OKLAHOMA CITY – The Mid-America Christian women's basketball team will face a tough challenge in its final game before the Christmas break as the Evangels will head to Chickasha, Okla. on Friday to take on Science & Arts in a battle of Sooner Athletic Conference unbeatens. The game is slated for a 6 p.m. tip-off at the USAO Fieldhouse.
SCOUTING THE DROVERS
Science & Arts enters the Friday night tilt with a 7-3 overall record and are 2-0 against Sooner Athletic Conference competition after picking up an 87-50 win over Central Christian and an 84-56 victory over Langston. The Drovers are bouncing back from a Top 25 loss to Thomas More last week, picking up a 95-49 win at Bacone College on Monday.
USAO is one of the best defensive teams in the country in the low block, ranking second in the NAIA in blocks per game while notching the fifth-best efficiency with a 1.3 assist-to-turnover ratio.
The Drovers offensively are led by senior guard Reyna Ammons, who's 18.8 points per game scoring average ranks fourth in the SAC while ranking second on the team in assists (26). Ammons is also a dynamic defender, leading the league in steals (37) and steals per game (3.7).
Senior center Ndeye Khade Sene is arguably one of the best bigs in the conference, leading the SAC in blocks (33, 3.3 bpg) and rebounds (95, 9.5 rpg). Senior guard Kaitlyn Hodgins has been a strong presence at the point for the Drovers this season, leading the team with 43 assists (4.3 apg).
HISTORY WITH THE DROVERS
Since 2003, the series has been evenly matched between Mid-America Christian and Science & Arts with the Evangels holding a slight 16-15 edge in the series. However, the Evangels will be looking to snap a three-game losing streak to the Drovers as USAO swept the series last year by scores of 74-63 at the Gaulke Activity Center on Jan. 8 and 79-56 in Chickasha on Feb. 5. The last time MACU picked up a win in the series was in the USAO Fieldhouse on Jan. 15, 2018, coming away with a 75-70 victory. Nevada Denton led the Evangels with 22 points while Jessica Fairley poured in 16 with seven rebounds and four assists in the victory.
STOP, THIEF!
The matchup between the Evangels and Drovers will feature the two top defensive teams in regards to steals, as each team has recorded 108 steals with MACU averaging 12 steals per game while the Drovers are notching 10 per game. While Ammons is the league's top players in steals, the Evangels have a pair of players ranking in the top five in junior guard Lexi Hernandez and sophomore guard Sydney Wycoff. Hernandez leads the squad with 24 steals, averaging 2.7 spg while Wycoff's 20 is good for 2.2 spg. Something will have to give in the matchup of two of the top three teams in turnover margin as the Drovers lead the league with a +7.3 margin while the Evangels are recording a +3.6 margin per game.
HIGH FIVE
In MACU's 83-51 win over Nebraska Christian last week, senior forward Alexis Shannon climbed into the program's all-time top five scoring list with a free throw conversion with 6:30 remaining. Currently with 1382 career points, the Noblesville, Ind. product surpassed two-time NCCAA All-American Nicole McIntosh at 1381. The talented big will look to catch Joie Mohr next on the MACU career scoring list at 1480 points. Shannon is currently in the midst of her best scoring season with the Evangels, averaging 18.9 points per game on 46.7 percent shooting, which includes a 46.7 percent clip from the three-point arc.
