WBB Preview: Storm at Buena Vista, 1/23/17
The Simpson women's basketball team looks to capture its third straight win when it travels to Storm Lake, Iowa to face the Buena Vista Beavers at Siebens Fieldhouse on Monday, Jan. 23. The game was originally scheduled to take place last Monday, but was postponed due to icy road conditions. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.
GAME SETUP
Matchup: Simpson (7-10, 4-4 IIAC) at Buena Vista (9-8, 5-3 IIAC)
Location: Storm Lake, Iowa • Siebens Fieldhouse
Time: Wednesday, Jan. 23 • 6 p.m.
Last Time Out: Simpson beat Coe 64-61
Live Video/Stats: www.BVUAthletics.com
Series: Simpson leads 48-30
THE OPPONENT
The Beavers emphatically snapped a three-game losing streak with an 85-66 win over then-conference co-leader Luther on Saturday. The Beavers jumped out to a 16-0 lead, getting 15 points from Morgan Muhlbauer. Jasmine Demers leads the team with 12.4 ppg but Muhlbauer has led the way in conference play, averaging 12.4 ppg.
THE SERIES
Simpson and Buena Vista meet for the 79th time in a series that dates back to 1976-77. Simpson leads the all-time series 48-30 but is just 17-18 against the Beavers in Storm Lake. The teams split last year's regular season meetings but Buena Vista had the final say, beating the Storm 87-61 in the first round of the IIAC Tournament.
STORM STORYLINES
1 -- Since starting the season 1-6, Simpson has gone 6-4 in the last nine games. A big reason for the turnaround has been improved play on the defensive end of the floor, where the Storm are allowing just 62.4 ppg while holding opponents to 35.6 percent shooting. Simpson gave up 76.6 ppg in the first seven games of the season, allowing opponents to shoot 41.6 percent.
2 -- With 34 3-pointers on the season, Janey Botkins is on pace to become the first Simpson freshman to lead the team in 3-point shooting in 12 years. She has 19 more 3-pointers than anyone else on the team, making multiple 3s eight times. The last freshman to lead the team in 3s was Carlie Beals, who made 46 in her rookie season of 2004-05.
3 -- Junior post Noreen Morrow has led the Storm in scoring in 12 of 17 games this season, reaching double figures in all but two contests. Among the Iowa Conference leaders in points (16.9, 3rd), rebounds (8.4, 4th) and field goal percentage (55.4, 2nd), she is on pace to become the first Simpson player to average at least 15 points and eight rebounds since Kate Nielsen averaged 22.3 ppg and 8.8 rpg in 2012-13.
4 -- Despite suffering nine losses this season, the Storm have rarely found themselves out of games. In six of the team's 10 losses, the Storm have led in the second half. The Storm have held second half leads in each of its last four losses, leading by as many as five in the fourth quarter of last Saturday's loss to Coe.
5 -- At 7-10 overall, the Storm need to win six of their last eight regular season games to extend the program's streak of consecutive winning seasons to 20. The 1996-97 squad was the last to finish with a losing record, going 11-14.
