WBB: Lopes Survive, Lemon Goes Off, and UTRGV's Big Week
WBB: Lopes Survive, Lemon Goes Off, and UTRGV's Big Week
GCU escapes disaster, Khloe Lemon is red hot for CBU, UTRGV with a pair of big wins and more.
Another week has come and gone on the women’s side of WAC hoops and there’s quite a lot to digest from GCU escaping an upset bid to UTRGV’s big week and more.
Redhawks Give Lopes a Scare Before Falling in Double OT
Saturday’s game in Phoenix was a matchup of two teams on different ends of the spectrum.
First place GCU hosted Seattle in what can only be described as a David vs. Goliath type game.
GCU, at full strength for the first time this season and undefeated in conference play along with non-conference wins over Middle Tennessee and Arizona State, hosted a one-win Redhawk team in need of a win in the worst way.
Seattle led for 36:10 out of a possible 50 minutes of action.
However, GCU ramped up the defensive effort and found a way to win in the second overtime, outscoring the Redhawks 15-4 for a big victory.
Was it a case of GCU looking ahead to Thursday’s showdown with Stephen F. Austin? Or was it Seattle showing what they can do when they put a full game together? Or a combination of the two?
Naudia Evans continues to put together a season worthy of Player of the Year honors, leading GCU with 21 points and five assists after missing Thursday’s win at UVU due to illness.
Jada Holland added 17 points and five assists while Oliva Lane added 16 points.
Makayla Moore led the Redhawks with 20 points while Noemie Bariteau added 15 and four assists. Mya Moore fouled out in overtime but added 11 points and five assists.
Vaqueros go 2-0 on the week with wins over UT Arlington and Tarleton
It was a slow start to the year for UTRGV as the Vaqueros battled injuries but found ways to be competitive.
As Lane Lord’s team is beginning to get healthy, we’re seeing the type of team Lord thought he’d have in Edinburg when the year began.
This week UTRGV ended UT Arlington’s 7-game winning streak and then found a way to win a low scoring game against Tarleton on the road.
Kade Hackerott had a big week for UTRGV, averaging 13.5 points and eight rebounds per game in the two wins.
UTRGV heads west this week for a matchup against CBU in a Thursday morning matinee which tips off at 11 A.M. Pacific Time before taking their bye on Saturday.
Lemon’s Big Day pushes Lancers to Season Sweep of Defending Champs
While GCU was getting all they could handle from Seattle in Phoenix on Saturday, the Lancers rolled to a 93-67 win over Southern Utah in Riverside to sweep the Thunderbirds.
Khloe Lemon continues to cement her case for WAC Newcomer of the Year. Lemon had a career day with 28 points and five rebounds to lead CBU. It was the second time in four games Lemon has scored 20 or more points.
Emily Sewell had her best game as a Lancer with 12 points and nine rebounds while Chloe Webb and Anaiyah Tu’ua combined to score 36 points.
CBU continues their 3-game home stand on Thursday against UTRGV and then they’ll host SFA on Saturday in a matchup that could determine who holds first place at week’s end.
Smith announces season ending ACL injury
Over the weekend on an Instagram post, Southern Utah’s Megan Smith announced she suffered a season ending ACL injury.
At 4-12 overall and 2-5 in conference play, SUU is in the fight for that eighth spot and will host Tarleton and ACU this week.
Bracketology
One of the things fans of the current first place team from any conference like to look at is Bracketology.
Charlie Creme is ESPN’s women’s basketball bracketologist and as of last Thursday’s update he has GCU as a 14-seed, playing Kansas State.
Meanwhile, Her Hoop Stats has the Lopes playing Texas…also as a 14-seed.
Power Rankings
GCU stays in the top spot after that double overtime win over Seattle.
This week’s biggest mover is UTRGV who gained two spots and moved to sixth in our power rankings.
It’s a big week in the race for our regular season championship as the top three teams will all play each other with SFA making trips to Phoenix and Riverside.
Weekly Awards:
Last week it was Kurstyn Harden of SFA winning Player of the Week honors with Sydney Erikstrup earning Newcomer of the Week honors.
This week’s it’s a clean sweep for CBU’s Khloe Lemon, who wins her third Newcomer of the Week and first Player of the Week award.
In CBU’s lone game against defending champion Southern Utah, Lemon set a new career high with 28 points as well as pulling down five rebounds as the Lancers rolled to a 93-67 win.
Standings through January 20
GCU 16-3 overall, 8-0 WAC
CBU 14-2 overall, 6-1 WAC
SFA 12-6 overall, 6-1 WAC
UTA 9-9 overall, 5-3 WAC
ACU 8-8 overall, 4-3 WAC
UT 9-9 overall, 3-4 WAC
UTRGV 4-13 overall, 3-5 WAC
SUU 4-12 overall, 2-5 WAC
UVU 7-10 overall, 2-6 WAC
Tarleton 4-12 overall, 1-6 WAC
Seattle 1-16 overall, 1-7 WAC