Southland conference will begin play on New Year’s Eve wide open for any takers, including McNeese State and first-year coach Kacie Cryer who gave an admirable showing against a stout nonconference schedule.
With it drawing near, here is a brief breakdown of all 13 conference teams and where they stand heading into January. To assign a proper perspective, the RPI rankings of each team’s Division I opponents were averaged, giving insight to the toughness — or lack thereof — of their schedules.
Note: Teams are listed in the order they were voted to finish in the preseason by Southland coaches. Statistics and RPI rankings are reflective of games through Dec. 27.
Abilene Christian (6-6)
Average RPI of non-conference Division I opponents: 174
Best Win: Dec. 17, 81-57 against Murray State
Worst Loss: Dec. 3, 71-68 against University of Missouri-Kansas City
The Standout: Sydney Shelstead (12.2 ppg, 8.4 rpg, 11 steals)
The Skinny: Shelstead anchors a lanky, veteran bunch that eviscerated the Southland Conference last season en route to the league’s automatic WNIT berth. The Dimba twins — now seniors — account for nearly four assists per game and have combined for 42 steals on a team that permits just 65 points per game. Games at Baylor, Texas A&M and Missouri skew that 5-6 record, too.
Central Arkansas (8-2)
Average RPI of non-conference Division I opponents: 194
Best Win: Dec. 20, 69-55 against Houston
Worst Loss: Dec. 14, 79-45 at Texas Tech
The Standout: Maggie Proffitt (13.9 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 1.9 apg)
The Skinny: Nine players average 15 or more minutes on a team that skated through a non-conference schedule nearly unscathed. Six-foot-one center Kierra Jordan’s started the last three games to stellar success — averaging 14.3 points and six rebounds while seniors Maggie Proffitt and Brianna Mullins run the show in the backcourt. UCA has a +20.3 scoring margin, the best in the Southland Conference, holding opponents to just 34 percent shooting from the field. Opponents score just 50 points per game against the Bears’ defense — rated as the NCAA’s fourth-best.
Stephen F. Austin (9-2)
Average RPI of Division I nonconference opponents: 153
Best Win: Nov. 23, 77-76 at George Mason
Worst Loss: Nov. 20, 63-48 at Texas A&M
The Standout: Taylor Ross (16.7 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 42 assists, 29 steals)
The Skinny: Ross is one of three double-figure scorers on a stout LadyJacks team that lacks only on the glass. SFA is third in scoring offense and fourth in scoring defense while averaging 12.2 assists per game, but suffers from a -0.7 rebounding margin. Veteran 6-footers Stevi Parker and Adrienne Lewis will need to up their rebounding prowess to make the team a lethal threat.
Lamar (6-3)
Average RPI of non-conference Division I opponents: 148
Best Win: Dec. 20, 76-50 against Loyola University-Chicago
Worst Loss: Nov. 20, 68-43 at Kansas State
The Standout: Kiandra Bowers (12.9 ppg, 9.4 rpg, 24 steals, 16 blocks)
The Skinny: Bowers carries a big load inside for the Cardinals, the best 3-point shooting team in the conference. They’re second only to McNeese on the offensive glass and lead the conference in blocked shots per game and turnover margin. The Cardinals are stingy defensively in every place but the perimeter, where they allow teams to shoot 38 percent from the 3-point line.
McNeese State (5-6)
Average RPI of non-conference Division I opponents: 174
Best Win: Dec. 13, 78-52 at UL-Monroe
Worst Loss: Dec. 4, 66-56 against Louisiana Tech
The Standout: Amber Donnes (9.5 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 2.2 apg, 24 steals)
The Skinny: Adjusting to first-year coach Kacie Cryer and life without Jayln Johnson running the point, the Cowgirls cemented themselves as one of the nation’s top rebounding teams and one that’s surprisingly deep. Five players average eight or more points and seven play 20 minutes or more per game. Jasmyn Carswell’s out for the year with a torn ACL, leaving bigs Frederica Haywood and Mercedes Rogers alone to carry a frontcourt that’s buoyed by a streaky 3-point shooting backcourt. True freshman point guard Caitlin Davis has adjusted well while Mady Brasseaux and Dede Sheppard can score in bunches off the bench.
Northwestern State (6-5)
Average RPI of non-conference Division I opponents: 181
Best Win: Dec. 11, 83-65 against UL-Monroe
Worst Loss: Nov. 25, 68-64 against Mississippi Valley State
The Standout: Beatrice Attura (18.2 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 4.4 apg)
The Skinny: First-year coach Jordan Dupuy, essentially, has a three-woman team. Beatrice Attura, Cheyenne Brown and Shahd Abboud all average nine or more points a game. No other Lady Demon averages more than six. Brown is a 6-foot-2 statue inside who grabs six boards per game, the team’s only real continuous threat on the glass. Defensively, Dupuy’s switched the team to more of a zone look, which has been effective early, limiting opponents to just 29 percent from 3-point territory across the first ten games.
