HUNTSVILLE, Tex. - Seattle U women's basketball will begin Western Athletic Conference (WAC) play this weekend, traveling for two road games against Sam Houston and UTRGV. The Redhawks will open the WAC season against the Bearkats, with tip off scheduled for 4:30 p.m. pacific time on Thursday in Huntsville, Texas. The Redhawks will then head south to take on the Vaqueros Saturday, beginning at 12 p.m. pacific time in Edinburg, Texas. Both games will be streamed live on ESPN+ and feature live stats.
FOLLOW THE REDHAWKS
- Thursday, December 29 at 4:30 p.m.
- Seattle U (0-10, 0-0 WAC) vs. Sam Houston (4-6, 0-0 WAC)
- Huntsville, Texas
- Live Stats
- ESPN+
- Saturday, December 31 at 12 p.m.
- Seattle U vs. UTRGV (6-5, 0-0 WAC)
- Edinburg, Texas
- Live Stats
- ESPN+
ALWAYS IMPROVING
Junior Peyton Howard is playing some of her best basketball at the right time, setting or tying a career-high in points in SU's last three games. The guard scored 18 points in back-to-back games against CSUN and Eastern Washington, before setting her new career-high of 21 points against UC San Diego last Wednesday.
In this stretch, Howard has also set new career-highs in rebounds (eight), assists (six) and steals (four). The native of Spokane, Wash., is shooting 18-for-41 (43.9%) from the field and 4-for-10 (40%) from three over the last three games.
CRASHING THE OFFENSIVE GLASS
Seattle U recorded 17 offensive rebounds against UC San Diego last Wednesday, marking the second highest total of the season. The Redhawks have logged 10 or more offensive rebounds in eight games, with their season-high of 18 coming against Portland State back on November 17.
BENCH IMPACT
The Redhawks' bench has provided a great scoring punch throughout nonconference, with five different players logging points in the double-digits. Junior Irena Korolenko and sophomore Julianna Walker scored in double figures against CSUN, with the former logging a career-high 19 that included five made threes and the latter finishing with 13. Korolenko has provided valuable bench points all season, logging double-digit points in three games overall.
Freshman Sheridan Liggett, Makayla Moore and Mya Moore have also all provided double figure games off the bench.
BEST THREE-POINT PERFORMANCE
Sophomore Julianna Walker currently holds the WAC's best three-point performance of the season, logging six made threes against Portland State on November 17. Only Kaylee Best has made more three-pointers in one game, draining seven at Grand Canyon back in 2017. Courtney Murphy was the last Redhawk to make six, achieving the feat three times in 2019.
Walker currently leads the Redhawks in made three-pointers with 19, while shooting 42% from distance. The Tacoma, Wash., native also poured in four threes against CSUN on Dec. 10 and three threes against Oregon State on Nov. 10.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
Sam Houston currently sits ninth in the conference with a 4-6 record, defeating North Texas-Dallas easily, 84-44, in their latest matchup. Sydnee Kemp was their leading scorer in that game, finishing with 18 points, while Chyna Allen leads then in points per game at 14.9.
The Bearkats rank top in the conference in offensive rebounding per game (17.8) and third in blocks per game (4.0). They record the least number of assists per game (10.4) and give up the highest three-point percentage (35.7%). Sam Houston took the first ever matchup between the two schools last season, 73-54, in Huntsville.
UTRGV holds sixth place in the WAC at 6-5, falling to Bowling Green, 71-47, in their final matchup before conference play. Iyana Dorsey leads the Vaqueros, averaging 14.8 points per game, while Deborah Ogaymi (9.5) and Mele Kailahi (9.3) are close to averaging double figures.
The Vaqueros are the best in the conference at the free throw line (74.2%) and rank third in made three-pointers (85). They rank last in team field goal percentage (32.1%) and struggle to steal the ball, ranking second to last in the conference at 6.55 per game. UTRGV won the most recent meeting, advancing at the 2022 WAC Tournament with a 71-61 win. SU is 8-12 all-time against UTRGV.
COME SUPPORT
Single game tickets are now available for purchase on ticketmaster. For more information please contact the Seattle U Athletics box office at 206-398-GOSU or seattleutickets@seattleu.edu.
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