The no. 16-ranked William Woods University women's basketball team travels to Hannibal-LaGrange University for a Thursday evening American Midwest Conference matchup. Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m.
The Matchup
The Owls come into Tuesday's matchup looking to extend their seven-game winning streak. WWU stands at a perfect 2-0 in the AMC with victories over Benedictine University at Springfield (88-67) and Harris-Stowe (68-57). WWU has collected 11 wins to just one loss overall on the year.
Just like William Woods, Hannibal-LaGrange is 2-0 in the AMC after a pair of wins against Stephens College (63-50) and BenU-Springfield (66-51). The Lady Trojans are riding a six-game winning streak and have an overall record of 9-4.
The Owls have averaged 67.7 ppg on the year, with the Lady Trojans putting up a near identical 67.4 ppg. The Owls have outscored their opposition by an average of 11.8 ppg and HLGU's margin of victory is only 6.7 ppg.
HLGU holds the shooting edge from the floor (.453-.402) with the teams nearly even from the three-point line (HLGU - .299; WWU -.280). Hannibal-LaGrange has also shot a little better than the Owls at the free throw line holding a .714-.700 advantage.
William Woods dominates the rebounding battle, boasting an average of 44.9 caroms per game to a pace of just 36.2 for Hannibal-LaGrange. Both teams are in positive territory on the rebounding margins, with the Owls grabbing 7.0 more boards per game to a surplus of 3.3 for the Lady Trojans.
The Owls protect the ball slightly better, averaging just 15.8 turnovers per game to a 19.0 pace for HLGU, and the Lady Trojans have been better at taking the ball away with a (9.0-8.4) margin.
Last Time Out
William Woods defeated Harris-Stowe State 68-57 in their AMC home opener last Saturday.
The Owls were paced by
Priscila Santos' career-high 23 points, but it was sophomore
Blake French who sparked WWU in the second half by going on a personal 5-0 run after HSSU was able to tie the game at 35. French ended up with a career-high 19 points, with 17 coming in the decisive half.
French Revolution
Sophomore
Blake French had a big day on Saturday afternoon as she scored a career-high 19 points in the 68-57 victory over Harris-Stowe.
French scored 17 of her 19 points in the second half highlighted by a game-breaking 5-0 run with the game tied at 35-35. The run gave the Owls a lead they would never relinquish.
Connect Four?
Junior Prisicla Santos has posted three straight 20-point performances. The Sao Paulo, Brazil native put up 22 points against AIB on Dec. 30, 20 points in the AMC opener at Benedictine University at Springfield on Jan. 3 and a career-high 23 points last Saturday against Harris-Stowe.
Balanced Attack
While the Owls have managed 67.7 points per game on the year, there hasn't been a single player to key on to ensure success.
Priscila Santos recently boosted her average to 13.7 points per game and has edged clear of the field, but
Ashlee Taylor (9.0),
Stephanie Copelin (8.8),
Katie Scherder (8.1) and
Olivia Storjohann (8.0) are all within a basket of the 10-point plateau.
The Owls have not seen a game this year without at least one double-digit scorer, and have been held to just one 10-point scorer in just one contest on the year, a 59-44 win over Lindenwood University-Belleville.
Taking Advantage Of Charity
William Woods has been solid at the free throw stripe on the year, hitting at a .701 pace through 12 games, the 24th-best pace in the nation. Individually,
Julia Wells is ranked 48th with an accuracy rate of .756.
After battling her way into the national rankings with a 11-for-13 performance from the line against College of the Ozarks, Wells has shown that she's a big threat at the line, knocking down seven free throws in eight tries against St. Gregory's.
Those performances, however, aren't even the best on the team, as
Ashlee Taylor boasts a .909 mark on 20-of-22 shooting. She is just shy of the 2.5 FTM plateau for national ranking, however, to claim her second-best spot in the country.
Win Big, Lose Small
William Woods has posted good-sized margins in each of its 11 wins on the year, taking home victory by two possessions or more in each contest. The lone setback for the Owls came by just one point, a 61-60 defeat at Central Methodist University.
Their average margin of victory of 11.833 is 27th in the country.
Hard-Nosed Defense
One of the hallmarks of head coach
Dan Chapla's style is a solid defense and this year's Owls squad has lived up to expectations. WWU is currently ranked 20th in the nation in scoring defense, holding opponents to just 55.833 points per game on the year. The Owls are ninth in field-goal defense, allowing foes to hit at just a .337 pace from the floor.
Stock In Windex?
Ranked first in the country in defensive rebounds per game at 31.75, the Owls have definitely cleaned the glass well this year. WWU holds a margin of 7.083 per game on the year (19th) and like its offensive output, the Owls have seen the workload spread across the roster.
Olivia Storjohann leads the team with 6.3 grabs per game, with
Stephanie Copelin and
Priscila Santos tied for second at 5.8.
Katie Scherder (5.5) and
Julia Wells (5.0) round out the group.
However, the Owls were outrebounded last time out against Harris-Stowe. It marked the second time on the year that WWU has been outrebounded in a game.
Is That Right?
Although the Owls' rebounding performance against AIB College of Business is certainly a contender for the best in WWU history, it's somewhat of a rarity as the Owls scored fewer points than they grabbed rebounds but still won the game. Although out of the ordinary, it's not the first time that it has happened - but likely the first with such a large rebounding total. During the 2004-05 season, Western Baptist (now Corban University) outrebounded the College of Idaho 42-38 in a 40-38 win.
Consistency Is The Key
Last Thursday's game marked the first time during the 2012-13 season that head coach
Dan Chapla changed his starting lineup.
Destani Stensrud stepped in for
Ashlee Taylor admirably though, with the Owls seeming to not miss a beat.
A Look At Hannibal-LaGrange
The Lady Trojans come into Thursday's game on a six-game winning streak, including a pair of AMC wins over Stephens College (63-50) and Benedictine University at Springfield (66-51). HLGU stands at 9-4 on the year and more importantly 2-0 in conference. Hannibal-LaGrange is led by Ashleigh Spencer with her 19.8 points per game pace leading the AMC.
Spencer is one of three HLGU players averaging double figures. Her running mates are Ashley Wilson (13.8) and Maddy Cunningham (10.8). However, Wilson has missed the last three games for the Lady Trojans.
Spencer and Wilson have combined for 43 percent of HLGU scoring. Getting the ball inside to these two has been a key to the HLGU success, all but nine points of the pairs output have come inside the three-point arc. Spencer's .569 field goal percentage ranks eighth in the nation and as a team HLGU ranks sixth in field goal percentage at .453.
Cunningham's outside shooting has been the complement to Spencer and Wilson's inside game. The guard has been accurate from behind the arc and ranks 21st in the nation in three point percentage with a .415 mark on 22-of-53 shooting.
Hannibal-LaGrange has been able to keep opponents off the glass as they hold the opposition to 32.8 rebounds per game. The mark ranks them 12th in the NAIA. Wilson leads the team in rebounding with 10.3 caroms per game, Spencer is the second on the team with 6.5 boards per game.
Keeping the Lady Trojans off the line will be key for the Owls. Hannibal-LaGrange ranks 16th in the nation in free throw percentage and Spencer's success rate of .828 puts her eighth best in the country.
