Jennies wrap up road trip with visit to SBU Thursday night

Next up for the Jennies
    The Jennies (12-8, 6-6 MIAA) travel to Bolivar, Missouri this Thursday to close out a three-game road trip in hopes of snapping a two-game losing skid.
    UCM is 25-5 all-time in Bolivar and have won 11 times in the last 12 games at SBU. Last season, the Jennies won 67-64 in Warrensburg on February 6, 2014 and finished the season series with a 78-70 win victory on SBU's home floor on February 22, 2014.
    Jennies seniors Jasmine Thompson and Justina Prairie Chief have performed well for head coach Dave Slifer over the past couple of weeks. Thompson has five consecutive games of double-digit points, while Prairie Chief has scored in double-figures in her last nine contests.
    The Southwest Baptist Bearcats are just 4-6 at home this season.
    
Last Time Out
    The Jennies were unable to hold a double-digit, second half lead at Missouri Southern, falling, 71-65 at the hands of the Lions on Saturday at the Legett and Platt Athletic Center.
    The opening of the first half featured a back and forth affair, the game knotted at 10 apiece eight minutes in. Junior Shelby Winkelmann tallied seven points in the first nine and a half minutes on 2-of-2 from the floor and depositing 3-of-4 free throws.
    Missouri Southern jumped ahead, 15-14 after a three-pointer by the Lions' Jolee Sharp, but junior Tayler Weiks responded with a three of her own, providing the Jens with a 17-15 lead with 9:14 left in the half.
    The Jennies (12-8, 6-6 MIAA) briefly lost the lead at the 8:27 mark, but a 7-0 run over the next 4:39 erased the one-point deficit.
    With a 24-21 advantage with under three minutes to go in the opening half, the two teams both exchanged three made free throws.
    On the final play of the first half, Brielle Wattley kicked it out to Breonna Embray who knocked down a three from the top right corner to beat the buzzer.
    The Lions scored the first seven points of the second half to take a 31-30 lead. The foes exchanged buckets for the next nine possessions, before the Jennies regained a 42-40 lead with 12:28 left to play after a pair of free throws by Winkelmann.
    After Missouri Southern tied the game with a pair of free throws by Jenson Maydew, senior Jasmine Thompson converted on a layup, pushing Central Missouri ahead, 44-42.
    Winkelmann drew a foul on the next possession and knocked down two free throw tosses, to give UCM a four-point lead.
    A three-point play by Alexis Fitzpatrick sliced the Jens' lead to 46-45, but back-to-back layups by Danielle Barry and Winkelmann made it a six-point game with 10:28 left.
    A 7-2 run by the Jennies ensued, sparked by Thompson's five points in a two-minute span, bumping UCM's lead to 57-47. Barry's two made free throws one possession later, increased the lead to a dozen.
    The Lions came back to score 10 unanswered points in the next 3:29 to cut the Jennies' lead to 59-57 with under five minutes to play. Howard came back to split a pair of free throws on the next possession to set up a 60-57 ballgame.
    Missouri Southern capitalized on an offensive rebound on the next possession, tying the game at 60-60 following Morice's three-pointer. The Lions took a 62-60 lead with 3:38 remaining, but Winkelmann responded with a trey to put the Jennies back in front, 63-62 with 3:02 to go.
    Sharese Jones gave MSSU a 64-63 lead on the next possession, and would later add to that lead with a three-pointer by Morice with 2:04 left in the game.
    Thompson pulled the Jens to within two points at the 1:39 mark, but UCM was unable to close the gap any closer for the remainder of the game.
    The Jennies had three players finish with double-figure points, led by Winkelmann's 20. Thompson collected her second double-double of the campaign, tallying 16 points and 10 rebounds.

Slifer By The Numbers
     Slifer is 32nd on the all-time wins list for all NCAA coaches with 591.
    Slifer is sixth among all Division II coaches with 590 wins and is ninth among all Division II coaches with a .738 winning percentage.
    Slifer needs nine wins to reach 600 in his 25-year coaching career.  

