Arkansas State University Women’s at Western Kentucky Basketball Notes

Courtesy Arkansas State University Athletics Department

QUICK SHOTS

• This season will mark the 39th for women’s basketball at Arkansas State.

• The Red Wolves have an all-time record of 197-135 against league teams.

• The Red Wolves rank second in the nation in 3-point field goal percentage defense holding opponents to a 23.7 percentage on the year.

• This will be the 48th meeting all-time between the Red Wolves and the Lady Toppers with Western Kentucky holding a 31-17 all-time series lead. 

• Junior forward Jane Morrill became the first 21st player in ASU women’s basketball history to record 1,000 points for her career on Feb. 3.

• With its victory over South Alabama on Jan. 30, the Red Wolves equaled their win total from a year ago. 

• ASU’s loss to North Texas snapped a seven game winning streak for the Red Wolves, which was tied for the sixth longest in school history. 

• Sophomore guard Hanna Qedan has scored in double-figures in six consecutive games. 

• Hanna Qedan ranks second the Sun Belt Conference in free throw percentate, knocking down 85.5 percent of her shots from the charity stripe. 

• Senior guard Ashley Olvera set a new career high with 23 points against FAU on Jan. 26.

• Junior forward Jane Morrill had her third career double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds against Florida Atlantic on Jan. 26.

• Brian Boyer is in third place on the all-time career wins list in the Sun Belt Conference with 120 career conference victories in women’s basketball.

• Hanna Qedan recorded the first double-double of her career against Troy on Jan. 24. The sophomore scored 19 points and pulled down 14 rebounds in the victory. 

• Freshman Jalen O’Bannon scored a career high 23 points against Troy on Jan. 24. 

• Q McDowell has started in 98 straight games.

• A-State has knocked down a 3-pointer in 112 straight games. 

• ASU has had at least three players score in double figures 11 times this season and has a 8-3 record in those games. 

• Hanna Qedan scored a career high 22 points and made a career best nine free throws and tied a career high with three, 3-pointers against Middle Tennessee on Jan. 2.

• ASU assistant coach Sonja Tate was recently selected to the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2013.

• ASU tied a season high with seven 3-pointers against Middle Tennessee and shot a season high .583 (7-12) from beyond the arc. 

• A-State shot a season high 59.6 percent from the field against Louisiana-Lafayette on Dec. 22. That mark missed the all-time school record by just 3.6 precentage points, which was set last season against UT-Martin.

• Junior Jane Morrill was voted a second-team SBC All-Conference selection after leading ASU in both scoring and rebounding last season.

• ASU is in its 19th season of competition in the Sun Belt Conference. 

• Brian Boyer is in his 14th season as the head coach of the ASU women’s basketball team. He is the only coach in ASU history (men’s or women’s) to win 200 games and is the school’s all-time winningest basketball coach.

• Junior forward Jane Morrill was selected as a first-team All-Sun Belt Conference selection by College Sports Maddness. 

• Seven of ASU’s 15 players are from the state of Arkansas. The list includes Hanna Qedan, Andi Watson, Jessica Flanery, Sandy Jackson, Xena King, Lindsey Killough and Brittney Gill.

• Brian Boyer is 103-95 all-time against non-conference opponents.

ARKANSAS STATE/WESTERN KENTUCKY HISTORY

• This will be the 48th meeting all-time between the Red Wolves and the Lady Toppers with Western Kentucky holding a 31-17 all-time series lead.

• ASU defeated Western Kentucky 63-58 earlier this season and have won the last two matchups against the Lady Toppers.

• The Red Wolves have struggled in Bowling Green, going just 4-17 since the series started. However, A-State did earn a 56-53 victory in Bowling Green last season.

• Head coach Brian Boyer is 12-13 all-time against the Lady Toppers. 

SCOUTING THE LADY TOPPERS

• Western Kentucky enters the game with a 17-5 record and 10-5 record in the Sun Belt Conference.

• The Lady Toppers have won five out of their last seven games and have posted back-to-back victories over Troy and North Texas.

• Alexis Govan is the team’s leading scorer. She is averaging 19.5 points per game, which also ranks third in the SBC.

