WOMEN’S BASKETBALL PREVIEW: Saint Louis at Richmond
WHEN: Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2018 • 6 p.m. CST
WHERE: Robins Center • Richmond, Virginia
RECORDS: SLU 7-7, 1-0 Atlantic 10; Richmond 6-8, 1-0 Atlantic 10
SLU-RICHMOND SERIES: Richmond leads 7-6 overall and 3-2 in Richmond
SLU-RICHMOND LAST MEETING: at SLU 73, Richmond 66 (2/18/17) RECAP
BILLIKENS’ LAST GAME: at SLU 78, St. Bonaventure 55 (Dec. 31) RECAP
SPIDERS’ LAST GAME: Richmond 74, at Rhode Island 53 (Dec. 31) RECAP
UP NEXT FOR THE BILLIKENS: at Fordham • Saturday, Jan. 6 • Noon CST • Bronx, N.Y.
GAME NOTES: Saint Louis
GAME NOTES: Richmond
LIVE AUDIO (SLU feed): A-10 Digital Network (Email [email protected] if you encounter difficulty.)
LIVE VIDEO:A-10 Digital Network
LIVE STATS: StatBroadcast
A LOOK AT THE BILLIKENS
• Riding a season-long three-game winning streak, the Saint Louis Billikens play their first Atlantic 10 Conference road game of the season Wednesday, Jan. 3, against the Richmond Spiders.
• SLU is trying for just its third 2-0 league start in 13 years of A-10 membership. The Billikens began conference play 4-0 last season and were 2-0 in the 2007-08 campaign.
• Since the beginning of the 2015-16 season, the Billikens are 26-7 in A-10 play.
• Saint Louis is coming off a 78-55 win over St. Bonaventure in which two milestones were reached. Jackie Kemphbecame the Billikens’ all-time leading scorer (1,586 points), and Lisa Stone registered her 600th career coaching victory.
• The Billikens feature players who lead the Atlantic 10 in two categories. Maddison Gits is shooting a league-best 59.8 percent from the field, while Jackie Kemph tops the conference with 7.6 assists per game.
• Saint Louis is the only A-10 women’s basketball team with two players who rank among the league’s top 10 rebounders. Maddison Gits is sixth with 8.4 rebounds per game, while Jenny Vliet is seventh with 8.2 boards per contest.
• The Billikens have risen to second in the A-10 in field goal percentage (44 percent) with strong recent shooting efforts. In the last three games, SLU has connected on 51.4 percent (93-of-181) of its shots. The Bills’ scoring average in those three contests is 85.3.
• The Bills have pushed their season free throw percentage above 70 percent (.707) by connecting on 77.2 percent (44-of-57) from the stripe over the last three games.
• Saint Louis enjoyed its best back-to-back shooting performances of the season vs. Lipscomb and Tulsa. The Billikens connected on 55.4 percent (62-of-112) overall and 46.3 percent (19-of-41) from 3-point range in those contests.
• The Bills have pushed their season free throw percentage above 70 percent (.701) by connecting on 76 percent (35-of-46) from the stripe over the last two games.
• SLU has held four straight and five of its last six opponents to under 40-percent field goal shooting.
• The Billikens have outrebounded their last three opponents by an average margin of 17.7 (+53 in total rebounds).
• Saint Louis has registered more assists than turnovers in each of its last four games.
• Sixth-year head coach Lisa Stone takes a 97-77 record at Saint Louis into the Richmond game. Now in her 32nd season overall as a collegiate head coach, Stone owns a 600-314 career mark.
A LOOK AT THE SPIDERS
• Richmond’s win at Rhode Island in the A-10 opener snapped a five-game losing streak.
• The Spiders have three starters and five additional letter winners back from last year’s team that was 13-17 overall and 7-9 (ninth) in the A-10.
• Senior guard Micaela Parson ranks second in the A-10 in scoring with a team-high 17.9 points per game, and she also leads Richmond with 6.6 rebounds per game. Parson leads the A-10 with 63 free throws made and ranks second in free throw attempts (85) and third in steals (2.4 spg).
• Freshman guards Alex Parson and Kailyn Fee score 11.9 and 9.9 points per game, respectively. Fee has a team-high 32 3-pointers and ranks fourth in the A-10 in 3-pointers per game (2.7).
• Richmond is second in the conference and 22nd in the nation in offensive rebounding (15.9 orpg). The Spiders also are second in the league in steals (8.9 spg) and turnover margin (+3.1 tpg).
