Women's Basketball 2022-23

Weird game time - 4 PM.

Things I missed in my preview.

SLU has the nation's top shot blocker and stealer. 

Top shot blocker already has three rejections her in the first. 

Little rusty looking on offense to start this one. Katcher back in the mix. Coach says 13 of the 14 on the team are available. 

After 1...

SLU 20

SIU 9

Holmes with back to back to back 3's to cut the lead to 2 to start the 2nd!

The rusty first gave way to a 22-12 2nd quarter. Led by Aja Holmes 11 in the quarter.

Halftime

SIU 31

SLU 32

We coughed it up 11 times (SLU 10) Rebounds are about even. They've hit all six FT's. We haven't attempted one.

Posted by: @mr_woogers

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Weird game time - 4 PM.

It is weird. 

After a clunker of a 3rd.

SIU 42 

SLU 54

We only score 11 in the period. 10 of those in the last 4 minutes. Nations leading shot blocker Flowers with 7 blocks in the game. We've gotten too three happy here. 

Bills with 6 in double figures. Two with double-doubles. Outshot at the free throw line 18-5. Outrebounded 49-36.

SIU 54

SLU 82

Only shot 33% for the game. Jones and Holmes with 13 each. Mason with 9. 

3-6 in non-conference. Onto The Valley. 

SIU 3-6 (0-0 MVC) at Evansville 5-3 (0-0 MVC)

Thursday Dec 29^th 6pm Meeks Family Fieldhouse, Evansville

TV Streaming ESPN+/Radio & Audio Streaming Saluki Sports Network/Magic 95.1

Warrennolan.com Prediction: SIU -6

A week ago this game was SIU by double digits but after the 28 point loss at SLU, where we were 4 point favorites, its not surprising we fell off a bit. This is the conference opener for both teams.

Overview Of Evansville and Series History:

According to the SIU record book this is the 65^th meeting between the Salukis and the Purple Aces dating back to 1984. (Game note say 45^th meeting dating back to 2000.) We won the last meeting in late February 80-66. Evansville game notes say we have won the last ten in the series, but our record book says we have won the last eight. We own a series record of 36-28. I don’t know who does the research for either school, but its kinda sloppy. Either way, we’ve dominated the series over the last decade.

The Aces are coached by Robyn Scherr-Wells in her second year who has an overall record of 13-25(2-16 MVC.) UE’s last game was 12 days ago at home against SEMO which they won 64-53. They had a game scheduled against UT Martin on the 21^st, but it was cancelled due to weather.

We have one common opponent – Chicago State – Evansville won that contest 82-57. Evansville currently sits at 212 in the NET rankings, 169  RPI with a SOS of 299.

Tale Of The Tape:

                           UE          SIU

PPG                      70.4       75.7      

Pts Allowed         74.5       78.6

FG%                      .382       .411

FG% OPP             .443       .440

3pt%                     .318       .346

3pt % OPP           .315       .406

Rebounds            38.5       39.4

Assists                  11.5       17.0

Turnovers           19.1       17.0      

Steals                   8.9         10.2

Blocks                  3.6         4.0

Offensive Rtg     159th     125th                                                                  90.6       94.8

Defensive Rtg    232nd    280th

                              95.1       98.2

Pace of Play        23rd       6th

                              76.8       79.8

Eff FG%                226th     160th

                              .434       .456

The Aces Dramatis Personae –

The Aces are lead by 6-1 Senior Forward Abby Feit. It seems like she’s been in Evansville longer than four years. Feit has been an all-conference level player since her Freshman season. Feit was a double-double machine last year and is on that kind of pace this year as well averaging 14.8/9.0.

Next for the Aces is 5-7 5^th year Senior Guard Myia Clark. She averages 11.1 & 3 rebounds.

The Aces have a 3^rd double digit scorer in 5^th year 6-1 guard A’Niah Griffin who’s been scoring at an 11.1ppg pace.

Their next top post player is 6-3 redshirt Junior Barbora Tomancova who averages 9.9ppg and 7.6 rebounds

Their top bench players are 5-10 Sophomore G Elly Morgan, 4.4ppg and 5-8 Freshman G Kynidi Mason-Striverson 8.3ppg.

The Aces defend the three ball well-enough, but their overall defensive field goal percentage of 44.3% suggests they may vulnerable in the paint.

What’s Up With Us:

Well- either we were rusty after a 14 day layoff or we just didn’t have the motivation to play. Based upon what I saw - it was both. If it weren’t for a personal 9-0 run by Aja Holmes to start the 2^nd quarter against SLU, that game could have been uglier than the 28 point loss that it was. We came out after halftime flat and uninspired looking instead of looking pumped that we erased a big deficit and cut the lead to one. We only scored 1 point in the first six or so minutes of the third and barely scored 11 in the quarter. The fourth was just as flat.

A couple of bright notes: Junior Forward Adiranna Katcher made her season debut after a pre-season foot injury. She only played 3 minutes, but it will probably take her a few games to get into game shape and up to speed. Sydney Prochaska also came back after being in the concussion protocol for the second time this season.

As we head into Valley play, things are looking kinda meh… At times we look good. It wasn’t as if SLU was like #1 South Carolina, they were 3-11 going into that game and had lost to 4 of the 5 Valley opponents they played prior to us and we were predicted to win. We just didn’t come to play. Effort and playing in synch have to be the primary goals for this team going forward. We have the talent, its just a matter of getting everyone on the same page every game and for forty minutes.

