TOPEKA, Kan. --- Washburn looks to continue its winning ways when it plays host to St. Cloud State, 7 pm Friday before facing Truman State on Saturday at 3 pm.
THE INAUGURAL THANKSGIVING CLASSIC
Washburn hosts the inaugural Parrish Hotels Thanksgiving Classic on Nov. 24-25. The event will four-team includes St. Cloud State, Truman State and Newman. Truman State and Newman will open the two-day event when they tip off Friday at 5 pm. SCSU will then take on Newman 1 pm Saturday.
SCOUTING THE HUSKIES
A member of the Northern Sun Conference (NSIC), St. Cloud State comes to Topeka from St. Cloud, Minnesota with a 2-0 record and is coming off a with decisive victory over Northland College last week. Head coach Lori Fish is in her 10th season leading the Huskies, entering the season with a 194-168 overall record. Tori Wortz (18 points/game) and Andrea Thomas (11.5 points/game) pace SCSU in scoring. Thomas is also averaging five rebounds and assists a game topping both categories. Through two games the Huskies average 13.0 more rebounds/game than their opponents. St. Cloud State is shooting .491 from the field, .386 from three-point distance and .744 from the charity stripe. Defensively, SCSU has held opponents, to .267 shooting and .167 from behind the arc. Last season, the Huskies went 11-16 overall, 9-13 in conference play. The Huskies is predicted to finish 11th overall in the NSIC, and fifth in the North Division.
SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
After nearly a four hiatus, Truman State returns to Topeka and brings a 2-1 record and are coming off a decisive victory (67-31) over MIAA member Missouri Southern last Saturday. The team is under the direction of Amy Eagan, who entered her fifth season with the Bulldogs with 73-43 record. Thus far this season, Brooke Bailey is the TSU's scoring leader averaging 10.7 points/game while coming off the bench. The redshirt junior is shooting a team-best .429 from three-point range. Katie Jaseckas is the Bulldogs' top rebounder with 24 boards on the season (8.0/game) while nearly matching that with 8.3 points/game. Jaseckas is shooting a team-high .533 from the floor and is thus far 9-9 from the line this year. As a team, the Bulldogs have seen opponents edge them out shooting from the field (.385-.360) and from distance (.333-.313), while taking the lead from the line where they are converting 82.4 percent of attempts. Truman State was tabbed to finished second in the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) West Division in the annual preseason coaches' poll.
THEY GOT HISTORY... SORTA
Friday's match-up will be the first-ever meeting between Washburn and St. Cloud State. Saturday's contest however will feature a familiar foe in Truman State. The Ichabods lead the all-time series against the former MIAA members, 42-9, with a 26-2 all-time when hosting the Bulldogs. The teams last met during MIAA conference play on Jan. 16, 2013.
FIVE GOOD MINUTES
In the last five minutes this season, Washburn has outscored opponents 63-34, while averaging 15.8 points during that stretch. The team is shooting .459 from the floor, .500 from long range and has converted 21-of-27 (.778) from the line. Opponents meanwhile are .324 from the field, .118 from three-point land and 10-of-19 (.526) from the charity stripe.
STARTING FIVE
The Ichabods have used just two different starting lineups this season ... as a group, Washburn starters average 56 points/game while outscoring opponents, 224-186. The starting five is shooting .469 from the floor, .423 from behind the arc and .745 (38-51) from the line.
TURNING TO THE BENCH
Through four games, the Ichabod bench has been key in team's early success, accounting for 116-of-340 points. The Washburn bench on average has outscored opponents, 116-42, and is averaging 29 points/game.
WHAT A WIN MEANS...
A win is better than a lose ... a win Friday gives Washburn its first five-game win streak since the start of the 2014-15 season ... would give Ron McHenry 411 career wins, 20 shy of the all-time mark program-history ... a win Saturday would move the record to 6-0 ... would make people wearing blue and/or W's smile.
THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME
Under head coach Ron McHenry, Washburn is 209-44 all-time when playing at Lee Arena dating back to the 2000-01 campaign.
EARLY SUCCESS
Since taking the reins for the 2000-01 season Ron McHenry has put together 12 perfect Novembers, including a 6-0 mark during the 2014-15 season. Washburn has never loss more than two games during the opening month of the season and is 78-9 in November.
ON THIS DATE
Since 2000-01, Washburn is a combined 6-0 when playing on Nov. 24 (3-0) and Nov. 25 (3-0). Saturday's match-up will be the third time in the history of the series that Washburn and Truman State face each on Nov. 25 (Washburn is 2-0).
PASS THE GOOD FORTUNES
Under McHenry, Washburn is 31-3 when playing Thanksgiving Week and 11-0 when playing on the day after all that Turkey goodness.
NOW A WORD FROM OUR SPONSOR
The Parrish Hotel Corporation manages award-winning properties: Ramada Downtown Hotel and Convention Center, The Senate Luxury Suites and the Jayhawk Tower. Hallmarks of the properties are outstanding levels of service, a commitment to a high quality hospitality experience and unwavering integrity. Parrish Hotels and its employees strive to develop positive relationships while serving the community and each other. The company is known for outstanding special events like weddings, meetings and conferences, business services, entertainment and lodging. For more information visit them on Facebook or at parrishhotels.com
FUTURE BODS
Washburn proudly announced that Shay Tanking and Katie Glatczak signed National Letters of Intent and will be part of the Ichabod lineup for the 2018-19 campaign. Tanking is a 5-7 guard from Holton while Glatczak is a 5-6 guard from Centralia.
LAST TIME OUT
The Ichabods were able to hold off a late push by Rockhurst last Friday for a 64-62 win at home. Mackenzie Loe finished with a team-high 17 points and 10 rebounds for her first career double-double while knocking down 6-for-8 from the field and 5-of-6 from the line. Denesia Smith a game-best six assists while adding four points and registering three steals. Taylor Blue and Alexis McAfee netted eight points each. Rockhurst outscored Washburn with points in the paint (28-24) and points on turnover (23-13). The Ichabods however edged out control in second-chance points (13-12), bench points (22-13), while winning the rebound battle, 42-33.
FOLLOW THE BODS
Fans can follow the Ichabods all-season long by listening to KPTK 106.9 FM radio with Jake Lebahn and Dan Lucero calling the action. Live stats for all games will be made available, with conference contests being streamed through the MIAA Network. All links can be found on wusports.com/live or the women's schedule page.
MIAA PRESEASON POLL
Washburn was projected to finish eighth in the MIAA Preseason Coaches' Poll. Central Missouri topped the listed with seven first-place votes. Last season's regular-season champion Pittsburg State garnered four first-place nods as it was placed second. Tournament champion Emporia State was picked third as it received two first-place votes. Central Oklahoma took fourth with one first-place vote, while Fort Hays State rounded out the top five. Missouri Western and Lindenwood were each predicted higher than the Ichabods, taking sixth and seventh respectively. Southwest Baptist and Nebraska-Kearney trailed accordingly with Missouri Southern at No. 11. Northwest Missouri landed at No. 12 with Northeastern State and Lincoln taking the final two spots.
WASHBURN TRADITION
The 2017-18 campaign marks the 49th season of Washburn women's basketball. The program is 888-405-1 all-time, has seen 23 seasons with at least 20 wins, and 17 appearances NCAA Division II Tournament appearances with the 2004-05 team crowned as national champions. From Jan. 26, 2005 to Mar. 11, 2006, Washburn won 51 consecutive games. The streak is the longest in NCAA Division II and sixth all-time in NCAA history.
UP NEXT
Washburn will face its first true road test of the season when it goes to Wichita to take on Newman on Tuesday, Nov. 28. Tip off is scheduled for 5:30 pm.
