Dec. 5.  LU started the 2015-16 campaign on a five-game winning streak before suffering a 71-63 loss at Grand Valley State on Nov. 25.  As a team, Lewis is scoring 77.6 points per game, while shooting nearly 50 percent from the field and 40.1 percent beyond the arc.  Three Flyers are scoring in double figures per contest.  Senior Jamie Johnson leads Lewis with 22.2 points per contest, while freshman Jessica Kelliher tallies 17.0 points a game and senior Mariyah Brawner-Henley scores 16.3 points per contest.  Brawner-Henley ranks first on the team in rebounds (10.7 a game) and in steals (21).
 
THE SERIES
Wayne State has won two of the nine meetings against Lewis in the all-time series, which began during the 1984-85 season.  The Warriors have met the Flyers in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in each of the last two seasons. WSU broke a five-game series losing streak with an, 87-80, win in the 2014 NCAA Regional semifinal.

STREETMAN HITS A MILESTONE
Brittany Streetman connected for her 100th career three-pointer on Dec. 13 against Michigan Tech.  The senior is the 11th player in program history to accomplish this feat.  The last person to join this elite group was Paige Sickmiller (2009-13) three years ago.  

This season, Streetman is averaging 12.5 points per game and is shooting 33.3 percent (9-for-27) from beyond the arc.  She has scored in double figures six times this year and has tallied a career-high 20 points three times in her career. Streetman ranks 12th in school history with a 33.2 career three-point field goal percentage (100-301).

CONSISTENT LEADERSHIP
Head coach Carrie Lohr is in her fifth season and has an 85-40 (.680) record at WSU, along with 251-146 (.632) career mark. Lohr is the second coach to lead the Warriors to the NCAA Tournament, but the first coach to have its squad earn an NCAA Tournament bid three straight seasons, including a trip to the Midwest Regional Championship game in 2013 and 2014. 

COMCAST/XFINITY
Every women's basketball home game in 2016 will be broadcast live throughout the state of Michigan on Comcast CN900.  Sean Baligian, Rod Beard, and Joe Abramson will call the action.

WARRIOR ALL-ACCESS
All Wayne State home women's basketball games can be watched via Warrior All-Access for a $5.95 per game fee.  All nine home contests in 2016 will be available on All-Access from the Comcast feed.

NEXT UP
After a nine day break, WSU will travel to Cedarville, Ohio to play the Yellow Jackets for the first time in program history on Dec. 30.  The contest is slated for 5:30 p.m. at the Callan Athletic Center.