Chapman women's basketball NCAA Tournament Notes (first and second rounds)
CHAPMAN UNIVERSITY NOTES
Meet the Panthers
Chapman received a Pool B At-Large bid to this year's tournament meaning that they are the only team in the field not affiliated with a conference. The field is comprised of 64 teams - 43 conference champions, 1 team which is not in those 43 conferences (Pool B) and 20 at-large teams (Pool C). Chapman is 22-5 this season, having won nine of its last 10 games to close out the year. Earlier this season the Panthers also had a 12 game winning streak.
This is Chapman's 15th NCAA postseason appearance with the last coming in 2009. The Panthers defeated Occidental 70-65 in a first round matchup at the Hutton Center that year before losing to eventual national champion George Fox 83-40 on the Bruins home court. Since transitioning to Division III during the 1993-94 season, Chapman has made 11 NCAA Tournament appearances including nine of the last 10 seasons. This is the seventh NCAA appearance in eight years at Chapman for head coach Carol Jue.
Chapman vs. Louisiana College, George Fox and Occidental
This is the first matchup between Chapman and Louisiana College but George Fox and Occidental are familiar foes for the Panthers. Both George Fox and Occidental have played and beaten Chapman this year. The Panthers traveled to Oregon and lost 75-57 to George Fox on the opening weekend of the season back in November. Chapman is 11-1 at home this season with the lone loss coming to Occidental 61-49 in January.
A Few Statistics
*The Panthers average 67.7 points per game while holding opponents to 55.8 points per game. *Chapman shoots .424 percent from the field while holding opponents to 37 percent shooting.
*Third in the nation in three-point field goal percentage limiting opponents to 24 percent from behind the arc.
*Chapman averages close to 20 turnovers per game put forces 26 per game.
*Opponents hold a slight average rebounding margin over Chapman this season; 35.9 to 35.3.
*Chapman was outrebounded by opponents in four of its five losses this season.
Stealing the Show
Using a full court pressure style defense, the Panthers have averaged 14 steals per game this year, almost twice the number that its opponents force. Chapman is 15th in the nation in steals per game led by senior G Christina Ly who averages just under four per game.
Bringing the Games to You If You Can't Make It (The Triple Threat)
If you can't make it out to the Hutton Center for the games, not to worry, you won't miss a thing. Play-by-play coverage for Friday's Chapman first round game will be available through streaming video and audio, courtesy of Chapman Athletics. A video webcast will be made available by United Webcast and partnering with Chapman Radio's radiocast. They will go live with their broadcast just prior to 7 p.m. tipoff. Catch all the action by visiting Chapman's Tournament Central Page at http://chapmanathletics.com/ncaa_championships_2011/wbb/information.
The Panthers are led in both scoring and rebounding by junior C Brandi Hood who averages 11.6 points and 6.6 rebounds. Second on the team in scoring and rebounding is senior F Simone Ibbotson who averages 10.1 points and 5.1 rebounds. Ibbotson is also second on the team with 58 steals. She was the Panthers top scorer and rebounder last season. Senior G Tara Glennon is third on the team averaging eight points. Senior G Christina Ly leads the team in assists and steals while senior G Casey Gomez averages 6.6 points, 3.1 rebounds and is second on the team with a total of 61 assists. The team's top three-point shooter is junior G Mary Petrie who has connected on a team-high 32 three-pointers while averaging just under eight points per game off the bench.
LOUISIANA COLLEGE NOTES
Louisiana College reached the postseason as a Pool C At-Large selection out of the American Southwest Conference. The Wildcats enter the postseason with a 24-3 record and a No. 21 ranking in both the d3hoops.com top-25 poll and the USA Today/ESPN Division III Coaches Poll. Louisiana College made it all the way to their respective conference tournament finals before losing to Howard Payne University 83-69 in the championship game.
Postseason History
This is the Wildcats' second-consecutive postseason appearance, and second in school history. Last season was the team's first trip to the NCAA Championships after they also captured their first-ever American Southwest Conference championship.
A Few Statistics
*Ranked third in Division III in scoring average at just under 80 points per game.
*16th in the nation in scoring margin, defeating opponents by just under 19 points per game.
*11th in the nation in steals at 14.5 per game and third in turnover margin.
*Defense holds opponents to just over 60 points per game.
*Similar to Chapman, the Wildcats defense forces 26 turnovers per game.
*Four players average double-figure scoring.
A Season Dedicated to Coach Joseph-Richard
Not only has this been one of the most successful seasons in school history, it has also been one of the toughest for the Louisiana College community, players and coaches. The Wildcats began the season 11-0 - their best start in school history - but in December the team lost head coach Janice Joseph-Richard to a lengthy battle with breast cancer. Since Joseph-Richard's passing, the Wildcats have been played in her honor, dedicating the season in her memory. This season LC players have worn warm-ups that say "Remember" on the front and have the No. 41 on the back. The number 41 is the number that Joseph-Richard wore when she was a player at LC.
