Complete Game Notes
Game #12: Pittsburg State (10-1, 2-0 MIAA) at Lincoln (9-2, 1-1 MIAA)
Date: Thursday, January 3, 2019
Time: 5:30 p.m. CST
Site: Jason Gym (1,538) in Jefferson City, Mo.
Tickets: Adults - $5.00 | LU Faculty & Staff/Non-LU Students - $3.00 | LU Students & Kids 5 and Under – Free
Live Video: http://www.themiaanetwork.com/
Live Stats: https://lubluetigers.com/sidearmstats/wbball/

THE TIP OFF:  The Lincoln women's basketball team opens 2019 by resuming MIAA play on Thursday night (Jan. 3) as the Blue Tigers host Pittsburg State at 5:30 p.m. CST. Off to its best start since 2011-12, when Lincoln also began the year 9-2, LU is 1-1 in conference play after a road win over Northwest Missouri and a one-point loss to Missouri Western back in early December. LU has won each of its last two games and is coming off a 71-42 win over the St. Louis College of Pharmacy on Sunday (Dec. 30). Pittsburg State is also off to a nice start on the year, entering Thursday's contest 2-0 in MIAA play and 10-1 overall, and has won each of its past nine games.

FAST BREAKS
- This is the 32nd meeting between Lincoln and Pittsburg State. The Gorillas are 30-1 in the series, and have won each of the past seven meetings.

- LU's win came in the MIAA tournament back in 2011-12, as the Blue Tigers beat a Pittsburg State team ranked No. 12 in the country, 83-77. That was also the last time the Blue Tigers have defeated a team from the state of Kansas.

- After finishing with just four wins in 2017-18, Lincoln already has nine victories this year.

- A win would mark the first time Lincoln has started a season with 10 victories in its first 12 games.

PREVIEWING THE BLUE TIGERS:  Zhanesha Dickerson is nearly averaging a double-double with 16.4 points and 9.5 rebounds per game, and Bre Coleman (15.0 ppg.), Zoi Thompson (16.9) and Tempary Gunter (9.6) are among Lincoln's other scoring leaders. Thompson averages team-highs in assists (5.5) and steals (2.0), while Alecia Gulledge (7.8 rpg.) and Alecia Kaelke (5.5 rpg.) are having strong seasons on the glass.

HEAD COACH AYANA McWILLIAMS:  A five-year veteran of the Division I ranks, McWilliams is in her third season as the head coach at Lincoln. In the past two years, the Blue Tigers have improved defensively in nearly every category. McWilliams previously worked as an assistant at South Carolina Upstate, a Division I program, and also was an assistant at Elizabeth City.

LAST TIME OUT:  It was just a seven-point game at halftime, but Lincoln out-scored the St. Louis College of Pharmacy, 22-9, in the third quarter en route to a 71-42 victory at home on Sunday (Dec. 30). The Blue Tigers, who shot .655 in the second half, was led offensively by Zoi Thompson with 15 points and Alecia Gulledge with 13, and Zhanesha Dickerson scored seven points to go with a team-high seven rebounds.

SCOUTING THE GORILLAS:  Shelby Lopez leads a balanced Pittsburg State scoring attack with 12.1 points per night, while Athena Alvarado averages 11.8 points and 6.4 rebounds. Five other Gorillas average at least 7.5 points per contest, including Maya Williams, who leads the team in rebounding with 6.5 per night. As a team, PSU out-scores its opponents by an average of 74.7-59.7.

PSU HEAD COACH AMANDA DAVIED:  After 14 seasons as Pittsburg State's top assistant coach, Amanda Davied is in her first year as the head coach and has led PSU to 10 victories. Davied, a 2003 graduate of Pittsburg State, helped lead her alma mater to 283 wins and five trips to the NCAA tournament as an assistant.

SEVEN DAYS A WEEK:  With Lincoln's 72-41 win over the St. Louis College of Pharmacy, the Blue Tigers have now won a game on all seven days of the week. LU has posted multiple wins on both Tuesdays and Saturdays, with a victory on each of the other five weekdays. Both of LU's losses have come on Saturdays, making Lincoln perfect the other six days of the week.

