No. 25 Harding (11-2, 7-0 GAC) vs. East Central (10-3, 6-1 GAC)
Location: Searcy, Ark.
When: Thursday
Time: 5:30 p.m.
Coaches:
Harding – Tim Kirby (181-92, 10th season)
East Central – Matt Cole (10-3, 1st season)
Live Stats/Live Audio/Live Video– Available on a link at HardingSports.com
HARDING
- Harding looks for its eighth straight win on Thursday as they host East Central in Great American Conference action. The Lady Bisons have not lost since Nov. 29 when they fell to then ranked No. 8 West Texas A&M 67-65.
- Harding also looks for its seventh straight win at home. The Lady Bisons are 7-0 at the Rhodes this season and are 40-4 at home since joining the GAC in 2011.
- Harding will playing at home for the first time in 2015 on Thursday. The Lady Bisons last home game was Dec. 18 when they beat Northwestern Oklahoma 73-57.
- The Lady Bisons moved to No. 25 in latest poll released on Tuesday. It marks 22 straight weeks Harding has been ranked which dates back to last season. The Lady Bisons have also been ranked 8th, 15th, 20th, 22nd and 25th this season. Harding joins Arkansas Tech (15) as the only GAC schools in the poll.
- Harding is coming off a 76-67 win at Southeastern Oklahoma on Saturday. The Lady Bisons were led by senior forward Arielle Saunders who had 18 points and grabbed a season-high with 15 rebounds. Harding had four other players in double figures. It was the second time this season the Lady Bisons have had five players score in double-figures.
- Harding is coming off a three game road trip. During the road trip, the Lady Bisons averaged 20.3 more points than their opponent, held their opponent to only scoring 51.3 points per game, shot 41.5 percent from the field, grabbed 46.3 rebounds per game and averaged 5.3 blocks per game. Arielle Saunders led Harding, averaging 17.7 points and 12.7 rebounds. Senior guard Montana Lewis averaged 11.7 points and freshman forward Sydney Layrock averaged 11.0 points.
- Harding is led on the season by Arielle Saunders who averages 16.3 points, ranking sixth in the GAC and 11.0 rebounds ranking second in the GAC.
- Saunders needs 101 more rebounds to become only the third player in Harding history to have 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds. Angie Dugger (1993-97) and Nancee Wilson (1989-93) are the only players to accomplish the feat. Saunders currently has 884 career rebounds and is in third place all time at Harding. She needs 195 rebounds to move into second place. Saunders, who is the all-time leader in offensive rebounds in the modern era, became the defensive rebounds all-time leader against Southeastern Oklahoma on Saturday when she grabbed 12 defensive rebounds.
- Montana Lewis is second on the team in points and rebounds. She averages 10.9 points and 5.8 rebounds. Lewis has scored in double-figures in the last four games, including 19 points against Northwestern Oklahoma. She needs five points to get to 900 in career. She also needs one more free throw to get to 200 and 12 rebounds to get to 600 in career.
- Harding is shooting 38.3 percent from behind the 3-point line, ranking second in the GAC. The Lady Bisons have three players ranked in the top 10 in 3-point field goal percentage. Freshman guard Lundon Williams ranks first, shooting 50.0 percent. She also leads the team with 20 made 3-pointers. Freshman guard Falan Miller ranks second, shooting 48.1 percent and Montana Lewis ranks tied for sixth, shooting 43.6 percent for Harding. It also ranks third in the GAC in 3-point field goals made with 7.3 per game.
- The Lady Bisons rank first in the GAC and 22nd in NCAA Division II in scoring defense as they don't allow their opponents to score more than 57.9 points per game.
- Harding also ranks first in the GAC and 10th in the NCAA Division II in field goal percentage defense as its opponents are shooting 34.7 percent from the field. During its road trip, the Lady Bisons held its opponents to shooting 31.1 percent.
- Harding ranks third in NCAA Division II in defensive rebounds per game averaging 32.3 per game. The Lady Bisons have grabbed over 30 defensive rebounds nine times this season, including a season-high 41 against Cameron in the second game of the season.
- Harding hasn't trailed more than 12 points this season. The Lady Bisons trailed by as much as 12 against West Texas A&M in the 67-65 loss. In the GAC Harding hasn't trailed more than eight. The Lady Bisons came from eight behind against Southwestern Oklahoma to win 105-69. Harding has led the entire game two times this season. The Lady Bisons never trailed against Delta State in the 65-40 win and didn't trail against Christian Brothers in the 69-42 win.
EAST CENTRAL
- East Central heads into the game with a 10-3 overall and 6-1 GAC record.
- The Tigers are coming off a 71-59 home loss to Ouachita Baptist last Saturday. East Central was led by Taylor Fischer who had 20 points, hitting three 3-pointers and was 7-of-7 at the free throw line.
- The Tigers are led on the season by senior forward Dilan Webster who ranks seventh in the GAC averaging 15.1 points per game. Sophomore forward Jalyn Jackson leads East Central on the boards averaging 6.4 per game.
- Senior guard Taylor Fischer ranks fifth in the GAC in 3-point field goals made, averaging 2.2 per game.
- East Central ranks first in the GAC in turnover margin as they average 6.62 fewer turnovers per game than its opponent. They also rank first in the GAC in turnovers as they only turn the ball over 10.2 times per game.
SERIES
- The series is tied 6-6.
- Harding holds a 5-1 record at home against East Central. The Lady Bisons have won the last three meetings in Searcy.
- East Central beat Harding 61-60 in overtime in Ada, Okla., in the last meeting. It was the Lady Bisons only conference loss last season.
