OPENING TIP
>> The Ichabods are heading to the Sunshine State for a pair of non-conference games at the Cruzin' Classic in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., this week.
>> Washburn will first challenge No. 6 Saint Anselm on Wednesday, Dec. 18 at 3:30 p.m. central time.
>> The Hawks are undefeated (7-0) and currently ranked sixth in the WBCA Poll and are fourth in the D2SIDA rankings.
>> The Ichabods play Harding the following afternoon (Thursday, Dec. 19) at 4:30 p.m. central time.
>> The Lady Bisons are 5-3 and have won two in a row and after picking up a 71-61 victory against Ouachita Baptist.
>> The Ichabods snapped a three-game losing streak with an 83-76 victory at Missouri Southern last time out (Dec. 7).
>> Washburn is now back up to .500 at 4-4 and is 1-1 in MIAA action.
>> The Ichabods are 1-1 this season when playing at a neutral site.
>> Live stats will not be available for either game at the Cruzin' Classic, but Jake Lebahn will have the call on 106.9 FM and a pay-per-view live stream video option will also be available for fans.
WASHBURN NOTES
>> Head coach Ron McHenry picked up his 450th career victory in the win against Missouri Southern.
>> The Ichabods went 3-3 last season when playing teams ranked in the top-25.
>> Washburn's last victory against a top-25 opponent was at No. 23 Pittsburg State on Jan. 26, 2019, in a 70-66 decision.
>> Washburn is averaging 75.5 ppg and has won all four of its games when scoring more than 80 points.
>> Three Ichabods have gone over the 100 point mark already for this season, led by Reagan Phelan's 117 points (14.6 ppg).
>> Hunter Bentley (13.3 ppg) has scored 106 and Shelbe Piggie has one less at 105 (13.1 ppg).
>> Alexis McAfee is 12 points away from reaching 700 career points.
>> The Ichabods have made five trips to Florida since McHenry took over the reigns in 2000 and are 8-2 when playing in the Sunshine State.
>> Washburn last played in Fort Lauderdale in 2015 and went 1-1, picking up a 70-60 decision over Nova Southeastern and falling to Palm Beach Atlantic, 60-53.
ICHABOD LEADERS IN THE MIAA
>> Three Ichabods are in the top-20 in the conference in scoring average. Reagan Phelan leads the way with 14.6 ppg for 13th in the league. Hunter Bentley (13.3) and Shelbe Piggie (13.1) are back-to-back on the list at 19th and 20th.
>> Phelan leads the MIAA with 42 total assists with an average of 5.3 apg.
>> Bentley is eighth in the conference in rebounds per game as she averages 7.8.
>> Phelan has made 21-of-46 shots from behind the arc for a .457 three-point field goal percentage, which is the second-highest in the MIAA.
>> Piggie has the seventh-highest field goal percentage at .488 (42-of-86).
ABOUT THE SAINT ANSELM HAWKS
>> The Hawks, who are a part of the Northeast-10 Conference, are 7-0 to start the season and are ranked sixth in the WBCA Poll and are fourth in the D2SIDA rankings.
>> Saint Anselm went 22-10 last season and won its first-ever NCAA East Region title to advance to the NCAA Elite Eight before ultimately falling to the NCAA National runner-up, Southwestern Oklahoma State.
>> Saint Anselm is averaging 82.9 ppg while holding its opponents to 63.6 ppg and a 38.4 shooting percentage.
>> The Hawks graduated three players from last year's historic team, but returned several key players for this season.
>> Last season, Shannon Ryan scored the second-most points in a single season (592) and pulled down a record-breaking 385 rebounds.
>> So far this season, Ryan leads the Hawks with 26.7 ppg and is averaging 29.1 minutes per game. She is also shooting 58.4 percent from the field and also leads the team in rebounds, grabbing 14.3 boards per game, and in blocks at 2.6 bpg.
>> Peyton Steinman (16.6 ppg) and Sara Messler (12.1) are also averaging in double-figure scoring for the Hawks.
>> Steinman has a team-best 4.6 assists per game.
HEAD COACH COREY BOILARD
>> Corey Boilard is in his third season leading the Hawks and holds a record of 45-22.
>> Last season, he led the Hawks to the most victories in a single season (22) since the 1994-95 season and an appearance in the NCAA Elite Eight.
>> Prior to joining the Hawks, Boilard was the head coach at Johnson & Whales University for five season and turned in a record of 84-52 with two NCAA Tournament appearances.
>> He was named the GNAC Coach of the Year after leading the Wildcats to a 24-4 record in the 2015-16 season.
>> Boilard also garnered coaching experience as an assistant at Worcester Polytechnic Institute and at Plymouth State as well as the head coach at Bow High School.
>> Boilard was a two-year letterwinner at Keene State College and graduated with a bachelor's of sceince in physical education.
SERIES WITH SAINT ANSELM
>> This will be the first meeting between these two teams.
ABOUT THE HARDING LADY BISONS
>> The Harding Lady Bisons are 5-3 to start the season and are 3-1 in non-Great American Conference games.
>> Harding turned in a record of 21-9 last season and reached the GAC Tournament semifinal before falling to Southwestern Oklahoma State.
>> The Lady Bisons average 72.9 ppg and hold their opponents to a 68.6 ppg mark.
>> The team holds a commanding lead in rebounds as they average 44.1 rpg while their competition averages 33.6 rpg.
>> Kellie Lampo has racked up 136 points for Harding and averages 17 ppg.
>> Lampo also helps the team out on the glass, averaging a team-best 9.8 rpg.
