Game Notes

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BOLIVAR, Mo. -- The Bearcats look to bounce back after a heart-breaking two point loss at the hands of Central Missouri, by heading to Jefferson City and taking on MIAA newcomer Lincoln. The game can be found live on 99.9 KBFL, and streaming online at www.radiospringfield.com. A live webcast will be availiable as well, at www.AmericaOne.com.

THE COACHES AND ALL-TIME SERIES
SBU head coach J.C. Carter is in his third season on the Bearcat bench, where his teams have shown improvement each season. Last year's 10-18 mark was two games better than Carter's first year in Bolivar.

Katie Vaughn enters her first season as Lincoln University's head women's basketball coach. Previously coach Vaughn served as the head coach of the Moberly Area Community College women's basketball team, where her teams combined record was 56-37.

SBU has dominated the series with Lincoln, posting a 22-6 record over the Blue Tigers. Lincoln was a member of the MIAA until 1999, and have returned for the 2010-11 season. The Bearcats have won the past 16 games against Lincoln, dating back to 1990-91.

LAST TIME OUT FOR THE BEARCATS
After Ashleigh Gallio's game-tying three-pointer with 7.7 seconds left on the clock, Central Missouri's Nicole Caddell was able to draw the foul and hit a pair of free throws, giving UCM the 63-61 win.

“We came out a little flat in the first half,” said Carter after the game. “Our defense looked pretty good, though, and Whitney [Malone] had a great night rebounding.” The senior brought down 15 boards, five more than her previous career high of ten, which she had two weeks ago against Missouri Baptist. The Bearcats out-rebounded their opponent for the first time this season, by a 42-37 margin over Central Missouri. Malone's 15 boards are the most by a Bearcat since 2008.

Courtney Heady led the Bearcats with 11 points off 4-of-13 shooting, and 3-of-11 from beyond the arc. Freshman Jacqui Zelenka scored seven points in the first game since her 6-of-6 performance against Central Methodist a week ago. LaKendra Smith and Kourtni Williams led the SBU bench with nine points apiece.

QUICK HITS
• Freshman Jacqui Zelenka leads the Bearcats with 10.2 points per game, the lone Bearcat to average double-figures. Her 20-point performance against Central Methodist is the most points scored by a Bearcat this season.

• Senior forward Whitney Malone is one of the early front-runners for the MIAA All-Defense team, ranking second in the conference in rebounds (8.0/pg) and steals (3.8/pg.

• Although the Bearcats have one of the lowest-scoring offenses in the MIAA (61.4 ppg, 11th in the league), They have held opponents to just 57 points per game, third-best in the MIAA.

• Last season, the Bearcats hit a conference best 9.8 threes per game. The production from outside has slowed during this season, hitting just 5.8 treys each game (7th in MIAA).

• After leading the conference last year, senior guard Ashleigh Gallio saw continues to play a high number of minutes, leading the MIAA with averaging 35.0 this season. Gallio leads the team in assists, (2.6/pg) as well.

• Senior Courtney Heady has become SBU's biggest deep threat, averaging 2.2 three pointers made a game, 8th most in the MIAA. Heady is averaging 33.3% from beyond the arc.

SCOUTING THE BLUE TIGERS
After dropping their MIAA opener to Fort Hays State, the Blue Tigers are looking to stop a 4-game skid when they host the Bearcats.

Lincoln averages just 55.8 points per game, the lowest average offense in the league, while allowing 68.6 points to their opponents. Most of the Lincoln offense works in the post, as they have taken the fewest three-point shots, and have hit the lowest average of treys in the league (17.9%)

Vivian Essuon is the Blue Tigers' leading scorer, with 14 points per game, eighth-most in the MIAA. The junior forward also ranks third in rebounding, pulling down an average of 8.6 boards per game.