Women's Basketball 2/21/2024 1:33:00 PM Matthew Jurek, Sports Information Graduate Assistant

Women's Hoops to Host Michigan Tech and Northern Michigan in Final Two Regular Season Home Games

WSU will play the Huskies on Thursday and the Wildcats on Saturday, which will also be Senior Day.

GAME STORYLINES
Wayne State will host its final two regular-season games this week against Michigan Tech and Northern Michigan. The Warriors and Huskies will play at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, February 22, while WSU and NMU will battle at 1 p.m. on Saturday, February 24, for Senior Day inside the Wayne State Fieldhouse.

RECOGNIZING SENIORS
The women's basketball team will recognize two seniors that have had a profound impact on the program over the past several years. Kate McArthur and Becca Fugate will be honored prior to the match-up with the Wildcats. McArthur enters the week having played in 93 games (49 starts) for WSU after transferring from Central Michigan before the 2020-21 campaign. She has made nearly 100 three-pointers at Wayne State and has served as a catalyst for the Green and Gold through steals and assists.

Fugate became the 19th Warrior in school history to reach the 1,000-point plateau (January 4 vs. Purdue Northwest), while also breaking the Wayne State record for all-time games played with her 119th appearance on January 20 vs. Saginaw Valley State. Fugate is also second in three-pointers with 173, which is 22 behind Brooke Bowers' 195 between 2006 and 2010.

SERIES HISTORY
Michigan Tech leads 47-21 in the all-time season series between WSU and MTU, following Wayne State's 61-42 win on December 9, 2023. That triumph for the Green and Gold snapped a seven-game skid against its rivals from Houghton, Mich., which dated back to January 5, 2019. Wayne State is 12-21 at home against MTU, and will look for back-to-back wins over the Huskies for the first time since January 18 and February 22, 2018.

Northern Michigan holds a 36-27 advantage in the all-time season series between the two schools. The Warriors have notched wins in three of the last five meetings, despite the Wildcats claiming an 81-66 victory in the first match-up of the campaign between WSU and NMU on December 7, 2023. The Green and Gold maintain a slight 15-14 edge at home against Northern Michigan.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
Despite a 70-45 loss to Northern Michigan in its most recent game, Michigan Tech has won five of its last seven games. MTU enters the week as the No. 5 seed in the GLIAC standings at 8-6, which is a half-game behind Wayne State for the final home-court seed for the league quarterfinals. Michigan Tech is the conference's leading free throw shooting team at .803 from the charity stripe.

The Huskies have a strong rotation of players who have each had their share of success in 2023-24. Junior guard Isabella Lenz leads MTU in points per game (12.5), while also posting 30 steals and 79 assists to pace Michigan Tech. Lenz's 3.6 assists per game is fourth in the league, while her .890 free throw percentage (73-of-82) is not only the best on her squad, but also tops in the conference. Senior guards Katelyn Meister (132) and Alex Rondorf (130) lead in rebounding, while Meister's 20 blocked shots are also best on MTU. Rondorf, Lenz, and freshman guard Alyssa Wypych each have drained at least 24 triples.

In her sixth season as Michigan Tech's head coach is Sam Clayton. She had led MTU to a 107-55 (.661) overall record and a 77-32 (.706) record in the GLIAC.

Northern Michigan has won its last four games entering Thursday's contest at Saginaw Valley State. The Wildcats are directly in front of Wayne State with a 10-4 league record, which places third behind Grand Valley State and Ferris State. NMU's 68.5 points per game is fifth in the GLIAC, while its 59.7 points allowed per contest is third-best in the conference. Northern Michigan is within the top five for several other categories, including three-point percentage, free throw percentage, rebounds per game, and assists per game.

The Wildcats have the GLIAC's best scoring player in senior guard Makaylee Kuhn. Her 17.35 PPG is slightly ahead of Purdue Northwest's Dash Shaw (17.28 PPG). Kuhn is also fourth in both rebounding (7.0 RPG) and free throw percentage (.832), while pacing her squad in assists (64), rebounds (161), and field goals made (141). Sophomore guard Jacy Weisbrod is the other Northern Michigan player averaging double figures with 11.9 points per game. She is NMU's leading three-point shooter with 59 made triples and has a .399 percentage from beyond the arc. Other Wildcat leaders includes redshirt junior center Ana Rhude with 25 blocked shots and junior guard Mackenzie Holzwart with 21 steals.

Northern Michigan is led by head coach Casey Thousand in her second season. She has guided NMU to a 31-20 (.608) overall record and a 20-12 (.625) mark within the conference.

LAST WEEKEND RECAP
Wayne State collected a 1-1 record on the road last week at Lake Superior State and #4-Ferris State. The Warriors maintained a lead for all but 58 seconds last Thursday inside Bud Cooper Gymnasium, out-scoring LSSU in all four quarters for an 88-49 triumph. Shea Tripp supplied a game-best 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting, while totaling a game-high five assists. Taylor Thompson poured in 13 points, with McKenna Ferguson adding 10 to join Tripp in double figures. Gabi Lutchka registered eight points and a team-best seven rebounds. Kate McArthur also was effective with four steals to lead all players. Nine Warriors collected six points or more in the winning effort, including nine from Ally Shagena in what was a personal best for the junior forward.

