TOPEKA, Kan. -- Washburn women's basketball will return to action Saturday after a week off the court to take on Central Oklahoma in Edmond on Saturday, Feb. 17 at 1:30 p.m. 
 

OPENING TIP

• Washburn women's basketball goes back on the road for one game to take on Central Oklahoma on Saturday. 
• After a week off the Ichabods will face the Bronchos at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 17 in Edmond, Okla. 
• Washburn is coming off a 62-50 loss at home to Northwest Missouri State last Saturday, its fifth straight loss. 
• WU is now 11-12 overall on the year and has gone 6-11 in the MIAA.
• They have gone 7-3 at home, 3-8 on the road and 1-1 in neutral court games. 
• The Ichabods 2022-23 season came to an end with in the regular season with a ninth place finish in the MIAA after going 11-17 overall and 7-15 in the conference.
• Washburn returns six players from last seasons roster including three players who started in at least 50% of games. The Ichabods round out the roster with five freshmen and one transfer. 
• Central Oklahoma is 5-18 overall to start the year and are 4-13 in the MIAA after losing 76-64 on the road to Fort Hays State on Saturday. 
• The Ichabods were picked to finish in eighth place in the MIAA Preseason Coaches poll and were slotted at 10th in the media vote. They are currently in 10th place in the conference. 

BODS AND BITS

• As a team Washburn averages 69.2 ppg on 40.2% shooting from the floor and 31.1% from deep. 
• Opponents average 64.3 ppg on 38.3% shooting and 28.1% from behind the arc. 
• WU is shooting 71.6% from the line this year going 336-453 overall while opponents are 317-425, for a 74.6% clip. 
• The Ichabods are pulling down 39.8 rpg while holding opponents to just 35.9 rpg. 
• Washburn extended its three point streak to 92 games with one triples on Saturday afternoon.

THE BLUE CREW

• Aubree Dewey leads the Ichabod scoring attack at 16.3 ppg on 42.8% shooting from the floor. Dewey dishes out a team-high 4.5 apg and pulls down 5.4 rpg from the point guard position, second most on the team. She leads the team playing 34.8 and snags 1.9 spg. 
• Yiibari Nwidadah is second on the team averaging 12.3 ppg and nearly averages a double double pulling down a team-high 9.6 rpg with 3.5 on the offensive end. She also leads WU in shooting at 56.1% from the floor and is doing so in just 24.3 mpg.  She has started 20 of 21 contests she has appeared in. 
• Aniah Wayne scores 9.0 ppg this season in 25.9 mpg with 21 starts. She also pulls down 3.0 rpg and is shooting 31.9% from the field and leads the Ichabods with 42 triples. 
• Mackenzie Gamble has made 17 starts and is averaging 22.0 mpg. She is scoring 6.0 ppg, dishing 1.3 apg with 2.9 rpg and is second on the team shooting 35.7% from three. 
• Amaya Davison is averaging 6.2 ppg playing every game with three starts shooting 35.4% from the floor with 2.3 rpg in 21.6 mpg.  
• Gabi Giovannetti is scoring 5.3 ppg in 15.5 mpg off the bench in 16 games. She has averages of 36.4% from the floor and is shooting a team-high 41.2% from deep.
• Lakyn Schieferecke has started eight games for Washburn playing 18.9 mpg. She is averaging 4.1 ppg on 38.4% shooting and is pulling down 3.3 rpg .
• Madelyn Amekporfor has made 13 starts averaging 18.0 mpg and is scoring 5.1 ppg on 41.6% shooting with 0.9 steals and 0.7 blocks per game. 
• Liz Boyd is averaging 5.1 ppg in just 12.2 mpg while shooting 43.0% from the field. She's also pulling down 3.3 rpg off the bench.
• Nia McKenzie has made four starts and appeared in 21 games playing 8.5 mpg and scoring 2.1 ppg with 2.1 rpg. 
• Rebecca Snyder is scoring 1.0 ppg with 1.6 rpg playing 8.5 mpg with appearances in 19 games and six starts. 

