PITTSBURG – Another top 10 battle is set up to take place in John Lance Arena on Thursday evening, as the No. 9 Gorilla women take on No. 10 Central Oklahoma at 5:30 p.m. The Gorillas come into the game leading the conference race with a 9-1 record, while both Central Oklahoma and Central Missouri are just behind at 8-1.
On Saturday, Pitt State will host Northeastern State at 1:30 p.m.
Scouting Central Oklahoma
No. 10 Central Oklahoma is 17-1 overall and 8-1 in the MIAA heading into Thursday's action. The team's only loss came at the hands of Missouri Western. Most recently, the Bronchos edged out Northeastern State on Jan. 21, giving UCO head coach Guy Hardaker his 200th career win.
UCO averages 71.7 ppg as a team, holding opponents to just 57.3 points. As a team, UCO is shooting .404 from the paint, .352 from long range and .761 from charity. Additionally, the team is averaging 44.3 rebounds, 14.7 assists, 7.7 steals and 5.0 blocks per game.
Melinda Murillo (15.6 ppg, 3.1 apg), Olivia Mason (11.4 ppg) and Jesheon Cooper (10.8 ppg) score in double figures for the Bronchos. Cooper (9.6 rpg) and Mason's (7.8 rpg) rebounding marks land them both in the MIAA top-five. Cooper also has a conference-high 3.0 blocks per game.
Scouting Northeastern State
Northeastern State carries a 6-11 overall and 2-7 conference record to Pittsburg on Saturday. The RiverHawks fell to Emporia State and Central Oklahoma in the last two matchups, both of which were top-15 teams at the time, and will face Missouri Southern on Wednesday, Jan. 25.
The RiverHawks are shooting .402 from the field and .332 behind the arc with the help from Rylie Torrey. She is top-three in both points per game and threes per game with 17.6 ppg and 2.4 threes per game. Cailyn Long (.920) is a major contributor to the team's conference-high .794 free-throw percentage and scores 14.9 ppg. Mary Jane Buschmann adds 5.7 rebounds per game. Alexis Hill adds 3.5 assists per game.
Scouting Pittsburg State
Pittsburg State is the No. 9 team in the country with a 17-2 record overall and a 9-1 mark in MIAA play. Both of Pitt State's losses have been to Emporia State, who was ranked in the top-10 each time. The Gorillas were 1-1 last week with a loss on the road to Emporia State before rebounding for a big win at Washburn. The 17-2 record is one of the best in school history. The team's 8-0 start in MIAA play tied the best start in school history, matching the record of the 2011-12 team.
The team has won its games by an average of almost 21 points per game. The 61-point win over Rio Piedras was the largest of the season, while the four-point win over Kearney was the closest. Pitt State scores 78.2 ppg, while holding opponents to 57.7 ppg. The most points scored by the Gorillas this season were the 106 points against Lincoln on Jan. 12.
The Gorillas are shooting .448 from the floor overall and .371 from three-point range. The Gorillas make an average of 9.8 threes a game, but are holding opponents to just 3.8 made threes a game. Pitt State is also outrebounding its opponents by 7.8 rpg.
Mikaela Burgess leads the Gorillas with 17.6 ppg and was named the MIAA Player of the Week for the week of Nov. 21-27. She scored her 1,000th career point on December 1 against Nebraska-Kearney. Most recently, she set a new career-high with 35 points at Washburn on Jan. 21. She has hit 55 threes on the season, which leads the MIAA.
Madison Northcutt, who was named the MIAA Player of the Week on Jan. 16, is second on the team with 11.6 ppg, including 13.0 ppg in conference play. She is the team's leading rebounder with 8.5 rpg. She is third in the MIAA for rebounding overall and first for offensive rebounds. She has recorded four double-doubles on the season.
Shelby Lopez and Paige Lungwitz are each averaging 9.2 ppg. Lopez has made 44 threes this season, which is fourth in the MIAA. She recorded her first 20-point game with 24 points at Northwestern Oklahoma. She made six threes in that game. Lungwitz was named the MIAA Player of the Week for the week of November 30-December 4 after putting up a career-high 27 against UNK.
Elena Flott scored 9.4 ppg and contributed 5.8 rebounds per game before a medical condition has put her on the bench. She recorded the first double-double of her career with 15 points and 11 rebounds against UNK.
Hadyn Herlocker chips in 8.2 ppg and leads the team with 5.9 assists and 2.2 steals per game. Her assists lead the MIAA, while her steals are third. Herlocker is also the team's third-leading rebounder with 4.8 rpg. She earned MIAA and HERO Sports National Player of the Week honors after putting up a double-double with 12 points and a school record 13 assists at Lincoln on December 10.
PSU vs. Central Oklahoma
The Gorillas and Bronchos have met 27 times with PSU holding an 18-9 series advantage. The first meeting between the two teams on November 20, 1982, resulted in the Gorillas' falling by a score of 77-58. Pitt State won last season's meeting, 81-76 in John Lance Arena.
Pitt State has won each of the last seven meetings, the longest streak of wins in series history. The Gorillas have now won eight of the last 10 games.
In the current win streak, four of the seven have been by double digits, including one of the biggest wins in series history. The largest margin of victory in the series was a 83-53 Gorilla win on Nov. 26, 1994 in Joplin, Mo and again in the 2014-15 season, a 30-point 85-55 win in Pittsburg. The Bronchos biggest win was a 90-67 win on Nov. 25, 1989 in Pittsburg.
