Game Notes
Live Stats - Missouri Southern
Live Stats - Fort Hays State
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PITTSBURG, Kan. -- The Gorilla women play their third consecutive game on the road on Wedensday night, though they will not be far from home as they travel to Joplin, Mo. to take on the Lions in a 5:30 p.m. tip. Saturday the team returns home to John Lance Arena to face Fort Hays State at 1:30 p.m.
Scouting Missouri Southern
Missouri Southern is 10-3 overall and 4-1 in MIAA play. The Lions have won four straight games over conference opponents, Northwest Missouri, Missouri Western, Lindenwood and Lincoln. The team’s lone loss in conference play was to Truman on December 8. The Lions lost their first game of the season to Mary, then won six straight before losing two in a row to Truman and Harding right before the holiday break.
Southern is averaging 68.2 points and 37.1 rebounds per game. They hold opponents to 61.8 points and just 29.9 rebounds per game. The team shoots .461 overall, .324 from three-point range and .717 from the charity stripe. The team commits just over 20 turnovers a game.
The Lions don’t have any players averaging double figures on the season, but there are five players that average between 9.7 and 7.5 ppg, keeping the scoring very balanced. Erin Rice leads the team with 9.7 ppg. She shoots .460 from the floor and .813 from the free throw line. Shonte Clay adds 9.5 ppg and leads the team with 5.8 rpg. Dominique Mosley chips in 8.2 ppg. Jolee Sharp scored 7.9 ppg and is the team’s leading three-point shooter, having hit 15 threes in 42 attempts on the year. Shatara Stone adds 7.5 ppg. Tee Singleton leads the team with 31 assists and 17 steals. She adds only 4.9 points per game overall, but has added 7.0 ppg in conference play.
Scouting Fort Hays State
Fort Hays State is 10-3 overall and 2-3 in league play. The Tigers will play a midweek game against Southwest Baptist before coming to Pittsburg this weekend. FHSU had won its first 10 games of the season before losing the last three to Northeastern State, Emporia State and Washburn. The team’s two conference wins came over Central Missouri and Missouri Western.
The Tigers average 73.5 ppg, nearly 23 ppoints per gagme more than their opponents at 50.6 ppg. The team pulls down 43.2 rpg, while allowing opponents 35.5. The Tigers shoot .421 from the floor overall, but only .262 from three-point range. The team takes care of the ball well, turning it over just over 12 times a game, but dishing out almost 16 assists per game.
Kate Lehman leads two Tiger players in double figures with 17.2 ppg. She shoots .569 from the floor. She averages 9.0 rebounds per game and leads the league in blocked shots with 58. Katelyn Edwards adds 13.2 ppg and 8.0 rpg. Edwards leads the team in assists with 36 and is one of three players with 20 or more steals on the season. Melissa Nelson adds 8.5 ppg and leads the team in steals with 26. She is the team’s top three-point shooter wi th 16 shots made from long range this season, though she doesn’t shoot at a high percentage, hitting only .254 from beyond the arc.
Scouting Pittsburg State
Pitt State has gone 10-4 overall and 4-2 in its first six MIAA games. The team’s losses came at the hands of William Jewell, Central Oklahoma, Academy of Art and most recently Central Missouri. The Gorillas are currently tied for fifth in the league, with Missouri Western and Northeastern State all with 4-2 records..
Pitt State is hitting 44.2 percent of its shots from the floor, while holding opponents to a 36.1 percent shooting percentage. Prior to the loss to Central Missouri, Pitt State had held its last four opponents to under 60 points. The team is outscoring opponents by 14.2 points per game, 72.7 to 58.5. The Gorillas are also tough on the glass, outrebounding their foes 40.7 to 35.3. Pitt State shoots .317 from three point range and .730 from the charity stripe.
Pitt State has only one player scoring in double figures, as Lizzy Jeronimus scores nearly 20 points per game at 19.1 ppg. Jeronimus also leads Pitt State in assists with 38 and is the second-leading rebounder with 6.2 rpg. Morgan Westhoff comes off the bench to score 9.2 ppg as the Gorillas’ second leading scorer. Westhoff is the team’s top three-point shooter, as she has made 26 of 59 threes on the year for a .441 shooting percentage from long range. Lauren Brown leads the team in rebounds with 9.1 rpg after setting the school record with 22 rebounds against Northwest Missouri. Brown also leads the team in blocked shots with 25. Freshman Kylie Gafford is just behind her with 19 blocks on the year. Hailey Roderique is the team’s third leading scorer with 6.9 ppg and is the third leading rebounder with 4.9 rpg. She leads the team in steals with 19. Roderique suffered an injury at the end of the Central Missouri game. Roberts also scored 6.9 points per game, as she has scored 10 points for the Gorillas in each of the last three games.
PSU vs. Missouri Southern
Pitt State leads the series with Missouri Southern 42-39 after winning each of the last four meetings, including both meetings last season. Each team leads at its home venue, with Pitt State leading 25-15 in Pittsburg and Missouri Southern leading 23-16 in Joplin. The teams are tied 1-1 at neutral sites. Pitt State has won six of the last 10 meetings. Pitt State won both games in the series last season, winning each game by 14 points. The Gorillas are currently on a four-game win streak in the series, including three regular season meetings and one MIAA Tournament meeting in 2011. Missouri Southern opened the series, which began on Dec. 13, 1974, with an eight game win streak. PSU did not earn its first win in the series until a one-point victory on Dec. 6, 1978 in Pittsburg.
The Gorillas did earn the longest win streak in the series, winning 10 straight from Jan. 28, 1998 to Feb. 13, 2002. The streak ended when Missouri Southern earned a 69-65 win over Pitt State in the MIAA Tournament on Feb. 25, 2002.
The largest margin of victory by either team in the series was a 87-44 (43 points) win by Missouri Southern on Feb. 15, 2006. Pitt State’s biggest win was a 35-point (80-45) win on Feb. 16, 2000.
PSU vs. Fort Hays State
Fort Hays leads the all-time series with Pitt State 23-20, though Pitt State has won five of the last six meetings between the two teams and seven of the last 10. Pitt State leads the series 11-10 in PIttsburg, but the Tigers lead 13-9 in Hays. The two teams have never met at a neutral site.
The longest streak of wins in the series was seven by the Tigers in the first seven meetings between the two teams from Jan.11, 1975 to Jan. 26, 1979. Pitt State’s streak of five victories from Jan. 16, 2010 when PSU beat FHSU 71-65 in Pittsburg until the 72-61 loss in Hays last year was the longest streak for the Gorillas.
The most points scored by either team in a game was 101 by Pitt State in a 101-94 win in Pittsburg on Feb. 1, 1986. The largest margin of victory in the series was 56 points by FHSU in the first meeting. PSU’s largest margin of victory has been 22 points on Jan. 30, 1981.
Up Next
The Gorillas play only one game next week, as the team will finish out January on the road in Tahlequah, Okla. Pitt State will face Northeastern State for the first time as part of the MIAA schedule on Wednesday, Jan. 23 at 5:30 p.m.