STACKING THE STATS

• Washburn is 62nd nationally in bench points per game with an average of 22.9 ppg coming from the reserves. That number is fifth in the conference. 
• Washburn is crashing the glass and is 70th nationally in rebound advantage pulling down 4.0 more boards per game than opponents, fifth in the MIAA.
• The Ichabods are 47th in the nation committing only 14.2 turnovers per game, seventh least in the conference. 
• Washburn is third in the conference and 60th nationally in defending the three point line holding opponents to 28.1% shooting from behind the arc. 
• WU is first in the MIAA and 44th nationally shooting 20.39 free throws per game. They are 38th in the nation knocking down 14.61 shots from the charity stripe per contest. 
• Aubree Dewey ranks 37th in the nation in assists per game with 4.5, that number is third among MIAA players. She is 31st nationally in total assists with 104. 
• She is also eighth in the conference in field goal percentage at 42.8%.
• Yiibari Nwidadah is second in the MIAA and 30th nationally averaging 9.6 rpg. She is tied for 26th nationally and fourth in the conference with nine double doubles on the year. 
• Aniah Wayne is seventh in the conference in total 3-pointers made while Mackenzie Gamble is 13th in the MIAA. 

MILESTONE MARKERS

• Mackenzie Gamble is 10 points away from 500 in her Ichabod career. 
• Aubree Dewey is 6 assists away from 300 in her Washburn career, she is currently tied for 12th in program history in the category. 
• Yiibari Nwidadah is 82 minutes away from reaching 1,000 in her career. 

HEAD COACH LORA WESTLING

• Former Washburn women's basketball student-athlete Lora Westling is in year two as the head coach in Topeka for the 2023-24 season. 
• Westling returns to her alma mater after six seasons at Western Colorado, where she compiled a record of 77-78 and led the team to back-to-back NCAA Tournament selections – the first two in program history.
• Her overall victories is second on the Western all-time list and her 63 RMAC wins is tied for second in program history.
• Prior to Western Colorado, Westling spent three seasons as the head coach at the Division III program, Illinois College.
• Before accepting the head job at Illinois College, Westling was the top assistant at Truman State from 2010-13.
• Westling's first full-time position came at University of Missouri-St. Louis where she was the top assistant from 2007-10.
• She got her start in coaching at Washburn, where she served as a graduate assistant for the women's basketball and women's soccer teams.
• Westling was a standout member of Washburn's women's basketball team from 2001-05 and helped the Lady Blues to the school's first NCAA Division II national championship in 2005. 
• She is currently sixth in games played (132), sixth in career three-pointers made (144), 10th in assists (299), and 14th in three-point field goal percentage (.363).
• She also played one season of soccer for the Lady Blues.

WASHBURN ASSISTANT COACHES

• The Ichabods will have three fresh faces on the sidelines with an all new assistant coaching staff in year two of the Lora Westling era. 
• Matt Barreiro and Monique M. Scott join the staff as assistant coaches while Damiel Fulp is a volunteer assistant in his first season with WU. 
• Barriero is a 2005 graduate of Arizona Christian and got his masters from Walden University in 2005. He played basketball at both Washington State and Arizona Christian.  
• He has several years of head coaching experience with seven years at the helm at The King's University in Canada and most recently spending the last two years as the head coach at Central Christian College in McPherson, Kan. 
• Scott is a 2019 graduate of Xavier University and received her masters degree from Liberty University in 2022. 
• While at Xavier she worked as a manager on the women's basketball teams and has been a coach and teacher at the prep ranks. 
• Fulp is a 2020 graduate of The King's University where he played after transferring from the University of Alaska Anchorage. 
• He has experience working and attending basketball camps and conferences to develop training methods. 

LAST TIME OUT

Northwest Missouri 62, Washburn 50 (Feb. 10, 2024)
TOPEKA, Kan. -- Washburn led into the second half but an offensive burst from Northwest Missouri State was too much to overcome Saturday afternoon in a 62-50 loss. The Ichabods head to Edmond to take on Central Oklahoma on Saturday, Feb. 17 at 1:30 p.m.  

