No. 6 Jennies Basketball to battle Evangel in Tuesday night home matchup

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#6 Central Missouri Jennies (4-0) vs. Evangel University (3-3)
Tuesday, November 26, 2013 | 7 p.m.
Warrensburg, Mo. | Multipurpose Building (8,500)

TV: MIAA TV Network
Radio: Central Missouri Sports Network
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Twitter Updates: @UCMMULES
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Next up for the Jennies

The No. 6 ranked Jennies will host Evangel University on Tuesday, November 26 at 7 p.m. at the Multipurpose Building. The Jennies are off to their fourth 4-0 start in the Dave Slifer era. Central Missouri will go for its 19th win in 20 tries against non-conference opponents. The team will go for its third-consecutive five-win start in the month of November. UCM has never lost to Evangel (12-0) and Coach Slifer has guided the Jennies to six of those victories.

Last Time Out

The Jennies swept Florida Tech and Rollins College in the Rollins Tipoff Classic last weekend in Winter Park, Fla. Senior forward Keuna Flax was named Tournament MVP, averaging 20.0 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists. Flax shot 61.5% from the field (16-of-26) and hit 2-of-4 three-pointers in the two games. In the 73-57 win against Florida Tech, the Jennies fell behind, 24-19 in the first half but closed the half on an 11-2 run to take a 30-26 lead. UCM went on a second-half run to increase its lead to 13 with 14:30 left, but the Panthers battled back to cut the lead to six with under 12 minutes to play. An 11-4 run by the Jennies put the game out of reach with just under nine minutes in the game. Flax led UCM with 20 points, followed by BreAnna Lewis and Shelby Winkelmann, who each added 17.

In the matchup against No. 25 Rollins College on Saturday, Nov. 16, the Jennies scored the first seven points of the game and never trailed against the Tars, coming away with a 73-45 win. For the fourth-straight game, Flax led UCM in scoring with 20 points and grabbed a team-high nine boards. Revonnia Howard and Quinnecia Twine each scored a dozen points, and Howard recorded nine rebounds of her own.

Coach Slifer Honored

Last season, Jennies head coach Dave Slifer was named the WBCA Central Region Coach of the Year last year, guiding the team to a 24-6 record and an appearance in the NCAA Tournament. UCM recorded its first undefeated season at home for the first time since 1988-89. The 24 victories were the most in a single season for the program since 1989-90. The team's second-place finish in the MIAA regular season standings was their best since 1999-00.

Slifer By The Numbers

Slifer is 34th on the all-time wins list for all division coaches with 557.

Slifer is sixth among all Division II coaches with 557 wins and is eighth among all Division II coaches with a .739 winning percentage.

Strong Defensive Effort

In the Jennies win against Rollins College on Nov. 16, the defense held the Tars to 45 points, - the lowest output by a UCM opponent since Feb. 13, 2013 against Lindenwood (Jennies won, 58-44).

Flax Off To A Fast Start

Through the first four games this season, Keuna Flax is averaging 23.3 points and 6.8 rebounds. She is shooting .679 from the field (36-of-53) and has sank 16-of-22 free throws (72.7 percent).

Last season, the 5-11 Haltom City, Texas native led the Jennies to their second consecutive NCAA Tournament, finishing first in the MIAA in scoring at 19.7 points per game in 23 contests, earning All-American honors.

Last season, she finished tied for second on the team with 22 double-figure scoring performances (one behind BreAnna Lewis).

BreAnna Lewis From Deep

Senior guard BreAnna Lewis registered 88 three-pointers during the 2012-13 season. The 88 shots made from beyond the three-point arc placed her second on the Jennies' single-season list (four behind Jessica Burkholder in 1996-97 season).

After two games this season, Lewis has converted seven three-pointers, bumping her three-point career total to 95 – now eighth on the Jennies' all-time list.

The Return of Winkelmann

After leading the Jennies offense during the first eight games of the 2012-13 season, freshman Shelby Winkelmann suffered a season-ending injury during the win over Dixie State on Dec. 18, 2013. Winkelmann was averaging 17.6 points and 5.4 rebounds per game, the Jennies' leading scorer at the time.

Last season, Winkelmann recorded the third-highest scoring output in a game in Jennies history with 42 against Emporia State on Dec. 8.

Winkelmann is the team's third-leading scorer, averaging 12.0 points (19-of-52 from field) through the first four games this season. She has reached double-figures in scoring in three of four games this season.

Wattley's Ball Control

Last season, guard Brielle Wattley held the team's highest assist-turnover ratio at 1.5 (57 assists to 37 turnovers). She has 11 assists and six turnovers (1.8 turnover ratio) in the first four games of the 2013-14 campaign.

Big Shoes To Fill

Junior transfer Revonnia Howard has started this season at forward as the team replaces the graduated Nicole Caddell, the program's eighth all-time leading rebounder (704).

Howard is averaging 9.0 rebounds in four games this season (including a season-high 10 against Minnesota State). She has a team-leading 10 offensive boards (Winkelmann has five).

New Faces

The Jennies also welcome three other junior college transfers to this year's squad. Justina Prairie Chief is a 5-8 junior guard from Cochise Community College in Douglas, Arizona.

