Midwestern State (6-11, 3-7 LSC) vs. #14 West Texas A&M (16-2, 8-2 LSC)
Lone Star Conference Game
Thurs. Jan. 31 | 5:30 p.m.
D.L. Ligon Coliseum | Wichita Falls, Texas
Live Stats: MSUMustangs.com | Watch: Mustangs Digital Network | Listen: ESPN 95.5
Series Notes: WT leads 54-17 | Mustangs are 4-4 in last eight meetings with WT at Ligon Coliseum | MSU Texas is 6-35 in the last 41 meetings and has lost 11 straight | Mustangs are 1-22 when the Lady Buffs are ranked
First Meeting: WT won 75-71 in Wichita Falls on Nov. 1, 1976
Last Meeting: WT won 73-59 in Canyon on Dec. 1, 2018
Last MSU Texas Win: MSU Texas won 77-64 in Wichita Falls on Jan. 7, 2015
Last WT Win: WT won 73-59 in Canyon on Dec. 1, 2018
 
Scouting the Lady Buffs: West Texas A&M enters Thursday's matchup with a 16-2 overall record and tied for second in Lone Star Conference play with an 8-2 record in league action…WT ranked 14^th in this week's WBCA Poll…the Lady Buffs trail Angelo State by a game for the top spot in conference…WT saw its 12 game winning streak snapped in a 86-84 loss to Texas A&M-Kingsville on Jan. 10…Lexy Hightower hit a buzzer beater on the road at Angelo State to topple ASU, 61-59, in a clash of the top teams in the LSC…the Lady Buffs dropped their second game of the season on the road at Tarleton on Jan. 19, 72-65, but took down ENMU (72-61) and Texas Woman's (80-63)…WT ranks third in the LSC with 75.9 points and surrenders 61.6 points per game…WT ranks second nationally, shooting at a 49.4 percent clip while allowing opponents to shoot 37.5 percent from the floor…senior post Tyesha Taylor leads the Lady Buffs with 16.2 points per game, good for the second-highest in the LSC while her 66.2 percent shooting from the field ranks as the third-best in NCAA DII this season…junior Lexy Hightower torched the Mustangs for 29 points, going 5-of-10 from 3-point range and 8-of-10 from the charity stripe…she ranks second on the team with 14.9 points per game, shooting 50.5 percent from the field and 43.3 percent from beyond the arc…junior guard Megan Gamble orchestrates the offense with a league-leading 6.1 assists (9^th D2) and 3.34 assist/turnover ratio (3^rd D2)…the Lady Buffs record assists on 62.9 percent of all made field goals…
 
WICHITA FALLS, Texas – Midwestern State challenges No. 14 West Texas A&M in part of the Highway 287 Cup on Thursday at D.L. Ligon Coliseum. The Mustangs look to snap an 11 game slide to the Lady Buffs at 5:30 p.m.
 
Storylines
Year 11 of Noel Johnson Era
The Noel Johnson era enters its 11th season in 2018-19 after becoming the winningest coach in program history on Dec. 19, 2017 in a 72-66 win at Texas A&M-Kingsville.
 
Overall, the Mustangs have posted a 145-149 (.493) record under Johnson's guidance with three-straight NCAA Division II South Central Regional berths from 2013-15 and a regional title game appearance during a historic run in 2012-13.
 
Offensively Speaking
The Mustangs average 70.2 points per game, the 14^th best mark in MSU Texas history and seventh highest in the LSC on 41.0 percent shooting. The Maroon and Gold have gone 76-of-303 (25.1 percent) from beyond the arc.
 
Sultans of Swat
MSU Texas leads the Lone Star Conference and ranks fifth nationally with 5.5 blocks per game. Defensively, the Maroon and Gold are holding opponents to 36.8 percent shooting from the floor this season, the third lowest in the LSC.
 
