The Jens lead throughout much of the second half, until a pair of three-pointers but the Tigers up five with less than four minutes to play. UCM climbed back, and tied the game thanks to some clutch free throw shooting, then dominated in the OT session, outscoring the Tigers 12-3.
Regional Rankings
In the third week of regional rankings this year, the Jennies held steady at No. 2 in the Central Region, unchanged from a week ago. UCM holds an overall record of 24-4 on the season, and trail only Washburn, who continues to hold the top spot in the rankings.
Jennies Basketball in the Multi
The Jennies clinched their first undefeated season in the Multi since 1988-89 on Wednesday night with the win over Truman ... The Jens are 457-99 all-time in the Multipurpose Building, and 88-29 during the Slifer era ... Central Missouri finished the year with a 14-0 record in the Multi ... UCM has won at least nine home games every year since 2004-05 ... the Jennies have now gone undefeated at home four times: 1982-83 (15-0, finished 3rd in the nation), 1985-86 (14-0, regional champions), 1988-89 (15-0, finished 4th in the nation), and 2012-13 ... from 1988 to 1990, the Jennies won a school-record 34 consecutive games at the Multi ... Currently, UCM is riding a 14-game winning streak at the Multi.
National Leaders
The Jennies rank among the top teams in Division II in a number of statistical categories. As of March 7, the Jens are 27th in total offense, averaging 72.4 points per game. The team is also one of the best in the nation in controlling the ball, as the Jennies commit and average of only 14.2 turnovers per game, good for 18th in Division II.
UCM has been one of the deadliest deep-shooting teams in the country all season; the Jens 34.8% three-point shooting percentage is the 33rd-highest in Division II, as the team hits an average of 6.8 treys per game, 35th-most in the nation. Finally, the Jennies have one of the best winning percentages in the nation, at .846 which ranks 17th.
Chasing History
The Jennies have a chance this season to record one of the best regular season records in program history. This season's record of 23-5 gives the Jens a .846 winning percentage. The school record currently sits at .906, which was set during the 1982-83 and 1989-90 seasons, when the Jennies posted identical 29-3 records. Both of those teams won MIAA regular season and tournament titles, NCAA regional championships, and reached the national semifinals and quarterfinals, respectively.
This season, the Jennies have also set the record for the most MIAA victories in the
Dave Slifer era, with 14.
Instant Impact
In her first season at UCM, junior forward
Keuna Flax has become one of the top players in the MIAA. Flax is averaging a team-high 19.5 points per game, and is shooting 51.6% from the field. Flax hasn't qualified for any MIAA or NCAA statistical leaderboards all season due to missing the first seven games of the year, but now finally appears on the league leaders list after Saturday's matchup with Fort Hays State. Flax leads the conference in scoring, and ranks ninth nationally in Division II. The Haltom City, Tex. native has scored 20 or more points in 11 games for UCM this season, and has scored in double figures in all but one appearance this season; she set a new career high with 30 points in the win over Central Oklahoma on Feb. 7. Flax missed the regular season matchup with Emporia State this year, in which the Jennies defeated the Hornets, 84-63.
Senior Leader
Senior forward
Nicole Caddell has been dominant in the post this season, averaging a double-double with 13.3 points and 10.0 rebounds per game. She is just one of two players in the MIAA to be averaging a double-double on the season. Caddell has matched her career high of 16 rebounds three times this season (St. Mary's, Lewis, Arkansas Tech). She ranks second in the MIAA in total rebounding, and leads the league in offensive boards (3.5 per game). Nationally, the Tuscaloosa, Ala. native ranks 29th in rebounds, and 42nd in the country with 11 double-doubles this season.
Caddell also reached a major milestone in her UCM career in the win over Lincoln on Jan. 30, surpassing the 1,000 point mark. Caddell became the 24th player in Jennies basketball history to reach that total, and was the third-fastest Jennie to do so, reaching the milestone in just 74 games played. With her 23 points against Truman on Feb. 27, Caddell moved into 19th place on the UCM scoring list, surpassing Margaret Nielson (1978-80) and Bethany Orendorff (2001-05).
Caddell also pulled down her 600th career rebound against the Blue Tigers. She now stands 8th on UCM's all-time rebounding list, with 689 boards in her career. With her one block at Lindenwood, Caddell, became just the third player in Jennies history to have at least 1,000 points, 600 rebounds, and 100 blocks, joining Rosie Jones (1981-85) and Barb Sorensen (1986-90).
Scoring Threat
Junior
BreAnna Lewis has been one of the nation's best three-point shooters this season. Lewis ranks fifth in the MIAA in scoring and 81st in Division II, with 16.4 points per game, and is shooting at a 36.9% clip from beyond the arc, ranking 55th nationally. She has the MIAA's second-highest average of three-pointers hit per game, with 2.92, which places her 10th on the national leaderboard. The guard has struggled from deep in her past few games, going a combined 1-of-16 from beyond the arc in her last two games, against Truman and Washburn, but bounced back with a 3-of-7 performance in the MIAA Tournament opener against Missouri Western, leading the team with 16 points.
