Western Oregon (3-15, 2-8) at Western Washington (12-6, 8-2)Game 19 | Jan. 28 | 5:15 p.m. PT | Whatcom Pavilion | Bellingham, Wash.Series:Â Western Washington leads 46-8
Last Meeting: Jan. 2, 2016 – Lost, 61-59 in Monmouth
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Western Oregon (3-15, 2-8) at Simon Fraser (7-8, 5-5)Game 20 | Jan. 30 | 5:15 p.m. PT | West Gym | Burnaby, B.C., CanadaSeries:Â Simon Fraser leads 13-5
Last Meeting: Dec. 31, 2015 – Won, 58-57 in Monmouth
Live Stats/Video: WOU Portal |
Notes: WOU –
WWU - SFU
STORYLINES- Western Oregon seeks to begin the second half of GNAC play strong when they travel to Western Washington on Thursday and Simon Fraser on Saturday.
- Both games are scheduled to tip-off at 5:15 p.m. Thursday's game against WWU will be played in the Pavilion at Whatcom Community College while a renovation at Carver Gymnasium continues.
- The Wolves went 2-8 in the first half of league play, matching their win total over the same span from last year.
ABOUT WESTERN OREGON- Last time out: Western Oregon fell twice at home last week after their opponents built up solid leads in the first half. On Jan. 21, Central Washington made a 15-point halftime lead stick defeating the Wolves, 52-37. Jordan Mottershaw paced WOU with 11 points while Emily Howey had eight points and seven rebounds. On Jan. 23, Northwest Nazarene used a 22-8 spurt in the second quarter to break a 14-14 stalemate and carry that momentum to a 63-51 win over WOU. Natalie DeLonge scored a team-high 10 points off the bench for the Wolves while a returning Kaylie Boschma ripped down seven rebounds.
- Despite not having one player averaging more than 10 points per game, Western Oregon has eight players averaging more than 4.2 points per game. Leading through 18 games is Jordan Mottershaw at 8.7 points followed by Sydney Azorr at 7.2 points.
- WOU is scoring 52.9 points per game while, in comparison, opponents are scoring 66.1 points per contest.
- All three wins for WOU have come at home – in overtime against Evergreen State on Nov. 22, a close call against Simon Fraser on Dec. 31 and a double-digit win over Concordia on Jan. 12.
- Head coach Holli Howard-Carpenter is in her third year at Western Oregon.
- Western Oregon was picked to finish 10th in the GNAC regular season title by the league's coaches after finishing ninth in the league with a 5-13 conference record in 2014-15.
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ABOUT WESTERN WASHINGTON- WWU had a three-game win streak snapped on Thursday with a 53-47 loss at Montana State Billings.
- Western Washington is ranked 10th in the D2SIDA West Region poll this week.
- The Vikings' .470 field goal percentage is seventh in the country and leads the GNAC.
- Kayla Bernsen is 16th in the nation with 41 blocked shots and ranks second in the league.
- WWU has the fifth best scoring offense (66.1 ppg) and ranks fourth in scoring defense (60.6 ppg).
- Western Washington head coach Carmen Dolfo is in her 25th year in Bellingham amassing a 527-198 overall record.
- The Wildcats were picked to finish second in the GNAC preseason coaches' poll.
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ABOUT SIMON FRASER- Simon Fraser has dropped their last two games following a three-game win streak. The Clan lost at Western Washington, 69-58, on Jan. 19 and fell short, 67-62, in a comeback effort at Montana State Billings on Jan. 23.
- SFU is eighth in the NCAA in 3-point buckets per game, making 9.3 outside shots a contest. They share the ball well to rank 25th-best at 16.3 helpers per game.
- Ellen Kett plays the second-most minutes (36.8) in the GNAC and is seventh in the Division II ranks dishing out 6.3 assists per game.
- Simon Fraser is led by 15th-year head coach Bruce Langford. During his tenure, SFU has won five CIS National Championships.
- The Clan were picked to finish fifth in the GNAC preseason coaches' poll.
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