I’m not going to predict a winner for this game. But I am going to say that we have won eight in a row and eleven of thirteen in this series even with some pretty mediocre squads.

GO DAWGS!!!

Ahh. Missouri Valley Conference refs. How I've missed you! 53,721 fouls (16 actually) called in the first quarter.

After 1...

SIU 19

ACES 22

Halftime..

SIU 29

Evansville 30

3 at buzzer for the Aces waived off. 

24 called fouls in the first half. 13 on us. 3 on Brown, 2 each on Taylor, Jones and Williams in her first appearance of the season. 

After 3 

SIU 55

UE 57

Southern down by as many as 11. Big finish to the quarter. Mason drew a foul with 6.5 seconds left went 1 for 2, got her miss and buried a 3 at the buzzer! 

Final

SIU 86

Evansville 77

Big 4th quarter. Five in double figures led by Ashley Jones' 23. Randle 16. Mason and Williams with 12 each and Brown with 10. 

FIFTY THREE fouls were called in the game. 27 on Evansville. We go 28-38 from the line and shot 52% for the game. Evansville leads the nation in fouls drawn and attempts.  

The debut of Shemera Williams was a big boost and she is as advertised. Jones is a STUD. No one dominated on the boards but we had a nice distribution of rebounding. Taylor was in foul trouble wasn't on the floor much but when she was, she was a presence. 

Held Abby Feit to 9 pts 4 boards she had 8 turnovers and fouled out. 

Good win. Much better in the 2nd half. On to Terre Haute!

SIU 4-6 (1-0) at Indiana State 5-5 (0-1)

Saturday Dec 31^st Noon CST Hulman Center, Terre Haute

Video ESPN3 - Radio & Streaming Saluki Sports Network/Magic 95.1

WarrenNolan.com Prediction SIU -6

Series History And Trees Head Coach

This series is one of the oldest of ours that dates back to the 1968-69 season. According to the SIU record book we have played the Trees 103 times and own a 57-46 record against them including a nine game win streak. Our last game against ISU-Blue was a 77-61 win last March in the MVC Tournament. We had a couple of long losing streaks in this series, most recently a twelve game skid from 2010 to 2014.

ISU is coached by Chad Killinger who is in his second season at the helm. He had a six win improvement in wins over the previous season with eleven W’s against twenty losses. The Sycamores came out strong and was a surprising 5-3 to start Valley play but fell apart and lost their last ten. We have two common opponents Saint Louis and Chicago State, The Sycamores beat both.

Tale Of The Tape:

                            ISU-B     SIU

PPG                      64.8       76.7      

Pts Allowed         63.8       78.4

FG%                      .388       .421

FG% OPP             .391       .443

3pt%                     .299       .358

3pt % OPP           .286       .399

FT%                       .688       .708

Rebounds            39.4       38.4

Assists                  13           16.5

Turnovers           17           17.4      

T/O Forced          19.1       19.7

Steals                   9.0         10.6

Blocks                  2.6         4.0

Offensive Rtg     194th     116th

                              88.5       95.6

Defensive Rtg    96th       270th

                              85.5       97.4

Pace of Play        104th     6th

                              73.2       80.3

Eff FG%                225th     149th

                              .435       .464

Defense is ISU-Blue's calling card. They rank 3^rd in The Valley in points allowed, 3^rd in overall FG% allowed (129^th nationally), 2^nd in 3 point shooting allowed (91^st nationally).

Offensively, they are a bit challenged: They’re 9^th in the league in scoring, 10^th in FG% and 11^th in 3 point percentage.

They rebound pretty well, although they are kinda small. Of their four players over 6’ only one sees any significant floor time.

The Sycamores Dramatis Personae –

ISU-Blue is led by Del’Janae Williams a 5-8 Senior G who averages 11.9PPG/3.8RPG/2.2APG.

Next in scoring is 5-7 Senior G Anna McKendree whos splits are 11PPG/4.4RPG/3.5APG and 3.1 steals per game which leads The Valley.

They have a 3^rd double digit scorer in Nicholls State Senior transfer 6-0 F Chelsea Cain who averages 10.4PPG/4.4RPG

Their wildcard player is 6’ redshirt Junior forward Mya Glanton. I seem to remember Glanton as being a better player than her stat line indicates. She only averages 3.4PPG but is their leading rebounder at 5 rebounds per game.

The Trees lost a tight game to The Lady Bears on Thursday as MSU pulled away with FT’s in the last 90 seconds. That game featured quite a number of fouls called with 47 whistles. (Our game with UE had 53 fouls.) Looking at some of the games from Friday night Drake and ISU-R were lit up by the refs 54 times. Valpo & Belmont 37 times. The lowest number of whistles were in the UIC/Murray game at 26 whistles.

How We’re Doing –

I saw an interesting wrinkle in our defense against Evansville: ZONE. We played a matchup zone and a more traditional 2-3 zone and we stuck to it in the second half. We didn’t fall out of position and rotated well most of the time. Loved our grit in coming back from an 11 point deficit in the 3rd, then starting the 4th on an 11-0 run. With the addition of Shemera Williams (who scored 12 in her Saluki debut) to our backcourt of Love, Jones, Brown, Mason and Holmes – looking forward to what we can do.

GO DAWGS!!!