Setting the Scene
- Back in the national rankings and riding an eight-game win streak, the Lady Bulldog Basketball team returns to action on Saturday afternoon as they host Oklahoma Baptist
- SWOSU returned to the D2SIDA Media Poll this week, coming in at No. 22 in the national rankings after dropping out of the poll on November 20th
- The Lady Bulldogs are 5-0 at home this season and riding a 23-game win streak at the Pioneer Cellular Event Center following an 87-58 victory over Southern Nazarene last Saturday
- SWOSU is tied atop the GAC standings with Henderson State at 3-0 and seeking to enter the new year unbeaten in conference play for the second straight season
- SWOSU has won four straight at home against Oklahoma Baptist, including all three previous meetings at the Pioneer Cellular Event Center since OBU joined the Great American Conference
 
About the Opponent
Oklahoma Baptist (4-4, 1-2 GAC)
- The Lady Bison dropped a 70-52 decision to East Central their last time out, falling to 1-2 in GAC play with a 92-83 win at Northwestern Oklahoma State to their credit
- OBU features the fourth-best scoring offense in the conference, averaging 74.8 points per game while outscoring their opponents by 8.3 points each time out
- Autumn Avina leads the Lady Bison with 19.4 points per game while also topping all of NCAA Division II with an average of 9.0 assists per game
- Casi Bays has led OBU to more than 112 wins in her seven seasons at the helm, including back-to-back 20-win seasons at the NAIA level before the transitioned to NCAA Division II
 
The Series

11/21/09	Weatherford	L, 66-70
11/11/11	Weatherford	W, 81-50
*1/23/16	Weatherford	W, 84-77
*2/20/16	Shawnee	L, 81-85 (OT)
*1/21/17	Shawnee	L, 79-81
*2/16/17	Weatherford	W, 87-59
*1/20/18	Shawnee	W, 91-78
*2/23/18	Weatherford	W, 100-72
3/1/18	Bartlesville	W, 80-72
NCAA Division II Era: SWOSU Leads 6-3
in Weatherford: SWOSU Leads 4-1
in Shawnee: OBU Leads 2-1
at Pioneer Cellular Event Center: SWOSU Leads 3-0

 
SWOSU Notes
- With her next point, SWOSU senior standout Hailey Tucker will become the second-leading scorer in program history, breaking a tie with Valerie Fariss with 1,845 career points
- Tucker was named the GAC Player of the Week for the second time this season - 11th time in her career - after becoming the conference's all-time leader in scoring and free throws made last week
- The Lady Bulldogs are the sixth-highest scoring team in NCAA Division II, averaging 84.2 points per game while outscoring opponents by 14.8 points per contest
- SWOSU has forced their opponents into 201 turnovers this season, which is good for a turnover margin of +10.56, which ranks fifth nationally
- Hayden Priddy leads the Lady Dawgs in assists (29) and three-pointers made (23) while ranking second on the team with an average of 16.6 points per game
- Bethany Franks was two rebounds shy of a double-double with 10 points and eight boards against SNU, giving her 9.2 points and a league-leading 9.1 rebounds per game for the season
- Franks has converted her offensive opportunities at a high rate this season, ranking second in the conference with a field goal percentage of 65.4% (34-52)
- Tyra Aska was limited to a season-low four points against SNU, but she still contributed five rebounds and three steals to the team effort
- Alexa Harvey tied a career-high with nine points on 3-for-4 shooting from long range in 17 minutes of against last Saturday
- Maddie Sperle averaged 8.5 points and 3.0 rebounds per game off the bench in SWOSU's two victories last week, including a career-high 10 points in the win at Oklahoma Christian
 
Looking Ahead
- Next up for the Lady Bulldogs is a tune-up exhibition game against the University of the Southwest on Saturday, December 29th at 2:00 pm in Weatherford
- The new calendar year begins at home with the Lady Bulldogs hosting Arkansas-Monticello (Jan. 3) and Southern Arkansas (Jan. 5) before going on the road for four straight games