PITTSBURG — The Pittsburg State University women's basketball team will return to the friendly confines of John Lance Arena/Whetzel Court for an MIAA match-up against Missouri Southern State University Saturday (Feb. 3). Tipoff is set for 1:30 p.m. (CST) against the Lions.

The Records
The Gorillas enter Saturday's action with a 16-5 overall record and a 9-3 mark in MIAA play.  Pitt State has won three straight games to climb into sole possession of second place in the conference standings.

The Gorillas swept a pair of road games last week, including a 71-65 victory over No. 16 Central Oklahoma on Jan. 25. Pitt State posted a 65-50 win over Northeastern State in its last outing last Saturday (Jan. 27).

Pitt State opened its 2017-18 season with a pair of emphatic NCAA Division II Central Region wins over Concordia-St. Paul (80-61) and Minnesota State (84-60) at the Central Region Challenge at Municipal Auditorium at Kansas City, Mo., Nov. 10-11.

The Gorillas opened the season with six straight wins before the defending MIAA regular season champions dropped a hard fought 97-97 overtime decision to Nebraska-Kearney in the MIAA opener on Nov. 30.

Pitt State has won seven of its last eight games dating back to a 79-56 home win over Missouri Western on Jan. 3.

MSSU is 10-10 overall and 7-5 in the MIAA play. The Lions have lost two straight games to slide into seventh place in the conference standings. MSSU dropped a 75-65 road decision to UCO in its last contest on Jan. 27.

Head Coach Lane Lord
Lane Lord is in his 11th year as head women's basketball coach at Pittsburg State University.

Lord has compiled a 224-100 (.691) record in his tenure at Pitt State, including five trips to the NCAA Division II National Tournament and the program's first two Elite Eight appearances. He has led the Gorillas to four straight NCAA Tournament berths (2014-17) and his Pitt State program has averaged 24.7 wins during the past six seasons (2012-17), compiling a 148-43 record.

Lord has been honored as the MIAA Coach of the Year five times (2009, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2017) and he has been selected the NCAA Regional Coach of the Year three times (2009, 2012, 2017).

Saturday's action will be Lord's 20th meeting vs. MSSU. He has a 13-6 record against the Lions.

Series History
Saturday's action will be the 90th all-time meeting between the Gorillas and Lions. Pitt State holds a 48-41 advantage in the series, including four straight wins over the course of the past two seasons.  

PSU at Home
The Gorillas are 53-8 (.869) at home since the start of the 2013-14 season, including a 6-1 mark at John Lance Arena/Whetzel Court this year. Pitt State has compiled a 110-29 (.791) home mark during the past 11 seasons under head coach Lane Lord.

Scouting the Gorillas
The Gorillas enter Saturday's action averaging 73.9 points per game and shooting 43.0 percent from the field.

Pitt State has three players scoring in double figures on the season: senior guard Mikaela Burgess (15.8 ppg), junior guard/forward Shelby Lopez (10.9 ppg) and senior guard Paige Imhoff (10.2 ppg).

Burgess is averaging a team-leading 15.8 points per game. She also is contributing 3.8 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game. Burgess, who ranks eighth in the MIAA in scoring, scored a team-high 21 points in Pitt State's season opening win over Concordia-St. Paul on Nov. 10 and she posted 31 points in the Gorillas' OT loss to Nebraska-Kearney Nov. 30.

Burgess averaged 16.6 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game as a junior in 2016-17, earning first-team All-MIAA and first-team All-America honors. The Webb City, Mo., native hit 86 3-pointers, leading the MIAA in 3-point field goals and ranking fourth in the conference in scoring.

She has compiled 1,719 career points and 302 career 3-point field goals.Burgess has averaged 14.4 points in 119 career games for the Gorillas. She climbed into fourth place on Pitt State's career scoring list with her 28-point effort against Washburn on Jan. 20.

Lopez is averaging 10.9 points and 3.3 rebounds per game. She has knocked down 40 of 107 3-point field goal attempts on the season, converting 37.4 percent of her long-range shots.

Lopez contributed 9.2 points per game while earning honorable mention All-MIAA honors in 2016-17. The Wichita native hit 69 3-pointers, shooting a team-leading 38.1 percent from long range (69-181). She ranked third in the MIAA in 3-point field goals.

Imhoff has contributed 10.2 points and an MIAA-leading 5.9 assists per game from the point guard position. She also has averaged 2.4 steals per game, ranking second in the MIAA in that category.

Imhoff posted her first career double double with 15 points and 11 assists against Lindenwood on Jan. 13. She also dished out 11 assists against Minnesota State (Nov. 11) and she scored a career-high 19 points against Regis (Nov. 24).

Imhoff averaged 2.2 points and 2.4 rebounds per game and dished out 38 assists last season. The Smithville, Mo., native has played in 100 career games, averaging 3.4 points per game.

Additionally, Pitt State has three players averaging between 7.3 and 9.6 points per game:  junior guard Brenlee McPherson (9.6 ppg), junior forward Madison Northcutt (8.7 ppg) and sophomore forward Athena Alvarado (7.3 ppg).

McPherson is averaging 9.6 points and 3.6 rebounds per game while shooting 45.1 percent from the field (69-153). She also leads the team in free throw percentage (.875, 35-40).

McPherson, a Carl Junction, Mo., native, shot 45.7 percent from the field last season, averaging 6.4 points per game. She averaged 17.5 points and 5.5 rebounds while making her first two starts of the season Dec. 7-9. She has averaged 5.8 points in 79 career games for the Gorillas.

Northcutt is contributing 8.7 points and 9.3 rebounds per game, ranking third in the MIAA in rebounding. She is shooting 51.9 percent from the field and she leads the squad with 53 offensive rebounds (2.7 pg).

Northcutt averaged 11.3 points and 8.6 rebounds per game a year ago. The Wichita, Kan., native shot a team-best 54.9 percent from the field, making 129 of 235 shots from the floor.

Northcutt ranked fifth in the MIAA in rebounding while earning honorable mention All-MIAA honors. She has averaged 7.3 points and 6.9 rebounds in 86 career games for the Gorillas.

Alvarado is scoring 7.3 points and grabbing 3.4 rebounds per game on the season. She also has blocked 24 shots, ranking seventh in the MIAA in blocked shots (1.1 bpg). She scored a career-high 20 points against Central Oklahoma (Jan. 25).

Alvarado, a Wichita, Kan., native, shot 57.9 percent from the field in her rookie campaign for the Gorillas, converting 81 of 140 shots and scoring 6.2 points per game. She also blocked a team-leading 29 shots on the year.

Sophomore guard Meghan Maher (4.1 ppg), redshirt freshman guard Maya Williams (3.3 ppg) and junior forward Elena Flott (3.0 ppg) all are averaging at least three points a game.

Pitt State Probable Starters
    F    23    Brenlee McPherson, 5-11, Jr., Carl Junction, Mo.
    F    32    Madison Nortcutt, 5-11, Jr., Wichita, Kan.
    G    11    Shelby Lopez, 6-0, Jr., Wichita, Kan.
    G    14    Paige Imhoff, 5-10, Sr., Smithville, Mo.  
    G    15    Mikaela Burgess, 5-7, Sr., Webb City, Mo.