• The Laddy Toppers won seven straight games earlier this season and have won 12 out of their last 15 games. 

JACKSON STEPPING UP

• Freshman point guard played a career high 25 minutes against Middle Tennessee on Feb. 7

• She also scored a career high nine points on Feb. 7.

• Over her last six games Jackson has seen her playing time rise to 14.3 minutes per game.

REACHING 1,000

• Junior forward Jane Morrill reached 1,000 points for her career on Sunday, becoming the 21st player in ASU women’s basketball history to reach the mark.

• She ranks 21st on ASU’s all-time career scoring list with 1,018 career points. 

THINK PINK

• The Arkansas State women’s basketball team is partnering once again with the Women’s Basketball Coaches’ Association and St. Bernards Medicals in their annual “Play 4Kay” initiative when the Red Wolves host the Trojans of Troy Saturday, Feb. 23 at the Convocation Center. The team will also sponsor the third annual “4Kay Run/Walk” the morning of the game. 

PROTECTING HOME COURT

• ASU lost to a conference opponent for just the second time all season on Feb. 3 against North Texas. The Red Wolves are 5-2 against SBC opponents in The Convo this season and have a 9-4 record overall at home on the year.

STREAK COMES TO AN END

• A-State’s seven game winning streak came to an end on Sunday afternoon with a 64-62 loss to South Alabama.

• The seven game winning streak was tied for the sixth longest in school history.

• Hanna Qedan was ASU’s leading scorer during the run, averaging 13.9 points per contest.

• In fact, four A-State players have averaged in double-figures during the winning streak. Jane Morrill averaged 12.3 points per night, while Ashley Olvera poured in 12.0 points. Freshman Jalen O’Bannon is averaged 11.9 points per game during the run.

• The Red Wolves have won by an average of 10.7 points per game during the streak.

QEDAN’S EMERGING PRESENCE

• Hanna Qedan has averaged 11.2 points per game in ASU’s 12 wins this season, but has been held to just 5.9 points per game in ASU’s 11 losses.

• She has scored in double-figures in six straight games.

• Qedan leads the conference in free throw precentage, knocking down 84.9 percent of free throws on the year.

CLOSING OUT JANUARY

• A-State finished the month of January with a 7-1 record.

• The Red Wolves shot 45.9 percent from the field during the month and defeated its opponents by an average of 9.1 points per game.

OLVERA THE PLACE

• Senior point guard Ashley Olvera scored a career high 23 points against Florida Atlantic on Jan. 26. She went 9-of-22 from the field, with two 3-pointers and three made free throws. She also dished out four assists and had one steal.

MORRILL DOUBLE DOWNS

• Junior forward Jane Morrill recorded her third career double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds against FAU on Jan. 26.

• She also posted a double-double earlier this season with 23 points and 11 rebounds against Southeast Missouri State on Nov. 19.

NUMBERS NEVER LIE

• ASU ranks at or near the top in six statistical categories in the SBC in league games.

• A-State leads the league in 3-point field goal percentage defense, holding teams to just 24.3 percent from beyond the arc on the year.

• The team also leads the league in field goal percentage, knocking 45.5 percent of its shots in conference games.

• ASU also ranks first in 3-point field percentage (33.7). 

QEDAN’S QUEST

• Sophomore Hanna Qedan continued her stellar play this season by posting her first career double-double on Jan. 24 at Troy. She scored 19 points and pulled down 14 rebounds.

• Her 14 rebounds were a career high.

• She has also knocked down three, 3-pointers in a game five times the is season.

• Against Middle Tennessee she set a new career mark with 22 points, shattering her previous career high of 12 earlier this season against Austin Peay.

• She also set a career high with nine made free throws against the Blue Raiders on 10 attempts.

• She has made three, 3-pointers three in her career. The first time came against Austin Peay and the second time came against Middle Tennessee and the third against Western Kentucky.

• Earlier this season against Austin Peay Qedan also set career highs in blocks (3) and steals (3).

DEFENDING THE ‘3’

• ASU has been superb at defending the 3-point shot this season. A-State owns the nation’s second best 3-point defensive percentage at 24.6 percent.