The Bearcats (18-5, 12-5 MIAA) jumped out to a 6-2 lead in the first two minutes. After trailing 11-6 with 3:23 left in the quarter Washburn (11-12, 6-11 MIAA) scored the final eight points capped off by free throws from Aubree Dewey in the final seconds of the quarter.  

Washburn extended the lead to seven with the first four points of the second quarter, Northwest Missouri State responded with a 8-0 run to take the lead at the 4:51 mark. The Ichabods got a pair of free throws from Nia McKenzie with 2:02 left in the half but still went into the break with a 24-23 lead.  

The Bearcats retook the lead with the first basket of the third quarter but Washburn quickly took it back and led by as many as four three times, the final coming after Yiibari Nwidadah suck a pair of free throws with 3:56 left. Northwest got going offensively, scoring the last nine points of the quarter while shooting 8-12 in the third to lead 41-36 going into the fourth.  

Northwest pushed its lead up to eight early in the fourth quarter but a pair of jumpers from Dewey and a layup by Nwidadah cut it down two with 5:42 left. Dewey got another jumper to go with 4:48 left but just like the quarter before NWMSU got hot offensively going on a 10-1 run over the next four minutes with the final six points all coming at the free throw line. The lead didn't reach double figures until the final minute when it got up to as many as a dozen which was the final deficit with the Bearcats winning 62-50. 

The Ichabods shot just 18-63 in the game (28.6%) while Northwest Missouri was 22-52 (42.3%). Washburn stayed in the game with 14 rebounds and by winning the turnover battle 17-12, but they shot just 1-19 from behind the arc in the loss.  

Aubree Dewey led all players with 20 points on 7-18 shooting while adding a pair of steals. Yiibari Nwidadah had 11 points and six rebounds off the bench. No other player had more than six for the home squad.  

Three Bearcats finished in double figures led by Caely Kesten and Molly Hartnett who each had 16 in the game.  

ABOUT THE CENTRAL OKLAHOMA BRONCHOS

• The Bronchos are 5-18 on the year and 4-13 in MIAA play after a 76-64 loss on the road to Fort Hays State last Saturday. They have lost four games in a row. 
• Central Oklahoma went 11-17 overall in 2022-23 with an 7-15 mark in the MIAA where they lost in the quarterfinals of the MIAA Tournament. 
• On the year the Bronchos are averaging 63.7 points on 37.3% shooting overall and 28.2% from deep. 
• Opponents are averaging 71.7 points on 42.1% shooting and 32.6% from behind the arc. 
• UCO is 3-7 inside of the Hamilton Field House this season. 
• Central Oklahoma has deficits in rebounding and in assists this season with opponents pulling down 4.4 more rpg and dishing out 2.6 more apg. 
• Karly Wadsworth averages a team-high 8.8 ppg on 39.6% shooting for the Bronchos. She shoots 34.3% from deep and rips away 1.4 spg in just 19.8 mpg.  
• Alena Wilson has started 21 of 23 games and averages a team-high 5.5 rpg while also scoring 8.2 ppg and swiping 1.5 spg. 
• Aliyah Llanusa leads UCO with 2.8 apg while also pulling down 5.0 rpg, second most on the team. She chips in 6.4 ppg. 
• Reagan Fox is second on the squad at 8.6 ppg shooting 36.0% from behind the arc and chipping in 1.7 apg. 
• No player has started every game for the Bronchos this season while 12 players have made their way into the starting lineup at some point. 

HEAD COACH EMMA ANDREWS

• is in her second season as head coach since being hired in 2022.
• came to UCO from Cameron, where she spent the previous six seasons leading the Aggie women's program in Lawton, Oklahoma. She led CU to five Lone Star Conference tournament appearances and one NCAA Division II national tournament appearance in 2020-21.
• was an assistant at Cameron for two seasons before being named head coach there in May of 2016.
• Prior to her time in Lawton, Andrews was a graduate assistant coach for Fresno State from 2012-14. She was a student assistant in 2011-12. That span followed her four-year standout playing career for the Bulldogs.
• Andrews is originally from Melbourne, Australia.