Wayne State and Ferris State played on Saturday in support of the Play4Kay Foundation, which is an initiative that unites everyone in the fight against all cancers affecting women. The Green and Gold put in a tough battle against the fourth-ranked Bulldogs inside Jim Wink Arena. WSU had a 10-0 run during the first quarter to lead by six (20-14) after the opening 10 minutes. In the second period, the visitors used a 10-4 stretch to garner a seven-point edge (32-25). The Bulldogs held Wayne State to two points in the final 4:58, while notching 12 points of their own to secure a 37-34 lead at halftime. The second half went the hosts' way as Ferris State out-paced the Green and Gold 37-30 over the final 20 minutes. WSU tallied the final nine points of the contest to pull within 10 at 74-64, but neither squad scored again in the last 1:55 and that was the final tally. Tripp came one rebound shy of a double-double with 18 points and nine boards, both of which led the team.

CONFERENCE STANDINGS UPDATE
The Warriors' 9-6 GLIAC record entering the week is enough for fourth in the conference, which would grant WSU a home postseason game in the league tournament quarterfinals. Wayne State's match-up on Thursday against Michigan Tech is big for seeding purposes, as WSU is a half-game ahead of MTU's 8-6 ledger. The GLIAC Tournament this season is slated for Wednesday, March 6, through Sunday, March 10.

CLOSING GAMES THE RIGHT WAY
Wayne State's success in 2023-24 has been in large part to the squad's ability to finish games. The Warriors have won all 13 games in which they have led at halftime, with another victory when the game was tied at intermission. That represents 14 of the team's 16 victories this campaign.

In other notable statistics, WSU is 4-1 in games decided by five points or less, which have all occurred in GLIAC play. The Green and Gold have posted narrow victories over Purdue Northwest (76-71), Davenport (85-81), Saginaw Valley State (74-69), and Parkside (66-61) thus far in 2023-24.

NATIONAL ATTENTION
Through games on February 19, Wayne State ranks 26th out of 291 programs in bench points per game (26.5), 27th in free throw percentage (.763), 35th in assists per game (15.5), 40th in field goal percentage (.434) and steals per game (10.8), 57th in turnover margin (3.00), and 59th in scoring offense (71.4 PPG). Individually, Shea Tripp is 37th nationally in steals (62) and 40th in steals per game (2.58). McKenna Ferguson ranks 46th in Division II in free throw percentage (.848).

PACING THE GLIAC
Within the GLIAC and following games on February 21 (24 contests), Wayne State ranks fourth in three categories, including points per game (71.4), field goal percentage (.434), and free throw percentage (.763). In ball control categories, WSU continues to be second behind Ferris State in steals per game, registering 10.8 to FSU's 11.4. The Warriors sit fourth behind FSU, Parkside, and Grand Valley State with 15.5 assists per contest.

Shea Tripp remains the conference leader in both steals (62) and steals per game (2.58). Kate McArthur places second in assists (95), while third in both assists per game (4.0) and steals per game (2.21). Becca Fugate and Gabi Lutchka are both within the top five for three-point showing, with Fugate (.411) second behind FSU's Mallory McCartney (.419). Lutchka remains fifth at .383 from beyond the arc. McKenna Ferguson ranks third in the GLIAC in free throw percentage (.848).

KEEP UP WITH THE ACTION
Every women's basketball GLIAC contest for the remainder of the season will be televised on FloSports (flohoops.com) per the conference's agreement with the streaming service. For the game against Michigan Tech (Thursday at 5:30 p.m.), Joe Abramson will handle the play-by-play duties. Brady Beedon will handle the women's broadcast for the contest vs. Northern Michigan (Saturday at 1 p.m.). Veteran Tony Ortiz will join Beedon as a sideline reporter for the weekend match-up.

In addition, the WSU Department of Athletics has partnered with The PreP for streaming home athletic events for the 2023-24 season. For road GLIAC contests, Wayne State men's basketball play-by-play voice Kevin Brechmacher will provide audio for free through WSUAthletics.com (Warrior All-Access).

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Players Mentioned

#21 McKenna Ferguson: G; 5' 7"; Freshman

#4 Becca Fugate: G; 5' 7"; Redshirt Senior

#44 Gabi Lutchka: F; 5' 11"; Sophomore

#30 Kate McArthur: G; 5' 8"; Redshirt Senior

#14 Ally Shagena: F; 5' 11"; Junior

#5 Taylor Thompson: F; 5' 11"; Sophomore

#23 Shea Tripp: F; 5' 10"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#21 McKenna Ferguson
: 5' 7"; Freshman
: G

#4 Becca Fugate
: 5' 7"; Redshirt Senior
: G

#44 Gabi Lutchka
: 5' 11"; Sophomore
: F

#30 Kate McArthur
: 5' 8"; Redshirt Senior
: G

#14 Ally Shagena
: 5' 11"; Junior
: F

#5 Taylor Thompson
: 5' 11"; Sophomore
: F

#23 Shea Tripp
: 5' 10"; Junior
: F