The 2012 LSC Championships have invaded the city of Allen, Texas. Here’s a preview of the two women’s games in Session 3, featuring No. 2 West Texas A&M and No. 3 Midwestern State.
Thursday, March 1 2012
Quarterfinal #1 (Noon)
(3) Midwestern State vs. (6) Incarnate Word
Records: Midwestern State 19-7 overall (15-5 in LSC) / UIW 14-12 overall (9-11 in LSC)
Regular season series: MSU swept the season series with a pair of double-digit wins. The Mustangs cruised to a 68-50 win over the Cardinals in San Antonio on Dec. 14 and then beat UIW 76-65 on Feb. 8 in Wichita Falls.
Honor Roll: (MSU) Head coach Noel Johnson was named LSC Coach of the Year. Senior guard Savannah Carver earned first-team All-LSC honors, while teammates Cierra Thompson and Kristi Degelia were honorable mention picks (UIW) Junior guard Katy Cooke was a second-team All-LSC pick. Sophomore forward Ifunanya Mora was named an All-LSC honorable mention and All-Academic team.
About the Mustangs: MSU avoided a four-game losing streak by winning the regular-season finale against ENMU last Saturday . . . The Mustangs enjoyed a nine-game winning streak midway through the season . . . The Mustangs have won seven of the last eight meetings with UIW . . . The Mustangs have not won an LSC Championship game since 2003 . . . Senior forward Savannah Carver needs 15 points to become the 17th player in MSU history to reach 1,000 points. She also has 99 career 3-pointers . . . Carver ranks third in the LSC in scoring at 15.9 ppg.
About the Cardinals: UIW ranks second in scoring defense at 59.4 ppg . . . The Cardinals rank third in the LSC in rebounding margin at +2.0 . . . Jocelyn Jarmon ranks in the top 10 in both rebounding (7.5 rpg) and assists (3.6 apg) . . . Senior Katy Cooke leads the LSC in minutes played, averaging 37.3 per game.
Quarterfinal #2 (2:30 p.m.)
(2) West Texas A&M vs. (7) Texas Woman’s
Records: West Texas A&M 18-8overall (16-4 in LSC) / Texas Woman’s 13-13 overall (8-12 in LSC)
Regular season series: West Texas swept the series over TWU with a nine-point win on Dec. 10 in Canyon, followed by a road win on Feb. 4 in Denton (66-55).
Honor Roll: (WTAMU) Sophomore forward Kenisha Harris earned first-team All-LSC honors, while senior guard Joni Unruh, senior center Ashley Leven and sophomore forward Devin Griffin were all honorable mention picks. Griffin was one of three players to share LSC Newcomer of the Year. (TWU) Junior guard Britney Nuzum was an honorable mention selection.
About the Lady Buffs: WT enters the tournament with the longest current winning streak at nine games, which includes a home win over No. 1 seed Tarleton State . . . WT is the LSC leader in scoring margin at +9.9 difference . . . West Texas A&M leads the LSC in steals at 9.6 per game . . . The Lady Buffs also lead the conference in assists at 15.6 . . . Senior guard Joni Unruh leads the LSC in assists at 2.9 per game.
About the Pioneers: TWU is the defending champion of this tournament, after winning three games the South No. 3 seed last year in Bartlesville, Okla. . . . Cambria Smith is leading the conference with 7.3 assists per game . . . Brittney Nuzum leads the LSC with a .396 percentage on 3-point attempts.