Women's Basketball 2/29/2024 3:53:00 PM Matthew Jurek, Sports Information Graduate Assistant

Women's Basketball to Conclude Regular Season at Saginaw Valley State on Saturday

The Warriors will look to improve their seeding for next week's GLIAC Tournament.

GAME STORYLINES
Wayne State will look to snap its three-game losing streak in the final regular-season contest of 2023-24 this Saturday, March 2, at Saginaw Valley State. The Warriors and Cardinals will tip off at 1 p.m. from University Center, Mich.

Both WSU and SVSU have qualified for the upcoming GLIAC Tournament, which is scheduled to begin on Wednesday, March 6. This weekend's match-up will help figure out seeding for the eight-team bracket.

SERIES HISTORY
Saginaw Valley State maintains a 44-39 advantage in 83 all-time meetings between the two schools. The Warriors posted a five-point triumph (74-69) in the first match-up of the season in Detroit on January 20, which was their second win in the past six games with SVSU. Three of the previous seven contests have gone into overtime, including the most recent affair between the two programs in University Center. Saginaw Valley State claimed a 72-68 victory in that one on December 3, 2022.

SCOUTING THE CARDINALS
Saginaw Valley State is 4-6 in its last 10 games, with a signature 47-44 road triumph over then #4-ranked Ferris State on February 15. The Cardinals are 9-18 overall and 6-11 in the GLIAC. SVSU will be either the seventh or eighth seed during next week's conference tournament.

The Cardinals routinely play low-scoring games, as the squad averages 58.6 points per game and allows 62.6 PPG on defense. That defensive mark places fourth in the league behind the GLIAC's three best teams in Grand Valley State, FSU, and Northern Michigan. SVSU is also fourth with 10.4 steals per contest.

Just one Saginaw Valley State player averages in double figures in junior guard Aleshia Jones, but her 13.0 PPG is enough for sixth amongst all players in the conference. Jones also paces the Cardinals in field goals made (127), free throws made (68), and blocked shots (18), while being one of two SVSU players (sophomore guard Emma Dziezgowski is the other) to connect on at least 20 triples. Dziezgowski's 38 three-pointers is best on the team.

Other team leaders for Saginaw Valley State include sophomore guard Lydia Meredith in steals (61), graduate student guard Jessica Massey in assists (49), and senior forward Tyler Scheid in rebounds (126). Scheid has also made 51 percent of her field goals for the season (47-of-93).

The head coach of the Cardinals is Jenny Pruett in her fifth season. SVSU is 63-70 overall (.474) and 44-48 (.478) in the GLIAC under Pruett.

LAST WEEKEND RECAP
Wayne State played its final two home regular-season games last week against Michigan Tech and Northern Michigan. The Warriors fell to the Huskies 95-75 after running into a hot shooting MTU squad last Thursday. A total of 52 points (26-26) were tallied between the two sides in what was a close opening 10 minutes of the game, but a 12-2 advantage by Michigan Tech in the first 3:25 of the second period gave the guests a 10-point lead (38-28). That would be the beginning of a second quarter in which the Huskies more than doubled-up Wayne State in points scored at 27-13. The visitors missed just four total shot attempts in the first half, going 21-of-25 for 84 percent from the field. MTU held WSU to nine points in the third stanza, and, despite taking 21 shots and connecting on 12 of those attempts (57 percent), the Green and Gold fell by 20. Michigan Tech connected on 36 of their 49 attempts from the floor (73 percent) for the game. Taylor Thompson turned in a strong performance for the Warriors, as the sophomore posted a career-best 23 points on 11-of-17 shooting to lead all scorers.

The Green and Gold had a strong effort last Saturday against the Wildcats, but ultimately dropped an 80-74 decision on Senior Day. A pair of three-pointers from Jacy Weisbrod and CJ Romero helped Northern Michigan to an 8-2 run in the opening 2:25 of the contest. NMU led by as many as 15 (22-7) with 2:39 remaining in the first stanza, before Wayne State trimmed its deficit to 12 (25-13) following a 6-3 edge in the last 2:23. WSU put together a strong push to begin the second quarter, with a 12-4 spurt that closed the game to just four points in favor of the Wildcats (29-25). Northern Michigan tallied the next eight points between 5:53 and 4:26 to move ahead once again by 12 (37-25). In what was a back-and-forth second stanza, NMU secured a six-point lead (40-34) heading into the break. The third quarter would see a few ties (47-47, 49-49, 51-51), before the Green and Gold out-scored the Wildcats 12-7 in the last 3:03 of the quarter to lead by five after 30 minutes. Wayne State had a six-point advantage (71-65) with 6:55 to play, until an 11-0 swing by Northern Michigan turned the tide and put the Wildcats in front by five (76-71) with 2:28 to play. That would be all NMU needed, as the visitors would score four more points to conclude the final 6:30 by out-scoring the hosts 15-3. The lone field goal in the last 7:36 for Wayne State was via a Becca Fugate three-pointer with 42 seconds left.