DOUBLE UP:  In seven of the past nine games, Zhanesha Dickerson has posted a double-double and leads the MIAA while ranking ninth in DII in double-doubles with seven on the season. Dickerson, who is nearly averaging a double-double for the season, is third in the league in scoring (16.4 ppg.) and is second in rebounding (9.5 rpg.) and is 45th in Division II in rebounding average as well as 94th in points per game.

GULL ON THE GLASS:  Alecia Gulledge has emerged as one of Lincoln's leaders on the glass, grabbing 7.8 boards per game, the fourth-most in the MIAA. Gulledge tallied a season-high 18 rebounds against Blackburn and posted her first double-double against Robert Morris-Springfield with 17 points and 12 boards.

NATIONALLY RANKED:  Lincoln has been a tough team to score against, as LU is fifth in the country in scoring defense (52.2) while rating 25th nationally in field goal defense (.351). The Blue Tigers are 22nd in Division II in three-point defense, allowing teams to shoot just .257 from beyond the arc, and have the country's ninth-best rebound margin (+12.2). Lincoln is also 12th in DII in scoring margin (+20.8) and 23rd nationally in field goal percentage (.457).

LEAGUE LEADER:  Zoi Thompson led the Blue Tigers in November, earning MIAA Player of the Week accolades after nearly recording a triple double in a win over Stephens. Thompson leads the MIAA in assists with 5.5 per game, and ranks second in the league in scoring (16.9 ppg.) and fourth in field goal percentage (.449).

TEMPARY SUCCESS:  Tempary Gunter has made her senior season a memorable one. In addition to starting all nine of LU's wins, Gunter hit the game-winning shot vs. McKendree before scoring a career-high 20 points against Blackburn. For the season, Gunter is averaging 9.6 points on .436 shooting, and also has 10 steals on the year.

BRE IS BACK:  Bre Coleman, Lincoln's leader in scoring and rebounding in 2017-18, has made a big impact on both sides of the ball since returning to the lineup in mid-December. Coleman is averaging 15.0 ppg. and 5.7 rpg., and has four steals while averaging just 19 minutes per contest.

REBOUNDING:  A big factor in Lincoln's improvement to 9-2 after a four-win campaign in 2017-18 has been on the glass, as Lincoln has out-rebounded opponents in nine of its 11 contests. LU owns a rebound margin of +12.2, the ninth-best in the country. Zhanesha Dickerson is second in the MIAA with 9.5 rebounds per game while Alecia Gulledge is fourth at 7.8 rebounds per game.

SOPHOMORE ASCENT:  Alecia Kaelke has improved in nearly every facet of the game from her freshman season, as the second-year Blue Tiger is averaging 7.2 points and 5.5 rebounds after averaging 1.7 and 2.0 in 2017-18. Kaelke is shooting .667 from the floor and .833 at the line, and is 20th in the conference in rebounding.

SHOULDERING THE DEFENSE:  Another key part of Lincoln's hot start to the season has been Kiara Shoulders, who has provided a spark on both sides of the ball. Shoulders, who averages 4.5 points, has grabbed 54 rebounds, tallied 20 steals and dished 21 assists.

RESERVATIONS:  You can reserve your seats for all of Lincoln's home games today! Reserved seats cost $100 and include admission to all of LU's regular season home games. To purchase your seats, visit https://14186.thankyou4caring.org/2017-18-sports-passes.

GEAR UP FOR THE GAME:  Get your Blue Tiger jerseys, apparel, accessories, office supplies and much, much more at www.BlueTigersStore.com, the official online store of LU athletics. You can get everything you will need for basketball season, with a portion of all sales going directly to support all 12 LU athletic programs.

NEXT UP:  Lincoln concludes a three-game homestand on Saturday (Jan. 5) when LU hosts Missouri Southern at 1:00 p.m. CST.