Posted: Jan 30, 2019

WBB Preview: Simpson hosts Wartburg in A-R-C showdown

INDIANOLA, Iowa -- The Simpson women's basketball team places its six-game win streak on the line when Wartburg visits Cowles Fieldhouse on Thursday for an American Rivers Conference contest.

The Storm (16-3, 8-2) defeated Dubuque 91-55 on Saturday in their fifth-largest scoring output of the year and were led once again by Jenna Taylor, who scored 19 points and had seven rebounds. The Knights (17-3, 10-1) rolled to a 73-33 win over Central and had three players score in double figures.

The game will be video streamed live on SimpsonAthletics.com, where Bryan Geelan will have the call. Fans can also access the video stream via the American Rivers application on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV and Android TV.

GAME 20
Wartburg (17-3, 10-1) at Simpson (16-3, 8-2)
Thursday, Jan. 31 | 6 p.m.
Cowles Fieldhouse | Indianola, Iowa
Live Video | Live Stats

WARTBURG SERIES NOTES
Simpson and Wartburg gear up for the 88th meeting all-time in the series that dates back to the 1976-77 season … the teams met earlier in the season on Nov. 28 with the Knights claiming a 83-69 victory … Wartburg currently owns an eight-game win streak in the series and has not allowed the Storm to score over 70 points in a game during that span.

RECENT RESULTS
Nov. 28, 2018 — L, 83-69 (Waverly)
Feb. 3, 2018 — L, 88-68 (Waverly)
Jan. 13, 2018 — L, 81-66 (Indianola)
Jan. 28, 2017 — L, 80-62 (Waverly)

ABOUT THE KNIGHTS
The Knights and 12th-year head coach Bob Amsberry enter on a six-game win streak and their last 11 of 12 … Wartburg is led by Adrienne Boettger (13.4 ppg) and Emma Gerdes (11.4 ppg), Boettger is first in the conference with a 71.1 field goal percentage … the Knights rely on their strong defense and they pace the league by giving up only 56.7 ppg and claim 28.6 rebounds per game on defense.

LAST TIME OUT
The Storm went on a 60-26 run in the second half to pull away for a 91-55 win over Dubuque on Saturday ... Simpson held a slim 31-29 lead at the halfway point, before a 13-3 surge in the third quarter jump-started the offense … the squad shot 47.1 percent from the field and made 12 baskets from behind the arc … the Knights held Central to score over 10 points in just one quarter on Saturday in the team's 73-33 blowout win … Boettger led the team with 17 points and went 7 of 9 from the floor … Wartburg displayed its tough defense and held the Dutch to a 23.2 percent shooting clip for the game.

STORM NOTES

This is the best start the Storm has had to a season since the team went 27-3 in 2012-13. It took until Feb. 2, 2013 for Simpson to garner its second loss of the year.
Simpson's 20 3-pointers against Dubuque on Jan. 5 are the second-most by a team in Division III this season. Westminster (Mo.) surpassed the Storm's mark with 21 treys against MacMurray on Jan. 16.
The Storm rank fifth in Division III with 193 3-pointers made, rank sixth with 10.1 3-pointers per game and rank 12th in 3-point percentage (37.7).
Simpson has made 192 3-pointers through 19 games and is on pace to crush the school record of 216 set during the 2011-12 season. Simpson has made at least 10 3-pointers in eight of the last nine games and is 8-1 when making 10-or-more 3s this season.
Simpson also boasts one of the best total offenses in the nation, averaging 80.6 ppg, seventh in Division III..
The Storm have also been stout on defense, recording at least 10 steals in all but two games this season. Simpson is a perfect 12-0 when snagging at least 12 steals. Senior guard Rachel Freland leads the team with 56 steals.
Janey Botkins increased her career 3-point total to 155 and moved into fourth all-time in school history. She needed just one to tie Tiffany Whitsell (153 from 1999-2003) for fourth before last game against Buena Vista. Morgan Mauro (163 from 2012-16) is third all-time.
Cameron Kincaid leads the American Rivers and ranks fifth in Division III in free throw percentage (90.2).

UP NEXT
After two straight home games, the Storm are back on the road and visit Loras on Saturday for a 2 p.m. matchup. Simpson lost 76-67 when the teams met on Jan. 2.