ELLENSBURG, Wash. – The Central Washington University women's basketball team (15-10, 6-7 GNAC) will take their final road trip of the regular season heading up to the Last Frontier taking on Alaska Fairbanks (4-18, 2-10 GNAC) on Thursday before heading south for a Saturday showdown at Alaska Anchorage (14-7, 8-4 GNAC).
GAME INFORMATION
Thursday, February 15
6:15 p.m. Pacific Time
Central Washington at Alaska Fairbanks
Alaska Airlines Gymnasium
Fairbanks, Alaska
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Saturday, February 17
8:30 p.m. Pacific Time
Central Washington at Alaska Anchorage
Alaska Airlines Center
Anchorage, Alaska
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QUOTING HEAD COACH RANDI RICHARDSON-THORNLEY
"This is a big week as always, this time of year. We have been taking some really great steps forward the last two weeks and need to continue to choose to be consistent in our approach, especially against two very strong opponents on their home floor. I'm excited to see how our team prepares and competes this week."
LAST WEEK
The Wildcats took a split last weekend defeating Simon Fraser 70-65 on Thursday before falling in a hard-fought rivalry game against Western Washington 69-60.
Asher Cai led the Wildcats against SFU with another double-double posting 29 points and 12 rebounds.
Sunny Huerta and
Malia Smith added 12 and 11 points in the victory.
Huerta was the leader for the Wildcats against the Vikings dropping 21 points. Cai corralled her eighth double-double of the season with 20 points and 10 rebounds.
LAST MEETINGS
The Wildcats took a split at home earlier this season falling 68-62 to Anchorage back on January 18 before bouncing back for a 64-47 victory over Fairbanks on January 20.
Cai and Huerta led the Wildcats against UAA with Cai dropping a double-double with 21 points and 14 rebounds while Huerta added 18 points.
Against UAF the Wildcats had 11 scorers in the game, led by
Capri Sims with 10 points and 13 rebounds while Cai added nine points and 10 rebounds. Huerta added nine points while
Malia Smith and
Keira Marsh each added seven points.
SCOUTING THE NANOOKS
The 'Nooks are 4-18 on the season and 2-10 in GNAC play. Since meeting last with the Wildcats UAF secured their first two victories of GNAC play in back-to-back fashion. They first took down St. Martin's at home 71-62 before griding for a 77-73 overtime victory against Western Oregon also at home later that weekend. The 'Nooks have been on a three-game skid since, falling 72-55 at Western Washington, 83-68 at Simon Fraser, and a thrilling 78-75 setback last weekend at home against Anchorage.
UAF has three athletes averaging double-digits, led by Destiny Reimers with 10.8 points per game. Emma McKenney and Kayla Johnson are each averaging 10.5 and 10.4 points per game, respectively. Helping guide the GNAC-best 40.8 rebounds per game is Emma Wass, averaging 9.6 boards per contest. McKenney has dished out the most assists at 65 on the season while Johnson has the most steals with 24, and Ellen Silva has the most blocks with 23.
The Nanooks are averaging 58 points per game while giving up 73.6 points to their opponents per game. They're currently shooting 37.6 percent from the floor, 26 percent on three-point attempts, and 70.2 percent at the free-throw line. UAF is averaging 40.8 rebounds per game, 12.5 assists per game, five steals per game, and 2.9 blocks per game.
SCOUTING THE SEAWOLVES
Since last duking it out with the Wildcats, UAA posted a 79-63 victory over Northwest Nazarene to conclude their weekend road trip after visiting Ellensburg. They headed back home where they fell to Western Oregon 73-53 before bouncing back for the 62-41 victory over St. Martin's. The Seawolves fell at Simon Fraser in overtime 79-72 before earning the season sweep over Western Washington and handing the Vikings their first home loss by a 77-69 score. Last week UAA battled to a 78-75 victory at Fairbanks.
The Seawolves have three players averaging double-digits, led by Senya Rabouin with 13 points per game. Tori Hollingshead and Jazzpher Evans are each averaging 12.6 and 10.1 points per game, respectively. Hollingshead has been the leader on the boards and blocks for UAA with seven rebounds per game and 43 blocks on the season. Rabouin has contributed the most assists and steals on the season with 87 assists and 51 steals.
Collectively, UAA is averaging 72 points per game and holding their opponents to 61 points per game. They're shooting 41 percent from the floor, 30.2 percent on three-point attempts, and 71.2 percent at the free-throw line. The Seawolves are grabbing 39.9 rebounds per game while dishing out 14.9 assists per game. UAA continues to do what they do best with a GNAC-leading 13.9 steals per game while forcing their opponents into 22.5 turnovers per game. The Seawolves are also adding 3.2 blocks per game.
UP NEXT
The Wildcats will start their first of two straight weeks at home next weekend. The Northwest Nazarene Nighthawks (8-12, 5-8 GNAC) come to town on Saturday, February 24 with a 1:15 p.m. tip-off time from inside Nicholson Arena.
