No. 25 Harding (12-2, 8-0 GAC) vs. Southern Nazarene (6-9, 3-6 GAC)
Location: Searcy, Ark.
When: Saturday
Time: 1 p.m.
Coaches:
Harding – Tim Kirby (182-92, 10th season)
Southern Nazarene – Derek Dorris (3rd season)
Live Stats/Live Audio/Live Video– Available on a link at HardingSports.com
HARDING
- Harding will be playing its second game of a four-game homestand on Saturday as they host Southern Nazarene in Great American Conference action at the Rhodes Field House.
- The Lady Bisons will be looking for their ninth straight win and their eighth straight home win on Saturday.
- 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 (15th) as the only GAC schools in the poll.
- Harding is coming off a 62-50 win over East Central on Thursday in Searcy. Senior forward Arielle Saunders had 16 points, hitting 8-of-10 field goals and had 12 rebounds to lead the Lady Bisons.
- Harding is led on the season by Arielle Saunders who averages 16.3 points, ranking sixth in the GAC and 11.1 rebounds ranking second in the GAC.
- Saunders needs 89 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 911 career rebounds and is in third place all time at Harding. She needs 183 rebounds to move into second place.
- Senior guard Montana Lewis averages 10.8 points and 5.6 rebounds this season for Harding. She has scored 10 or more points in seven games this season. Lewis needs one free throw to get to 200 in her career and nine rebounds to reach 600. She would be the 11th player in Harding history to reach 600 career rebounds.
- The Lady Bisons have made at least 25 field goals in the last three games and have done it in eight games this season. Harding is shooting 45.6 percent from the field ranking second in the GAC. Arielle Saunders ranks fourth in the GAC, shooting 58.5 percent from the field. She has shot over 60 percent in the last two games and is shooting 62.7 percent at home this season.
- At home, Harding is averaging 79.4 points per game which is 21.7 more points than its opponents. The Lady Bisons average 44.7 rebounds per game which is 12.6 more than their opponents. Harding also averages 18.3 assists, 8.4 steals and 4.6 blocks per game.
- Sophomore guard A'ndrea Haney has done the dirty work for Harding this season. She leads the team in steals with 27 and ranks tied for first in the GAC averaging 1.9 per game. Haney also leads the team in assists with 56 and ranks first in the GAC averaging 4.0 per game.
- Harding is averaging 11.1 second chance points this season. The Lady Bisons have had over 10 points in the last four games. Harding has grabbed over 10 offensive rebounds in 11 games and has grabbed over 15 in three games.
SOUTHERN NAZARENE
- Southern Nazarene heads into the game with a 6-9 overall record and a 3-6 GAC record.
- The Crimson Storm is coming off a 61-58 road win at Ouachita Baptist on Thursday. The win snapped a five game losing streak and a three game conference losing streak. Southern Nazarene was led by sophomore forward Miranda Taylor who had 21 points, hitting three 3-pointers.
- The Crimson Storm are led on the season by senior forward Aminata Fall who averages 21.0 points per game, ranking her tied for first in the GAC. She also leads the conference and ranks 13th in NCAA Division II in rebounds averaging 12.1 per game. Fall also ranks seventh in Division II in defensive rebounds averaging 10.0 per game.
- Southern Nazarene's other GAC wins came against Southeastern Oklahoma and at Southwestern Oklahoma.
- Sophomore guard Abby Boyd ranks third in the GAC in 3-point field goals made averaging 2.4 per game. Aminata Fall ranks fifth in the GAC in 3-point field goal percentage shooting 42.9 percent from behind the arc.
- Aminata Fall leads the GAC and ranks third in NCAA Division II in blocks averaging 4.5 per game. She also ranks third in Division II with 11 double-doubles on the season.
SERIES
- Harding leads the series 3-2.
- The Lady Bisons are 2-0 at home against the Crimson Storm. Harding has won the last two meetings.
- In the two games against Southern Nazarene last season, Montana Lewis averaged 16.0 points, making 12-of-17 shots from the field. Arielle Saunders led Harding on the boards grabbing an average of 8.5 rebounds.