The Mustangs boast three of the top 11 single game team blocking performances (10 - vs. St. Mary's, 12/15/18; 9 - vs. UT Tyler, 12/19/18; 9 - vs. Texas A&M-Commerce, 1/3/19) while the 5.5 blocks per game would shatter the previous team record of 4.3 set in the 2014-15 season. MSU Texas has at least five blocks in 12 of 17 games this season.
 
The 93 blocks this season rank as the fourth-most in team history and 35 behind the program record of 128 set in the 2014-15 season with a minimum of 10 games remaining.
 
Reynolds Keeps Climbing
Sophomore forward Hannah Reynolds continues to climb the MSU Texas all-time blocks list. The Prosper native sits at fifth all-time with 77 career rejections. She trails Shambreka Jones' (2012-15) fourth place mark of 85 by eight. Reynolds needs 61 more blocks to match Monica Miller's (1991-95) all-time record of 138.
 
Additionally, the sophomore's 45 stuffs this year rank as the sixth most in team history. She needs one more to match Jel-ani Armstrong's (2003-04) 46 rejections for fifth all-time. Reynolds needs 13 blocks to match Shambreka Jones' (2014-15) single season record of 58.
 
Model of Efficiency
The Mustangs offense has limited turnovers and maximized possessions for a 0.97 assist/turnover ratio, the fifth best in the LSC. Mica Schneider (2.4) and Chelcie Kizart (0.9) rank second and seventh, respectively, in the league in assist/turnover ratio. Schneider's 4.0 assists per game ranks fourth in the LSC while Kizart sits in seventh at 3.1. The 15.5 assists per game currently ranks as the ninth-best in program history, trailing the all-time record of 18.8 set by the 1996-97 squad.
 
Battle of the Boards
The Mustangs have held an advantage in rebounds in eight games this season, posting a 5-3 record. In games that the opponent pulls down the same or more rebounds, the Maroon and Gold are 1-8, with the lone win coming in the victory over UTPB. Additionally, MSU Texas is 4-1 when holding a +8 advantage on the glass. The Mustangs have been outrebounded in seven of the 10 Lone Star Conference games this season (tied Eastern New Mexico, 39-39).
 
Player Notes
#2 Chelcie Kizart (10.4 PPG / 3.1 APG / 4.5 RPG)
Started 16 games at point guard and averages 27.8 minutes…shooting 43.1 percent from the floor, 36.6 percent from 3-point range and 69.6 percent at the free throw line…23^rd leading scorer in the LSC and second on the team at 10.4 points per game…ranks seventh in the LSC with 3.1 assists per game…scored 15 points and grabbed a career-high eight rebounds in season opener against Oklahoma Christian, shooting 55.6 percent from the floor (11/9)...dropped a career-high 17 against Dallas Christian, going 4-of-5 from 3-point range (11/17)…set a personal high with five assists in the win over UT Tyler coming off the bench (12/19)…matched a career best with 17 points in a loss to Henderson State (12/29)…matched a career best with 17 points against Tarleton State, connecting on four 3-pointers and going 6-of-9 from the floor (1/5)…scored her 200^th career point and grabbed career rebound No. 100 in the loss to Tarleton State (1/5)…posted her second-straight game in double-figures with a 15-point, seven assist, five rebound effort against UTPB (1/10)...poured in 13 for her third-straight double-digit scoring outing, going 6-of-10 from the floor (1/12)…scored 15 points and distributed five assists and matched a season-high with three steals against Texas A&M-Kingsville (1/24)…scored 16 points in a loss to Angelo State (1/26)…has eight games with at least 10 points and seven games with at least four assists…averaging 12.6 points in the last seven games while shooting 32-of-68 (47.1 percent) from the floor…averaging 5.4 rebounds in the last eight games…five assists away from 100 in her career at MSU Texas
Season Highs / [Career Highs]
Points: 17, thrice, last vs. Tarleton State (1/5) / [same]
Assists: 7 vs. UTPB (1/10) / [same]
Rebounds: 8 vs. Oklahoma Christian (11/9) / [same]
Steals: 3, thrice, last at Texas A&M-Kingsville (1/24) / [4, twice, last at Western New Mexico (2/17/18)]
Blocks: 1, twice, last at West Texas A&M (12/1) / [same]
 