The Wildcats are led by senior Tillisha Givens' 16 points and 10.5 rebounds per game. The Monroe, La. native has led the team in scoring 10 times this year and in rebounding 19 times including a 17 rebound performance against Texas-Tyler. Junior Roslyn Wilmer is the team's second leading scorer at just over 14 points per game. She has led the team in scoring nine times and has been playing especially well of late, leading the Wildcats in scoring in their last three games. Givens and Wilmer have each started 25 of 27 games but the rest of the lineup has changed from game to game. Senior Kayla Guidry and sophomore Natosha Gottlieb have each started around half the games while averaging 12.3 and 11.5 points, respectively. Seniors Janet Butler and Briana Lewis along with junior LaQuita Armstead have also started some games.
GEORGE FOX UNIVERSITY NOTES
Meet the Bruins
George Fox represents the automatic qualifier from the Northwest Conference. The Bruins finished the regular season 22-5 after sweeping its way through the conference tournament. George Fox defeated Puget Sound 83-55 in the first round of the tournament and then captured the conference's automatic bid by defeating Lewis & Clark 76-68 in the finals. This is the 18th winning season in a row for George Fox who is No. 23 in the USA Today/ESPN Coaches Poll and No. 3 in the NCAA West Region rankings. The Bruins also captured their fifth-consecutive conference championship this season.
Postseason History
This will be the fifth consecutive year and eighth time overall in 12 years of NCAA eligibility for George Fox to make the national tournament. In their previous seven appearances, the Bruins have compiled a 15-6 record (7-2 home, 1-2 road, 7-2 neutral), reaching the "Sweet 16" five times, the "Elite 8" three times, and winning the national championship in 2008-09 with a 32-0 record.
A Few Statistics
*Ranked 8th in the nation in field goal pct. (.456).
*Ranked 17th in the nation in blocked shots per game (5.5).
*Ranked 33rd in the nation in rebounding margin (+7.8)
*The Bruins average 68.7 points while holding opponents to 57 points.
*Have played and won three overtime games this season.
*Was 12-0 at home this season, 8-3 on the road and 2-2 in neutral site games.
*Won 11 games in a row to close out the regular season.
Projected Starters
The Bruins are led by a pair of first team All-NWC performers in sophomore F Hannah Munger and junior G Keisha Gordon. Munger averages a team-high 15.8 points, 10.1 rebounds and 3.1 blocked shots while Gordon is second on the team in scoring at 15.2 points per game. Gordon also leads the team in assists at 3.3 per game. Munger is 15th in the nation in blocked shots per game and field goal percentage (.565). She also is 38th in double-doubles with a team-high 12. Freshman Hayley Cusick has started 18 games and is third on the team in scoring at 8.4 points per game while junior Arianna Mohsenian is fourth averaging at eight points. Mohsenian is the Bruins top outside shooter with a team-high 49 three-point field goals made. Freshman Megan Arnoldy joins Munger and Mohsenian as the only players to have started all 27 games this year for the Bruins.
Meet the Tigers
Occidental earned the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) automatic berth into the NCAA tournament with a 55-49 win over Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges in the conference finals on Saturday. It was also Occidental's second SCIAC championship in three years. Occidental went 19-8, including winning its final eight games of the season. The Tigers were an impressive 13-1 at home, but went just 6-7 away from the Rush Gymnasium.
Postseason History
This will be the Tigers' second-ever NCAA playoff appearance, with their first coming in 2009. That year Occidental lost to Chapman University in the first round of the tournament 70-65 in Orange.
Against the Tournament Field
Occidental has played four games against teams in the NCAA Division III tournament field this season, posting a 1-3 record. The Tigers defeated Chapman 61-49 in the Hutton Center in January for their only win against 2011 playoff teams. Occidental also lost to Concordia-Moorhead (Minn.), Lewis & Clark (Ore.) and Wisconsin-La Crosse in the first half of the season.
A Few Statistics
*In a regional bracket that features two of the top teams in the nation in terms of steals (Chapman and Louisiana College), the Tigers will be tough to force turnovers against. Occidental ranks 14th in the nation, coughing up just 15.1 turnovers per game.
*The Tigers rank No. 26 in Division III in scoring defense, allowing just 52.3 points per game and opponents have made just over 33 percent of their field goal attempts against them.
*With six Occidental players checking in at 6-feet or taller, the Tigers' size has been a big reason why they are averaging 5.3 blocked shots per game – good for 23rd in Division III.
Projected Starters
The Tigers are led by senior C Stephanie Babij – the reigning SCIAC Player of the Year. In her senior season, Babij averaged 8.7 points and 7.2 rebounds per game in 2010-11 and was one of three Occidental players with 20 or more blocked shots. Another senior, PG Laura Mohler serves as the team's primary playmaker, averaging 9.7 points and pitching in 62 assists and ranking second on the team with 24 three-pointers. The Tigers' top scorer this season was G/F Makenzie Brandon who averaged 14.3 points and added 68 assists. Stephanie Scamman (6.7 ppg, 3.4 rpg) and Katelyn Rowe (7.1 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 58 blocks) round out Oxy's starting five.