MINOT, N.D. – Winona State University travels to Minot State University on Wednesday for a first round game in the 2018 NSIC Women's Basketball Tournament. Game time is scheduled for 6 p.m.
The winner will advance to The Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D. for the remainder of the tournament slated for February 24-27.
Winona State (14-12, 10-12 NSIC) won a tiebreaker for the four seed in the South, but still must travel to Minot State (14-12, 11-11 NSIC) who is the five seed from the North due to the Beavers owning a better overall conference record.
Winona has had a bit of a rollercoaster season, opening the year with a 13-1 record before being mired in a 10-game skid. However, the Warriors regained some of their early-season momentum with a big win over then-No. 10 Augustana last weekend.
The Warriors have won at least one game in the conference tournament each of the past three seasons, including two in the last two years, and reached the semifinals last season where they fell in overtime.
NOTES
SEEDING SHAKEUP: Winona State was able to secure the fourth seed in the NSIC south division as they finished the year. The Warriors (8-6 NSIC South) finished tied with Minnesota State (7-7 NSIC South) who also had a 10-12 conference record, but were able to edge them out in the seeding process due to Winona State having one more win in the divisional standings. Even though the Warriors are seeded ahead of the Beavers, Winona State is forced to travel to Minot as the Beavers ended the season with the better overall conference record.
WEEKEND RECAP: The Warriors looked like their early-season selves as they opened up the final weekend of the regular season with a win over No. 10 Augustana. Winona State outscored the Vikings in the second half 42-31 en route to a 71-67 victory. Gabie Doud led the Warriors to a second half comeback scoring 16 of her 19 points in the final two frames to seal the victory. Saturday's contest against Wayne State was a back and forth affair. With seven lead changes in the final quarter alone, the Wildcats were able to get off a last second shot that went in to defeat the Warriors 60-59.
SCOUTING THE BEAVERS: The last time these two teams faced off, the Beavers were in the middle of what would turn out to be a season-high seven-game winning streak. Since then, Minot State would finish the season on a 5-3 run with their most notable win taking place at Sioux Falls. Minot State would finish the season with an 8-6 mark in 2018. The Beavers put up 67.4 points per game this year which was good for fifth in the conference. The Beavers also dominated the offensive boards finishing second with 13.4 per game. Holly Johnson is the beavers sharp shooter finishing fourth in the league with 16 points per game. She is on a bit of a hot streak as she has collected six double-doubles in her past nine games.
LEAVING HER MARK: Hannah McGlone has made a lasting impact on the Winona State women's basketball program over her playing career. When the ball tips Wednesday, McGlone will play in her 120th career game which marks the most games played in Winona State women's basketball history. The four-year starter has shot 54 percent from the field and has averaged 8.8 points and 7.7 rebounds per game over her career. McGlone recently surpassed the 1,000-point mark and is on the cusp of another major milestone. Currently with 916 rebounds, she is 13 boards away from breaking Lisa Parsons all-time record of 928. She currently sits second in the NSIC in field goal percentage (54), has consistently been in the top 10 in scoring all season (14.3 ppg), and still holds the top spot in rebounds per game (10.2).
BREAKOUT SEASON: Freshman guard Allie Pickrain has stepped up in her rookie campaign and stood out from the crowd. The Apple Valley, Minn. native finished second on the team in scoring average (12.3) and three-point field goal percentage (42) during the regular season. She led the conference in three-point percentage as she made the minimum of 2.5 per game, as well as ranking 19th in the country in that same category.