In the win over Academy of Art, Lewis knocked down seven three-pointers, tying her for the third-most in a single game in Jennies program history; she has hit five or more treys in six games, and has hit six in her last two games, against Missouri Southern and Lindenwood.
Lewis, along with
Keuna Flax, were former teammates at Trinity Valley CC, where they won the NJCAA national championship a year ago. With the Jennies, the pair account for 35.9 points per game, just under half of the team's scoring average.
MIAA Tournament
The 2013 MIAA Tournament is scheduled for March 8-10, at the Municipal Auditorium in downdown Kansas City, Mo. This year's edition of the conference tournament has a slightly different format, as four preliminary first-round matchups will take place on Tuesday, March 5 to round out the eight-team field. The top four seeds will earn a bye and automatically punch their tickets to Kansas City, while seeds 5-8 will host a first-round game against seeds 9-12.
The preliminary round matchups took place Tuesday night, with two lower-seeded teams pulling off upsets and advancing the Municipal Auditorium; ninth-seeded Northwest Missouri defeated eighth-seeded Missouri Southern in Joplin, while Missouri Western knocked off Pittsburg State in the 7-seed/10-seed matchup.
The Jennies have claimed seven MIAA tournament titles, second only to Washburn's nine titles, but haven't cut the nets down since 1990. Last season, the Jennies knocked off Fort Hays State, 73-61 in the first round before falling to the eventual conference tournament champions Washburn, 64-62 in the semifinals.
Milestone Victory
After defeating Missouri Western in the MIAA Tournament quarterfinals on Friday, head coach
Dave Slifer moved into second place on the Jennies all-time wins list, passing Scott Ballard (1995-03). Slifer surpassed Mildred Barnes (1971-80) for third place on the list earlier this season, with a win at home over Pittsburg State on Jan. 12. After defeating Lincoln on Feb. 16, head coach
Dave Slifer earned his 550th career victory; he now has a 169-95 record on the UCM sideline, and a 553-194 record during his 24-year coaching career. At the start of the season Slifer ranked seventh among active coaches at the Division II level in total wins, and is one of just eight active coaches to reach the 500 wins mark. Slifer also has the most victories in MIAA history, with nine seasons at UCM and nine at Missouri Western from 1995-2004.
Starting Roles
Point guard
Brielle Wattley and forward
Quinnecia Twine have developed into key components of the Jennies' success this season. Both players earned regular starting spots during the pair of games in Las Vegas in December.
Twine has started 20 games this season, and is averaging 7.6 points this season. The Atlanta, Ga. native is one of the Jennies most solid defenders, with the second-highest total of steals (30) this year. Offensively, Twine can also be a threat from deep; she has the team's second-most three-point field goals this year, and is shooting 33.3% (36-of-108) from long range. The junior has scored in double figures in eight starts, and set a new career high with 24 points in the win over Central Oklahoma. Twine also hit a career-high five three-pointers against the Bronchos.
Wattley has started the last 21 games at point guard, and is averaging 2.0 assists as a starter. She leads the team with a 1.65 assist-to-turnover ratio this season, and has committed just three turnovers in her last four games. The sophomore from Fort Wayne, Ind. averages 3.7 points per game, and shoots 43.3% (39-90) from the field.
Disappointing Departure
After leading the Jennies offense during the first eight games of the season, freshman
Shelby Winkelmann suffered a season-ending injury during the win over Dixie State. Winkelmann was averaging 17.6 points and 5.4 rebounds per game, leading the team in scoring at the time. The current team leader,
Keuna Flax, played together with Winkelmann for one game (Dixie State) before the freshman's injury.
Winning Time
The Jennies have developed a knack for pulling out close games this season; the team is 8-0 in games decided by five points or less, most recently in Friday night's win over Missouri Western at the MIAA Tournament. UCM has claimed three wins after trailing with five minutes left in regulation (Southwest Baptist, Northeastern State, Missouri Western), and are a perfect 21-0 when leading at the five-minute mark.
Bench Notes
Junior
Symone Murray leads the bench with 4.9 points and 2.9 rebounds per game this season ... She has reached double-figures five times this season, and earned her first start in
Nicole Caddell's absence during the win over Lincoln on Jan. 30, recording six points and six rebounds ...
Erin Redmond is fourth on the team with 37 assists on the year, to go along with 2.7 points and 1.5 rebounds per game ... Against Missouri Southern, Redmond tallied three assists, her highest total since the win over Northeastern State on Jan. 9 ... Junior
Kiersten Orton has been one of the best rebounders off the bench for the Jens, averaging 2.4 boards per game ... She matched her season-high with five points at Washburn on Saturday ... Freshman
Danielle Barry scored a career-high seven points in the first half of the win over Pittsburg State, and is averaging 1.4 points and 1.9 boards this season ...