CONFERENCE STANDINGS UPDATE
The Warriors' 9-8 GLIAC record entering the week puts the squad sixth in the conference, which would grant WSU a road contest at Northern Michigan in its first game of the GLIAC Tournament. The Green and Gold can finish anywhere between fourth and sixth in the final league standings, depending on results from the final regular-season games of the campaign this week.

The GLIAC Tournament this season is slated for Wednesday, March 6, through Sunday, March 10, with the top four squads hosting a postseason contest in the league's quarterfinals.

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 another notable statistic, 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 27, Wayne State ranks 26th out of 291 programs in bench points per game (26.1), 33rd in both assists per game (15.7) and free throw percentage (.760), 38th in steals per game (10.9), 40th in field goal percentage (.434), 55th in scoring offense (71.7 PPG), and 56th in turnover margin (3.12). Individually, Shea Tripp is 25th nationally in steals (69) and 33rd in steals per game (2.65). McKenna Ferguson is 37th in the country in free throw percentage (.848).

PACING THE GLIAC
Within the GLIAC and following games on February 28 (26 contests), Wayne State ranks fourth in three categories, including points per game (71.7), field goal percentage (.434), and free throw percentage (.760). In ball control categories, WSU remains second behind Ferris State in steals per game, garnering 10.9 SPG to FSU's 11.1. The Green and Gold sit fourth behind FSU, Parkside, and Grand Valley State with 15.7 assists per contest.

Shea Tripp remains the conference leader in both steals (69) and steals per game (2.65). Kate McArthur ranks second with 105 assists, behind FSU's Mallory McCartney with 122. The redshirt senior guard is also third in both assists per game (4.0) and steals per game (2.15). Becca Fugate's .417 three-point percentage and McKenna Ferguson's .848 free throw percentage are both enough for third in the GLIAC.

TRIPP'S STELLAR WEEK
Junior Shea Tripp came close to averaging a triple-double across WSU's two contests last week vs. Michigan Tech and Northern Michigan. The forward averaged 18.5 points, 9.5 rebounds, and 7.5 assists per game, as well as 3.5 steals per contest. Tripp began her week by posting 19 points against the Huskies last Thursday, while also adding six rebounds and seven assists. She then recorded one of the best games of her collegiate career last Saturday vs. the Wildcats, as the junior collected her fifth double-double of the campaign with 18 points and a game-best 13 rebounds. The 13 boards tied her season and career high. Tripp finished the NMU match-up with eight assists, which put her two dimes shy of a triple-double effort.

Those two performances helped the Warrior rise to fifth within a pair of conference categories, as Tripp appears in that slot for both points per game (13.2) and rebounds per contest (6.9).

FUGATE'S MILESTONES
Redshirt senior guard Becca Fugate has eclipsed two milestones during the 2023-24 season. The fifth-year Warrior reached the 1,000-point plateau in WSU's win over Purdue Northwest on January 4, which made her the 19th women's basketball player in program history to achieve the feat. Fugate also became the all-time games played leader at WSU after appearing in her 119th contest on January 20 vs. Saginaw Valley State. She passed Brittany Streetman's 118 GP between 2012 and 2016 for most all-time at Wayne State.

Fugate is also second in three-pointers with 177, which is 18 behind Brooke Bowers' 195 between 2006 and 2010.

KEEP UP WITH THE ACTION
This Saturday's contest at Saginaw Valley State inside the James E. O'Neill Arena will be televised on FloSports (flohoops.com) per the conference's agreement with the streaming service. All conference tournament games can also be seen on the platform.

Wayne State men's basketball play-by-play voice Kevin Brechmacher will provide audio for free through WSUAthletics.com (Warrior All-Access) beginning at 1 p.m. during Saturday's action from University Center, Mich.

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Players Mentioned

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

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

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

#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

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

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

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