The Southern Utah University women’s basketball team continues the second half of Western Athletic Conference play with home games against the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and Stephen F. Austin State University.
Last time out
Last week, Southern Utah shot 50% from the field. Junior Samantha Johnston led the team with 20 points, shooting 6-11 from the three-point stripe. Former Wolverine Megan Jensen fueled the victory as well, finishing with 19 points and seven rebounds. The Thunderbirds won 75-70 over Utah Valley University.
On the season
The Thunderbirds enter this week with a 15-8 overall record and 11-1 record in conference play. Southern Utah sits atop the WAC regular season standings and is No. 2 in the WAC resume seeding system. The system sets the seeding for the WAC tournament in Las Vegas.
UTRGV Vaqueros
Southern Utah beat UTRGV 84-55 in their last matchup on Feb 4. The Vaqueros now have a 3-9 record in WAC play and have won two out of their last five games. Last time out, UTRGV beat Abilene Christian University 75-71.
As a team, the Vaqueros are scoring 60.5 points per game, while opponents are outscoring UTRGV with an average 67 points per game. The Vaqueros are No. 36 in the country in three-point attempts per game at 24.7.
Sophomore Iyana Dorsey is the leading scorer for UTRGV, averaging 15 points per game. Dorsey shoots 86.4% from the free throw line. Sophomore Debroah Ogayemi leads the Vaqueros in rebounding, corralling 7.5 per game.
Stephen F. Austin Ladyjacks
This weekend’s matchup versus SFA will decide the WAC regular season title, with the Ladyjacks currently 11-2 in conference play and 21-4 on the season. SFA has won their last four out of five matchups. This is the first and only time both programs will play each other in the regular season.
The Ladyjacks average 77.3 points per game, which ranks them No. 23 in the country in scoring offense and ninth in scoring margin at 18.2 per game. SFA is one of the primer offenses in the country; the Ladyjacks are No. 13 in assists per game, averaging 17.8, and fifth in field goal percentage, registering at 48.33%.
Individually, the Ladyjacks have four players averaging double digits in scoring. Graduate forward Aiyana Johnson leads the team with 14 points per game and shoots 53% from the field. Freshman Jordan Harrison scores 11.4 per game and leads the team in assists. Junior Avery Brittingham equates 10.2 points per game and is the team leader for rebounds. Lastly, redshirt junior Kurstyn Harden records 10 points per game.
Before battling Southern Utah, the Ladyjacks will be taking on Utah Tech University on Thursday.
Game details
Southern Utah will be at home on Thursday, Feb. 16, to face the Vaqueros at 6:30 p.m. MST. Their following game will also be at home against Stephen F. Austin on Saturday, Feb. 18, at 2 p.m. MST. Both games will be streamed on ESPN+ and Thunder 91.1 KSUU-FM.
Article by: Anthony Colasuono
Photos courtesy of andengarfield@suu.edu