Breonna Embray has appeared in all 28 games this year, averaging 1.3 points per game.
UCM in the Polls
Despite their second loss in the past three games, the Central Missouri Jennies held steady at No. 13 in the latest WBCA USA TODAY Sports Division II Coaches' Top 25 Poll. The Jennies are the second-highest MIAA squad in the poll, behind No. 9 Washburn, who slid four spots from last week after falling to Emporia State last Wednesday.
Earlier this season (Feb. 12-19), the Jennies reached their highest rank in the WBCA Coaches Poll, when they earned the No. 7 spot.
Three MIAA squads that are competing in the MIAA Tournament this Friday are recieving votes this week, including Fort Hays State (7 points), Truman (5), and Northeastern State (3).
Series History with Emporia State
The Hornets lead the all-time series, 36-31 over the Jennies, but have dropped their last two matchups. In the postseason, Emporia State holds an 8-2 mark against Central Missouri, and defeated the Jennies in their last MIAA Tournament meeting, 74-69 in overtime, in 2011.
Opponent Preview
The Hornets enter Saturday's matchup riding a four-game winning streak, including a pair of MIAA Tournament victories over Truman and top-seeded Washburn. On Saturday, Emporia State upset the Lady Blues, 61-54 to advance to the championship game. The Hornets are led by junior Laura Patrick, who averages 14.7 points per game. Guard Rachel Hanf is also a potent scorer from outside, averaging 12.1 points per game.
Last Time Against the Hornets
Freshman
Shelby Winkelmann led the No. 23 Central Missouri Jennies with 42 points, as UCM defeated the No. 21 Emporia State Hornets, 84-63. Winkelmann's 42-point performance is the third-highest total in Jennies basketball history, and the highest total scored by any Jennies player in the history of the Multipurpose Building.
A Win for the Jennies Would...
win the first MIAA Tournament championship for the Jennies since 1990, and the eighth overall ... improve the Jennies record to 25-4 this season.
A Loss for the Jennies Would...
... drop the Jennies record to 24-5 on the year ... be the second straight loss to Emporia State in the MIAA Tournament ... be the fifth straight loss in the MIAA Tournament championship game
UCM Program History
The UCM Jennies are 849-353 (.706) after 41 seasons, and 646-264 (.710) in the 30 seasons since joining NCAA Division II ... The matchup with Lincoln on Jan. 30 marked the 900th game for the Jennies since joining the 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 National Championship.
MIAA Preseason Polls
After a fourth place regular season finish a year ago, the Jennies debuted at No. 6 in the MIAA Preseason Coaches and Media Polls. Washburn, who won the regular season and tournament titles last year, were picked to repeat by both the coaches and the media. Pittsburg State, who reached the first round of the NCAA Elite Eight, were picked second in both polls.
UCM Athletics
The 2011-12 school year saw Central Missouri's 15 sports combine for seven MIAA regular season titles, and three MIAA tournament championships (women's soccer, baseball, men's golf). The Mules and Jennies have totaled 193 MIAA regular season championships across all sports, the most of any MIAA program. UCM has won five national championships since 1980 (men's and women's basketball in 1984, baseball in 1994 and 2003, and women's bowling in 2003), and seven national titles overall. This season, Central Missouri has collected three MIAA titles, in women's soccer, men's indoor track and field, and most recently, men's basketball.
In the Classroom
As much success as the Jennies saw on the court in 2011-12, they achieved just as much in the classroom. Nine players on last year's roster earned the MIAA Academic Honor Roll award, for earning at least a 3.0 cumulative GPA. Two players from a year ago,
Alyssa Rhodes and
Taylor Hanson, were honored with the MIAA Scholar-Athlete award, as the two seniors were recognized for earning All-MIAA Team honors while maintaining a 3.5 GPA or higher.
Junior forward
Kiersten Orton was one of just 18 athletes across all sports at Central Missouri to earn the MIAA Academic Excellence Award. Orton has recorded a perfect 4.0 GPA during her time at UCM, while studying Middle School Math Education.
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 alongside Shawn Jones.
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. Shawn Jones will sit down with Coach Slifer throughout the season to discuss the latest game, as various Jennies will be featured throughout the year.
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.
Each MIAA contest througout the season will also be available online through AmericaOneSports.com. Every home game broadcast is produced by the student-run UCM Media Network. The cost for the webcasts is $8 for a single game, $30 for a 30-day pass, and $89.95 for a season pass, which includes both Mules and Jennies basketball.
NCAA Selection Show
The NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Selection Show will be broadcast online at www.NCAA.com, on Sunday, March 10, at 9 p.m. Beginning at 8:55 p.m., 98.5 The Bar, 1450 KOKO, and www.warrensburgradio.com will broadcast a live selection show special, announcing where the Jennies will be headed for the NCAA Central Regional, and featuring interviews with Coach
Dave Slifer and key players after the bracket is released.