#3 Annette Dukes (6.1 PPG / 0.3 APG / 3.6 RPG)
Appeared in 16 games off the bench, averaging 13.3 minutes…shooting 43.2 percent from the floor and 70.3 percent from the free throw line…scored her first career double-double in the win over Dallas Christian, scoring 17 points and grabbing 10 rebounds on 77.8 percent shooting (11/17)…made MSU Texas debut against Newman with six points and five rebounds in 10 minutes against Newman (11/10)…came off the bench for eight points against West Texas A&M (12/1)…scored seven points and grabbed five rebounds in 15 minutes of action against UT Tyler (12/19)...matched a season-best with 17 points in 20 minutes against Western New Mexico, going 7-of-8 from the free throw line (1/12)…averaging 3.5 points per game in the last four outings…
Season Highs / [Career Highs]
Points: 17, twice, last vs. Western New Mexico (1/12) / [same]
Assists: 1, five times, last vs. Cameron (1/15) / [same]
Rebounds: 10 vs. Dallas Christian (11/17) / [same]
Steals: 2 vs. Dallas Christian (11/17) / [same]
Blocks: 1, twice, last vs. Cameron (1/15) / [same]
 
#4 Mica Schneider (8.5 PPG / 4.0 APG / 3.0 RPG)
Appeared in 17 games while making 11 starts and averaging 25.5 minutes…shooting 34.0 percent from the floor, 21.1 percent from 3-point land and 74.4 percent from the free throw line…fifth-leading scorer on the team at 8.5 PPG…ranks fourth in the LSC with 4.0 assists per game and second in the league with a 2.4 assist/turnover ratio…handed out a career-high five assists against Newman (11/10)…scored six points and grabbed a career-high seven rebounds against Texas Wesleyan (11/16)…scored career-best 10 points in win over Dallas Christian (11/17)…matched career-high with 10 point outing at West Texas A&M (12/1)…added nine points and seven rebounds in upset of 21^st-ranked St. Mary's (12/15)…recorded her first career double-double with 12 points and 12 assists in a win over UT Tyler, good for the second-most assists in team history and most assist in the LSC this season (12/19)…scored in double figures for the fourth time this season with 10 points on 50.0 percent shooting against Tarleton State (1/5)…recorded her 100^th career assist against Western New Mexico (1/12)…broke a career-high with 19 points in the comeback against Texas Woman's, scoring 17 of her 19 in the fourth quarter and all 19 in the second half (1/17)…went for 12 points and six assists in a loss to Texas A&M-Kingsville (1/24)…added nine points,, four assists and three rebounds with no turnovers in a loss to Angelo State (1/26)…credited with an assist in all but two games this season and has at least three dimes in each of the last eight games…averaging 13.3 points, 3.0 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game over the last three outings…
Season Highs / [Career Highs]
Points: 19 at Texas Woman's (1/17) / [same]
Assists: 12 vs. UT Tyler (12/19) / [same]
Rebounds: 7, twice, last vs. St. Mary's (12/15) / [same]
Steals: 3, thrice, last at Texas Woman's (1/17) / [same]
Blocks: 2, twice, last vs. Western New Mexico (1/12) / [3 vs. UT Permian Basin (2/8/18)]
 