PSU vs. Northeastern State
After sweeping the RiverHawks the last two seasons, the Gorillas lead the all-time series with Northeastern State, 16-11. The Gorillas lead the series in Pittsburg 11-4 and at neutral sites, 2-1, but the RiverHawks lead in Tahlequah 6-3. The longest streak of wins in the series was six by the Northeastern from Jan. 4, 1985 to Nov. 25,1988. The Gorillas have now tied that streak with their current six-win streak that began with a 78-60 win in Tahlequah on Deb. 16, 2013.
The most points scored by either team in a game has been 84, in 2015's 84-48 Pitt State win in Pittsburg. The largest margin of victory in the series was Pitt State's 38-point, 76-38 win in Pittsburg on Dec. 2, 2015. NSU's largest margin of victory has been 22 points on Jan. 10, 1987. Seven of the last eight games have been decided by double figures, the one exception being the Gorillas nine-point win in Tahlequah on Jan. 28, 2015.
In the Polls
Following the loss to Emporia State, Pitt State dropped to No. 9 in the WBCA Coaches Poll. Pitt State has been ranked as high as No. 3 several times this season. That ties the highest ranking ever for the PSU Women's Basketball Program. The Gorillas pushed their way into the top five at No. 4 with their 7-0 start to the season in the November 29 poll. The team held steady at No. 4 in the December 6 poll, but moved up to No. 3 on Dec. 13. Pitt State moved up three spots from its No. 7 spot in the Nov. 22 poll, the first regular season poll of the 2016-17 season.
Pitt State opened the season ranked No. 12 in the WBCA Preseason Coaches Poll. This marked only the second time in school history the Gorillas have started the season ranked in the nation's top 25. The other time being a No. 3 ranking at the start of the 2012-13 season. The No. 3 ranking was the highest ever for the PSU Women's Basketball program.
Emporia State moved from No. 9 last week to No. 7 with the win over the Gorillas. The Bronchos have been slowly climbing all season and finally broke into the top 10 this week. Fort Hays State had flashed into the top 25, but is now receiving votes. Central Missouri jumped into the top 25 this week at No. 19.
Up Next
Pitt State will have the midweek off next week. On Saturday the team will take on travel partner and rival Missouri Southern in Joplin at 1 p.m.
Records Check
It's time to start tracking some Gorillas in the record books. Junior Mikaela Burgess is moving up the all-time threes list. She passed Drew Roberts to move into second with 211 career threes. Burgess is averaging 2.9 made threes a game this season and would need 153 threes through the rest of this season and next for the school record. Jenni Miller holds the career record with 364.
Hadyn Herlocker finished last season second on the single season assists list with 156, almost double from her previous two seasons combined. Herlocker now has 358 assists for her career, which is fifth on the all-time list. She will need 12 assists to pass Kelly Krumsick for fourth on the all-time list. Current assistant coach Amanda Davied is the career record holder with 553.
1000 and Climbing
Mikaela Burgess is not only climbing up the career-three-point list, but also now scored 1000 career points. She hit that career milestone on December 1 against Nebraska-Kearney as she hit a layup with 4:07 left in the third quarter.
Burgess currently has 1206 points, 283 her freshman year, 589 last season and 334 so far this season. Her 589 points last season were third only to Lizzy Jeronimus and Leslie Dudley, the two top scorers (men or women) in Pitt State history.
Burgess is the 20th player in school history to score 1000 or more points in her career. She is currently No. 13 on the all-time scoring list. She needs 21 points to pass Terri Barto for 12th and 24 to move ahead of current assistant coach Amanda Davied for 11th.
Program Milestones
Pitt State's 70-38 win over Mary was the 600th win in program history. The Gorillas now have a 616-481 (.562) all-time record. The Gorillas are 332-178 at home, 205-258 on the road and 71-42 at neutral sites.
Coach Hits Milestones Too
The 81-54 win at Washburn on January 21 was the 200 at Pitt State for Head Coach Lane Lord. Lord now has a 200-91 (.687) record in his 10th season leading the Gorilla program. He is the winningest coach (by percentage) in school history. His predeccesor Steve High has the most wins with 296 in 18 years.
Lord earned his 100th win just under four years ago with a 63-48 win over Truman on Feb. 7, 2013.
Coach Lord now holds a 277-112 (.712) record at all collegiate levels which includes two seasons at Barton County Community College in Great Bend, Kan. His overall record at all levels is 418-174 (.706) and includes seven seasons as the head coach at Wichita Heights High School.
In the MIAA Stats
The Gorillas are also the top three-point shooting team in the MIAA having made 186 threes on the season, 9.8 threes per game. Pitt State is also tops in three-point defense, holding opponents to a .238 (72-302) three-point shooting percentage. The Gorillas are second in the league for field goal percentage (.448) and assists (15.79 apg).
Individually, Mikaela Burgess is the league's fourth leading scorer with 17.6 ppg. She leads the league with 55 threes made and 2.9 threes made a game. She is 14th in field goal percentage (.393) and second in three-point percentage (.362). Shelby Lopez is fourth in threes per game with 2.3. Hadyn Herlocker leads the MIAA in assists per game with 5.9, is second in assists/turnover ratio with 3.0 and third in steals with 2.2 steals per game. Madison Northcutt is third in rebounds with 8.5 rpg.
In the NCAA Stats
The Gorillas rank among the top 10 in the nation for scoring margin (10th), three-point defense (seventh), threes attempted (ninth), threes made (fourth) and threes per game (seventh). Herlocker is 10th in the nation with her 113 assists and 12th in assists per game. She also ranks sixth in assists/turnover ratio.
Burgess is eighth in the nation for threes attempted with 152 and 15th for threes made with 55. Burgess also ranks 11th among active career leaders with 211 threes made, is ninth for career threes per game with 2.45 and 12th for career three-point percentage with .389.
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