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Henderson State (5-5, 4-0 GAC) at SWOSU (5-5, 1-3 GAC) Thursday, January 7, 5:30 pm Weatherford, Okla. (Pioneer Cellular Event Center) Live Stats  |  Watch Live  |  Live Audio SWOSU Game Notes (pdf)

Setting the Stage
- With four straight wins to their credit, the SWOSU Women's Basketball team returns to action on Thursday evening when they host Henderson State at the Pioneer Cellular Event Center
- While the Lady Bulldogs have won four straight games, only one of those wins was a Great American Conference contest, leaving SWOSU at 1-3 in league play
- Henderson State is one of three teams tied atop the GAC standings with a perfect 4-0 mark in league play, but the Reddies have a 5-5 overall record that mirrors that of SWOSU
- The two teams split their regular season series last season with each team winning on their home court, including a 116-108 SWOSU victory over the Reddies at the Pioneer Cellular Event Center in the highest-scoring game in GAC history
- SWOSU is 3-0 in their current six-game home stand and 4-4 overall on their home court this season
 
The Opponent
Henderson State (5-5, 4-0 GAC)
- Had a three-game winning streak snapped their last time out, falling 73-61 at Texas A&M-Commerce in non-conference play
- Unblemished in league play with victories over Southern Nazarene, Oklahoma Baptist, East Central and Southeastern Oklahoma State
- Ranked fourth in the league in scoring offense, averaging 72.1 points per game while their opponents have scored an average of 73.o points per game against HSU
- Shooting 34.3% from three-point range as a team, having made 57-of-166 attempts from long range this season for the second-best percentage in the league
- Led by senior forward Dulincia Keener, who ranks fifth in the GAC in scoring (16.9 ppg) and fourth in rebounding (8.5 rpg)
- In eight career meetings against SWOSU, Keener is nearly averaging a double-double with 10.3 points and 9.8 rebounds per game
- Other top scorers for the Reddies include Victoria Stewart at 13.2 points per game and Haleigh Henson at 12.1 ppg
 
The Coaches
SWOSU: Kelsi Musick (95-85; 7th season)
- Two-time GAC Coach of the Year has been the model of consistency, winning GAC Tournament titles in two of the last four years and earning back-to-back NCAA Division II National Tournaments during the 2012-13 and 2013-14 seasons
- Her high-energy style of play has led the Lady Dawgs to rank in the top four in the nation in scoring, and top ten in three points made in three of the last four seasons
- A great developer of talent, Musick has coached one All-American and 12 All-GAC selections, including one Player of the Year recipient
- Musick has also spent time as an assistant coach at Fresno State, where they won two Western Athletic Conference regular season and tournament titles, as well as qualified for the NCAA Division I National Tournament in the 2008-09 season
- Has a record of 7-4 against Henderson State as the head coach of the Lady Bulldogs, including a perfect mark of 4-0 at home
 
Henderson State: Jill Thomas (28-36; 3rd season)
- In her third season leading the Henderson State women's basketball program, helping the Reddies to records of 10-17 and 13-14 in her first two years
- Coached two-time GAC Defender of the Year Aungelique Sledge, who was also an all-region selection and Academic All-American
- Previously spent four years as the head coach at Pfeiffer University in North Carolina from 2009-13, earning the 2013 Conference Carolinas Coach of the Year award after guiding the Lady Falcons to their first-ever NCAA Regional Tournament win
 
The Series
      Date                Location                            Score             
      11/24/2009      Arkadelphia, Ark.              L 74-92
      *1/5/2012         Arkadelphia, Ark.              L 69-82
      *2/2/2012         Weatherford, Okla.           W 77-56
      *1/17/2013       Arkadelphia, Ark.              W 90-81
      *2/21/2013       Weatherford, Okla.           W 76-70
      3/7/2013          Bartlesville, Okla.              W 69-59
      *1/16/2014       Weatherford, Okla.           W 90-82
      *2/20/2014       Arkadelphia, Ark.              L 97-101 (2 OT)
      3/7/2014          Bartlesville, Okla.              W 66-60
      *1/15/2015       Arkadelphia, Ark.              L 73-85
      *2/21/2015       Weatherford, Okla.           W 116-108
*GAC Conference Meeting
 
Last Time Out
- The Lady Bulldogs led wire-to-wire as they opened up 2016 with a 90-58 win over Science & Arts last Saturday afternoon in Weatherford
- SWOSU scored the first 13 points of the game and led 32-15 after one period and they kept the Drovers doubled up 56-28 at halftime
- Jessica Penner led the Lady Dawgs with 19 points for the second straight game while Hailey Tucker and Morgan Vogt added 12 points apiece
 
SWOSU Notes
- Jessica Penner became the second Lady Bulldog to be named GAC Player of the Week, earning the honor on Monday after averaging 19.0 points per game on 18-for-21 field goal shooting in two games last week
- SWOSU is averaging 84.8 points per game during their four-game winning streak, upping their season scoring average to 78.0 points per game
- Hailey Tucker was previously named GAC Player of the Week in December after scoring a career-high 24 points against Cameron in non-conference play
- Tucker is SWOSU's leading scorer during their current winning streak, averaging 14.5 points per game over the past four contests
- Jade Jones scored 10 points against USAO to snap a two-game stretch of scoring in single digits, but she continues to lead the team in scoring at 12.6 points per game
- Kylie Franz has started six straight games for SWOSU and ranks second on the team with 33 assists and seven steals while averaging 5.1 points per game
- Janae Coffee ranks third on the team in scoring with 10.4 points per game and her 81 rebounds (8.1/game) ranks fifth in the GAC
- SWOSU leads all of NCAA Division II with an average of 35.0 defensive rebounds per game
 
Looking Ahead
- The Lady Bulldogs stay at home to face their other GAC foe from Arkadelphia on Saturday, with tipoff at 1:00 pm against Ouachita Baptist
- SWOSU will host East Central next Thursday before playing their first road game of 2016 on January 16 at Southern Nazarene