New Scoring Leader
    In the past four games, the Jennies have had four different players finish as the team's leading scorer.
    Senior Justina Prairie Chief scored 15 against Northwest Missouri State, senior Revonnia Howard dropped 17 points vs. Lincoln, senior Jasmine Thompson finished with 25 points at Lindenwood and junior Shelby Winkelmann tallied 20 points at Missouri Southern.

Free Throw Tosses
    In two of the last three contests, the Jennies finished with 22 made free throws. This season, they have had six games with at least 20 made free throws and are 4-2 in those contests.

Steal Lows
    The Jennies came up with a season-low two steals in the 71-65 loss at Missouri Southern last Saturday. Their previous lowest total was five against Northeastern State and Northwest Missouri State.
 
Rebound Machine
    Senior forward Revonnia Howard has been an asset on the boards this season for the Jennies. Her 8.9 rebounds per game is currently third in the MIAA entering this week. Sixty-four of her 177 rebounds have been on the offensive end, both team highs. Her 64 offensive rebounds are currently fourth-best in the MIAA (3.2 per game average).
    She is one of only two Jennies (Justina Prairie Chief) to pull down 100 rebounds this season. She is the only Jennie to have 100 defensive rebounds this season as well.
    Howard pulled down a career-high 21 rebounds in the 73-65 overtime win against Quincy on Nov. 24. Howard's 21 rebounds in a single-game are tied for fourth-most in UCM history.
    The Chicago, Illinois native was the first Jennie to record at least 20 rebounds since Jojuana Jones hauled in 21 boards on March 6, 2008 in the first round of the MIAA Tournament against SBU (89-80 loss).
    Howard has pulled down at least two offensive rebounds in the last four games.

Block Watch
    Howard has blocked 34 shots this season, bumping her career total to 77. The 77 blocks are the 10th most on the Jennies' all-time list, just one shy of moving into eighth in UCM history.

Three-Headed Monster
    Entering play this week, the Jennies offense boasts three players who rank in the top 14 in the conference in scoring. Junior Shelby Winkelmann is seventh with 15.9 points per contest, senior Jasmine Thompson at No. 13 with 13.2 points and senior Justina Prairie Chief with 12.9 points a game is 14th.

Winkelmann Scores 20
    Junior guard Shelby Winkelmann finished with a team-high 20 points in the loss at Missouri Southern last Saturday. It was the first 20-point game for the Rhineland, Mo. native since Jan. 3 at Nebraska-Kearney.
    Winkelmann now has four games this season of at least 20 points.

Double-Double For Thompson
    Senior guard Jasmine Thompson picked up her second double-double of the season at Missouri Southern. She scored 16 points and hauled in 10 rebounds. The 10 rebounds were her second-highest total of the season.

Prairie Chief, Winkelmann At The Line
    Through 20 games, Shelby Winkelmann ranks eighth in the conference with an .813 free throw percentage, while Justina Prairie Chief is right behind her at No. 9 with a .792 percentage.

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

UCM in the Polls
    The Jennies were ranked in the Top 25 for 33 consecutive weeks from January of 2013-December of 2014. This season, the Jennies faced four opponents (Emporia State, Fort Hays State, Pittsburg State and Drury) that currently sit in the Top 25, finishing with a record of 1-3.

UCM Program History
    The UCM Jennies are 887-368 (.706) after 44 seasons, and 684-279 (.710) in the 32 seasons since joining NCAA Division II ... the Jennies have won 10 MIAA regular season championships with last year's title, 7 MIAA Tournament titles, 6 NCAA regional titles, and the 1984 NCAA Division II Championship.

Series History With Southwest Baptist
    The Jennies lead the all-time series with the Bearcats, 50-12. UCM has won the past two meetings and 11 of the last 12 overall. The Jennies are 25-5 all time against SBU in Bolivar.

 A Win for the Jennies Would...
... improve the Jennies record to 13-8 this season and 7-6 in MIAA play ... extend the Jennies win streak against Southwest Baptist to three games.

A Loss for the Jennies Would...
... drop the Jennies' record to 12-9 on the season ... drop the Jennies conference record to 6-7 ... be the second loss in the last three games against SBU in Bolivar.

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.