SHAWNEE – Oklahoma Baptist (11-6, 7-4 GAC) will welcome Southern Arkansas (8-9, 4-7 GAC) and Arkansas-Monticello (7-10, 4-7 GAC) over the next few days to the Noble Complex.
Thursday's game versus SAU is sponsored by Chick-Fil-A and will serve as a White Out game with the first 150 students getting free White Out T-shirts. Plus, The Franchise (107.7 FM) will be on site for the game in the Noble Complex lobby from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.
A year ago, OBU split the series with the Muleriders while sweeping the Blossoms. Those two wins against UAM marked the first time OBU had swept Monticello since joining Division II.
Tough Sledding
OBU's recent struggles have come against the best of the Great American Conference. Harding and Southern Nazarene are each 10-1 in the league while Arkansas Tech is tied at 7-4 with the Bison. And throw in Southwestern Oklahoma State, a team that's won five of seven. A look into the stats show the Bison being slowed down on offense. In the last five games, OBU has shot 37 percent from the field and 33 percent from deep. Maybe most surprisingly, the green and gold have not done as well at the foul line as before. In the span of five games, OBU is hitting 76 percent while opponents are at 84.7.
She's Just a Freshman
Bison fans should be excited for the future especially since forward
Jaedyn Getman will be around the next few years. The 6-foot-2 freshman has had more than a good start to her career, ranking 19th in the GAC in scoring (12.2) while leading the league in free throw percentage (92.5). Stratford High's all-time leading point-scorer (1,807) has reached double digits for OBU in 12 of 17 games and has made at least 40 percent from the field in seven contests.
The Ankney Difference
As mentioned in earlier notes, having guard
Erika Ankney on the floor pays dividends for the Bison. She missed last game against Southern Nazarene, marking the fourth time the Harrah native has not suited up. In those four games, OBU is averaging 59 points per game. In the 13 other contests with Ankney on the floor, the green and gold have averaged almost nine points more per contest (8.9).
Brace Yourself
Fans in attendance on Thursday night for the Southern Arkansas game will watch an offense unlike any other in Division II basketball. SAU's squad is averaging a remarkable, stunning 37.1 three-point shots per game. That is ranked No. 1 in the country. Plus, the Muleriders' 34.92 percentage is 40th in the nation. That is due to coach Adam Collins' frenetic, full-court press method. SAU tries to pressure almost every time, and in fact, it ranks sixth in D2 in steals per game (13.4).
At the Halfway Point
For coach
Bo Overton's team, 11 GAC games remain. They are 7-4 through the first half of the schedule and are tied for third in the conference standings. Over the next month, OBU will have five more home games and six away from the Noble Complex.
Scouting Southern Arkansas
Southern Arkansas is coming off a 76-63 win at Arkansas-Monticello on Jan. 23. This season, SAU is 3-5 away from Magnolia.
As noted before, the Muleriders are averaging an NCAA-best 37.1 three-point-shots per game. They have shot at least 40 three-pointers in eight different games this season. SAU's leading long-ball shooter is Mychala Linzy who has the second-most threes (42) in the GAC while hitting 42.9 percent. That's good for fourth.
The Muleriders' 83.6 points per game is best in the GAC and ranks fifth in the country. SAU has eclipsed the 100-point mark in five games this season as well.
Linzy and Kylie Minter are slotted fourth and fifth, respectively, in the GAC in three-point field goal percentage. Linzy is at 42.9 while Minter is hitting at a 41.7-percent clip.
In the assists department, Diamond Morris is sixth in the GAC at 3.4 per game. She has handed out at least five dimes in seven different games.
Scouting Arkansas-Monticello
The Cotton Blossoms have lost two straight after falling to Henderson State and SAU over the last few days. UAM is 7-10 overall and have not yet won away from Monticello (0-8).
UAM is 11th of 12 in the GAC in scoring offense (65.1). They are also 11th with a minus 1.76 turnover margin.
Coach David Midlick's team has done well in other areas though. UAM sits in third in opponent three-point field goal percentage (29.1%) and fourth in rebounding margin (+4.6).
UAM's Bailey Harris is the team's top scoring threat. She is seventh in the GAC at 15.9 points per game. She has scored as many as 23 points on three different occasions and has tallied 10+ plus points in 11 straight games.
Junior forward Cyarah Kensmil is slotted fifth in the GAC in blocks (0.9). She has blocked as many as three shots twice.
