Midwestern State at Arkansas-Fort Smith
Saturday, Nov. 28, 2015 | 1 p.m.
Stubblefield Center | Fort Smith, Ark.
Records: Midwestern State (1-5); Arkansas-Fort Smith (4-1)
Live Stats: UAFortSmithLions.com
Video: UAFortSmithLions.com


FOR STARTERS
Midwestern State will look to snap a three-game losing skid Saturday at 1 p.m. when the Mustangs face Arkansas-Fort Smith in their first true road game of the season at Stubblefield Center.
 
The Mustangs begin a road stretch of six games across three states spanning over 46 days beginning Saturday. Midwestern State next returns to the friendly confines of D.L. Ligon Coliseum Saturday, Jan. 9 in its Lone Star Conference home opener against Eastern New Mexico.

LAST TIME OUT
– Southern Nazarene (Okla.) jumped out to an 11-2 lead over Midwestern State and never trailed the rest of the contest in a 68-56 win Tuesday at D.L. Ligon Coliseum
 – The Crimson Storm turned 21 MSU turnovers into 25 points while shooting 44.6 percent (25-of-56) from the floor
– The Mustangs shot 37.7 percent (23-of-61), led by junior post Jennifer Sissel with 12 points on 2-of-3 shooting from behind the arc
– Sophomore guard Krishawn Crockett also reached double figures with 11 points on 3-of-8 shooting from long range
 
SCOUTING THE LADY LIONS
– Arkansas-Fort Smith is 4-1 on the season with its lone setback to then-No. 19 Colorado Mesa, 75-69, in the season opener
– UAFS is receiving eight votes in the USA Today Top 25 Division II Women's Basketball Coaches' Poll
– The Lady Lions posted a 21-9 record in 2014-15, advancing to the NCAA South Central Region semifinals
– Senior forward Jasmine Brainard and sophomore guard Olivia Hanson lead the Lady Lions in scoring with 13.2 and 10.4 points, respectively
– Brainard also paces UAFS on the boards with 5.4 per game
– Hanson is shooting 57.1 percent (16-of-28) from the field, leading the Lady Lions with 13 triples this season on a 59 percent (13-of-22) clip
– UAFS is averaging nearly 80 points per game at 79.8 while holding teams to 65.4 points
– Head coach Louis Whorton is in his 30th season at the helm of the Lady Lions basketball program, holding a career record of 631-269
 
INSIDE THE SERIES
– Midwestern State and Arkansas-Fort Smith have met just once with MSU coming away with a 70-66 win last season in Wichita Falls
 
A LOOK AT THE MUSTANGS
– After its third-straight loss earlier this week, Midwestern State dropped to 1-5 on the season
– Sophomore guard Whitney Taylor is averaging a team-best 7.0 points this season, but has been sidelined the last two contests
– Freshman post McKenna Villegas and sophomore guard Krishawn Crockett are averaging 6.8 points apiece with Villegas shooting a team-high 50.0 percent (16-of-32) from the floor
– Freshman forward Kendriana Washington leads the Mustangs with 6.3 rebounds per game, pulling down a season-best nine rebounds against Colorado State-Pueblo and Southern Nazarene
– Villegas has been the MSU leader on the offensive glass with 14 boards with a season-high six offensive rebounds coming against CSU-Pueblo
– As a team, Midwestern is scoring 47 points per game while opponents have put up an average of 60.8 points per outing, shooting 40.8 percent from the field compared to the Mustangs' 30.9 percentage
– Turnovers have haunted the youthful Mustangs team early this season with an average of 20.7 miscues as opponents are coming away with 11.3 steals per game
– First quarters have not been a strong suit for MSU early in the season with the opposition outscoring the Mustangs 89-59 in the opening period
– However, the Mustangs have been far better later in the game with a 100-95 scoring edge in the fourth quarter
 
MUSTANGS THIRD IN LSC PRESEASON POLL
– Midwestern State was tabbed third in the Lone Star Conference Preseason Poll, voted on by the league's coaches, sports information directors and media representatives
– The Mustangs totaled 157 points behind preseason favorite West Texas A&M (220) and Texas Woman's (171)
– West Texas A&M collected 23 of the 25 first place votes while Texas Woman's and Cameron each tallied one vote
– The Mustangs went 12-4 to earn the No. 2 seed in the LSC postseason tournament last season
 
THE JOHNSON ERA
– Noel Johnson enters her eighth season at the helm of the Mustangs women's basketball program
– Johnson has led MSU to a 113-84 record (.574) with four-straight winning seasons and three-straight NCAA Tournament appearances
– During Johnson's tenure, the Mustangs claimed their first NCAA Tournament wins in 2013 with victories over rival Tarleton State and Metro State (Colo.) before falling to No. 4 Colorado Mesa in the regional final
– That season, Johnson guided the Maroon and Gold to a 26-6 record, the second-most wins in school history, and a Lone Star Conference Championship, the first in 12 seasons
– Johnson garnered Lone Star Conference Coach of the Year honors in 2012 before earning Texas Association of Basketball Coaches' Small College Coach of the Year accolades in 2013
 
LOOKING AHEAD
– Midwestern State continues its road swing Thursday against Lubbock Christian at the Rip Griffin Center. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.