Midwestern State vs. UC-Colorado Springs
Saturday, Nov. 18, 2016 | 2 p.m.
Kitty Magee Arena | Denton, Texas
Live Stats: TWUAthletics.com
Video: TWUAthletics.com
Audio: Mustangs Digital Network
Radio: ESPN 95.5 FM 

Midwestern State vs. Newman (Kan.) 
Sunday, Nov. 19, 2016 | 2 p.m.
Kitty Magee Arena | Denton, Texas
Live Stats: TWUAthletics.com
Video: TWUAthletics.com
Audio: Mustangs Digital Network
Radio: ESPN 95.5 FM 

THE RUNDOWN
WICHITA FALLS, Texas – Midwestern State looks to continue its early season success this weekend as the Mustangs travel to Denton for the two-day Best Western Premiere Pioneer Classic at Texas Woman's Kitty Magee Arena.

The Mustangs will face off against UC-Colorado Springs in the tournament opener at 2 p.m. Saturday before taking on Newman (Kan.) in a 2 p.m. tipoff Sunday.

LAST TIME ON THE COURT
- Midwestern State began the season at 2-0 for the first time in four years last weekend with wins over Adams State (Colo.) and Texas A&M International at MSU's Ashbrook Classic 
- The Mustangs knocked down 12 three-pointers in a season-opening 72-55 win over ASU to tie for the third-most triples in a single game in program history
- Junior guard Kristin Rydell connected on a career-best five treys to lead the Mustangs with 15 points while junior guard Whitney Taylor (11), senior forward Jennifer Arbuckle (10) and freshman forward Liz Cathcart (10) also reached double figures
- Midwestern State outscored Texas A&M International 28-9 in the second quarter en route to a 76-53 win in the tournament finale
- Cathcart came off the bench to lead the Mustangs with nine points, six assists and six rebounds while junior post Avery Queen, sophomore guard Montoria Tripp, sophomore guard Anni Scholl and freshman guard Leanna James each added eight points 

 A LOOK AT THE MUSTANGS
- Kristin Rydell leads the Mustangs with 11 points per game through the first weekend of action while Liz Cathcart has added 9.5 points off the bench for MSU
- Jennifer Arbuckle led Midwestern on the glass during opening weekend with an averaged of 6.5 rebounds per game with Cathcart close behind with 6.0 boards per game
- Freshman guard Leanna James came off the bench to average 4.5 assists last week, dishing out seven helpers in the season opener against Adams State
- Midwestern State shot 39.5 percent from the floor to begin the season and connected on 20 three-pointers to finish with a 40.0 percentage
- Defensively, the Mustangs averaged 11 steals a contest with opponents committing an average of 21 turnovers a game
 
THE JOHNSON ERA
- Noel Johnson begins her ninth season at the helm of the Midwestern State women's basketball program, leading the Mustangs to three-straight NCAA Tournament appearances from 2013-15
- Johnson has compiled a 120-106 career mark (.531) at MSU and is tied for second in career wins at Midwestern State with Kim Griffee (1984-92), trailing only Shannon Burks, who compiled 132 victories from 1999-2008
- In 2013, Johnson was named the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches (TABC) Small College Coach of the Year after guiding the Mustangs to their first Lone Star Conference title in 11 years while advancing to the NCAA South Central Region finals with a 26-6 record
- Johnson earned LSC Coach of the Year accolades in 2012 after leading MSU to its first trip to the league's postseason tournament since 2003 with a 19-8 record and third-place finish in the LSC

SCOUTING THE MOUNTAIN LIONS
- UC-Colorado Springs is 2-0 on the season following wins over Newman and Oklahoma Christian at the Heartland-RMAC Challenge last weekend in Wichita, Kan.
- The Mountain Lions sport three players averaging double figures in senior guard Jen Vigil (16.0 ppg), senior forward Brittany Hernandez (13.0 ppg) and freshman forward Anna Schwecke (12.5 ppg)
- Vigil is shooting 60 percent from behind the three-point line (6-of-10) and is averaging a team-best 5.5 assists and 3.5 steals per game
- Hernandez, Schwecke and senior forward Tori Fisher are each averaging 8.0 rebounds per game to lead the Mountain Lions 
- UCCS shot 50 percent from the floor in its season-opening weekend while holding the opposition to just 33.1 percent
- The Mountain Lions averaged 10.5 triples per contest, shooting 45.7 percent (21-of-46) from long range
- Lynn Plett is in his first season as the head coach at UC-Colorado Springs
 
INSIDE THE SERIES
- First Meeting
 
SCOUTING THE JETS
- Newman comes in with a 1-2 record on the season, going 0-2 at its home tournament last weekend with losses to UC-Colorado Springs and Regis (Colo.) before earning a home win over Central Christian College (Mo.) earlier this week
- Sophomore guard Bria DeGrate leads the Jets with 14.3 points and 3.3 steals per game 
- Senior forward Mali Wright also averages double figures with 10.3 points and a team-best 4.3 rebounds per game
- Junior guard Hannah Alexander is averaging 9.3 points per contest in her first season with the Jets after transferring from West Texas A&M  
- Newman opponents are averaging 21.3 turnovers per game and are being held to a 20.8 percentage from behind the arc
- Head coach Darin Spence has compiled a 50-60 record in his fifth season leading the Jets

INSIDE THE SERIES
- Midwestern State and Newman have squared off just twice on the hardwood with both meetings coming in 2011
- Newman earned a narrow 73-71 victory on Jan. 3, 2011 in Wichita Falls before claiming a 74-65 win on Nov. 15 in Wichita, Kan.

UP NEXT
- Midwestern State closes out its non-conference slate Saturday, Nov. 26 with a 2 p.m. matchup against Southern Nazarene at the Sawyer Center in Bethany, Okla.