TOPEKA, Kan -- The Washburn women's basketball team looks to add to its five-game home winning streak on Saturday as it hosts Central Oklahoma. The game is slated for a 1 p.m. start in Lee Arena.
GAME INFORMATION
Washburn (8-9, 5-5 MIAA) vs. Central Oklahoma (12-8, 8-6 MIAA)
Saturday, Jan. 29 | 1 p.m. | Topeka, Kan. | Lee Arena
Tickets: Online only
Watch: MIAA Network
Radio: 106.9 FM
Live stats: wusports.com/sidearmstats/wbball
OPENING TIP
>> The Ichabods (8-9, 6-5 MIAA) won the low-scoring game against Newman on Wednesday, 47-30, to pick up their third-consecutive victory.
>> Washburn is now 5-5 when playing in Topeka this season.
>> The Bronchos defeated Emporia State, 74-71, on Wednesday evening to move their record to 12-8 (8-6 MIAA) on the season.
>> Central Oklahoma won the first meeting against Washburn this season, 69-58, in Edmond on Dec. 9.
>> UCO is 5-6 in road contests.
>> Washburn leads the all-time series against Central Oklahoma, 12-10.
>> WU is 4-3 when playing on Saturdays this season.
WASHBURN NOTES
>> The Ichabods average 58.4 ppg and have a 40.7 field goal percentage.
>> Hunter Bentley leads Washburn's offense with 12.4 ppg, which ranks 13th in the MIAA.
>> The last time Bentley faced UCO in Lee Arena, she recorded a double-double with 19 points and a career-high 15 rebounds.
>> Abby Oliver averages 8.3 ppg and 4.4 rpg off the bench. She has scored eight or more points in each of the last four games.
>> Macy Doebele contributes 7.6 ppg and 4.3 rpg. Eight of her 10 points scored against Newman came in the second half.
>> Doebele is second on the team in free throw percentage with an 85.7 percent success rate. She made all six free throw attempts on Wednesday.
>> Off the bench, Shae Sanchez averages 23.4 minutes and adds 6.9 ppg. She made all four of Washburn's three-pointers on Wednesday and finished with a season-high 14 points for the second time in an
Ichabod uniform.
>> Nuria Barrientos averages 6.1 ppg and leads the team with 5.6 rpg. She came away with eight boards against Newman.
>> Mackenzie Gamble and Lauren Cassaday round out the starting five averaging 4.6 ppg and 4.4 ppg/3.9 rpg, respectively.
>> Cassaday is shooting 47.9 percent from the field and scored seven points against the Jets.
>> The Washburn bench scored 24 of its 47 total points on Wednesday.
DEFENSIVE EFFORT
>> Washburn ranks third in the MIAA in points allowed as it holds its opponents to averaging 58.8 ppg.
>> The Ichabods are also fourth in the league in opponent field goal percentage (38.2 percent) and third in blocks (3.65 bpg).
>> Oliver and Barrientos average 1.2 bpg, ranking fifth and sixth in the MIAA.
>> Wednesday's game was the third time this season Washburn has held an opponent to 49 or fewer points.
MILESTONE TRACKER
>> Bentley is No. 8 on Washburn's all-time scorers list with 1,411 career points. She needs 57 more to pass former teammate Reagan Phelan.
>> Bentley passed Phelan for the second-most minutes played in a Washburn uniform and is up to 3,875. Shelley Foster (1991-95) is the all-time leader with 3,978 minutes played.
>> Dewey is two points away from her 200th career point as an Ichabod.
>> Doebele is nearing the 200 mark in rebounds and needs three more.
THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME
>> The 2021-22 season marks the 38th season of play in Lee Arena as the facility opened in the 1983-84 season.
>> Washburn is 436-113 all-time in Lee Arena.
>> The Ichabods went 7-4 at home last season.
>> Head Coach Ron McHenry is 245-65 when coaching in Lee Arena.
WASHBURN'S LAST TIME OUT
TOPEKA, Kan. – The Washburn women's basketball team held Newman to a program-low 30 points as the Ichabods extended their home win streak to five in a row with a 47-30 victory on Wednesday evening.
After the Ichabods (8-9, 6-5 MIAA) scored the opening basket, the Jets (2-18, 0-14 MIAA) responded with five unanswered points to take the lead. Washburn put together a 5-0 run of its own to go up, 7-5. Back-to-back layups from the Jets gave them the two point advantage before Abby Oliver hit a jumper to even the score at 9-all to end the frame.
Offensive struggles continued in the second quarter for both teams as Washburn narrowly outscored Newman, 6-5, to take a 15-14 lead into the break.
It was back-and-forth scoring to start the second half as the teams traded one point leads until a layup by Shae Sanchez with 4:23 on the clock sparked an 11-0 spurt to give the Ichabods a 28-18 advantage at the end of three.
The Jets pulled within seven points on two occasions in the fourth quarter, but it would get no closer as Washburn outscored Newman 15-5 in the final 4:09 to cruise to the 47-30 win.