#11 Hannah Reynolds (11.3 PPG / 1.2 APG / 6.4 RPG)
Appeared in all 17 games while making 15 starts and averaging 26.6 minutes…shooting 44.3 percent from the floor and 56.3 percent from the free throw line…leads the team with 11.3 points per game and ranks 19^th in the LSC…top shot-blocker in the LSC with 45 blocks (19^th in NCAA DII) and averaging 2.6 per game (18^th in NCAA DII)…second on the team with 6.4 rebounds per game (13^th LSC)…scored in double figures 12 times on the season with two double-doubles…scored 13 in the season-opener against Oklahoma Christian, shooting 60.0 percent from the floor and added nine rebounds (11/9)…broke through for double-digit boards against Texas Wesleyan with 11 (11/16)…scored 13 points in back-to-back games against Dallas Christian and at Eastern New Mexico (11/29)…added a career-best 19 points in the win over UT Tyler, going 9-of-16 from the floor with six rebounds (12/19)...broke the single game block record with eight rejections against Texas A&M-Commerce and turned in her best all-around performance with 16 points, seven rebounds, five assists and eight blocks while shooting 63.6 percent from the floor (1/3)...poured in 15 points, nine rebounds and three blocks in the loss to Tarleton State (1/5)…tacked on 10 points, five rebounds and six blocks against UT Permian Basin (1/10)…held scoreless for the first time this season against Western New Mexico, going 0-for-5 from the floor with seven rebounds and three blocks (1/12)…named LSC Defensive Player of the Week for her performance against UTPB and WNMU (1/15)…went for a career-best 23 points on 10-of-21 shooting (47.6 percent) and 10 rebounds for her first double-double of the season against Cameron (1/15)…recorded the most points by a MSU Texas player since Whitney Taylor scored 23 against Cameron on Jan. 17, 2017 (1/15)…followed her career performance with a 13-point, five assist, two block outing against Texas Woman's (1/17)…credited with her second double-double of the season in a loss to Texas A&M-Kingsville, posting 10 points and a career-best 13 rebounds (1/24)…has three or more blocks in eight games this season…averaging 12.2 points, 2.3 assists, 7.0 rebounds and 3.1 blocks over the last 10 games…scored in double-figures in eight of the last 10 games with double-doubles in two of the last four outings…
Season Highs / [Career Highs]
Points: 23 vs. Cameron (1/15) / [same]
Assists: 5 vs. Texas A&M-Commerce (1/3) / [same]
Rebounds: 13 at Texas A&M-Kingsville (1/24) / [same]
Steals: 3 vs. Cameron (1/15) / [same]
Blocks: 8 vs. Texas A&M-Commerce (1/3) / [same]
 
#14 Kityana Diaz (9.2 PPG / 1.3 APG / 3.6 RPG)
Appeared in all 17 games while making 14 starts and averaging 20.4 minutes…shooting 47.5 percent from the floor, 27.3 percent from 3-point range and 70.6 percent from the free throw line…third leading scorer on the team with 9.2 points per game and has scored in double figures in seven games this season…ranks 13^th in the LSC with 1.6 steals per game… nine games this season with multiple steals…scored in double figures for the first time in her career with 12 points against Newman (11/10)…scored a career-best 14 points, going 8-of-11 from the free throw line while adding four assists in the win over Dallas Christian (11/17)…added 11 points and six rebounds at Eastern New Mexico (11/29)…matched a season-high with six rebounds in the win over St. Mary's (12/15)…continued to improve her career totals, going for a high of 15 points against UT Tyler on 7-of-7 shooting with a rebound and two assists along with three steals (12/19)…poured in 10 points, six rebounds, three assists and three steals against UT Permian Basin (1/10)…came one point shy of matching her career-best in win over Western New Mexico, dropping 14 with six boards and two steals (1/12)…added nine points, five rebounds, two steals and a block against Cameron (1/15)…broke a career-high with 16 points, including nine in the fourth quarter of the comeback win against Texas Woman's, shooting 5-of-8 from the field and 2-of-4 from beyond the arc (1/17)…averaging 9.9 points on 36-of-70 (51.4 percent shooting in the last nine games with 1.5 steals per game…
Season Highs / [Career Highs]
Points: 16 at Texas Woman's (1/17) / [same]
Assists: 4 vs. Dallas Christian (11/17) / [same]
Rebounds: 6, four times, last vs. Western New Mexico (1/12) / [same]
Steals: 3, four times, last vs. UTPB (1/10) / [same]
Blocks: 1, five times, last vs. Cameron (1/15) / [same]
 
#15 Haevyn Risley (4.3 PPG / 1.7 APG / 4.0 RPG)
Appeared in 15 games and making seven starts…averages 19.1 minutes…shooting 39.7 percent from the floor and 38.6 percent from the free throw line…grabbed three rebounds in her MSU Texas debut against Oklahoma Christian (11/9)…made four-straight starts against Eastern New Mexico, West Texas A&M, St. Mary's and UT Tyler (12/19)…pulled down six rebounds in the win over UT Tyler (12/29)…matched a season-high with six boards against A&M-Commerce (1/3)...set a season-best with four assists against Tarleton State (1/5)…recorded a career-high 10 points and eight rebounds, going a perfect 4-for-4 from the field while adding three assists in the win over Western New Mexico (1/12)…added six points and three rebounds against Cameron (1/15)…grabbed seven rebounds in the comeback win over Texas Woman's (1/17)…recorded a career-high nine rebounds against Texas A&M-Kingsville, including five on the offensive end (1/24)…poured in a career-best 13 points on 3-of-4 shooting and going 6-of-8 from the free throw line against Angelo State (1/26)…broke out of a 2-for-18 (11.1 percent) slump from Dec. 19 – Jan. 5 by going 15-for-25 (60.0 percent) in the last six games while averaging 7.0 points and 5.8 rebounds over that stretch…
Season Highs / [Career Highs]
Points: 13 at Angelo State (1/26) / [same]
Assists: 4, twice, last vs. UTPB (1/10) / [same]
Rebounds: 9 at Texas A&M-Kingsville (1/24) / [same]
Steals: 2 at Texas Woman's (1/17) / [same]
Blocks: 1, twice, last vs. St. Mary's (12/15) / [same]
 
#24 Courtney Kerr (4.4 PPG / 0.8 APG / 1.1 RPG)
Appeared in 17 games and made two starts while averaging 16.9 minutes…shooting 36.4 percent from the floor, 26.7 percent from 3-point range and 68.8 percent from the free throw line…has three games in double figures this season…scored a career-high 12 points against Newman, going 5-of-7 from the floor and 2-of-3 from 3-point range (11/10)…scored 11 points and pulled down three rebounds in her first career start against Dallas Christian (11/17)…matched a career best with three rebounds against Henderson State (12/29)…hit a season-best three 3-pointers against UT Permian Basin before finishing with 10 points (1/10)…matched a season-high with two assists against Cameron (1/15)…credited with a career-best two steals at Angelo State (1/26)…
Season Highs / [Career Highs]
Points: 12 vs. Newman (11/10) / [same]
Assists: 2, five times, last vs. Cameron (1/15) / [4 vs. Texas A&M-Kingsville (12/19/16)]
Rebounds: 3, twice, last vs. Henderson State (12/29) / [same]
Steals: 2 at Angelo State (1/26) / [same]
Blocks: 1, four times, last at Texas A&M-Kingsvlle (1/24) / [same]
 
#25 Anni Scholl (3.6 PPG / 1.4 APG / 3.3 RPG)
Appeared in 17 games while making her lone start of the season against UT Tyler…averages 16.4 minutes…shooting 23.2 percent from the field, 18.8 percent from beyond the arc and 88.9 percent from the free throw line…scored a career-best 11 points on 3-of-5 shooting with five rebounds and four assists against Dallas Christian (11/17)…knocked down three 3-pointers, going 3-of-4 from beyond the arc, and grabbed five rebounds against St. Mary's (12/15)…set a new career-best with seven rebounds against UT Tyler (12/19)…dropped a career-best 12 points on a pair of 3-pointers with five rebounds against UT Permian Basin (1/10)…has gone 0-14 from the floor and 0-12 from 3-point land in the last four games…
Season Highs / [Career Highs]
Points: 12 vs. UTPB (1/10) / [same]
Assists: 4 vs. Dallas Christian (11/17) / [same]
Rebounds: 7 vs. UT Tyler (12/19) / [same]
Steals: 2, three times, last vs. Tarleton State (1/5) / [same]
Blocks: 1, six times, last at Texas A&M-Kingsville (1/24) / [3 vs. Newman (11/20/16)]
 
