TOPEKA, Kan. -- The Washburn women's basketball team returns to Lee Arena for Saturday's Pink Out Game against Central Missouri at 1 p.m.
GAME INFORMATION
Washburn (11-11, 9-7 MIAA) vs. Central Missouri (16-8, 12-5 MIAA)
Saturday, Feb. 12 | 1 p.m. | Topeka, Kan. | Lee Arena
Promotion: Pink Out Game, sponsored by Stormont Vail Health
Tickets: Online only
Watch: MIAA Network
Radio: 106.9 FM
Live stats: wusports.com/sidearmstats/wbball
OPENING TIP
>> Washburn (11-11, 9-7 MIAA) moved back up to .500 after a 67-55 road victory at Lincoln on Thursday.
>> The Jennies last played on Monday where they posted a 20-point win over Pittsburg State to improve their record to 16-8 (12-5 MIAA).
>> Washburn has won the last two meetings against Central Missouri both in Warrensburg with a 66-59 win this season on Dec. 31 and a 63-55 win in the 2021 MIAA Tournament quarterfinal.
>> The Jennies are 7-3 in true road games.
>> Washburn is 6-6 in Lee Arena this season.
>> The last time Washburn won three or more games in a row against Central Missouri was an eight-game winning streak during 2009-11.
>> This will be the 68th all-time meeting between these programs since 1990 with Washburn leading, 42-25.
WASHBURN NOTES
>> The Ichabods average an even 60.0 ppg and have a 41.2 field goal percentage.
>> Hunter Bentley is 10th in the MIAA averaging 13.9 ppg. She has scored double-digits in 14 games this season and has done so in the last five-consecutive contests.
>> In her first start since Dec. 31, Abby Oliver totaled 11 points, 10 rebounds (six of which were offensive boards), and four assists on Thursday against Lincoln.
>> Oliver averages 8.5 ppg to go with 4.6 rpg.
>> Macy Doebele did a little of everything against the Blue Tigers as she made 7-of-10 from the floor for 14 points while grabbing a season-high 11 rebounds and adding five assists and two steals.
>> For the season, Doebele averages 7.9 ppg and 4.9 rpg.
>> Shae Sanchez is fourth on the team in scoring with 7.1 ppg off the bench. She tallied a season-high 15 points at Lincoln and made all three of her three-point attempts.
>> Nuria Barrientos leads the Ichabods with 5.2 rpg to go with 6.7 ppg.
>> Mackenzie Gamble averages 4.7 ppg and Aubree Dewey chips in 3.9 ppg.
>> Eight Ichabods played in the contest at Lincoln and six scored with five finishing in double-figures.
>> Before falling in its most recent home game against Missouri Western on Feb. 1, Washburn held a six-game winning streak in Lee Arena.
>> The Ichabods' last win at home was an overtime 98-93 shootout against Central Oklahoma.
DOUBLE-DOUBLE THIS THIS
>> On Thursday, Doebele and Oliver both recorded their first double-doubles of the season.
>> Washburn has had five double-doubles this season with Barrientos leading the way with three.
>> The last time two Ichabods achieved a double-double in the same game was Bentley and Barrientos on Dec. 3, 2020 against Central Oklahoma in Lee Arena .
PROGRAM HISTORY MADE
>> In her fifth season, Bentley has become Washburn's career leader in minutes played and games played.
>> She has turned in 4,053 minutes on the hardwood, passing Shelley Foster (1991-95) on the all-time list.
>> In Thursday's game at Lincoln, Bentley played in her 136th game to move in front of April Roadhouse (2002-06).
MILESTONE TRACKER
>> Bentley needs 53 more points to move up to No. 6 on Washburn's career scorers list.
>> Dewey and Gamble are nearing the century mark in career rebounds, needing six and five more boards, respectively, to reach 100.
>> In 15 more points, Oliver will eclipse 400 in her career.
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 437-114 all-time in Lee Arena.
>> The Ichabods went 7-4 at home last season.
>> Head Coach Ron McHenry is 246-66 when coaching in Lee Arena.
WASHBURN'S LAST TIME OUT
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Five Ichabods finished in double-figure scoring while Abby Oliver and Macy Doebele both notched double-doubles in the 67-55 win at Lincoln on Thursday evening.
Senior Hunter Bentley made program history again at the start of the game as she passed April Roadhouse (2002-06) for the most games played in a Washburn uniform. Bentley has played in every Washburn game since her 2017-18 freshman season and has now competed in 136 games in her career.
The first quarter was back-and-forth as there were five lead changes and two ties. Washburn (11-11, 9-7 MIAA) took the lead with a 6-0 run starting at the 1:35 mark before the Blue Tigers hit a jumper to cut the Ichabod lead to 13-10 at the end of the opening period.
Lincoln (5-18, 1-16 MIAA) leveled the score at 13 and then 17 when Shae Sanchez sparked an 8-0 spurt to put the Ichabods up, 25-17, with 3:05 left in the first half. The Blue Tigers fought back and scored nine unanswered points capped off by a buzzer-beating three-pointer to hold a 26-25 advantage at halftime.
The Ichabod offense got off to a hot start in the second half as they opened the third quarter on a 12-2 scoring tear to go in front, 37-28, at the midway mark. Washburn outscored Lincoln 23-12 in the quarter and held a 48-38 lead heading into the fourth.
The Blue Tigers hit two free throws to begin the fourth frame and pull within eight points, but they would get no closer as Washburn closed out the double-figure victory.
Washburn finished the night shooting 36.8 percent from the field while Lincoln had a 32.3 field goal percentage. WU made 5-of-17 from three-point distance while LU was 3-of-15. The Ichabods dominated on the glass and pulled down 20 more rebounds than the Blue Tigers, 53-33.
