GAME STORYLINES
The Wayne State University women's basketball team returns home with a four-game win streak, and winners of six of their last seven contests.  This week, the Green and Gold will host both Michigan Tech and Northern Michigan.  The Warriors will face the Huskies on Thursday, February 6, at 5:30 PM and the Wildcats on Saturday, February 8, with tip-off scheduled for 1:00 PM.

SERIES HISTORY
Michigan Tech leads the all-time series 49-21, including wins in nine of the last 10 meetings.  The Warriors have dropped the last four contests at home against MTU, and are 12-22 all-time in Detroit, with the most recent win being a 50-40 triumph in 2018 against the 12th-ranked Huskies.

Northern Michigan holds a 38-28 advantage in the all-time series, but the two squads are even when playing in Detroit (15-15).  The teams met earlier this season (1/16/25), with the Warriors prevailing 61-60 after Jaci Tubergen splashed a triple with under 20 seconds remaining.  WSU has dropped the last two meetings at home.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
MTU holds a 9-11 ledger thus far, including a 6-6 mark in GLIAC play.  The Huskies split their most recent contests against Davenport and No. 1 Grand Valley State, defeating DU 76-66, before falling 69-51 to the Lakers.

Isabella Lenz is the leading scorer for Michigan Tech and is averaging 14.1 points per game (fourth in the GLIAC), , while contributing team-best totals of 34 made three-point shots and 57 assists.  Kendall Standfest leads the way on the glass, as she has hauled in 149 rebounds, which is good for fifth in the conference.  The freshman adds 11.4 points each night.  Janie Tormanen is the team's third-leading scorer, tallying 11.2 points per contest.
Seventh year head coach Sam Clayton has compiled a 119-69 overall record, and an 86-39 ledger in GLIAC competition.  In her playing days, Sam Clayton (Hoyt) ranks seventh all-time in scoring for the Huskies, garnered All-American honors twice, was voted All-GLIAC, and served as a team captain.

Northern Michigan is 14-6 overall this season, and is tied with Wayne State at 8-4 in the conference.  NMU split its games last week, losing 74-48 to #1-Grand Valley State, before toppling Davenport 80-41.

Sharp-shooting guard Jacy Weisbrod is the Wildcats leading scorer, averaging 13.3 points each night, and splashing 45 triples (tied-for-first in the GLIAC) in just 16 games.

Alyssa Nimz and Alyssa Hill have both eclipsed 100 total rebounds, as Nimz has hauled in 138, with Hill nabbing 114.  Sarash Newcomer has a team-high 59 assists.

Casey Thousand is in her third year as the head coach at NMU and owns a 51-29 overall mark, including a 31-17 record in conference games.

STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE
Wayne State has played the 18th-toughest schedule in Division 2 (226-164, .579), which ranks second in the Midwest Region.  WSU will play opponents that have a combined .542 winning percentage (83-70) over the final four weeks of the regular season.  The combined winning percentage of .569 (309-234) ranks 28th nationally out of over 300 schools.

NATIONAL ATTENTION
Forward Shea Tripp appears in the top 50 of Division II in double-doubles, as she is ranked 43rd with seven.  Taylor Thompson is top 50 nationally in offensive rebounds per game (31st with 3.6).  Her 3.6 offensive rebounds per game leads the GLIAC.  As a squad, the Warriors are 31st in assists per game at 15.9.

Tripp is also 16th among active Division II players in career steals with 215 and 39th in free throw percentage (.792).  Those 215 steals rank seventh in program history.

STRONG SECOND QUARTERS
Down by eight (24-16) after the first quarter, the Warrior offense found its groove in the second, out-scoring SVSU 21-12, and in control of a 37-36 lead before halftime.  Wayne State did not trail for the remainder of the game.

The Green and Gold trailed by as many as 10 against the Lakers of Roosevelt, before capturing the final 11 points of the second stanza that included seven straight points from Gabi Lutchka, putting WSU ahead at intermission.

This past Saturday at Parkside, the hosts held a four-point lead after the first 10 minutes of action (23-19), before an incredible 21-5 performance from the Warriors gave the visitors a 40-28 lead at the break.

CAREER MILESTONES
With the win at Parkside, head coach Carrie Lohr earned her 150th GLIAC victory.  Coach Lohr is the winningest coach in program history (221 wins).  Both Shea Tripp (99) and Alyssa Leister (98) are aiming to become the 40th and 41st WSU women's basketball players to reach 100 career games played.  Combined, the two have only missed nine total games, with Wayne State holding a 55-39 record when they are both on the floor.

LAST GAMES RECAP
The Green and Gold defeated both Purdue Northwest (88-59) and Parkside (73-64) last week on the road.

At the 6:19 mark in the first quarter, PNW's Alyssa Cole netted a lay-up to give the Pride an early 7-6 lead.  Wayne State lifted itself ahead the next possession, and never looked back.  The Warriors finished the first period with a 21-9 advantage.  The Green and Gold out-paced the hosts 24-19 in the second stanza, and 24-12 in the third, extending its lead to 29 (69-40) with 10 minutes remaining in the contest.  The squads each scored 19 points in the fourth quarter, as WSU prevailed on the road.

Taylor Thompson (22), McKenna Ferguson (21), and Gabi Lutchka (14) all scored in double figures.  Lutchka and Ally Shagena lead the way with eight rebounds each, and Shea Tripp dished out a game-high five assists.  

As a team, Wayne State made 51 percent of its shots (33-of-65), including 36 percent from beyond the arc (8-of-22).  The Green and Gold nabbed 48 total rebounds.

After finding themselves down four (23-19) at the end of the first period at Parkside, the Warriors dominated the second quarter out-scoring the Rangers 21-5.  The five points is the least the Rangers have notched in a period this season.

Despite UWP out-pacing WSU in the third stanza (18-15), and tying the fourth (18-18), the cushion that Wayne State had built before the half proved to be loo large, with the Green and Gold winning 73-64.

The Warriors shot 40 percent from the floor (28-of-57) and were 8-of-16 from three (50 percent).  Shea Tripp earned her seventh double-double of the season, finishing with 18 points and 10 rebounds.  McKenna Ferguson was impressive from deep, connecting on four of her seven long-range jumpers, and finishing with a game-high 19 points.  Taylor Thompson added 15 points and nine rebounds.

KEEP UP WITH THE ACTION
Every women's basketball home and GLIAC contest will be televised on FloSports (flohoops.com) per the conference's agreement with the streaming service.  Brady Beedon and Joe Abramson will handle play-by-play duties for the home broadcasts during the 2024-25 campaign. 

In addition, the WSU Department of Athletics has partnered with The PreP for streaming home athletic events for the 2024-25 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).