SERIES WITH CENTRAL OKLAHOMA

• Tuesday will be the 27th meeting all-time between the Ichabods and the Bronchos with Washburn leading the series 15-11.
• The series began Dec. 9, 1994 with a 75-68 win for Washburn in Edmond, Okla. 
• It would be until 2005 before the two played again. 
• The Ichabods are 5-5 against the Bronchos in Edmond. 
• Washburn won a 64-62 contest against UCO on Jan. 4 this season, Aubree Dewey led WU with 16 points and hit the game winning layup in the final seconds.
• Both teams split the season series last year, with both teams winning the road contest. 

LAST TIME VS CENTRAL OKLAHOMA

Washburn 64, Central Oklahoma 62 (January 4, 2024)
TOPEKA, Kan. -- Washburn built a double-digit first half lead and held on in the second with a game-winning layup from Aubree Dewey with two seconds left to buck Central Oklahoma 64-62. The Ichabods stay in Topeka and take on Newman at 1:00 on Saturday, Jan. 4.  

After Washburn (9-3, 4-2) scored the first four points of the game the Bronchos jumped ahead 7-4 with 6:14 left in the opening quarter. Central Oklahoma (2-11, 1-6) stayed ahead at 13-12 before the Ichabods closed the quarter on an 8-0 run with six points coming on a pair of triples by Mackenzie Gamble to lead 20-13.  

The lead reached double digits early in the second quarter on a free throw from Madelyn Amekporfor. It was extended to a game-high 14 points with 3:57 in the second quarter after Aniah Wayne knocked down a 3-pointer from the corner. The Bronchos were held to 28.6% shooting in the quarter but got to the free throw line nine times in the frame and were able to make it a nine-point game at halftime with Washburn up 36-27.  

After the Ichabods held Central Oklahoma to just one 3-pointer in the first half UCO knocked down three just in the third quarter. Back-to-back triples made it a three-point game with 7:12 left in the third. The lead got down to just two before a 10-1 Washburn run made it double figures again after two free throws from Dewey. The Bronchos scored the final five points of the quarter to make it 51-44.  

Central Oklahoma had another good start to a quarter and were able to take the lead for the first time since the first quarter with 7:26 left in the game. They pushed the lead up to four points on two occasions, the final time with 3:50 left. 

The next six points would all come from Washburn, with Aubree Dewey scoring the first four on a pair of turnaround jumpers in the paint. An inbound pass from Dewey to Yiibari Nwidadah for a layup put the home squad ahead with a minute to play. The Bronchos were able to tie the game up leaving the Ichabods with the final shot which was sunk by Dewey with two seconds remaining on a driving layup through the middle of the paint. Washburn made one final defensive stand to keep the final score at 64-62 and start out the season 9-3 for the first time since 2017-18.  

The Ichabods shot 34.5% for the game but made up for it shooting 19-24 at the line. On the other end They held the Bronchos to 37.3% shooting overall and just four 3-pointers. Extra opportunities were the difference with Washburn securing 44 rebounds to just 32 for UCO. 

Dewey scored 16 to lead WU, including 10 of the team's 13 fourth-quarter points. She also dished out five assists and grabbed seven boards. Aniah Wayne and Mackenzie Gamble each scored 11 and knocked down three triples. Yiibari Nwidadah added nine points with nine rebounds.  

Three Bronchos finished in double-figures with Alena Wilson and LaKysia Johnson each scoring 16 points to lead the visitors.  

WASHBURN HISTORY

• Washburn women's basketball is 993-490-1 (.670) all-time and are in the 55th 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.

LOOKING AHEAD

• The Ichabods return to Topeka for its final full week of action at home beginning with Lincoln on Thursday, Feb. 22 at 5:30 p.m. 
• Senior day for Washburn will be on March 2 against Emporia State
• The MIAA Championship Tournament begins March 6 in Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo.