OKLAHOMA CITY – The Mid-America Christian women's basketball will take on Nebraska Christian College in its final home game before the Christmas break on Tuesday, Dec. 3 at 6 p.m. before heading to Kansas City, Mo. to challenge NCAA Division II Rockhurst in an exhibition match on Friday, Dec. 6 at 5:30 p.m.
LAST TIME OUT
Mid-America Christian (6-2, 2-0 Sooner Athletic Conference) opened league play on a high note before the Thanksgiving break, taking down Langston 87-71 at the Gaulke Activity Center on Nov. 21 before holding on for a 73-65 victory at Central Christian on Nov. 23.
In the win over Langston, Alexis Shannon put together a strong game, tallying 25 points on 10-for-17 from the field and 2-for-3 from the three-point arc while also recording four steals. Jessica Fairley was a dynamic presence off the MACU bench, scoring 18 points on 6-for-10 from the floor, 3-for-6 from the three-point arc and 3-for-4 from the charity stripe while also finishing with a team-high nine rebounds.
Against Central Christian, the Evangels had to hold off a huge Lady Tigers rally, converting 6-of-8 from the charity stripe in the final minute to come away with the win. Shannon once again led the way with 18 points and eight rebounds while Sydney Wycoff had one of her best games in an Evangels uniform, notching 12 points while going 8-for-9 from the free throw line to go with seven assists, six rebounds and four steals.
SCOUTING THE SENTINELS
Nebraska Christian has struggled to break into the win column during the 2019-20 campaign, starting off the year with a 1-8 record. However, the Sentinels picked up their first win of the season on Monday, rallying in the fourth quarter to come away with a 75-70 victory at Randall. Senior guard Jazmyne Santiel had a monster game for the Sentinels, scoring 38 points on 16-for-30 from the field in the win.
Santiel has been the dominant force for NCC so far this season, averaging 27.8 points per game on 38.2 percent shooting from the field and 34.9 percent from the three-point arc. Sophomore guard Camry Porter leads the rebounding efforts, ripping down seven per game while senior point guard Jessica Hinde is the squad's best distributor, dishing out 4.7 assists per game.
HISTORY WITH THE SENTINELS
The Evangels and Sentinels will be playing each other for just the second time in the NAIA era. The last time the two teams met was in the first round of last season's NCCAA Central Region Tournament, as MACU topped Nebraska Christian 96-54 on Mar. 6 in its first step toward winning a second straight NCCAA National Championship. In that matchup, Wycoff and Loralei Siliga provided a big spark off the MACU bench as Siliga chipped in 11 points and three steals while Wycoff added 10 in the victory.
SCOUTING THE HAWKS
Rockhurst enters the week with a 3-2 record after picking up an 89-81 win over Rogers State last Saturday. The Hawks will take on William Jewell (Mo.) on Tuesday before hosting the Evangels on Friday night.
Senior guard Madeline Rosenhausen is the team's leading scorer at 15.8 ppg on 43.1 percent from the field and 85.7 percent from the free throw line. Junior guard Daly Sullivan leads a balanced rebounding effort with 4.2 rpg as well as assists with Paige Pendley, with each averaging two per game. On defense, senior center Rachel Holden is a tough presence in the paint, averaging two blocks per game.
THE WILLPOWER OF WYCOFF
Despite the all-around offensive struggles against Central Christian, Sydney Wycoff willed the Evangels to a late win. Wycoff drained a pair of free throws with 13 seconds left to make it a three-possession game, putting it out of reach for the Lady Tigers. It was a career-defining game for the sophomore point guard from Ankeny, Iowa as her eight free throw conversions set a new career high, while she also tied career-highs with seven assists and four steals, both of which were set in the season opener against Manhattan Christian College. Wycoff currently leads the squad with 31 assists and 20 steals through eight games this season.
TURNING A CORNER AT THE LINE
While the Evangels have struggled mightily from the free throw line this season, Mid-America Christian is hoping it turned a corner in its last win over Central Christian. MACU converted a season-best 73.9 percent (17-for-23) from the charity stripe, just the second time this season the Evangels have shot 70 percent or better from the line since going 18-for-25 (72 percent) in an 80-71 win over Oklahoma Christian on Nov. 5. Currently with a 61.1 percent average as a team, the Evangels will be looking to get back to where they were in the previous two NCCAA Championship seasons, making 73.6 percent during the 2017-18 season and 69.7 percent in last year's campaign.
