ELLENSBURG, Wash. (FEB. 27) – The Central Washington University women's basketball team finishes their regular season conference schedule with a trip to the Last Frontier. The Wildcats take on the University of Alaska Fairbanks on Thursday before facing the No. 9 University of Alaska Anchorage on Saturday. Both games are scheduled for an 8:00 p.m. PST start.
GAME INFORMATION
Thursday, Feb. 28 | 8:00 p.m. PST
at University of Alaska Fairbanks
Alaska Airlines Court | Fairbanks, Alaska
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Saturday, March 2 | 8:00 p.m. PST
at No. 9 University of Alaska Anchorage
Alaska Airlines Center | Anchorage, Alaska
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Live Stats
QUOTABLE
"We are excited to finish the regular season on the road up in Alaska," CWU head coach
Randi Richardson-Thornley said. "Both gyms are very tough places to play and will be a great challenge to finish off conference play. Fairbanks is a much-improved program who plays hard and physical and will present some great challenges for our team. Anchorage one of the top teams in the country. They play hard, dictate pace of play, and execute at a really high rate on the offensive end. I'm looking forward to see how our team rises the challenge this week."
SCOUTING THE UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA FAIRBANKS
The Nanooks find themselves at the bottom of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference standings. The Nanooks lone conference win came against Western Oregon on February 14. It was a thrilling three-point victory, as the Nanooks took the game 68-65. Marian Wamsley scored 23 points in the game.
The Wildcats and Nanooks met way back on December 1, in Ellensburg. The home team came out on top 76-61. The Wildcats used an 11-0 run at the end of the first half to gain their advantage on the Nanooks.
Alexis Pana led the Wildcats with 19 points, six assists and five rebounds.
Kassidy Malcolm had an impressive night on the boards, pulling down a game-high 14 rebounds. The Wildcats received excellent contributions from their bench, outscoring the Nanooks substitutions 23-11 for the game.
SCOUTING NO. 9 THE UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA ANCHORAGE
The Seawolves are tied for the top spot in the GNAC, sporting the same 17-1 record as No. 7 Northwest Nazarene. The Seawolves have not lost since December 1, falling 84-68 to the Nighthawks. Before taking on the Wildcats on Saturday, they'll play their rematch with No. 7 Northwest Nazarene on Thursday. Hannah Wandersee leads the club with 14.3 points per game, while knocking down 48.7 percent of her shot attempts. Wandersee is also responsible for 5.2 rebounds per game.
The Wildcats opened their GNAC schedule with the Seawolves on November 29 in Ellensburg. The Seawolves swallowed the Wildcats 74-60. The Crimson and Black scored 38 points in the paint and shot 53.2 percent from the floor. They outshot the Seawolves from the floor, but Anchorage held the advantage at the free throw line. The Seawolves were 14-for-20 from the charity stripe, while Central finished just 6-for-14.
LAST TIME OUT
The Wildcats played a rare three games last week, falling 65-56 to No. Northwest Nazarene Monday and 83-73 to Simon Fraser on Saturday, but came out on top against rival Western Washington 77-66 on Thursday.
On Monday, defense was the theme for both the Wildcats and Nighthawks. The Wildcats suppressed the potent Nighthawk offense, holding them to 21 points below their season average. The Wildcats turned the ball over 23 times during the game. The Nighthawks turned defense into offense through the game, scoring 22 points off turnovers.
Thursday proved to be historic for Wildcat women's basketball, as they completed the series sweep against the Vikings for the first time ever.
Flores led the Crimson and Black with 23 points on 9-for-18 shooting, including three from beyond the arc.
Shaw contributed 17 points and
Sadie Mensing pitched in 10 of her own. Central assisted on 17 of their 26 made shots and forced the visitors into 17 turnovers.
Saturday was senior night, as
Aliyah Pana and Mensing were celebrated prior to tip-off. The Wildcats and Clan exchanged leads nine times throughout the contest. The Clan gained their advantage from beyond the three-point arc, going 13-for-26 for the game. The Clan also outscored the Wildcats on the break 10-2.
