ALVA,Okla- Northwestern Oklahoma State basketball will return to action Saturday afternoon with tip-off set for 1:00PM. The Lady Rangers will play in the first game since this past Saturday against Southern Arkansas following the postponement of Thursday evening's game due to inclement weather.
Northwestern will be holding their annual Hall of Fame game with ceremonies taking placing during halftime of the women's game as previous inductees will be honored. At halftime of the men's game this year's class along with the class of 2021will be formally inducted.
The Lady Rangers (11-9 overall 7-7 GAC) entered play on a one game losing streak after splitting this previous week with a 97-49 win over Arkansas Monticello followed by a loss to Southern Arkansas 72-47. Northwestern will look to even the season series against the Tigers as the Red-and-Black dropped the first meeting 82-59.
The Red-and-Black will turn to their defense to create opportunities as the Lady Rangers are second in the conference in opponent field goal percentage holding their opponent to 37% shooting. Northwestern is second in the conference in points allowed giving up just 62.9 points per game. The Lady Rangers force the fifth most turnovers in the conference 16.95 per game.
Carly Craig leads the team with 31 steals on the season followed by Bailey Brown with 30 who also leads the team in blocked shots with eight. Northwestern brings down the second most defensive rebounds per game limiting second chance opportunities as they lead the conference in rebounding margin. Brown is third in the conference in rebounding at 8.2 per game with Scout Frame ninth joining her in the top 10 at 6.9 each game.
Northwestern's offense ranks middle of the conference at seventh in points per game at 71.8 each game on 42% from the field ranked sixth in the league. Brown leads the team at 17.9 per game on 50.8% shooting. She is followed by S. Frame at 15.5 points each game as they are the two Lady Rangers averaging double figures on the season. Kinsey Neiderer has hit the most three's on the team at 42 which is seventh in the GAC as she shoots 37.2% from behind the arc. Northwestern shares the ball well ranked third in the conference in assist led by Craig who is second in the conference in that category with 85 on the year.
Scouting the Tigers:
East Central (10-8 overall and 7-7 GAC) enters play on a three game losing streak following Monday's loss to Southeastern. Overall they are 2-3 in their last five games and enter play with a 5-5 road record dropping their last game on the road.
The Tigers are fourth in the conference in points allowed per game at 64.7 a night allowing their opponent to shoot 39.8% as their defense ranks in the middle of the conference. They force the sixth most turnovers per game averaging 7.2 steals per game. Mackenzie Crusoe averages the most at 38 total on the year along with five blocks. Kate Ogie leads the team with 12 blocks on the season.
East Central averages 68.7 points per game ranking ninth in the conference on 40.1 shooting from the field. Madison Rehl leads the team at 14.2 per game followed by Crusoe at 13.1 as the Tigers two double figure averages scorers. Kate Ogie leads the team shooting 40.% per game from three. Overall Alexis Lyons leads the team at 52%.
Series History:
Northwestern trails the series history 6-15 overall since the 2013 season as the Tigers have taken five straight games from the Lady Rangers. This includes an earlier game this season back in December as the Tigers took care of home court with an 82-59 victory.
Northwestern was held to 35% shooting as Brown was the only double figure scorer with 13 points and seven rebounds. The Tigers were led by Kate Ogle with a game high 17 points as ECU had five players reach double figures in points. The Red-and-Black will look to slow down an offense that shot 49% from the field in the Tigers win.
In the last five games in Alva the Rangers are 2-3 as Northwestern will look for the first win since 2020 over ECU and the first win in Alva since 2019 over the Tigers, a season where the Lady Rangers swept the Tigers.
Follow the Game:
Stats: https://riderangersride.com/sidearmstats/wbball/summary
Watch: https://www.youtube.com/c/NWOSURangers
Radio: https://mixlr.com/classic-hits-1057-krdr/
For the latest news and updates on NWOSU Women's Basketball, follow @NWOSUAthletics on TWITTER or visit www.riderangersride.com.