Nicholls State (3-8)
Average RPI of non-conference Division I opponents: 213
Best Win: Nov. 29, 71-60 at Grambling
Worst Loss: Dec. 18, 75-52 at Jacksonville State
The Standout: Cassidy Barrios (14.5 ppg, 7.8 rpg, 2.9 apg)
The Skinny: Injuries to post players and an 11-game nonconference schedule comprised entirely of Division I teams have the Colonels at an unfamiliar slump as Southland play begins. Veteran coach DoBee Plaisance is, at times, playing a five-guard lineup while trying to adapt to injuries. She’s got four double-figure scorers — but all are guards shorter than 5 foot 10. The Colonels are woeful on the glass, surrendering a -12.5 rebound margin, and also neglect to defend. Nicholls is, by the numbers, the easiest team to score upon in the Southland.
Houston Baptist (2-8)
Average RPI of non-conference Division I opponents: 160
Best Win: Dec. 9, 75-55 against Arlington Baptist
Worst Loss: Dec. 21, 77-65 against UL-Monroe
The Standout: Taylor Kollmorgen (9.0 ppg, 9.3 rpg)
The Skinny: The Huskies do not score the basketball — a testament to their 22 turnover-per-game average — nor do they stop other teams from doing it. Through its first nine games, team shoots just 32 percent and allows 75 points.
Sam Houston State (0-10)
Average RPI of non-conference Division I opponents: 157
Best Win: N/A
Worst Loss: Nov. 21, 69-45 against UT-Rio Grande Valley
The Standout: Jennifer Oramas (8.4 ppg, 17 assists)
The Skinny: The Bearkats are rebuilding. It is, obviously, a slow and painful process. Absorbing the losses of double-double machine Angela Beadle and Shernise Robertson, the Bearkats are a disjointed mess, averaging just 47 points per game and turning the ball over an average of 24 times — both the worst marks in the conference.
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (4-7)
Average RPI of non-conference Division I opponents: 184
Best Win: Nov. 16, 64-61 against Texas Southern
Worst Loss: Dec. 3, 68-65 against UT-Rio Grande Valley
The Standout: Camesha Davis (9.5 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 13 blocks)
The Skinny: The Islanders are a stingy defensive team that allow teams to shoot just 38 percent against them and score just 61 points. Problems arise, though, when they are tasked with scoring. The Islanders average less than 60 points per game, shoot just 28 percent from 3-point land and are dead last in the conference at the foul line.
New Orleans (4-5)
Average RPI of non-conference Division I opponents: 156
Best Win: Nov. 22, 81-79 at Jacksonville State
Worst Loss: Nov. 19, 65-62 against South Alabama
The Standout: Randi Brown (19.4 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 2.3 apg)
The Skinny: Perhaps one of the biggest surprises of the non-conference season, the Privateers are riding Randi Brown into Southland play. Brown averages nearly 20 points per game on a team that shoots a shade under 42 percent — the second-best shooting team in the league. Six-foot-one sophomore Shania Woods anchors a backcourt that’s third in the Southland in defensive rebounds and fifth in blocks
Southeastern Louisiana (2-9)
Average RPI of non-conference Division I opponents: 160
Best Win: Nov. 25, 75-63 against Bethune-Cookman
Worst Loss: Dec. 21, 87-71 against Grambling
The Standout: Taylin Underwood (16.3 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 2.5 apg)
The Skinny: The Lions are woeful defensively, allowing an average of 85 points across their first 10 games. No solace is found on the glass, where Southeastern is dead last in the Southland with a -15.3 rebounding margin. Taylin Underwood, the do-it-all on this team, is the only starter averaging more than three rebounds a game.
Incarnate Word (2-9)
Average RPI of non-conference Division I opponents: 233
Best Win: Dec. 20, 106-79 against LSU-Alexandria
Worst Loss: Nov. 23, 61-58 against Montana
The Standout: Celia Garcia Paunero (16.6 ppg, 10.6 rpg, 13 steals)
The Skinny: Though the Cardinals are the second-best 3-point shooting team in the Southland and have four regulars averaging double figures, they allow teams to shoot 46 percent against them and neglect to rebound with any regularity. Incarnate Word maintains a -6.5 rebounding margin.from American Press: Your Best News And Advertising Source - Home http://ift.tt/2hxPQGZ
0 التعليقات:
Post a Comment