#32 Erin Alexander (7.5 PPG / 1.4 APG / 6.5 RPG)
Started six games at forward and appeared in 10 outings…averages 24.1 minutes…shooting 52.1 percent from the floor, 50.0 percent (2-of-4) from 3-point range and 76.7 percent from the free throw line…made her MSU Texas debut against Oklahoma Christian, scoring eight points and grabbing six rebounds in 34 minutes (11/9)…recorded her first career double-double against Dallas Christian with 11 points and 11 rebounds…produced a season-high 12 rebounds and three blocks against St. Mary's (12/15)…named Lone Star Conference Defensive Player of the Week for helping hold St. Mary's and UT Tyler to 35.5 points and 19.5 shooting from the floor (12/19)…added 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting against Tarleton State with two blocks and two steals (1/5)…has grabbed at least five rebounds in all but one game this season…shot better than 50.0 percent in seven games…has not played since Jan. 5 against Tarleton State…
Season Highs / [Career Highs]
Points: 11 vs. Dallas Christian (11/17) / [same]
Assists: 3, twice, last at Eastern New Mexico (11/29) / [same]
Rebounds: 12 vs. St. Mary's (12/15) / [same]
Steals: 4 vs. UT Tyler (12/19) / [same]
Blocks: 3 vs. St. Mary's (12/15) / [same]
 
#43 Liz Cathcart (8.9 PPG / 1.1 APG / 4.0 RPG)
Appeared in all 17 games, making 13 starts and averaging 22.4 minutes…shooting 43.0 percent from the floor and 82.1 percent from the free throw line…fourth leading scorer on the team…seven games in double-figures…scored 14 points in the season opener against Oklahoma Christian, going a perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line (11/9)…scored a career-high 18 points on 8-of-11 shooting (72.7 percent) in her first start of the season against Texas Wesleyan (11/16)…followed up with a 14 point outing against Dallas Christian, picking up a career-best four steals in the process…posted double-figures in her third-straight game with 10 points and five rebounds at Eastern New Mexico (11/29)…went for 16 against UT Tyler on 6-of-10 shooting with 11 rebounds for her first double-double of the year (12/19)…collected her 200th career rebound against Texas A&M-Commerce (1/3)...posted 11 points and six rebounds in the win over Western New Mexico, going 5-of-6 from the free throw line (1/12)…credited with eight points and five rebounds in the loss to Cameron (1/15)…scored 11 points, going 7-of-10 from the free throw line, and grabbed eight rebounds in the comeback win over Texas Woman's (1/17)…averaging 9.2 points and 4.2 rebounds over the last six games…needs one point for 400 and 17 rebounds for 250 in her career…
Season Highs / [Career Highs]
Points: 18 vs. Texas Wesleyan (11/16) / [same]
Assists: 3, thrice, last vs. UT Tyler (12/29) / [6 vs. Texas A&M International (11/12/16)]
Rebounds: 11 vs. UT Tyler (12/19) / [same]
Steals: 4 vs. Dallas Christian (11/17) / [same]
Blocks: 2, twice, last vs. UT Tyler (12/19) / [3 vs. Cameron (2/20/18)]
 
Mustangs on ESPN 95.5
Midwestern State women's basketball airs live on ESPN 95.5 FM beginning the pregame show 15 minutes prior to tipoff.
 
Mustangs Digital Network
All Midwestern State home games are set for broadcast on the Mustangs Digital Network both live and on demand at MSUMustangs.tv. Season passes are available for $30 while single games run $9 each.
 
Follow Us
Follow news, notes and photos for all Midwestern State athletic teams on MSUMustangs.com or on social media at MSUMustangs on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram
 
Up Next
MSU Texas returns to action on Saturday, Feb. 2, against Eastern New Mexico.