This Week's Women's Basketball Storylines:

[ WSU Game Notes | SMSU Game Notes | Live Video | Live Audio | SMSU Live Stats | USF Live Stats ]

ROAD WARRIORS: Winona State hits the road for their first conference road trip of the season to take on Southwest Minnesota State and the University of Sioux Falls. The Warriors will play the Mustangs Friday at 6 p.m. at the R/A Facility in Marshall and then will take on the Cougars on Saturday night at 4 p.m. at the Stewart Center in Sioux Falls.

BY A WIDE MARGIN: Through five games, WSU is currently fourth in the NSIC in scoring offense at 82.0 points-per-game and is third in the NSIC in scoring defense at 51.0 points-per-game. They are second in the league in scoring margin, outscoring their opponents by 31.0 points-per-game.

HIGH PERCENTAGE SHOTS: Winona State's efficiency on the offensive end is showing in a big way. The Warriors are second in the NSIC in field goal percentage (49.0), first in three-point percentage (45.8), and second in free throw percentage (78.2).

BALANCING ACT: While WSU only has two players in the top 30 in the NSIC in scoring, the Warriors have been able to put up big numbers through five games with balanced scoring. Winona State currently has six players that average between six and 12 points-per-game. To top it off, all 15 players on WSU's active roster have scored this season.

SHOWING HER 'WIRTH': Sophomore Emily Wirth is already showing tremendous strides of improvement coming off of the bench for WSU. She is currently second in the NSIC in free throw percentage (92.9), going 13-of-14 from the charity stripe. In her freshman season, Wirth only attempted five free throws the entire season.

LOOKING FOR PAYBACK: WSU will try to avenge a 65-61 loss to Southwest Minnesota State from last year's game in Marshall. It is the 74th matchup against Southwest Minnesota State and while WSU is 29-44 in the series history against SMSU, the Warriors have won 13 of the last 15 matchups against the Mustangs.

MATCHING UP WITH THE MUSTANGS: While the Warriors have started out the season 5-0, the Mustangs conversely are 0-5 to start the season. WSU will need to take advantage against SMSU's dead last rank in the NSIC in scoring defense (84.8 points-per-game) and contain the Mustangs' 15th ranked scoring offense (60.0 points-per-game). WSU will try to use its depth to its advantage, as the Warriors only played eight players in last year's game in Marshall. The Warriors are going 11 to 15 deep on their roster this season.

QUEEN OF THE HILL: Winona State and Sioux Falls are already in an early season battle for first place in the NSIC South. Both the Warriors and the Cougars are tied with Wayne State atop of the NSIC with 5-0 records and both won their first NSIC games last week. Winona State defeated their travel partner in Upper Iowa 85-69 at home, while Sioux Falls dominated SMSU 91-50 in Marshall.

MATCHING UP WITH THE COUGARS: Both Winona State and Sioux Falls have explosive offenses. While the Warriors are 4th in the NSIC in scoring offense, the Cougars are third at 82.2 points-per-game, and have only scored one more point than the Warriors through five games. While Sioux Falls has an explosive offense, the team struggles from the charity stripe, as they are last in the NSIC by only shooting 60.2 percent from the free throw line.

FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING: The Warriors will be looking for their first win ever against the Cougars in the Stewart Center. Winona State and Sioux Falls are matching up for only the seventh time in the series history of the two programs. The Warriors are 3-3 all-time against Sioux Falls and are 2-2 against the Cougars since Sioux Falls joined the NSIC in 2012, but the Warriors have yet to get a win against them in Sioux Falls.