Southern Arkansas LADY MULERIDERS (11-11, 7-9 GAC)

vs. #4 Harding LADY BISONS (23-1, 15-1 GAC) Thursday, February 20 @ 5:30 p.m Magnolia, Ark. (W.T. Watson Center) Live Audio (SAU Feed) | Live Stats | Live Video (SAU Feed)

GAME NOTES (PDF)

Setting the Stage
The Southern Arkansas women's basketball team will look to do something that only one team has been able to so far this year; beat the now No. 4-ranked Harding Lady Bisons basketball team. This will be the Lady Muleriders' second crack at Harding as they fell on the road to the, then undefeated, Lady Bisons by a score of 70-59.
 
The Coaches
Southern Arkansas' first-year head coach Rusty Rainbolt continues to push the Lady Mulerider basketball program in a different direction as his 2013-14 squad has already won more games (11) than the previous three years combined.
 
Harding is coached by Tim Kirby. Now in his ninth season, Kirby has compiled a 141-81 overall record at Harding and has led the Lady Bisons to 17 or more wins in a season in each of the past seven years. Last year, Kirby and the Lady Bisons finished 19-9 and advanced to the semi-finals of the GAC Tournament.
 
Last Time Out
The Lady Muleriders are coming off of a 58-74 loss at home against Southern Nazarene. In that game, the Lady Muleriders were out-scored 44-25 in the second half as the Crimson Storm pulled away late for the win. Chanel Miller would lead the team in scoring with 23 points. Behind her was Allie Wade with nine points. Miller also pulled down a team-high eight rebounds.
 
Last Time vs. Harding (January 16, 2014)
The last time these two teams met one another was back on January 16 in Searcy. In that game, the Lady Muleriders would overcome a double-digit second half deficit to pull to within six points, 56-50, with just over five minutes left in the game. That would be as close as the Lady Muleriders would come, however, as the Lady Bisons ripped off a quick 5-0 run to regain a double-digit lead. Statistically, the Lady Muleriders were led by Chanel Miller as she recorded a double-double with a team-high 18 points and 11 rebounds. Behind Miller in scoring was Wade with 16 points.
 
Checking the Standings
Southern Arkansas enters Thursday's action with a 7-9 record in the GAC and is currently in seventh-place in the GAC standings. Despite having four conference games left, the Lady Muleriders have already clinched their first-ever berth into the GAC Women's Basketball Tournament.
 
Harding enters play Thursday with a 15-1 mark in the GAC and has already clinched the regular season championship and will be the No. 1 seed in the upcoming GAC Tournament.
 
Rainbolt Era Bringing Culture Change
Since his hire in April of 2013, first-year head coach Rusty Rainbolt has worked hard to change the culture surrounding the Southern Arkansas women's basketball team. In the few months since, Rainbolt's efforts are beginning to show early returns as fans and players alike are buying into his "family-first" atmosphere.
 
Evidence of that from a fan perspective is the fact that the average home attendance is up from a year ago through the first nine home games. Evidence of the players buying in is in the fact that 12 players average 9.0 or more minutes of playing time a game. Additionally, the Lady Muleriders have won more games (11) than the previous three seasons combined.
 
Gotta Start with One
Mired in a 35-game losing streak, the revamped 2013-14 Lady Muleriders wasted little time in snapping that lengthy streak as they won their home-opener over Rogers State by a score of 86-72. The win was the first for the program since January 26, 2012 and was the first for Rusty Rainbolt as the Lady Mulerider head coach.
 
Full-Court Pressure
Throughout the season, one thing that can be expected from the SAU women's basketball team is that they will play a lot of full-court pressure defense. That up-tempo style of defense has frustrated opposing offenses to commit 477 turnovers. 248 (52%) of those forced turnovers have been a result of a steal by the Lady Muleriders. Those 248 steals are tops in the GAC.
 
Give Me A Break
Nine times this season, the Lady Muleriders have held a lead heading into halftime. In those games, the
Lady Muleriders are 7-2. In games in which they either trail or are tied at the half, the Lady Muleriders are 4-9.
 
Spreading the Wealth
Only one player is averaging double figures on the season, but that is not to say that the Lady Muleriders are not scoring. On the year, SAU is averaging 68.4 points per game, and those points are coming from a variety of sources as seven players are averaging 5.8 or more points a game.
 
Wade Makes School History
On December 23, 2013, junior guard Allie Wade made school history as she became the first Lady Mulerider basketball player to be named Player of the Week in the Great American Conference.
SAU has been a member of the GAC since the 2011-12 season.
 
Logging the Minutes
So far this year, all 13 active players have started at least once game, but no player has started every game. This has led to a fairly even distribution of minutes among the players. Evidence of this is the fact that 11 players average over 9.0 minutes a game and six average 20 minutes per game.
 
Chanel No. 3
Despite only starting eight games, junior forward Chanel Miller has been the Lady Muleriders' top scorer over the first 22 games this season as she averages 16.2 ppg. In all but three games, Miller has scored in double-figures and has scored 18 or more points 11 times. Against Henderson State (1/21/14), Miller scored a career-high 34 points.
 
Crashing the Boards
Through 22 games, the Lady Muleriders are showing the ability to pull down rebounds at a high clip.
On the year, SAU is 4th in the GAC in total rebounds per game (42.3) and rank first in offensive rebounds per game (16.2). Helping lead the charge in rebounding is Miranda Grier, Chanel Miller, Mariam Ridgwell, and Barvion Wyatt. Those four average 4.8 or more rebounds per game and collectively,
they are responsible for 20.5 (48%) of the team's 42.3 rebounds per game.
 
Quick Hands
With a GAC-leading 11.3 steals per game on the season, the Lady Muleriders are showing that they are very active and have quick hands on the defensive end of the court. As with most stat categories, the steals come as a team effort as nine players have at least 11 steals on the year. Leading the way individually is Allie Wade with 40 steals.
 
Growing Up
Last year, the Southern Arkansas women's basketball team was one of the youngest teams in the GAC as they had 12 freshmen or sophomores, only two juniors and no seniors. This year, thanks to only three returners and 10 transfers, the Lady Muleriders' roster boasts 12 juniors, one senior, and no freshmen or sophomores.
 
Dialing Long Distance
Three-point shooting has not been a strong suit of the Lady Muleriders so far this season as they are connecting on just 26% of their tries from long range. While the percentage is low, the Lady Muleriders also do not shoot many three's as is. So far, only 21% of their field goal attempts come from beyond the arc.