The El Reno, Okla. native averaged over 13 points per game her freshman year before suffering a season-ending injury. As a sophomore, she averaged 7.4 points per game and over four assists. Prairie Chief is averaging 2.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and is shooting 35.7 percent from the floor (5-of-14) through the first four games this season.

Latrice McMullen, a 6-2 junior forward from Marshalltown Community College in Marshalltown, Iowa, averaged 8.0 points and 6.3 rebounds during her sophomore season in 21 games. She is a native of Waterloo, Iowa. She has seen nine minutes of game action, missing her only shot attempt. She also has four rebounds, a block and a steal.

Amanda Rodenberg, a 6-0 junior forward was a two-year All-Region selection at North Central Missouri College and participated in two regional tournaments in 2012 and 2013. After not playing in the season opener, Rodenberg has played in two games, averaging 3.0 minutes and recording an assist.

The Lone Freshman

Incoming freshman guard Andee Wahlert enters this season as the only freshman on the Jennies' roster. The St. Joseph, Mo. native and Benton High School product was a four-year varsity letterwinner on the girls varsity team at Benton and served as a three-time captain. Wahlert is averaging 3.5 points and 0.5 rebounds in 13.3 minutes per game this season. She also has three steals and has seven assists, while shooting 80 percent from three-point range (4-of-5).

Embray's Defense

Junior guard Breonna Embray was a defensive staple for the Jennies in tight games last season. In games decided by four points or less, the Jennies finished 9-1 with Embray on the floor. Embray is averaging 16.3 minutes this season, making one of two field goals and turning in a perfect 4-for-4 from the charity stripe.

Twine Shines in 2012-13

Senior guard Quinnecia Twine will come off the bench this season with Winkelmann back in the starting five. The Atlanta, Ga. native started 22 games, averaging 7.7 points, including a 24-point, eight-rebound performance back on Feb. 7 against Central Oklahoma. She is averaging 7.5 points, shooting 11-of-29 from the field (37.9 percent) and has three steals.

Excelling in the Classroom

The Jennies experienced plenty of success both on and off the court last season with seven MIAA Academic Honor Roll selections, for earning at least a 3.0 cumulative GPA.

Junior Kiersten Orton and freshman Shelby Winkelman each won the the MIAA Academic Excellence Award, which recognizes student-athletes with a 4.0 GPA. The award was the third for Orton.

MIAA Preseason Polls

After a second-place regular season finish a year ago, the Jennies debuted at No. 1 in the 2013-14 MIAA Preseason Media Poll, and No. 2 in the Coaches Poll. The Jennies enter the season ahead of Fort Hays State in both polls, after finishing ahead of the Tigers in the final 2012-13 MIAA Standings and eliminating FHSU in the MIAA Tournament semifinals. UCM tallied fewer votes than Emporia State in the preseason coaches poll, but garnered more points than the Lady Hornets in the preseason media poll. Washburn, who finished in first place in last year's regular season standings, but were eliminated in the MIAA Tournament semifinals by Emporia State, were picked to finish third in both the preseason coaches and media poll. Fort Hays State and Pittsburg State placed fourth and fifth to round out the top five teams in both polls.

UCM in the Polls

The Jennies moved up two spots to No. 6 in last week's WBCA USA Today Sports Division II Top 25 Coaches' Poll. The No. 6 ranking is the highest the Jennies have ever been ranked since the poll's debut in 1995-96. After opening the season earning 466 points, the Jens have garnered 577 points in last week's poll. The Jennies are one of three MIAA schools in the Top 25 for the second-consecutive week (Emporia State at No. 4; Washburn at No. 16).

UCM Program History

The UCM Jennies are 853-355 (.706) after 43 seasons, and 652-266 (.710) in the 31 seasons since joining NCAA Division II ... the Jennies have won 9 MIAA regular season championships, 7 MIAA Tournament titles, 6 NCAA regional titles, and the 1984 NCAA Division II Championship.

Series History with Evangel University

Central Missouri leads the all-time series, 12-0 ... The last time these two teams met was November 12, 2012 in Warrensburg, with the Jennies winning 87-37.

A Win for the Jennies Would...

... start the Jennies season with a perfect 5-0 ... be the third-consecutive 5-0 start to a season (longest active streak) and the first in the Dave Slifer era ... give UCM its 19th win in 20 games against non-conference opponents.

A Loss for the Jennies Would...

... be the first loss of the 2013-14 season ... mark just the second loss in 20 games against non-conference opponents... drop the Jennies home record to 2-1 for the first time since the 2009-10 season (Lost to Minnesota-Duluth on Nov. 21, 2009).

Jennies on the Air

Central Missouri women's basketball can be caught throughout the season on 98.5 "The BAR," 1450 KOKO, and warrensburgradio.com as Greg Hassler provides play-by-play.

Fans can catch highlights each week on Central Missouri Sportspage, Thursday nights at 7 p.m., and Saturdays at 5 p.m. on KMOS-TV.

Jennies fans can also tune in to 98.5 "The Bar" and 1450 KOKO each Tuesday morning at 9:30 a.m. for Central Missouri Sports Talk, with Greg Hassler and Bill Turnage. The pair will talk UCM athletics, as well as other hot topics in the sports world. Jennies coaches and players will drop in throughout the season as well.

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