Women's Basketball | 1/15/2014 10:00:00 AM

WWU GAME NOTES (PDF)            SFU GAME NOTES (PDF)

MONMOUTH, Ore. – The Western Oregon University women's basketball team ride into a pair of Great Northwest Athletic Conference matchups at home, against Western Washington Thursday and Simon Fraser Saturday, after a road win at Alaska.

The Wolves (5-8, 2-3 Great Northwest Athletic Conference) are coming off of two of their best shooting performances of the season. WOU made 46 percent of its shots in a loss at Alaska-Anchorage last Thursday, before making a season-high 47 percent in a win at Alaska Saturday. However, Western Oregon's turnovers have limited its opportunities recently. In the last four games the Wolves have committed 112 turnovers.

A key to Western Oregon's success in Fairbanks was a balanced effort. The Wolves finished with five players scoring in double-digits led by freshman Jordan Mottershaw's 19 points.

"We had a lot of people step up and contribute," WOU Head Coach Howard-Carpenter said. "It was a great team win. We had a lot of help off of the bench. I was proud of the way we fought in that one."

The Wolves return home and welcome Western Washington Thursday. The Vikings (7-6, 3-2 GNAC) own the conference's longest win streak at two games. WWU has won four of its last five, including over No. 18 NNU. Western Washington has won 24 straight at home, but is 3-6 away from Bellingham this season.

The Vikings are one of the most accurate three-point shooting teams in NCAA Div. II. WWU is 13th in the nation at 38.2 percent. Western Washington's 45.5 field goal percentage and 4.9 blocks per game are both in the top 25 in the country as well. WWU is second in the GNAC averaging 15.2 turnovers per game. Katie Colard's 2.8 made three-pointers per game leads the GNAC, and her 40.2 three-point field goal percentage is sixth. Colard leads the team with 13.4 points per game. Sarah Hill's 6.3 rebounds per contest paces the Vikings.

"Western Washington is a very disciplined team," Howard-Carpenter said. "They're shooting the ball really well right now. We're going to have to do a good job defensively to be in the game with them. Offensively, we just have to keep attacking like we have in the past few games."

Thursday's Western Oregon and Western Washington matchup will be the 50th between the programs. The first meeting was a WOU 68-65 win in Monmouth in 1976. Western Washington has won 10 straight meetings in the series. The last Wolves' win was a 65-57 victory at WWU on Feb. 23, 2008. The last WOU win over the Vikings in Monmouth was in 2007.

Western Oregon welcomes Simon Fraser (9-4, 3-2) for the 14th meeting all-time Saturday. The Clan has won 10 of the previous 13 meetings. SFU has won four straight matchups in the series. The last Wolves' win was a 75-68 victory at home on Feb. 5, 2011. The first meeting was a WOU 58-54 win in 1986.

Simon Fraser, which is one spot out of the NCAA Div. II Top 25, is receiving 72 points in the national poll. It enters the week after an upset loss at home to Central Washington, but two nights earlier the Clan beat No. 18 NNU. SFU's Erin Chambers leads the GNAC with 22.5 points per game, which is also 11th in NCAA Div. II. She is making an average of 2.0 three-pointers per outing, while shooting 31.6 percent from behind-the-arc.

The Clan is holding opponents to 24 percent shooting from behind the perimeter, which is 16th in the country. Simon Fraser has struggle on the glass. It is 10th in the conference with a -4.4 rebound margin. Meg Wilson leads the Clan with 7.2 rebounds per contest. Marie-Line Petit is dishing out 3.9 assists per game.

Thursday's tipoff against Western Washington is scheduled for 7 p.m., while the SFU game is scheduled for 5:15 p.m. Saturday. Both games will be televised throughout the Willamette Valley on KWVT. Live video and stats will also be available on WOUWolves.com.