Sanchez scored a season-high 15 points off the bench and was a perfect 3-for-3 from behind the arc. Doebele notched a double-double after she made 7-of-10 from the field for 14 points to go with 11 boards, five assists, and two steals. Bentley contributed 13 points and six rebounds and Nuria Barrientos was right behind with 12 points and seven rebounds. Oliver achieved her first double-double of the season totaling 11 points and 10 rebounds and dished out four assists.
The Blue Tigers had three players finish in double-digits and were paced by Hya Haywood's 15 points.
ABOUT THE CENTRAL MISSOURI JENNIES
>> The Jennies went 23-5 (19-3 MIAA) last season and reached the NCAA Final Four before falling to the eventual national champions, Lubbock Christian.
>> The squad is currently second in both field goal percentage (45.3%) and three-point field goal percentage (33.7%).
>> Three Jennies rank in the top-10 in the league in scoring as Brooke Littrell (19.8 ppg) and Nija Collier (19.3 ppg) are second and third on the list while Olivia Nelson (14.0 ppg) checks in at ninth.
>> Collier averages a double-double as she leads the conference with 11.6 rpg and has made a league-best 41 blocks. She is also an efficient shooter as she is third in the MIAA with a 50.9 field goal percentage.
>> The Ichabods held Collier to just four points and four boards in the game on New Year's Eve.
>> Littrell adds 9.3 rpg and Nelson leads the team in assists (4.7 apg) and steals (1.6 spg).
>> Charley Bovaird has made a team-best 44 triples and shoots 41.9 percent from deep.
>> Bovaird, Nelson, Collier, and Littrell are the top-four players in the MIAA in minutes played.
HEAD COACH DAVE SLIFER
>> Dave Slifer is in his 18th season leading the Jennies and 33rd season coaching collegiately. He holds a career record of 741-256, ranking him as the fourth winningest active coach in Division II.
>> Slifer has guided the Jennies to 11 NCAA Tournament selections, including an NCAA National Championship in 2018 and has a record of 357-157 at Central Missouri.
>> Prior to his tenure at UCM, Slifer spent nine seasons at Missouri Western where he compiled a record of 206-69 (115-33 MIAA).
>> His coaching career started at Mt. Mercy College in Iowa, where he went 178-30 in six seasons.
>> He is a two-time WBCA Regional Coach of the Year and a four-time MIAA Coach of the Year.
>> Slifer is 14-23 when facing Washburn.
SERIES WITH CENTRAL MISSOURI
>> Washburn leads the all-time series 42-25.
>> WU is 21-10 when playing UCM in Topeka.
>> Washburn's last win against Central Missouri in Lee Arena was on Dec. 8, 2018 when the Jennies were ranked seventh in the country.
>> Coach McHenry is 29-16 against the Jennies.
LAST MEETING WITH CENTRAL MISSOURI
Washburn 66, Central Missouri 59 -- Dec. 31, 2021
WARRENSBURG, Mo. -- A strong defensive effort propelled the Washburn women's basketball team to a 66-59 road win over Central Missouri to wrap up the 2021 calendar year on a four-game winning streak.
The game got off to a slow start for both sides when Hunter Bentley scored five points during a 7-0 run to put Washburn on top 9-4 four minutes into the contest. The Ichabods (5-7, 3-3 MIAA) led by as many as seven in the frame before Central Missouri cut Washburn's lead to 15-13 at the end of the period.
The game remained close and the score stayed within four points for the entirety of the second quarter. Jennies (8-5, 4-2 MIAA) leveled the score at 15-all early in the second quarter when the Ichabods responded with four points to retake the lead. Central Missouri knotted up the score at 24 and then 26 before going up 28-26 on a pair of free throws with 47 left in the first half, taking its first lead since early in the opening quarter. Aubree Dewey hit a jump shot at the buzzer, but Central Missouri held a 31-29 advantage at the break.
The Jennies led 41-35 with 3:54 in the third period when the Ichabods started to chip away at the deficit with a 7-2 run. Trailing 47-44 with 36 seconds to go, Bentley converted on an old-fashioned three-point play to even the score heading into the final stanza.
A layup from Nuria Barrientos knotted up the score at 49 two minutes into the fourth quarter and started a 10-2 rally to push Washburn back in front, 57-51, with 3:54 in regulation. Central Missouri answered with a three-pointer to pull within three points, but Washburn tallied nine of the final 11 points scored in the last three minutes while making 7-of-8 at the free throw line to secure the win and hand UCM its first home loss of the season.
The Ichabods finished the game shooting 51 percent from the floor and held the Jennies to a 35.1 field goal percentage. From behind the arc, WU was 3-for-11 and UCM made 4-of-23 three-point attempts. Washburn outrebounded Central Missouri, 35-31, and scored 14 points off 11 UCM turnovers.
Bentley recorded a team-high 18 points and went a perfect 5-for-5 at the charity stripe. Barrientos notched her second double-double of the season with 11 points and 10 rebounds to go with four blocks and three steals. Shae Sanchez rounded out Washburn's double-figure scorers with 10 points as she made 4-of-7 from the field with two three-pointers.
Brooke Littrell paced UCM with 23 points and Olivia Nelson added 18 points and seven rebounds. The Ichabods held the Jennies' Nija Collier, who averages 22.8 ppg and 13.0 rpg, to just four points and four boards.
WASHBURN COACHES
>> McHenry is in his 22nd season at Washburn and holds an overall record of 485-174 (292-124 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 968-456-1 (.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 heads to the Show Me State next week with games at Missouri Western (Feb. 17) and Northwest Missouri (Feb. 19).
