SBU BEARCATS (3-14, 1-9 MIAA) vs CENTRAL MISSOURI JENNIES (9-8, 5-5 MIAA)

SATURDAY, JANUARY 23, 2010 • 5:30 PM
BOLIVAR, MO • MEYER SPORTS CENTER
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SBU NOTES | UCM NOTES
   
BOLIVAR, Mo. – The second half of the MIAA slate begins Saturday for the conference, and the SBU Bearcats start round two with the Central Missouri Jennies. The Bearcats and Jennies opened their MIAA schedules on December 2, with UCM winning on their home floor 69-60. SBU will look to snap a six-game slide Saturday, with their last three games lost by a combined 13 points.
   
Senior Rachel Graves continues to lead the Bearcats, scoring 12.8 points per game, 11th-most in the MIAA. Graves is also among the leaders in a few other key categories, including three-pointers made, (3rd, averaging 2.8 treys a game), three-point percentage, (3rd, at 39.8%) and minutes played per game (5th, with 31.1). 
        
Point guard Ashleigh Gallio is one of the MIAA's top passers, averaging 4.1 assists a game, ranking her third among the league leaders. Courtney Heady is a key component for SBU, scoring in double figures in 10 of the last 12 games, earning her a starting spot last weekend against Northwest Missouri. Heady's 10.5 points per game puts her 19th in the MIAA. Freshman forward Chasity Prince has heated up since earning a starting spot, putting up 14 points and five rebounds against Nebraska-Omaha and NWMSU, before scoring a career high 24 points and six rebounds against Missouri Western.

THE COACHES AND THE ALL-TIME SERIES
SBU head coach J.C. Carter is in his second season on the bench for the Bearcats, where he has earned a career mark of 11-34. Last season, Carter led the 'Cats to an upset of nationally-ranked Emporia State on their own floor, and earned a berth into the MIAA Tournament. 
   
One of the winningest active coaches in Division II, Dave Slifer has earned a school record of 99-65 over six and a half seasons at UCM. Including stops at Missouri Western and Mount Mercy College (NAIA), Slifer has recorded a career mark of 482-164 over 21 years. The Jennies have dominated the all-time series, leading 42-11 and taking 10 of the last 12. The last Bearcat win came in the 2007-08 season.

SCOUTING THE JENNIES
The Jennies of Central Missouri return to Bolivar two months after their appearance in the SBU Thanksgiving Classic, where they defeated Drury on a buzzer-beater before falling to Quincy on the second day of the tournament. Central Missouri bounced back from a recent four-game slide to take two of its last three matchups, including a 22-point win over the MWSU Griffons. Guard Deidra Dace and center Rebecca Roberts are a one-two punch for the Jennies, averaging 11.4 and 11.0 points a game, respectively. Junior guard Danielle Shows is a defensive force, averaging 7.5 boards a game (5.1 defensive rebounds a game, tied for most in the MIAA). Kara Fleming is dealing out an average of 4.2 assists per game, second-most in the conference.

NEXT UP FOR THE SBU BEARCATS
SBU hosts the Lions of Missouri Southern on Saturday, January 30. The Lions knocked off SBU in Joplin earlier this season by a narrow 62-61 score. The duo of guards of Jasmine Lovejoy and Jolea Apon scored 23 and 11 points against the Bearcats back in the December matchup. Lovejoy is the leading scorer for Southern, with 16.1 points per game. Lovejoy ranks third in the MIAA in rebounds as well, with 7.2 a game. Apon is the team's three-point specialist, hitting 2.7 threes a game (3rd in MIAA, just behind SBU's Graves).