• ASU has not allowed an opponent to make a ‘3’ in three games this year. ASU held FIU to an 0- 21 mark from beyond the arc in both matchups this season. The Red Wolves also did not allow Wichita State to make a 3-pointer on Nov. 29.

• Wichita State went 0-7 from 3-point land in its game on Nov. 29. 

O’BANNON SHINES

• Freshman Jalen O’Bannon enjoyed one of the best games of her young career on Jan. 24.

• She scored a career high 23 points and a career high nine rebounds to just barely miss recording her first career double-double.

• Her previous career high in points was 13, which she had scored in two previous games this season.

• On Dec. 22 she went 6-for-6 from the field against Louisiana-Lafayette which is tied for the highest field goal percentage by an ASU player in the Convocation Center in school history. Only four other players, with a minimum of five attempts, have gone perfect from the field. 

STEALING THE SHOW……ONCE AGAIN

• ASU set a new season high with 12 steals against Troy on Jan. 24.

• It marked the fifth time this season that ASU had recorded at least 11 steals in a game. The previous occurances were against WKU (1/6) Austin Peay (12/17), Missouri State (12/15) and USC (11/21).

GETTING BENCH PRODUCTION

• The ASU bench has scored in double-digits in each of the Red Wolves 21 of ASU’s 23 games this season.

• The bench scored a season high 31 points against Troy on Jan. 24

• The bench has scored 29 points twice this season (vs. ULL and UT-Martin) and also scored 28 against USC.

COACH BOYER MOVES UP WINS LIST

• Brian Boyer is in third place on the all-time career wins list in the Sun Belt Conference with 121 career conference victories in women’s basketball.

• Leon Barmore (1991-2001) is first on the list with 135 wins, while current FIU coach Cindy Russo is second.

• Among active coaches (men’s or women’s) ranks second. Only Cindy Russo has more SBC wins.

MIXING AND MATCHING

• ASU has used four different starting lineups this season, but has started the same lineup in its last five games.

• The starting lineup of Jane Morrill, Carlisha Wyatt, Hanna Qedan, Q McDowell and Ashley Olvera has gone 7-3 in ASU’s last nine games, including a seven-game winning streak.

THREE IS A MAGIC NUMBER

• A-State has had three or more players score in double figures 11 times this season.

• The Red Wolves are 9-3 in those games, with the most recent coming over USA on Jan. 30.

KEEPING THE OPPONENT UNDER 59

• The Red Wolves have held opponents to under 59 points in 10 of their 12 victories this season. In three victories ASU has held the opponent to under 50 points

COACH TATE A HALL OF FAMER

• Current A-State assistant assistant coach and former player Sonja Tate has been selected as a part of the Arkansas Hall of Fame Class of 2013.

• She remains the leader in six statistical categories at ASU and scored 2,312 points in her career, the most of any men’s or women’s basketball player in school history.

NATIONALLY SPEAKING

• A-State’s Jane Morrill ranks 34th in the nation with a 50.8 field percentage on the year.

• As a team, A-State ranks 36th with a 43.1 field goal percentage.

• Morrill also ranks 48th in the nation in free throw percentage, hitting 84.0 percent for the year.

SHOOTING LIGHTS OUT

• ASU shot a season high 59.6 percent from the field against Louisiana-Lafayette on Dec. 22.

• That mark missed the all-time record by just 3.6 precentage points, which was set last season against UT-Martin.

• A-State shot 64.3 percent from the field against the Ragin’ Cajuns in the second half, which was its high field goal percentage in a half this year.

• The game also marked the third time the Red Wolves had shot over 50 percent in a game this season. ASU is 2-1 in games it shoots over 50 percent, with its only loss coming at FAU.

• The Red Wolves finished with season highs in points, field goal percentage and field goals made against ULL. 

RIGHT ON Q

• Q McDowell has started in 98 straight games.

• Her last non-start was on Dec. 30, 2009 against Denver.

DISHING IT OUT

• Ashley Olvera dished out a season high 9 assists against ULL on Dec 22., missing her career high by just one.

• Ashley Olvera has a 40 game active assist streak dating back to the 2011-12 season.

• She ranks 16th on ASU’s all-time career assists list with 181 for her career. Danielle Featherston is 15th on the list with 204 for her career.

