WINONA, Minn. - The Winona State University women's basketball team returns to home court on Friday, Feb. 11, as they host the University of Sioux Falls in the first of three straight home games for the Warriors. The matchup against the Cougars is one of two NSIC tilts set for the weekend and WSU is looking to start off on the right foot tonight with postseason plans on the line.
In the eight-team South Division, the Minnesota State Mavericks have qualified for the postseason, while Upper Iowa University is mathematically eliminated. The remaining six teams are swimming in the murkiest of waters with five playoff spots available for six teams. Concordia - St. Paul, Augustana, SMSU, Sioux Falls and Wayne State join the Warriors this weekend in terms of playing for NSIC tournament opportunities.
Read on for more regarding Friday's showdown which will tip-off at 5:30pm in McCown Gymnasium, home of WNB Financial Court.
Who: Winona State University vs University of Sioux Falls
What: The Warriors (11-11, 8-10 NSIC) will face the Cougars (13-10, 8-8 NSIC)
When: Friday, February 11 with a 5:30 pm CST start.
Where: McCown Gymnasium, home of WNB Financial Court
Winona State - USF WBB Notables:
Heading into the Warrior weekend:
Senior weekend ... Friday and Saturday, Feb. 11-12 represent the last home weekend of the regular season for the Warriors. On Saturday WSU will honor their three seniors: Emma Fee, Taylor Hustad, and Emily Kieck, who have all been mainstays in the lineup and contributed significantly on and off the court to the Winona State women's basketball program.
Last time around ... Winona State traveled to Sioux Falls to take on the Cougars on Dec. 12 earlier this season. USF handed WSU a 74-54 defeat, where Emily Kieck led the way with 21 points for the Warriors.
Warriors - Mustangs rematch ... SMSU hosted Winona State on Dec. 10 and won a close contest, 69-64. The Warriors comeback effort was not enough down the stretch, but Lindsey Hahn had a breakout performance knocking down six treys and scoring 20 points.
The final stretch ... Winona State has just four games left in the regular season, three of which are home. They are currently sixth in the NSIC South, but are only one game out of fourth. The top six teams from each division will reach the NSIC Tournament.
Milestone markers ahead ... Heading into the weekend, Emily Kieck has scored 970 points in her career and Taylor Hustad is at 955 career points. There have been 18 Warriors who have reached the 1,000 point mark in WSU women's basketball history.
What's up with Winona State:
The Warriors are currently 11-11 overall and 8-10 in the NSIC. Last weekend, WSU dropped two contests on the road against Augustana and Wayne State, which ended their four-game win streak.
The Warriors are averaging 64.7 points/game on the offensive end, and have the sixth-best defense in the NSIC allowing just 65.2 points/game to their opponents.
WSU has attempted the second least amount of free throws in the NSIC, but when the Warriors get to the line they take advantage. As a team, Winona State is third in free-throw percentage at 76.5%.
Taylor Hustad leads WSU with 13.4 points/game. Emily Kieck (11.5 ppg) and Caitlin Riley (10.0 ppg) are averaging double-digit scoring as well.
Hustad grabs a team-leading 7.3 boards a game, while Fee brings in 6.1 of her own each game. Both marks are top-20 in the NSIC.
Caitlin Riley is averaging 2.3 makes from downtown per game on the season, which is the second most in the conference.
Kieck is leading the Warriors with 77 free-throw attempts and has made 65 of them, good for the third best free-throw percentage in the NSIC at 84.4%.
Hustad is leading the NSIC in field goal percentage as she has connected on 55.4% of her shots this season.
More Cougars considerations:
The Cougars are 13-10 overall and 8-8 within the NSIC. Last weekend, USF dropped both of their contests against the top two teams in the NSIC South, Concordia-St. Paul and Minnesota State.
Sioux Falls has the fourth-best defense in the NSIC, allowing just 63.4 points/game to their opponents. On offense, the Cougars put up 69.2 points each game, which is sixth in the conference.
USF holds the third-best 3-point field goal percentage in the league, hitting the deep ball at 33.3% and averaging 5.9 makes each game.
Two Cougars average double-figure points with Megan Fannin leading the way at 14.4 points/game. Krystal Carlson adds 10.1 points/game for USF as well.
Dallie Hoskinson is fifth in the NSIC, grabbing 7.5 rebounds/game to lead Sioux Falls on the boards.
Fannin is leading the conference in free-throw percentage, as she has made 59 of 66 attempts (89.4%).
Sioux Falls will travel to Upper Iowa for a Saturday afternoon matchup after playing the Warriors Friday evening.
For the most up-to-date news in Warrior Athletics, please visit: www.WINONASTATEWARRIORS.com and @WinonaStateATH.
About Winona State University Athletics:
The Winona State University Department of Intercollegiate Athletics, as an integral part of the educational mission of the institution, is committed to offering opportunities to experience academic and athletic excellence for our student-athletes through two simple words: Graduate Champions.
Fourteen Warrior programs compete at the NCAA Division II level within the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC). Winona State University competes as an affiliate member of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) in the sport of women's gymnastics
