The eighth-ranked Jennies (12-2, 6-1 MIAA) will look to rebound from a conference loss at No. 3 Emporia State last Saturday night, 80-67 when they host the Missouri Western Griffons on Wednesday, Jan. 15 at 5:30 p.m. UCM senior forward
Keuna Flax enters the game leading the MIAA in both scoring with 21.2 points per game and in points per game in conference play with 22.0. Fellow senior
BreAnna Lewis is averaging 24.0 points on 9-of-14 shooting from three-point range over the last two games. Missouri Western arrives to Warrensburg looking to snap a two-game skid following losses at Emporia State and Pittsburg State to close out last week.
Last Time Out
The sixth-ranked Jennies had their seven-game win streak snapped by the No. 3 Emporia State Lady Hornets, 80-67 on Saturday night at the William L. White Auditorium.
The Jennies (12-2, 6-1 MIAA) started out fast, jumping to a 15-8 lead 5:15 into the game and stretching the lead to as many as 10 over the Lady Hornets (16-0, 7-0 MIAA) in the opening half.
However, UCM's lead quickly evaporated over the next 7:02 as Emporia State's Laura Patrick, Amber Vandiver and Merissa Quick combined for 15 points en route to a 17-5 run to knot the game at 26-26.
The two teams exchanged leads two times before Emporia State ended the half scoring four unanswered points, taking a 35-31 lead into halftime.
Emporia State's Desiree Wylie scored four points in under a minute to help increase the Lady Hornets' lead to 10 at 43-33 with 15:40 remaining. ESU maintained their offensive intensity, outscoring UCM, 9-4, reaching their biggest advantage of the game at 52-37.
Six unanswered points by the Lady Hornets over the next minute and a half kept the Jennies behind by 14, but eight straight points from
BreAnna Lewis and
Keuna Flax pulled UCM to within 62-56 with seven and a half minutes to go. The six-point margin was as close as the Jennies would come for the rest of the game.
Slifer By The Numbers
Slifer is 34th on the all-time wins list for all division coaches with 565.
Slifer is sixth among all Division II coaches with 565 wins and is eighth among all Division II coaches with a .740 winning percentage.
Slifer earned his 560th career win in UCM's last game on Dec. 5 against Fort Hays State.
Jennies Basketball In The Multi
The Jens are 424-92 all-time in the Multipurpose Building, and 96-29 during the Slifer era ... Central Missouri finished the 2012-13 season with a 14-0 record in the Multi ... UCM has won at least nine home games every year since 2004-05 ... the Jennies have 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 20-game winning streak at the Multi.
Flax's Streak Snapped
Senior
Keuna Flax has recorded a double-double in three of the past four games.She established a new career-high with 15 rebounds at Pittsburg State on Jan 9. Flax's five-game streak with at least 20 points was snapped last Saturday night at Emporia State (scored 19).
Facts From Last Loss
The Jennies' 80-67 loss at Emporia State last Saturday marked the first time since March 10 and 15 of last season that UCM lost back-to-back games. It was also the first time the team allowed the opponent to score 80 points in back-to-back games since Jan 12 and 16, 2008 (lost 85-82 and 89-63 to Missouri Southern and Missouri Western).
Starting Out Fast
In the first half of games, the Jennies are outscoring their opponents, 552-449. UCM is 11-0 when leading at halftime.
Jennies Ranks
In seven conference games this season, the Jennies are averaging 79.6 points per contest (second in MIAA) and are shooting .336 from three-point territory in 14 regular season games, tied for third in the MIAA. The Jennies have also pulled down 203 offensive boards (14.5 per game) this season, tied for third in the MIAA.
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).
Through 14 games this season, Lewis has sank 30 three-pointers, reaching five twice this season. She has recorded at least one three-pointer in 12 of 14 games (none against FHSU and WU). The 30 three-pointers bumps her three-point career total to 118 – eighth on the Jennies' all-time list and 10 behind Ashley Millham.
Winkelmann Playing Strong
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, 2012. 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 third on the team with an average of 12.0 points (61-of-144 from the floor) through 14 games this season. She has reached double-figures in scoring in 11 of 14 contests.
Defensive Spark Off The Bench
Junior
Justina Prairie Chief has made her presence felt on the team's second unit, leading all bench players in rebounds with 69 (24 offensive). She set a new career-high with nine rebounds in a 94-76 win at Central Oklahoma on Dec. 19, logging 19 minutes.
Holding Down The Frontcourt
Junior
Revonnia Howard has started this season at forward, taking the place of the graduated
Nicole Caddell, the program's eighth all-time leading rebounder (704).
Howard is averaging 9.4 points and 8.1 rebounds through 14 games this season. She has a team-leading 40 offensive boards. She recorded her first double-double of the season on Nov. 26 against Evangel with a 16-point, 13-rebound performance. Howard set new career-highs with 14 rebounds and five blocked shots against Washburn on Jan. 6.
The Lone Freshman
Freshman guard
Andee Wahlert is 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 2.2 points and 0.5 rebounds in 11.1 minutes per game this season. She also has eight steals and 25 assists (season-high of 4 against Evangel on Nov. 26) while shooting 46.2% from three-point range (6-of-13).
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 15.9 minutes this season, making 4-of-13 field goals. Embray has been on the floor in the Jennies' only game decided by four points or less this season (88-86 overtime win at Pittsburg State).
Twine Continues To Shine
Senior guard
Quinnecia Twine has been coming off the bench 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 last season. This season, Twine has played in 12 games, averaging 7.6 points, shooting 30-of-75 from the floor (40.0%) and has six steals and 13 assists.
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 Winkelmann 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 dropped two spots to No. 8 in this week's WBCA/USA Today Sports Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll, garnering 548 points. The basketball program has appeared in the Top 25 for 23-consecutive weeks dating back to January 8 of last season. UCM went 2-1 last week, defeating Washburn and Pittsburg State, while falling at No. 3 Emporia State. The Jennies saw a 28-point dropoff from last week's Top 25 poll. The Jennies are one of three MIAA schools in the Top 25 (Emporia State at No. 3, Fort Hays State at No. 23). UCM and Emporia State appear in the Top-25 for the eighth-straight week. The Jennies are 3-2 against teams currently in Top 25 (wins against Minnesota State, Rollins College and Fort Hays State; losses against Harding and Emporia State).
UCM Program History
The UCM Jennies are 861-357 (.706) after 43 seasons, and 660-268 (.711) 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 Missouri Western
Central Missouri leads the all-time series, 31-26 and has won the last 11 meetings against the Griffons dating back to Feb. 23, 2008 ... The Jennies are 20-8 all-time against MWSU in Warrensburg ... The Jennies won both matchups last season, 74-71 on Jan. 23 and 54-53 in the first round of the MIAA Tournament.
A Win for the Jennies Would...
... give the Jennies their 21st-consecutive win at the Multipurpose Building... improve the Jennies' conference record to 7-1 ... extend the Jennies' win streak against MWSU to 12 games.
A Loss for the Jennies Would...
... be the third loss of the 2013-14 season ... drop the Jennies conference record to 6-2 ... give UCM their second-straight loss for the first time since March 15, 2013, ... snap the Jennies' 20-game win streak at home ... give
Dave Slifer his 100th loss as head coach of the UCM program.
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.
