The Game
The Cougars look to carry the momentum over from a 92-79 victory over St. Cloud State. In that game the Cougars made 15 three-point shots and shot 51.7% from downtown. USF faced Upper Iowa and Winona earlier this season, falling by a combined six points. Upper Iowa's Whitney Kieffer went off on the offensive end of the floor as she scored 35 points on 14-of-24 shooting. Kieffer hit a pair of free-throws with 30 seconds left in the game to give Upper Iowa the go-ahead points. The Peacocks won the game by a final score of 78-75. When the Cougars played Winona State earlier this season, they fell 60-63. The Warriors were in control for most of the game as they did not trail over the last 33:23 of the game. The Cougars kept the game close though and had a chance to tie the game in the final seconds, but a fumbled ball left the Cougars without shot attempt. Abby Busch led WSU in scoring as she dropped 18 points and also grabbed 4 rebounds.
By the Numbers
1.64: Number of blocked shots per game by Laura Johnson. Ranks 3rd in the NSIC and 55th in NCAA Division II
1.95: Assist/Turnover ratio of Chrissy Strassburg which ranks 5th in the NSIC and 33rd in Division II.
7: Points needed by Sam Knecht to reach the 100-point mark for the season. Knecht is averaging 8.5 points per game this season.
22.18: Number that anticpated Cougar starting lineup of Taylor Varsho, Laura Johnson, Marie Malloy, Jaicee Ulmer and Sam Knecht outscores opponent by every 40 minutes played.
75%: Percent of the time this season that USF wins when shooting better than their opponent from behind the arc.
Solid Sophomore Season
Cougar sophomore Amber Paden has had a solid second year with the Cougars, averaging 3.4 points and 2.0 blocks while averaging 13.5 minutes per game. When Paden is on the court, the Cougars have outscored their opponents by 61 points which is an average of 7.62 points per game. For every 40 minutes that she gets on the floor, the Cougars have outscored their opponents by 22.99 points which is the highest number by any Cougar player.
From Downtown
The key for the Cougars this season has come from behind the arc. USF has recorded a 6-2 record when they shoot better than their opponent from behind the arc and are just 1-5 when their opponent outshoots them from downtown. The Cougars also have a 4-1 record when they make 10 or more three-point shots in a game. The Cougars improved on their season average of 30.1% when they faced St. Cloud State and shot 51.7% from three to claim a 92-79 victory.
Force on the Court
USF senior Laura Johnson has been a force on the court for the Cougars this season averaging 14.1 points, 7.1 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.6 blocks and 1.4 steals. Johnson currently ranks in the top ten in the conference in six different statistical categories, including being third in block shots. Johnson trails the leader by 0.18 blocks per game and over the last four games she has averaged 2.5 blocks per game. Johnson currently ranks 55th in Division II in blocked shots this season.
About Upper Iowa
Upper Iowa (4-10, 3-7 NSIC) struggled early in the season as they started out their first seven games with only two victories. The Peacocks then rattled off two straight victories against Southwest Minnesota State and USF. Currently UIU is on a five-game skid having not won since December 14th when they played USF in Fayette, Iowa. The Peacocks are led by Whitney Kieffer who is averaging 17.5 points and 4.9 rebounds. Also chipping in for Upper Iowa has been Lauren Buck who averages 10.4 points and 7.8 rebounds.
About Winona State
Winona State (8-6, 4-6 NSIC) rolled through the non-conference portion of their schedule by entering the conference portion of the schedule with a 4-0 record. The Warriors then lost three straight games by an average of 7.3 points per game. The Warriors returned to their winning ways by defeated USF 63-60 on December 13th. Then after rattling off four-straight victories, WSU dropped three straight games against Crookston, U-Mary and Minot State. In their last home stand against U-Mary and Minot State, the Warriors lost by a combined four points. The Warriors are led by Abby Busch who is averaging 15.6 points and 7.9 rebounds this season. Also coming up big for WSU has been Conor Nagle who is averaging 8.5 points and 3.6 rebounds this season. Nagle also is coming off of a 27-point performance where she hit seven straight three-point shots in Winona State's one-point loss.
