TOPEKA, Kan. -- The Ichabods look to bounce back on Saturday as they close out the week hosting Northeastern State. Tip-off in Lee Arena is set for 1 p.m.
OPENING TIP
>> Washburn is 6-8 on the season after its late rally fell short against Rogers State on Thursday night.
>> Northeastern State holds a record of 4-11 after falling at Emporia State, 86-75.
>> These programs will play each other twice in the span of four days as the Ichabods will travel to Tahlequah, Okla. on Tuesday to make up the game originally scheduled for Jan. 2.
>> Washburn is 3-4 at home while Northeastern State is 1-7 in road contests.
>> Saturday's game will mark the 16th all-time matchup between the two programs.
WASHBURN NOTES
>> Washburn averages 62.0 ppg and has a 39.2 field goal percentage.
>> Hunter Bentley leads the team and is eighth in the MIAA with 15.7 ppg.
>> She clocked 38 minutes of time on the court against Rogers State and is third in the conference with 36.2 mpg.
>> Nuria Barrientos averages 11.1 ppg, 8.6 rpg (No. 4 in MIAA), 3.0 apg (No. 10 in MIAA), 1.4 bpg (No. 6 in MIAA), 1.6 spg (No. 13 in MIAA), and 34.7 mpg (No. 5 in MIAA).
>> In the post, Abby Oliver adds 8.9 ppg to go with 4.2 rpg.
>> Macy Doebele (5.9 ppg/4.1 rpg) and Mackenzie Gamble (6.1 ppg/1.4 apg) round out the Washburn starting lineup from seven of the last eight games.
>> Off the bench against Rogers State, Lauren Cassaday and Aubree Dewey both tallied five points.
DOUBLE-DOUBLE THIS THIS
>> Barrientos recorded her sixth double-double of the season on Thursday with 10 points and 10 boards against the Hillcats.
>> She is one of 18 players in all of Division II to have six or more so far this season and she is second in the MIAA behind Kelsey Johnson of Central Oklahoma, who has seven.
FREE THROW SUCCESS
>> Bentley has been nearly perfect in free throw attempts as she leads the conference with a 91.8 percentage after making 56-of-61.
>> She is currently 10th in the nation in free throw percentage.
BODS AND ENDS
>> The Ichabods have out-rebounded their opponents in six-straight games.
>> The last two Washburn losses have been decided by one possession and have come down to the final shot attempt by the Ichabods.
>> Bentley has finished in double-figures in 12 of the 14 games played this season.
>> Washburn has played eight games on February 6th since Coach McHenry took over the program in the 2000-01 season.
>> WU is 7-1 in games played on Feb. 6 during that time.
ABOUT THE NORTHEASTERN STATE RIVERHAWKS
>> The Northeastern State RiverHawks have dropped their last three games and are 4-11 on the season.
>> The RiverHawks average 64.4 ppg, but allow 71.3 ppg to their opponents.
>> The team's offense is led by Zaria Collins, who has the fourth-best scoring average and field goal percentage in the MIAA at 17.8 ppg shooting 46.5 percent from the floor.
>> She is also the top-rebounder for NSU with 6.7 rpg
>> Cenia Hayes (14.8 ppg) and Shae Sanchez (10.9 ppg) also average double-figures in scoring.
>> You might think you're seeing double when the RiverHawks take the court. Identical twins Morgan and Maegan Lee are juniors for NSU and have started seven games together this season.
>> Maegan averages 6.2 ppg while Morgan contributes 5.5 ppg.
HEAD COACH FALA BULLOCK
>> Fala Bullock is in her third season leading her alma mater Northeastern State and has a record of 25-71.
>> She took the RiverHawks to the MIAA Tournament in her first year with a record of 10-17.
>> Prior to coming to Northeastern State, Bullock was the head coach at Armstrong State for four season and finished with a record of 60-52 with an appearance in the NCAA Sweet 16 her first season.
>> She started her coaching career at Central Georgia and was there for two seasons.
>> She is 1-3 against Washburn.
