WICHITA FALLS, Texas -- Midwestern State seeks a third consecutive victory when it hosts West Texas A&M at D.L. Ligon Coliseum on Thursday. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. The Lady Buffs have a four-game winning streak overall and have won three of their last four meetings with the Mustangs.

Midwestern State (2-9, 2-3) closed the 2023 portion of its schedule on a positive note with victories over St. Edward's and Cameron. MSU has won consecutive games for the first time since beating Arkansas-Fort Smith and Oklahoma Christian in the final two regular season games of 2021-22.

Junior Nikki Green buried five triples on her way to a season-high 20 points, leading hot shooting Midwestern State to a 68-56 win over Cameron at D.L. Ligon Coliseum on Dec. 18. The Mustangs drilled a season-high 10 3-pointers, including an 8-for-11 barrage in the first half.

Senior Kertisa Amos logged her eighth double-figure performance in nine games this season. The senior forward posted 15 points and grabbed six rebounds. Junior Zarria Carter completed her second-straight double-double and fourth of the season with 12 points and 10 rebounds.

Sophomore guard Catalina Cortez had a season-high five steals and was named the Lone Star Conference Defensive Player of the Week. The 5-2 guard from Lubbock, Texas, filled the stat sheet with a campaign-best eight points, hitting 2 of 3 shots from 3-point range, and she dished out a career-high seven assists. Cortez grabbed four rebounds for the fourth time this season and accounted for half of the Mustangs' steals in the victory. The point guard had only two turnovers in 38 minutes of playing time.

The 56 points allowed against Cameron is the lowest point total conceded by MSU this season. The Mustangs are still giving up 74.8 points per game this season. But since allowing 90 points in an 18-point loss to Texas Woman's, the points-allowed total has decreased each game.

Midwestern State is fourth in the Lone Star Conference with 38.55 rebounds per game and leads the league with 16.8 offensive rebounds per game.

Carter leads the conference and is 17th in the nation with 118 total rebounds. The 6-1 forward from Mansfield, Texas, is second in the league and 16th among Division II players with 10.7 rebounds per game.

Carter is pulling down 4.7 offensive rebounds per game, which is the most in the LSC and fifth-most in the country.

Senior Makayla Coy and Amos are also among the top-five LSC leaders in offensive rebounding. Coy is third with 3.6 offensive rebounds per game, and Amos is fifth with 3.2 offensive rebounds per game. Coy is grabbing a total of 7.5 rebounds per game, which is eighth in the conference. Amos is 13th in the league with 6.7 rebounds per game.

Amos has scored double digits in all but one game for Midwestern State and is the leading scorer on the team with 15.9 points per game. Carter is adding 15.3 points per game, and Coy is scoring 9.5 points per game for the Mustangs, who are averaging 64.3 points per game as a team this season.

Carter is shooting 46.7 percent from the field, which is seventh best in the conference, and Amos is shooting 39.6 percent, which is 13th in the league. MSU is shooting 33.7 percent from the field overall and 22.1 percent from 3-point range.

The Mustangs are attempting the third-most free throws in the LSC with 21.64 attempts per game. MSU is fifth in the league with 15.18 free throws made per game. Midwestern State is 10th in the conference with a free-throw shooting percentage of 70.2.

Cortez has the 10th-best assists per game average in the LSC with 3.2 assists per game, and her assists-to-turnover ratio is fourth best in the league at 2.19.

Midwestern State is 20-58 in the all-time series with West Texas A&M and has lost the last two encounters, including an 87-78 loss at D.L. Ligon Coliseum last season. Eternity Jackson scored a career-high 15 points on 5-of-8 shooting for the Mustangs. Holly Stalder scored 21 points to lead the Lady Buffs, who shot 54 percent from the field.

West Texas A&M (8-4, 3-1) has a four-game winning streak after scoring two victories in Daytona Beach, Florida, before the holidays.

WT defeated No. 16-ranked Montana State-Billings, 59-58, as Stalder hit two free throws with less than a second remaining in the game. Jayla Burgess scored a career-high 17 points on 8-of-10 shooting for the Lady Buffs.

The following night, WT squared off with St. Mary's in a non-conference clash at Ocean City Arena. Nyalam Thabach scored 18 points for the Lady Buffs in a 61-52 victory. WT held the Rattlers to 29.5 percent shooting from the field.

The Lady Buffs hosted Oklahoma Panhandle State for an exhibition on Dec. 30 and scored a 68-38 triumph at First United Bank Center in Canyon, Texas. Bella Ringenberg was 7 of 7 from the field and scored 15 points to lead three players in double figures. Kyla Kane added 15 points, and Zoey McBroom finished with 10 points. WT held the Aggies to 21.1 percent shooting from the field.

Thabach is the leading scorer for WT with 10.8 points per game. Stalder is scoring 9.8 points and is one of six players scoring more than eight points per game. Azia Himeur is pitching in 9.4 points per game. Karley Motschenbacher contributes 9.3 points per game. Grace Alvarez scores 8.8 and Kyla Kana is adding 8.4 points per game.

Alvarez is fourth in the LSC with 4.2 assists per game, and Motschenbacher is ninth in the conference with 3.2 assists per game.

The Lady Buffs shoot 41.9 percent from the floor overall and 31 percent from 3-point range. Himeur is 30 of 62 from beyond the arc and has made more 3-pointers than anyone else in the LSC. She also leads the conference at 48.4 percent shooting from long range.

Kyla Kane has hit 31-of-32 free-throw shots (96.9 percent) and leads the nation in free-throw percentage. The Lady Buffs are third-best in the LSC with a 77.4 free-throw percentage.

West Texas A&M is seventh in the conference with 69.5 points per game and is 14th in scoring defense, allowing opponents to score 67.1 points per game.

Thabach, a 6-4 senior from Boise, Idaho, leads the Lady Buffs and is the sixth leading rebounder in the conference with 8.6 boards per game.

Thabach is the second-leading shot blocker in the LSC with 1.42 blocks per game and 17 total blocks. Jayla Burgess is blocking 0.83 shots per game, which is 13th-most in the conference.

Midwestern State returns to action on Saturday afternoon to host Lubbock Christian. Tip-off is scheduled for 1 p.m.
 

--MSUMustangs.com--