LAKELAND, Fla. – The No. 5 Southeastern University women's basketball team battled through a testing Sun Conference slate last week. After trailing at the half in both contests, SEU capitalized off of inspired second-half performances to power past St. Thomas at home and Florida Memorial on the road. The conference has proved to be more competitive than it has been in recent years, with three teams in the league already hitting the 15-win mark and only a three game differential in TSC play between the first and fifth-place programs. The Fire look to build more momentum in the conference this week as they take on a pair of TSC Polk County foes in Warner and Webber International.
GAMES: No. 5 Southeastern (16-2, 9-0 TSC) at Warner (6-14, 0-9 TSC) Thursday 5:30 p.m.
No. 5 Southeastern (16-2, 9-0 TSC) vs. Webber International (7-10, 2-7 TSC)
COVERAGE: WATCH/LIVE STATS
FIRE FOCUS:
- Senior guard Makenzie Cann was a difference maker for the Fire last week in the two resilient victories. Cann posted back-to-back 20 point efforts and averaged 11.5 points in the third quarter alone.
- SEU outscored its opponents 56-32 in the third period of play last week. On the season, the Fire outscore opponents an average of 23-13.6 in the third quarter.
- Junior center Marlena Schmidt is averaging 11.2 points per game over her last five contests.
- Senior point guard Hailee Printz is coming off tying her career-high in assists in a single game with 12 helpers against Florida Memorial.
- As a team, the Fire rank second in NAIA Division II in assists per game, averaging 19.89 helpers per contest.
- On the defensive side, SEU ranks sixth in the country in turnover margin (7.67) and steals per game (13.83)
SOAKING UP THE SUN:
- The Fire have won 51 consecutive games versus Sun Conference opponents.
- This season, Southeastern is averaging 82 points per conference contest and is defeating teams within the league by an average margin of 24.3.
- The last three TSC contests won by SEU have been by an average margin of 9.3
ALL-TIME SERIES:
- Webber International won the first six meetings with Southeastern. However, the Fire have won 13 of the last 17 meetings with the Warriors to take a 13-10 lead in the all-time series.
- SEU has won six-straight versus WIU, having not lost to Webber International since 12/2/15.
- The Fire defeated Webber 88-62 in Babson Park earlier this season. Elsa Paulsson-Glantz led all scorers with 29 points. Junior center Marlena Schmidt posted a career-high 25 points in the win.
- Warner won 20 of the first 21 meetings versus Southeastern and leads the all-time series 20-14.
- The Fire have won 12-straight versus the Royals, not having lost to WU since 1/8/13.
- SEU defeated WU 71-53 in The Furnace earlier this season. Paulsson-Glantz led all scorers with 24 points.
THE ROYALS:
- Warner is still seeking its first Sun Conference win of the season. At 0-9 in conference play, the Royals are looking to avoid their first 0-10 start in TSC action since 2007-08.
- WU is scoring an average of 60.9 and surrendering an average of 75.2 per Sun Conference contest this season.
- The Royals rank 23rd in NAIA Division II in Assist/Turnover Ratio (.968).
- Sophomore guard Daijah Turner is averaging 13.8 points per game in TSC play, having reached double-digits in all nine conference outings.
- Senior guard Randi Chandler has averaged 15 points over her last three games, shooting 44.4% (12-27) from three-point range during that stretch.
THE WARRIORS:
- Webber International is coming off an 80-75 win over Johnson & Wales on the road, the Warriors' first Sun Conference victory since December 1 versus Warner.
- WIU is averaging 63.8 points and surrendering 72.6 points per TSC contest.
- Webber ranks third in the conference in field goal percentage defense (.361), second in blocks per game (3.88), and lead the league in defensive rebounds per game (28.41).
- Freshman forward Taniya Patrick continues to be a sensation for the Warriors. The Baltimore native is averaging 12.1 points and 9.22 rebounds per conference contest. Patrick has also recorded at least one blocked shot in each TSC game.
- Sophomore guard Paris Copeland has been a key contributor for WIU since making her debut mid-December. In four Sun Conference outings, she is averaging 16.75 points. All 26 of her field goals made in those contests have come in the paint.
TALE OF THE TAPE:
SEU
Points per Game: 80.56
Opponents Points per Game: 57.3
Field Goal %: .460
3PT %: .373
FT%: .709
Rebounds per Game: 38.39
Turnovers per Game: 13
Individual PPG Leader:
Elsa Paulsson-Glantz (17.78)
Individual Rebounds per Game Leader:
Elsa Paulsson-Glantz (6.28)
Individual Assists per Game Leader: Hailee Printz (6)
Individual Blocks per Game Leader:
Marlena Schmidt (2.78)
WU
Points per Game: 62.4
Opponents Points per Game: 66.8
Field Goal %: .343
3PT %: .326
FT%: .700
Rebounds per Game: 34.1
Turnovers per Game: 14.1
Individual PPG Leader: Daijah Turner (13.55)
Individual Rebounds per Game Leader: Alana St. Clair (6.95)
Individual Assists per Game Leader: Daijah Turner (4.45)
Individual Blocks per Game Leader: Cheyenne Daphney (1.11)
WIU
Points per Game: 68.29
Opponents Points per Game: 64.6
Field Goal %: .405
3PT %: .300
FT%: .605
Rebounds per Game: 42.65
Turnovers per Game: 18
Individual PPG Leader: Taniya Patrick (13.53)
Individual Rebounds per Game Leader: Taniya Patrick (8.06)
Individual Assists per Game Leader: Breyonna Reed (4.41)
Individual Blocks per Game Leader: Taniya Patrick (2.65)
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