Denver Game Notes (.pdf)

DENVER – The University of South Alabama women’s basketball team will close out its current two-game road trip on Sunday when the Lady Jags travel to face Sun Belt Conference West Division foe Denver.
   
“Denver is an exceptionally gifted scoring team,” South Alabama head coach Rick Pietri said of the Pioneers.  “The can put the ball in the goal in a number of different ways, whether it is on the interior or shooting a three.  They run really good set plays and they are very well coached.  They are also exceptional at home with an 11-2 record there this year.  I think our teams are comparable, but being in the building makes it an uphill battle for us.  They are also playing very well right now, having won their last three games by an average of 24 points.  It ‘s going to take a yeomen’s effort for us to get a win in their building on Sunday afternoon.”

Tip-off versus the Pioneers is set for 4:30 p.m. (CT) at Magness Arena.  Live stats and video can be accessed at www.usajaguars.com. 

South Alabama enters the game this weekend after improving to 15-10 overall and 7-6 in the Sun Belt with a 79-61 victory at North Texas on Thursday.  USA trailed by one at the intermission, but used a dominant second-half effort to rally back and pick up the 18-point victory.  The win snapped a four-game SBC road skid for the Lady Jags.

USA continues to rank among the league leaders in three-point shooting, scoring defense, field goal percentage defense and three-point field goal defense.  The Lady Jags’ 7.2 treys per game lead the conference, while they are shooting 34.4 percent from the arc.  South Alabama is also holding its opponents to 57.2 points per game, 37 percent shooting from the floor and 24.4 percent from the three-point line - fourth-best in the NCAA.

Christian Shelter is coming off her second career double-double as she recorded a season-high 23 points and a career-high 13 rebounds.  Of Shelter’s 23 points, 16 came in the second half.  The senior forward leads the team offensively and ranks 15th in the Sun Belt with 12.5 points per outing.  She also tops the club with 50 three-pointers and is hitting 36 percent of attempts from long range.

Junior guard Sarda Peterson is right behind Shelter in both categories.  The Ft. Myers, Fla., native is averaging 11.1 ppg and has knocked down 47 treys on the year.  She is shooting 26.2 percent from the arc.  Fellow junior Lauren Walker leads the conference from the three-point line, hitting 45 percent of her attempts.

Senior point guard Siedah Banks is averaging 8.3 points per game and her 2.5 assist/turnover ratio ranks seventh nationally.  She is averaging 4.2 assists per game.

Denver comes into Sunday’s match up versus the Jags sitting in second place in the SBC West Division with a 16-10 record and an 8-5 mark in the league.  Like USA, the Pioneers had a close first half versus Louisiana-Monroe in their last game, but exploded for 58 points in the final period of play to cruise to a 87-63 victory. 

DU was 16-of-25 from the field in the second half for 64 percent.  The Pioneers are shooting 45.7 percent - first in the Sun Belt and 13th in the NCAA.  They are also tied with Middle Tennessee for the league lead in assists (15.3) and are first blocked shots (4.7).  Not only has Denver been efficient from the field, but they are tied for second with the Jags in three-point shooting.

Preseason first-team all-SBC selection has definitely lived up to the honor as she ranks third in the conference in scoring with 16.6 ppg and 10th in rebounding with 7.2 per game.  Her 60.3 field goal percentage not only leads the league, but also ranks fourth in the NCAAs.  Murdoch also leads the SBC in blocks with 2.1 per game.

Senior Brianna Culberson (14.3 ppg - seventh) and Britteni Rice (13.8 ppg - ninth) also rank among the Sun Belt leaders in scoring.  Culberson is shooting 52.6 percent from the field and 41.8 percent from the arc, while Rice - a preseason third-team selection - is hitting 43.6 percent - second in the SBC. 

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com.  Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

NOTES: Sunday’s game against Denver will be the 22nd in the all-time series.  Denver holds a 15-6 advantage in the series, including an 8-2 mark in Denver against the Jags.  Under Pietri, the Pioneers are 13-6 against USA and 7-2 in the “Mile High” city.  South Alabama’s last win in Denver came back during the 2005-06 season a 74-66 victory.  Last season, the Pioneers picked up a pair of three-point victories, including a 64-61 win in Mobile to close out the regular season. Throughout the last 12 games of the series, 11 have been decided by single digits, with seven by four points or less.  Three of those games have also had to go into extra time.  The meeting between Pietri and Denver head coach Erik Johnson will be just the fourth between the two coaches.  Johnson has won each of the previous three meetings, but each has either been decided by three-points or gone into overtime.  All three meetings have come at the two coaches’ current schools.