• As a team, A-State had a season high 19 assists against ULL on Dec. 22.

WATSON LIGHTS IT UP FROM OUTSIDE

• Senior Andi Watson had a career day from beyond the 3-point line against the Ragin’ Cajuns on Dec. 22. She hit three straight 3-pointers and finished the game 3-for-5 from beyond the arc.

• Her previous career high in 3-pointers made in a game had been two, and before the Dec. 22 game she had made just eight 3-pointers in her career. 

LEADER OF THE PACK

• Junior Jane Morrill has lead ASU in scoring 12 times this season. She has been the leading scorer in five of A-State’s 10 wins and has scored in double-digits in all but one game this year.

• She has also been the team’s leading rebounder 10 times this season.

• Against Austin Peay, Morrill set a career high with 11 free throws made. She also sent a career high with 15 free throw attempts.

• Morrill has posted back-to-back 20 point games. She scored 21 points against Nicholls State and then added 22 against Louisiana-Lafayette. She has crossed the 20-point mark three times this season.

KNOCKING DOWN THE FREE ONES

• ASU went 24-of-28 from the free throw line against FIU on Nov. 20 and finished with highest free throw percentage of the year at 85 percent.

BREAKOUT PERFORMANCE

• Junior Carlisha Wyatt had a breakout performance against UT-Martin on Nov. 12. The junior college transfer from Angelina Community College scored 19 points and went 9-of-11 from the field against the Skyhawks. She hit her first nine shots and had 10 points at halftime.

WINNING AND WINNING BIG

• ASU’s 31-point victory over Austin Peay was its largest margin of victory over an opponent since the 2008-09 season when it defeated Northern Arizona 71-40.

• The last time ASU defeated an opponent by a larger margin was the 2006-07 when it defeated Arkansas-Pine Bluff 87-55 for a 32 point victory. 

DOWNTOWN FLANERY

• Freshman forward Jessica Flanery has made the most of her limited opportunities this season. She is averaging just 3.3 minutes in for games this season, but has drained four 3-pointers on the year.

• She drained three, 3-pointers against Austin Peay on 3-of-4 shooting for a career-high 9 points. 

A STATISTICAL NIGHT TO REMEMBER

• A-State set several season highs against Austin Peay. The Red Wolves set season highs in points (75), field goals made (29), 3-pointers made (5), 3-point field goal percentage (.417) and tied season highs in steals (11) and blocked shots (4).

• The ASU defense held Austin Peay to an opponent season low 44 points and also held the Lady Governors to just 17 made field goals, also an opponent season low for A-State.

MCDOWELL MOVING UP ALL-TIME STEALS LIST

• Senior Q McDowell has collected 165 steals in her career, the 12th most in school history.

• Keeshia Evans and Casie Lowman are 10th on the list with 168 each.

• Current A-State assistant coach Sonja State (1990-93) holds the career record for steals with 402.

FREQUENT FLYER MILES

• The Red Wolves have made frequent visits to the airport this season, having flown over 5,000- miles already.

• ASU began the year by flying from Memphis to Detroit and then bussing to Toledo to take on the Rockets.

• The Red Wolves then flew from Little Rock to Los Angeles to take on USC in a non-conference game on the day before Thanksgiving which was a 2,980 mile round trip via the air.

• ASU departed Memphis International Airport on Nov. 28 for Ft. Lauderdale International Airport in a flight that was just over 850 miles.

• In all, the Red Wolves traveled over 5,700 miles including flying miles and bus trips in its first four road games this season. 

STREAKING BEYOND THE ARC

• ASU has knocked down a 3-pointer in 112 straight games.

• The streak has came to close to ending in ASU’s first two regular season games. Jessica Flanery kept the streak alive with a ‘3’ against Toledo with just six seconds left in the game and Jane Morrill knocked down ASU’s first ‘3’ of the game against UT-Martin with just 28 seconds left in the game.

• Flanery’s ‘3’ against Toledo was the first field goal of her career.

• The last time A-State did not make a ‘3’ was on Nov. 20, 2009 against Virginia Commonwealth when the Red Wolves went 0-11 from behind the 3-point line.