WBB Preview: Simpson closes regular season at Coe

INDIANOLA, Iowa -- Regular season play concludes on Saturday as the Simpson women's basketball team travels to Coe for a 2 p.m. showdown in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

The Storm (18-6, 10-5 A-R-C) defeated Central, 92-71, on Wednesday to seal third-place in the American Rivers Conference standings and will host in the first round of the tournament next week. The Kohawks won 74-73 against Nebraska Wesleyan on Wednesday on a last second free throw.

The game will be video streamed live on CoeAthletics.com. Andrew Swadner and Rick Wilson will have the call for the audio stream on KNIAKRLS.com. Fans can also access the video stream via the American Rivers application on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV and Android TV.

GAME 25
Simpson (18-6, 10-5) at Coe (15-9. 9-6)
Saturday, Feb. 16 | 2 p.m.
Kohawk Arena | Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Live Audio | Live Video | Live Stats

COE SERIES NOTES
The last two meetings have gone into overtime, with the Storm coming away with victories … this is the 59th all-time meeting in the series that dates back to the 1977-78 season … Simpson claims a 45-13 record, but both teams are 3-3 in the last six meetings … the Storm won 78-73 in the early season contest on Jan. 19 inside Cowles Fieldhouse.

RECENT RESULTS
Jan. 19, 2019 — W, 78-73, OT (Indianola)
Feb. 20, 2018 — W, 90-85, OT (Cedar Rapids)*
Feb. 17, 2018 — L, 87-59 (Indianola)
Jan. 10, 2018 — W, 71-56 (Cedar Rapids)
*IIAC Tournament

ABOUT THE KOHAWKS
Coe is coming into the game right behind the Storm and is tied for fourth place with Luther in the American Rivers Conference standings … the Kohawks have won their last five of six games to help earn a spot in the conference tournament next week … Jackie Feldt is third in the conference in scoring at 15.8 ppg and second in free throw percentage (79.8 percent) … Madeline Wilkins is first with 2.9 made 3-pointers per game in the conference and Sydney Schroeder leads the A-R-C by dishing out 4.7 assists per game.

LAST TIME OUT
Simpson jumped out to a quick 12-point lead after the first 10 minutes of play and never looked back against Central … the early was lead was contributed by eight different players scoring, while the Dutch just had two tally points in the opening quarter … The Storm had five players score in double figures, with Cassie Chubb leading with 18 points … Jenna Taylor and Johnson were close to netting double doubles as Taylor ended with 13 points and eight boards, and Johnson had 10 points and nine rebounds … the Coe's win, the team came back from 18-down in the third quarter to steal a win in Lincoln, Neb. … Jamie Feldt hit the game-winning free throw with 0.6 seconds on the clock after being fouled on a rebound attempt.

STORM NOTES

• Simpson has made 256 3-pointers through 24 games and surpassed the school record of 216 set during the 2011-12 season.
• 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 second in Division III with 256 3-pointers made, rank third with 10.5 3-pointers per game and rank seventh in 3-point percentage (38.0).
• The squad has been far from selfish on offense for the year and ranks seventh in the country with 429 assists. The Storm have dished more than 20 assists in eight games this season. Claire Johnson is second in the conference with 110 helpers.
• Jenna Taylor currently sits in fourth in Division III by shooting 47.1 percent from behind the arc.
• Simpson also boasts one of the best total offenses in the nation, averaging 80.0 ppg, ninth in Division III and first in the conference and are fourth in the country with 1.921 total points scored.
• Janey Botkins captured third all-time in career 3-pointers made. Botkins now has 168 career makes, which passed Morgan Mauro, who made 163 between 2012-16.
• At the charity stripe, the team is averaging 11.4 makes per game on 14.9 attempts to lead the conference with a 76.3 free throw percentage.
• Simpson has now made 30-or-more shots in two straight-games, breaking a slump of three-consecutive games on not reaching the feat.
• Cameron Kincaid leads the American Rivers Conference and ranks fifth in Division III in free throw percentage (89.2).
• The overtime loss at Nebraska Wesleyan was the team's first overtime defeat since Dec. 29, 2016. The Storm fell 77-69 against Puget Sound.

UP NEXT
The Storm begin postseason play on Tuesday as Nebraska Wesleyan comes to town. Game time to be determined.