WEATHERFORD, Okla. – The SWOSU women's basketball team is gearing up to start play again. They hold two home games this week. Arkansas-Monticello rolls into town for their 5:30 PM game on Thursday night and Southern Arkansas also crosses the Arkansas border to come to Weatherford on Saturday for a 1:00 PM battle.
 
Bulldog Outlook

• SWOSU finished 2022 with a record of 1-8 and 1-3 GAC after two tough losses to Cameron and Southern Nazarene to end the semester.
• The offensive output has slowly been improving for the Lady Dawgs, averaging 62.3 points per game as a team.
• They are giving up 71.6 points per game to opponents.
• Three-point shooting is still a big part of the SWOSU offense, having 69 made threes through the first nine games of the season.
• Taking care of the ball is another key component of the offense. SWOSU ranks eighth in Division II in the turnovers per game category with only 12.6 a game.
• In their last game versus SNU, the Lady Bulldogs had a season high 14 steals, which hopefully carries some defensive tenacity into this next calendar year.
• Averi Zinn is the leading scorer thus far, averaging 14.6 points per game, 3.6 assists per game, and 2 steals per game.
• Morgan Smith comes into the new year averaging 12.7 points per game, 4.3 rebounds per game, and 1.4 steals per game.
• The Lady Dawgs leading rebounder is Shamica Smith, coming in at 6.9 rebounds per game, as well as 6.2 points per game.
• Macy Gore slots in at the second guard spot. She is a well-rounded player, averaging 10.1 points per game, 3.3 assists per game, 3.2 rebounds per game, and 1.4 steals per game.

 
A Look at Arkansas-Monticello

• Arkansas-Monticello is sitting at 4-6 overall and 1-3 GAC.
• SWOSU handled business with the Blossoms last year: winning 97-54 in Monticello and winning 95-40 in Weatherford.
• SWOSU's last loss to Arkansas-Monticello comes back in the quarterfinals of the 2020 GAC Tournament.
• UAM enters this semester on a two-game winning streak, including a GAC win over Ouachita Baptist in their last outing.
•  They are averaging 65.4 points per game as a team.
• They give up 67.1 points per game to opponents as well.
• UAM does not rely on long range shooting, only making 4.7 threes a game.
• They allow the most free throws attempted and made to opponents in the GAC.
• Rebounding is a strong suit for this team, holding the third highest rebounding margin in the GAC.
• They are led by Bailey Harris, who is averaging 15 points per game, 5.1 rebounds per game, and 1.1 steals per game.
• Joi Montgomery also poses a potential problem for SWOSU, averaging 11.5 points per game, 6.7 rebounds per game, and shooting over 52% from her guard spot.

 
A Look at Southern Arkansas

• Southern Arkansas is 4-6 on the year and 0-4 GAC.
• They have multiple close games that they just couldn't finish, losing two conference games in overtime and two conference games by just two points.
• SWOSU swept the season series between these two schools last year: winning 85-72 in Magnolia and winning 95-58 in Weatherford.
• Southern Arkansas hasn't beaten SWOSU in a couple years. Their last victory over the Lady Bulldogs came on January 4, 2020.
• The Muleriders play style is fast paced and shoot at will. They have cracked 100 points in half of their games this season.
• This style of play has them averaging an astounding 92.8 points per game as a team. They are the highest scoring team in all of Division II currently.
• This style of play also causes them to give up points as well. They are giving up 79.6 points per game. This ranks them 290 of out 294 eligible Division II teams.
• They lead Division II in three point attempts a game at 41.1, which is almost 10 more shots than the next highest team.
• They also lead Division II in three point makes a game, with 14.3 per game.
• This offensive output causes big numbers for players. SAU has four girls averaging double-digit points per game and two at around nine points per game.
• Diamond Morris is their leading scorer coming in at 12.7 points per game, adding 6.5 rebounds per game, 4 assists per game, and 2 steals per game.
• Mychala Linzy is right behind her with 11.3 points per game, 2 steals per game, and shooting a ridiculous 56% from the field and 50% from behind the arc.
• Kylie Warren and Jessica Jones round out the double-digit scorers, at 11.1 and 10.4 points per game respectively.