SERIES WITH NORTHEASTERN STATE
>> The two teams have met 15 times since 2010 with Washburn leading the series 10-5.
>> The Ichabods have won seven of the last eight meetings and the last three-straight.
>> Washburn is 5-2 when playing in Tahlequah.
>> Coach McHenry has coached Washburn in all 15 games they've played Northeastern State.
LAST TIME AGAINST NORTHEASTERN STATE (Feb. 13, 2020)
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – After a hot start, the Washburn women's basketball team fell cold in the second in third quarters before finding their groove again in the fourth to secure a 62-55 victory over Northeastern State on Thursday night. The Ichabods pick up their third-straight win and move up to 14-9 (8-6 MIAA) while the RiverHawks drop to 5-17 (3-12 MIAA).
The Ichabods jumped out to a commanding lead, shooting 6-for-6 from the field and scoring the first 13 points of the game. The RiverHawks didn't score their first bucket until the 6:13 mark. Washburn pushed its lead to 16-2 before Northeastern State chipped away at the deficit with a 6-0 run. A three-pointer by Reagan Phelan put Washburn up by double-figures again and started a 7-2 run to end the first quarter. The Ichabods finished the first frame shooting 64.3 percent (9-for-14) and led 23-10.
The tables turned in the second quarter as Washburn struggled and was outscored 18-8. Northeastern State started the second stanza with eight unanswered points and held Washburn scoreless until the 6:42 mark when Hayley Thompson hit two free throws. The RiverHawks whittled Washburn's lead down to one point twice in the final two and a half minutes, but Phelan had the last say of the first half with a made jumper to give the Ichabods a 31-28 lead at the break.
The Ichabods made 10 trips to the charity stripe in the first half and made seven free throws, while the RiverHawks didn't attempt a single free throw.
Both teams got off to a slow start in the second half with Washburn holding a slim lead until Northeastern State went on an 8-0 burst to take a 38-34 advantage with 3:28 on the clock. Bentley scored the next four points for the Ichabods to even the score at 38-all. The RiverHawks were fouled on the next possession and made both free throws on just their second trip to the free throw line of the game. A Macy Doebele layup with two minutes left would knot up the score at 40-40, which is where the score stood at the end of the third quarter.
The RiverHawks reclaimed the lead early in the fourth frame on a 7-2 run to go in front, 47-42. A timely three-pointer by Phelan ignited an 11-0 tear as the Ichabods flipped the score in their favor, 53-47, and held the RiverHawks scoreless for over four minutes. Northeastern State continued to fight and got within two points at 55-53 with 1:20 remaining in regulation, but the Ichabods cashed in on seven of eight free throw attempts to seal the 62-55 win.
Washburn shot 37.5 percent (21-of-56) from the field while Northeastern State shot slightly better at 39.3 percent (24-of-61). The Ichabods were 3-of-17 from behind the arc and the RiverHawks finished 2-for-11 from distance. The Ichabods finished with a big advantage at the charity stripe, going 17-for-24, to the RiverHawks' 5-for-6 total, which were all in the second half.
Piggie led five Ichabods in double-figure scoring with 13 points. Phelan and Bentley chipped in 12 each. Alexis McAfee was 5-for-6 from the charity stripe en route to 11 points and she and Bentley both grabbed nine rebounds and dished out four assists. Hayley Thompson was 4-for-4 from the field and made both of her free throw attempts to finish with 10 points.
WASHBURN COACHES
>> McHenry is in his 21st season at Washburn and holds an overall record of 470-160 (278-114 MIAA).
>> His .746 winning percentage ranks 21st among active Division II coaches.
>> Brette (Ulsaker) Herber begins her eighth season on the Ichabod bench as a 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 second 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 951-442-1 (.683) all-time and will commence the 52nd year of the program's history.
>> Washburn is sixth 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.
TAKE A LOOK AHEAD
>> The Ichabods will take on the RiverHawks again on Tuesday, but at their place next time. Tip-off in Tahlequah is set for 4 p.m.
