WBB Preview: Storm take on Luther in A-R-C contest

INDIANOLA, Iowa -- American Rivers Conference play continues on Sunday when the Simpson women's basketball team visits Luther for a 2 p.m. contest.

The Storm (12-3, 4-2 A-R-C) won their eighth game in a row on Wednesday in an 83-60 triumph at Buena Vista. The Norse (7-6, 5-1 A-R-C) were the last unbeaten team in the A-R-C until dropping an 80-69 game at Wartburg to stop a seven-game winning streak.

Fans can access the video stream via the American Rivers application on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV and Android TV or by visiting SimpsonAthletics.com to find the video link.

GAME 16
Simpson (12-3, 4-2 A-R-C) at Luther (7-6, 5-1 A-R-C)
Sunday, Jan. 19 | 2 p.m.
Regents Center Gymnasium | Decorah, Iowa
Live Video/Stats

LUTHER SERIES NOTES
The Storm and Norse meet for the 85th time in a series with Simpson owning a slight 47-37 tilt ... the Storm have won the last three of five matchups and swept the two meetings last season to stop Luther after it won five in a row before Simpson's recent success ... in both games last season, the Storm won by an average of 13.5 points.

RECENT RESULTS
Feb. 4, 2019 — W, 65-55 (Indianola)
Dec. 3, 2018 — W, 81-64 (Decorah)
Feb. 22, 2018 — L, 84-61 (Decorah)
Jan. 31, 2018 — L, 76-55 (Decorah)
Jan. 3, 2018 — W, 78-73 (Indianola)

ABOUT THE NORSE
Luther and ninth-year head coach Amanda Bailey started the campaign with five-straight losses before reeling off seven straight to go above .500 for the year ... the Norse suffered an 80-69 loss at Wartburg on Wednesday for their first blemish in league play this year ... as an offense, Luther is fifth in scoring at 73.5 ppg and in field goal percentage at 42.9% ... on defense, Luther is allowing its opponents to score 66.8 ppg for sixth ... Sarah Holtz is second in the league in scoring at 16.9 ppg and Laura Hamilton is nearby with 13.2 ppg.

LAST TIME OUT
Simpson extended its winning streak to eight games after an 83-60 road victory at Buena Vista on Wednesday ... the Storm scored 26 points in the first to open the gap and began the second half with 28 points to widen the margin once again ... Cameron Kincaid and Jenna Taylor both ended with 15 points as Taylor has now scored double digits in three-straight outings ... the tandem went 9-for-9 at the charity stripe and the whole squad only had two misses in 17 chances during the game.

STORM NOTES
Simpson in the national rankings:

1st — 3-point shooting (40.7%)
3rd — field goal percentage (48.7%), total points (1,259)
5th — scoring offense (83.9 ppg)
6th — assists (269)
8th — 3-pointers made (144), total points (1,259)
12th — assists per game (17.9)

Storm in the national rankings:

Kia Rasmussen — second in 3-point percentage (55.6)
Cassie Chubb — 14th in 3-pointers made (43), 16th in 3-point percentage (45.7)
Claire Johnson — 13th in assists (79), 18th in assists per game (5.3)
Cameron Kincaid — eighth in free throw percentage (90.9)

Simpson is second in the conference in scoring at 83.9 ppg and fourth in scoring defense by allowing 64.9 ppg.

All five starters are averaging double figures in scoring with Cassie Chubb at the top at 13.7 ppg. Cameron Kincaid is second at 12.1, followed by Cassie Nash (11.3), Kia Rasmussen (11.5) and Claire Johnson (10.2).

Over the last three games, Jenna Taylor has reached double figures while averaging 15.6 minutes per outing. Taylor scored 10 points in each of the first two contests before exploding for a season-high 15 at Buena Vista.

Head coach Brian Niemuth earned his 600th career victory on Dec. 21 in a 76-69 victory over Millikin. Niemuth became the ninth active women's basketball head coach in the NCAA Division III to hit the 600-win plateau.

UP NEXT
Simpson returns home to take on Wartburg this Wednesday, Jan. 22 in a 5:30 p.m. showdown inside Cowles Fieldhouse.