>> Carissa Caples averages 1.3 blocks per game and leads the team in three-pointers, making 14-of-37 shots from deep.
>> Peyton Padgett has dished out 28 total assists, averaging 3.5 apg.
HEAD COACH TIM KIRBY
>> Tim Kirby is in his 15th season with the Lady Bison with a career record of 284-138.
>> In the 2016-17 season, he led the team to the NCAA Elite Eight and finished the season with a 31-4 (21-1 GAC) overall record.
>> Before joining the Harding coaching staff, Kirby spent two seasons as an assistant and then three seasons as the head coach at NJCAA school Carl Albert State College (Poteau, Okla.).
>> Kirby played basketball at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma.
SERIES WITH HARDING
>> This will be the first meeting between these two teams.
LAST TIME OUT FOR WASHBURN (Dec. 7, 2019)
WASHBURN 83 (4-4, 1-1 MIAA)
MISSOURI SOUTHERN 76 (2-7, 0-2 MIAA)
JOPLIN, Mo. -- A total team effort and success from behind the three-point line helped Washburn stave off a furious comeback effort by the Missouri Southern Lions and capture an 83-76 victory in Joplin on Saturday afternoon. With the win, the Ichabods improve to 4-4 (1-1 MIAA) while the Lions fall to 2-7 (0-2 MIAA).
The Ichabods finished the game with a 42 percent shooting percentage (29-of-69) and the Lions were 28-of-59 for a 47.5 field goal percentage. Washburn went 12-of-29 from three-point land while Missouri Southern converted on just 5-of-16 attempts from deep. The Lions pulled down two more rebounds than the Ichabods, 38-36. The Ichabods capitalized on the Lions' 16 turnovers for 22 points while Washburn made just eight turnovers.
Washburn led by 15 points at the start of the second half after Reagan Phelan hit a three-point shot 16 seconds into the third quarter. Missouri Southern whittled away at Washburn's lead with two 7-0 runs and got within six points with 28 seconds left in the third period before the Ichabods added a layup to close out the frame leading 63-55.
The Ichabods came out in the fourth quarter on a 5-0 run in the first 55 seconds to push their lead back to double-digits at 68-55. The Lions clawed their way back into the game yet again, going on a 16-3 scoring tear in nearly five minutes of play to even the score at 71-all with 3:44 left in regulation. Washburn answered with crucial back-to-back made three-pointers by Hunter Bentley and Shlebe Piggie to break the tie and go back in front by six, 77-71, at the 1:55 mark.
Missouri Southern hit a free throw with 53 seconds left in the game to get within four points, 77-73, but that's as close as it would get as Missouri Southern would be forced to foul Washburn, who went 6-of-6 from the line in the final 19 seconds.
The Ichabods shot 48.57 percent (17-of-35) in the opening half and started and ended the half with a made three-pointer. Alexis McAfee scored the first points of the game on a triple and the Ichabods carried a 21-12 lead into the second quarter. The Lions chipped away at the Washburn lead and a three-pointer of their own at the 6:30 mark in the second quarter to trail by four at 26-22. Washburn made half of its shots in the second frame (9-of-18) and capped off the opening half with a three-point shot by Phelan with five seconds left to send the Ichabods into the break with a 12 point lead at 46-34.
Phelan led the Ichabods with 21 points and was 4-of-9 from behind the arc. She also handed out three assists and had one of Washburn's three blocks. Bentley and Piggie also finished in double-figures, adding 18 and 17 points, respectively. Bentley grabbed a team-best nine rebounds with Abby Oliver right behind with eight boards.
Missouri Southern was led by Destiny Cozart with 26 points and six rebounds.
WASHBURN COACHES
>> McHenry is in his 20th season at Washburn and holds an overall record of 450-144 (262-99 MIAA).
>> McHenry, a national champion and the WBCA Division II Coach of the Year in 2005, is a four-time MIAA Coach of the Year as well as a two-time region Coach of the Year.
>> He has led the program to eight MIAA regular season titles and seven MIAA tournament titles as well as to 12 NCAA Tournament appearances.
>> His .761 winning percentage is 16th-best in Division II.
>> He was the quickest head coach to record 400 career victories in NCAA Division II women's basketball as he reached the milestone in just 512 games.
>> Became the winningest coach in Washburn women's basketball history on Dec. 18, 2018, when he earned his 432nd victory to surpass the record of his predecessor, Patty Dick (1977-2000).
>> McHenry played basketball and golf at Washburn University, where he graduated in 1984.
>> Brette (Ulsaker) Herber is in her seventh season on the Ichabod bench as an assistant coach. Herber played for McHenry for three seasons (2007-10) and was named the MIAA Defensive Player of the Year as a senior.
>> Erika (Lane) Yoder is in her first season as an assistant coach for Washburn. She also played for McHenry from 2014 to 2017 and was a two-time all-MIAA selection.
WASHBURN HISTORY
>> Washburn women's basketball is 931-427-1 (.687) all-time and is in the 51st season of the program's history.
>> Washburn is tied for seventh all-time in Division II in victories
>> Washburn claimed the 2005 NCAA National Championship over Seattle Pacific with a 70-53 win to cap off a 35-2 season.
>> Washburn has made 17 NCAA Tournament appearances and is 26-16 all-time in those postseason games.
>> The program has won 18 total MIAA Championships, earning nine regular season conference titles and winning nine MIAA Tournament championships.
>> There have been 30 All-American awards given to Washburn players, with 11 of those coming from the WBCA.
>> Washburn has finished 14 seasons with 25 wins and four seasons with 30 victories.
