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PITTSBURG, Kan. -- March Madness has begun and it is do or die time for the Gorillas. No. 7 seed Pitt State will host 10th seeded Missouri Western in the first round of the MIAA Tournament in its new format. Tip off is scheduled for 7 p.m. at John Lance Arena. The winner of the game will advance to the MIAA Tournament quarterfinals on Friday, March 7 at 6 p.m. versus Central Missouri.
Pitt State at the MIAA Tournament
Pitt State is 8-21 in its MIAA Tournament appearances. Last season the Gorillas lost in the first round to Lincoln, 83-77. The Gorillas have only missed the tournament two times since joining the conference, the first season (1989-90) and in 2008. PSU was one and done in its last nine tournament appearances prior to the 2009 season. The Gorillas had lost 10 games straight before earning the 81-79 win over Nebraska-Omaha in the 2009 opening round. The only time Pitt State won back-to-back games in the tournament was in 1992, when the Gorillas finished as the tournament runners up.
Scouting Missouri Western
The Griffons are 15-11 on the season and finished league play with a 8-10 record. They earned the 10th seed in the MIAA Tournament. The team has lost seven of its last 10 games, but won two of the last three, including a regular season ending win over Southwest Baptust 71-64 on Saturday.
Missouri Western scores just over a point more than its opponents, 64.7 to 63.3. The are outrebounded by opponents 37.5 to 36.3. The team shoots .381, while allowoing opponents a .431 shooting percentage. The team shoots .299 from three point range and .628 from the charity stripe.
Heather Howard is the go to player for the Griffons. She leads the team with 13.2 points and 9.5 rebound sper game. She also leads the team in blocked shots with 56. She is second in the MIAA in blocks and third in rebounding. She is also the second-leading three-point shooter on the team, having made 42 of 131 on the season. Sharniece Lewis is the top three-point shooter, as she has a .379 shooting percentage (53-140) on the season. Lewis averages 7.2 ppg. Alicia Bell averages 7.8 ppg and leads the team with a .456 shooting percentage. She also leads the team in assists with 71. Lanicia Lawrence is the second leading scorer with 8.1 ppg and JaQuitta Dever is just behind her with 8.0 ppg
Scouting Pittsburg State
Pittsburg State is 17-9 overall and 11-7 in MIAA play. After winning five straight games, the team lost its final to regular season games to finish in seventh in the final MIAA standings.
Pitt State is hitting 43.3 percent of its shots from the floor, while holding opponents to a 35.6 shooting percentage. The team is outscoring opponents by 8.4 points per game, 67.8 to 59.4. The Gorillas are also tough on the glass, outrebounding their foes 39.0 to 36.2, though that rebounding margin as been getting smaller as of late. The team was outrebounded by 15 in the loss to Missouri Southern last Wednesday. Pitt State shoots .332 from three point range and .699 from the charity stripe.
Pitt State has only one player scoring in double figures, as Lizzy Jeronimus scores 18.2 ppg. Jeronimus also leads Pitt State in assists with 69, steals with 25 and is the second leading rebounder with 6.8 rpg. She has recorded six double-doubles this season, including in two of the last three games. Morgan Westhoff comes off the bench to score 9.1 ppg as the Gorillas’ second leading scorer. Westhoff is the team’s top three-point shooter, as she has made 46-of-113 threes on the year for a .407 shooting percentage from long range. Lauren Brown leads the team in rebounds with 8.1 rpg and leads the team in blocked shots with 50. She averages 7.2 ppg, though has upped that average to double digits over the last 10 games. Drew Roberts chips in 7.7 ppg and has scored in double figures in each of the last three games. Alexa Bordewick’s average has been boosted by her three-point shooting of late. She has made 15 threes through four games during the last Gorilla win streak and her average is now up to 6.2 ppg.
PSU vs. Missouri Western
Pitt State and Missouri Western have met almost regularly twice a year since the 1976-77 season. Missouri Western leads the overall series 49-21, including a 18-15 record in Pittsburg, a 28-6 mark in St. Joseph and a 3-0 record a neutral sites. The Gorillas won both meetings last season, but lost the only regular season meeting this season, 70-65.
The longest run of wins between the two teams was a seven-win streak by the Griffons from March 3, 2005 to Jan. 23, 2008. Pitt State broke the streak by winning a 73-65 decision on Feb. 13, 2008. Pitt State’s longest streak of wins was four from that win on Feb. 13, 2008 to Dec. 12, 2009. The Griffons broke the streak when they won the game in St. Joseph on Jan. 23, 2009.
The largest margin of victory in the series was a 29-point win (94-65) by the Griffons on Feb. 23, 1985 in St. Joseph. Pitt State’s biggest win was last season’s first meetin, an 82-57 victory in Pittsburg on November 30. The most points scored by a team in the series was 101 by the Gorillas in a 101-82 win on Jan. 24, 1996 in Pittsburg.
