Complete Game Notes
Game #23: Lincoln (10-12, 2-11 MIAA) at Nebraska Kearney (13-9, 6-7 MIAA)
Date: Thursday, Feb. 14, 2019
Time: 5:30 p.m. CST
Site: Kearney, Neb.
Live Stats: https://lopers.com/sidearmstats/wbball/
Live Video: http://www.themiaanetwork.com/

Game #24: Lincoln at No. 4 Fort Hays State (21-1, 12-1 MIAA)
Date: Saturday, Feb. 16, 2019
Time: 2:00 p.m. CST
Site: Hays, Kan.
Live Stats: https://fhsuathletics.com/sidearmstats/wbball/
Live Video: http://www.themiaanetwork.com/

THE TIP OFF:  The Lincoln women's basketball team play their final road games of 2018-19 this week, as the Blue Tigers travel to Kearney, Neb. to take on Nebraska Kearney on Thursday (Feb. 14) at 5:30 p.m. CST before heading to Hays, Kan. on Saturday (Feb. 16) to play Fort Hays State at 2:00 p.m. CST. The Blue Tigers are coming off a big 64-51 victory over Northwest Missouri and have their first 10-win season since 2014-15. Lincoln is still in competition for one of the 10 slots in the 2019 MIAA Women's Basketball Championship, and will try to keep the momentum going this week. Nebraska Kearney is 13-9 on the season while Fort Hays State, at 21-1, is leading the conference.

FAST BREAKS
- Thursday will be the eighth meeting between Lincoln and Nebraska Kearney, with the Lopers leading the all-time series, 6-1. UNK has won each of the past four games in the series.

- Lincoln and Fort Hays State will meet for the 13th time on Saturday. FHSU leads the series, 11-1, with Lincoln's win coming in Hays, Kan. in overtime during the 2011-12 season.

- After finishing with just four wins in 2017-18, Lincoln already has 10 victories this year. The Blue Tigers have their first 10-win season since going 12-14 during the 2014-15 campaign.

PREVIEWING THE BLUE TIGERS:  Zhanesha Dickerson is nearly averaging a double-double with 16.6 points and 8.0 rebounds per game, and Bre Coleman (14.1 ppg.), Zoi Thompson (13.5) and Tempary Gunter (8.5) are among Lincoln's other scoring leaders. Thompson averages team-highs in assists (4.3) and steals (1.6), while Alecia Gulledge (7.4 rpg.) and Kiara Shoulders (4.8 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
Missouri Western 68, Lincoln 59
Zhanesha Dickerson scored 21 points and Alecia Gulledge grabbed nine rebounds, but Lincoln fell to Missouri Western at home on Feb. 7. Kaloni Pryear added 15 points while Bre Coleman had 10 points for the Blue Tigers.

Lincoln 64, Northwest Missouri 51
The Blue Tigers shot .463 from the floor and .455 en route to a season sweep over the Bearcats on Saturday (Feb. 9). Zhanesha Dickerson tallied her eighth double-double of the year with 25 points and 11 rebounds while Zoi Thompson scored 13 points, dished seven assists and pulled down six rebounds. Bre Coleman also scored 13 points to go with six rebounds.

SCOUTING THE LOPERS:  Brooke Carlson (11.0 ppg.) and Kelsey Sanger (10.7 ppg.) offensively lead Nebraska Kearney in scoring, with the Lopers averaging 68.0 points per contest. The Lopers are allowing 59.5 points per night, and average 39.4 boards while giving up 35.4 rebounds. Shiloh McCool is leading the team in rebounding (6.7), and Klaire Kirsch has dished a team-high 56 assists.

UNK HEAD COACH CARRIE EIGHMEY:  In her fourth season at Nebraska Kearney, Eighmey has led the Lopers to 62 wins, as well as the team's first-ever berth in the quarterfinals of the MIAA tourney. Before she joined the Lopers, she coached her alma mater, Hastings, to two trips to the NAIA Division II tournament.

SCOUTING THE TIGERS:  Fort Hays State is out-scoring opponents by an impressive average of 78.2 to 54.5 points per game, with five players averaging at least nine points per night. Tatyana Legette leads the team in points (13.0), rebounds (8.5) and assists (2.5) per game, with Lanie Page (11.1 ppg.) and Kacey Kennett (10.9) also high on the scoring chart. As a team, Fort Hays State is averaging 40.7 rebounds per contest.

FHSU HEAD COACH TONY HOBSON:  One of the most successful coaches in the nation, Hobson has a career winning percentage of .757, ranking him among the top-12 of all active coaches in NCAA Division II. Fort Hays State has appeared in the Top-25 in six of the past seven years and has made each of the past nine MIAA tournaments.

CLOSE CALLS:  Lincoln has played some very close games this season, with nine of LU's games being decided by six points or less. Those have been a mixed bag for the Blue Tigers, who are 2-7 in such contests, including a pair of one-point losses to Missouri Western & Southwest Baptist on the road, and an overtime loss to Missouri Southern at home.

SHOULDERING THE DEFENSE:  Freshman Kiara Shoulders has been a huge asset for LU on the defensive side of the ball, as she is averaging 4.8 rebounds with 86 coming on the defensive glass. Shoulders, who also has 31 steals and four blocks on the season, has started 17 games, the third-most of any Blue Tiger in 2018-19. She's had at least five boards in five of the past six games with a 12-rebound performance at Emporia State.

DOUBLE UP:  Eight times this year Zhanesha Dickerson has posted a double-double and has yet to have a game where she's grabbed fewer than five boards. Dickerson, who is averaging close to a double-double for the season, is second in the league in scoring (16.6 ppg.) and is third in rebounding (8.0 rpg.) and, in 13 games this year, has finished with at least 10 points and seven rebounds.

GULL ON THE GLASS:  Alecia Gulledge has emerged as one of Lincoln's leaders on the glass, grabbing 7.4 boards per game, the eighth-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.

TEMPARY SUCCESS:  Tempary Gunter has made her senior season a memorable one. In addition to playing in all 10 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 8.5 points on .429 shooting, and also has 12 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 14.1 ppg. and 7.8 rpg., and has 18 steals while averaging just 28.6 minutes per contest.

LEAGUE LEADER:  Zoi Thompson led the Blue Tigers in November, earning MIAA Player of the Week accolades after nearly posting a triple double against Stephens. Thompson ranks third in the MIAA in assists with 4.3 per game, and rates 11th in the league in scoring (13.5 ppg.).

SECOND CHANCES:  Lincoln has found ways to extend its possessions, rating second in the MIAA and ranking 57th in Division II with 14.0 offensive rebounds per game. The Blue Tigers, who have 304 offensive boards on the year, have scored 275 second chance points in 2018-19.

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:  The Blue Tigers return home next Tuesday (Feb. 19) to host Lindenwood in a 5:30 p.m. CST contest.