Complete Game Notes
Game #25: No. 25 Lindenwood (17-5, 11-4 MIAA) at Lincoln (10-14, 2-13 MIAA)
Date: Tuesday, February 19, 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/
Special Event: Salute to Service Night

THE TIP OFF:  The final four games of 2018-19 for the Lincoln women's basketball team will be played inside Jason Gym, beginning on Tuesday evening (Feb. 19), when the Blue Tigers host Lindenwood at 5:30 p.m. CST. A rematch of a contest from Jan. 13, which was won by the Lady Lions, 69-46, Tuesday's game will mark the last time Lincoln and Lindenwood will meet as MIAA rivals, as LWU is joining the GLVC next season. After earning a home win over Northwest Missouri the last time that the Blue Tigers were in Jason Gym, Lincoln has dropped two straight games and will try to rebound against a Lady Lion squad that is ranked No. 25 in the WBCA Division II rankings.

FAST BREAKS
- This will the 18th meeting between Lindenwood and Lincoln, with the Blue Tigers leading the series, 9-8. The Lady Lions, however, have won each of the past three meetings.

- Lincoln is seeking its first win over a ranked opponent since beating No. 12 Pittsburg State in the quarterfinals of the 2012 MIAA Women's Basketball Championship, 83-77.

- 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 16.8 points and 8.3 rebounds per game, and Bre Coleman (14.1 ppg.), Zoi Thompson (13.0) and Tempary Gunter (7.9) are among Lincoln's other scoring leaders. Thompson averages team-highs in assists (4.1) and steals (1.4), while Alecia Gulledge (7.3 rpg.) and Kiara Shoulders (4.9 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
Nebraska Kearney 72, Lincoln 59
Zhanesha Dickerson led Lincoln with 22 points while Bre Coleman had a double-double with 17 points and 12 boards, but Lincoln fell at Nebraska Kearney on Thursday night (Feb. 14). Dickerson also had nine rebounds on the evening.

Fort Hays State 73, Lincoln 59
The Blue Tigers out-shot the No. 4 team in DII, .410 to .397, and played Fort Hays State evenly in the second half, with both teams scoring 31 points. In the end, however, FHSU ended up with a win over Lincoln on Saturday (Feb. 16) after scoring 42 first half points compared to LU's 28. Zhanesha Dickerson recorded her ninth double-double to lead Lincoln with 15 points and 13 rebounds.

SCOUTING THE LADY LIONS:  Kallie Bildner is averaging a double-double with 17.7 points and 10.5 rebounds per game, and also has 11 blocks and 16 steals on the year. Lindsay Medlen (8.1), Lexie Moe (9.5) and Charisse Williams (9.4) all are among the scoring leaders, with Medlen having dished a team-high 70 assists. The Lady Lions are out-scoring opponents 72.0-64.5 per game.

LWU HEAD COACH KATIE FALCO:  A 13-year veteran assistant at the NCAA Division I level, Falco is in her first season leading the Lady Lions. Falco spent the previous 10 years at South Dakota State, where she helped the Jackrabbits make the postseason every year as well as win 248 games and four Summit League titles. Falco also spent three years at Montana State.

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 4.9 rebounds with 95 coming on the defensive glass. Shoulders, who also has 33 steals and four blocks on the season, has started 19 games, the third-most of any Blue Tiger in 2018-19. She's had at least five boards in six of the past seven games with a 12-rebound performance at Emporia State.

DOUBLE UP:  Nine 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 third in the league in scoring (16.8 ppg.) and is third in rebounding (8.3 rpg.) and, in 15 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 7.3 boards per game, the ninth-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 7.9 points on .425 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 posted four double-doubles on the season to go with 18 steals and 13 blocks.

NATIONALLY RANKED:  Several Blue Tigers rate among the best in the country in certain statistics, including Zoi Thompson, who is 55th nationally in assists per game (4.2) and 68th in total assists (93). Zhanesha Dickerson is 63rd in field goals made (143) and 75th in points per game (16.9) while Alecia Gulledge is 115th in minutes played (769:04)

HOME, SWEET HOME:  For the first time since 2010-11, when the Blue Tigers had 15 home games and 11 road tilts, Lincoln will play more contests at home than it will true road games. The Blue Tigers play 12 games in Jason Gym, including five of their final seven contests of the year, with just nine true road games on the schedule.

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 4.2 per game, and rates 14th in the league in scoring (13.0 ppg.).

SECOND CHANCES:  Lincoln has found ways to extend its possessions, rating second in the MIAA and ranking 54th in Division II with 14.0 offensive rebounds per game. The Blue Tigers, who have 334 offensive boards on the year, have scored 302 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:  Lincoln hosts Washburn in Jason Gym on Saturday (Feb. 23) in a 1:00 p.m. CST showdown.