The Ichabods finished the night shooting 35.4 percent from the floor while the Jets shot 23.3 percent. From beyond the arc, Washburn was 4-for-20 and Newman made 2-of-15. Washburn grabbed 17 more rebounds than Newman and finished with 47.
Sanchez made 4-of-6 from three-point range and finished with a team-high 14 points. Macy Doebele also added double-digits with 10 and continued her success at the free throw line, making all six attempts from the charity stripe. Nuria Barrientos led the team with eight rebounds to go with four points and two assists.
For the Jets, Britney Ho and Laura Bello recorded six points apiece.
ABOUT THE CENTRAL OKLAHOMA BRONCHOS
>> The Bronchos went 14-9 in the conference-only 2020-21 season.
>> UCO is 12-8 (8-6 MIAA) and averages 73.5 ppg while shooting 41.9 percent from the field.
>> The Bronchos lead the MIAA in steals (10.7 spg) and pass the ball around well as they are second in the league in assists (17.0 apg).
>> Central Oklahoma's Kelsey Johnson has been on an offensive tear this season and leads the nation in field goals made (166) and is fifth in points per game (21.7 ppg).
>> She also ranks second in the MIAA in FG% (57.4 percent), third in FT% (85.6 percent) and third in rebounds (9.5 rpg).
>> Alayzha Knapp is second on the team in scoring and rebounds at 10.4 ppg, 4.5 rpg.
>> Karly Wadsworth has connected on a team-high 29 three-pointers and shoots 34.9 percent from behind the arc.
>> Avery Allen leads the team with 77 total assists for a 3.9 apg average.
HEAD COACH GUY HARDAKER
>> Guy Hardaker is in his 16th season coaching at his alma mater and held an overall record of 281-158 at the start of this season.
>> He has led UCO to five NCAA Tournament appearances, including trips to the Sweet 16 in 2009 and 2011.
>> He was named the Lone Star Conference North Division Coach of the Year for the 2008-09 season.
>> Prior to joining the UCO coaching staff, he coached at the high school level for 19 years.
>> In addition to coaching both the boys and girls basketball teams, he also coached golf.
>> Hardaker is 9-10 against Washburn.
SERIES WITH CENTRAL OKLAHOMA
>> Washburn holds an 12-10 series advantage.
>> The Ichabods are 4-3 when playing the Bronchos in Lee Arena.
>> WU's last win over UCO in Lee Arena was an 80-70 victory on Dec. 3, 2020.
>> Coach McHenry is 11-10 against UCO.
LAST MEETING WITH CENTRAL OKLAHOMA
Central Oklahoma 69, Washburn 58 -- Dec. 9, 2021
EDMOND, Okla. – The Washburn women's basketball team fell 69-58 on the road to Central Oklahoma on Thursday evening. The Ichabods stay on the road Saturday to face Newman at 1:30 p.m.
Washburn (1-7, 0-3 MIAA) jumped out to a 22-19 advantage at the end of the first quarter after shooting 4-of-5 beyond the arc. Washburn looked to continue their success from three in the second half when Mackenzie Gamble hit her third of the game. The Bronchos (6-3, 2-1 MIAA) responded with a 7-0 run to take the lead at five minutes remaining in the half. Central Oklahoma didn't slow down as they held the 39-32 lead into the break.
Both teams started the third quarter cold as neither team scored for the first three and a half minutes of the quarter. The Bronchos ended the drought with a layup. Hunter Bentley ended the quarter with a three, but the Bronchos kept the seven-point lead going into the final frame.
Bentley got the first Ichabod points in the fourth quarter off a layup. Aubree Dewey drained a triple to pull the Ichabods with four, 58-54, with 5:21 remaining in the game. However, Bronchos ended the game with a 7-0 run for the win.
Washburn had a 36.1 field goal percentage on the night while Central Oklahoma shot 40.0 percent while taking almost the same number of shots. The Ichabods made eight triples and the Bronchos hit 7-of-15 attempts from deep. A difference in the game was the Bronchos scoring 30 points in the paint compared to the Ichabods' 18. Washburn had 41 rebounds including 14 offensive boards and eight blocks.
Bentley scored 16 points, shooting 6-for-14 from the floor with two three pointers. Lauren Cassaday led the Ichabods with eight rebounds, including six offensive boards. Cassaday also chipped in 10 points. Nuria Barrientos contributed on the defensive end with three blocks and two steals.
Four Bronchos finished in double-figures, led by Kelsey Johnson's 15 points and 10 rebounds.
WASHBURN COACHES
>> McHenry is in his 22nd season at Washburn and holds an overall record of 482-172 (289-122 MIAA).
>> Brette (Ulsaker) Herber begins her ninth 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.
>> Herber has filled in as the head coach for three total games this season and holds a record of 2-1.
>> Erika (Lane) Yoder starts her third 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 965-454-1 (.680) all-time and will commence the 53rd year of the program's history.
>> 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.
NEXT UP
>> Washburn wraps up its five-game homestand on Tuesday in a makeup game against Missouri Western. Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m. in Lee Arena on Feb. 1.
