MANKATO, Minn.   —  The Minnesota State women’s basketball team (20-4, 16-4 NSIC) returns to Taylor Center for the final weekend of the regular season, as it looks to finish the season with 13 straight wins. The Mavericks will do battle with the University of Sioux Falls (12-12, 9-11 NSIC) and Southwest Minnesota State (4-22, 2-18 NSIC) and bring home an 11 game win-streak dating to Jan. 19 when MSU knocked off Minnesota, Duluth 77-71. The Mavericks currently sit in second place both in the overall conference standings and the south division standings. MSU trails Concordia-St. Paul by one game, but holds a one game lead over Augustana and also owns the tie-breaker over the Vikings.

Looking Back: The Mavericks competed in their final road games of the regular season this past weekend as they downed the University of Upper Iowa Peacocks last Friday in Fayette, Iowa by a score of 76-59 and completed the weekend sweep earning the 77-68 victory over Winona State earning their 11th straight win.   

A Little on the Cougars:  The Minnesota State women’s basketball team will have revenge on its mind as they look to level the season series with Sioux Falls at 1-1. The Cougars handed the Mavericks their first loss of the season in a match-up in Sioux Falls, S.D. earlier this season. USF won the game 77-64 and connected on 13-of-21 (62%) from behind the arc. The Cougars were led by Laura Johnson who went 6-of-8 (75%) from behind the arc and notched a game-high 24 points. The Mavericks were led by Junior forward Ali Wilkinson who recorded 15 points. Since the game the Cougars have gone 7-8 in their last 15 games.

Scouting Southwest Minnesota State: SMSU enters this weekend’s contests with a 4-22 overall record and a mark of 2-18 in NSIC play. The Mavericks downed the Mustangs 86-56 in their previous match-up in Marshall, Minn. Junior Karlee Gengenbacher paced the Mavericks with 22 points and as a team MSU connected on 11-of-24 of its shots from behind the arc and forced SMSU to commit 22 turnovers. Since the previous game the Mustangs have gone 2-14 on the circuit

Join the Club!: This past weekend junior forward Ali Wilkinson netted her 1,000 career- point against Winona State making her the 20th student-athlete to reach 1,000 career-points in program history Lisa Walters (1984-’88) holds the program’s scoring record, she tallied 2,072 points.

We’re Going Streaking!: MSU returns to the friendly confines of Taylor Center on an 11 game win-streak, the longest of the season. The Mavericks started the season 7-0, hit a rough patch going 4-4, but returned to winning ways going 11-0 in their past 11 contests. MSU is currently 11-0 at home this season.

Lights Out: Minnesota State connected on 62-of-117 (53%) of its shots from the field and 18-of-35 of its shots from behind the three-point arc this past weekend as it picked up wins over the University of Upper Iowa and Winona State

Moving On Up: The Minnesota State University women’s basketball was ranked No. 21 in the latest edition of the USA Today Top-25 Coaches Poll released on Feb. 19. The Mavericks have been ranked as high as No. 20 during the 2012-13 campaign.
Turning the Table: MSU currently leads the NSIC in turnover margin boasting a +6.04 advantage over its opponents. The Mavericks forced then eighth-ranked Augustana to commit 26 turnovers while only committing 10, owning a +16 turnover margin on Jan. 26 at Taylor Center.

Tremendous Turnovers: Through 24 games this season the Mavericks have turned the ball over 378 times, compared to 524 by their opponents, owning a +147 margin in the turnover column. In Taylor Center the Mavericks own a +146 turnover ratio and have committed 164 turnovers compared to 250 by their opponents.

Earning it from the Stripe: The Mavericks finished the first half against Minnesota Duluth 1-of-5 (20%) from the charity stripe, since then MSU has converted on 151-of-196 (77%) of its shots from the free-throw line over a ten and a half game span.

In the Polls: The Minnesota State University women’s basketball team has received some love in the USA Today Division II Top-25 coaches poll. The Mavericks started receiving votes in the week one poll and have been ranked as high as No. 20. MSU is currently receiving votes in the latest edition of the poll. MSU is currently ranked No. 25 in the most recent poll.

Week        Pos. (Votes)
Preseason    -
Week 1         RV (10)
Week 2        RV (27)
Week 3        RV (39)
Week 4        RV (95)
Week 5        RV (88)
Week 6         24
Week 7        20
Week 8        RV (19)
Week 9         RV (20)
Week 10        RV (23)
Week 11        25

High-Powered Match-Up: The Minnesota State University women’s basketball team is currently ranked second in the NSIC in scoring offense, averaging 76.0 points per contest, the Mavericks are ranked 12th in the nation in the same category. Glenville State leads the nation in scoring, averaging 96.3 points per game.

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