Women’s Basketball opens conference play at Nutter Center

Friday, December 2

Dayton, OH

6 PM

Wright State University

Robert Morris

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Women’s Basketball opens conference play at Nutter Center

11/30/2022 10:00:00 PM | Women's Basketball

DAYTON — The Wright State women's basketball program opens Horizon League competition at the Nutter Center with games against Robert Morris on Friday, December 2, and Youngstown State on Sunday, December 4. Thursday's conference opener is set for a 6 p.m. start, while Sunday's matchup will tipoff at 4 p.m. Both home contests will broadcast live on ESPN+. Live stats will also be available.

THE SLATE
Dec. 2 vs. Robert Morris | 6 p.m. | Watch | Live Stats | Tickets | Game Notes
Dec. 4 vs. Youngstown State | 4 p.m. | Watch | Live Stats | Tickets | Game Notes

LAST TIME OUT
The Raiders are coming off a 96-67 loss to Eastern Illinois last Monday. Three Raiders scored in double figures, led by Bryce Nixon with a career-high 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting and a 4-of-5 clip on 3-pointers. Emily Chapman netted a season-high 15 points in addition to a team-best four rebounds and three assists, while Isabelle Bolender chipped in with 10 points.

Wright State found itself down 55-29 at the halftime break and trailed by 20-plus points for the remainder of the non-conference matchup. WSU finished with an efficient 40-percent (23-of-57) shooting percentage, including 12 makes on 29 3-point attempts. Notably, Wright State shot 6-of-8 from deep in the opening quarter, paced by Chapman with a pair of threes.

SCOUTING THE COLONIALS
Robert Morris is 5-1 on the season, with all five wins coming at home. The Colonials boast one of the top defenses in the Horizon League, leading the conference with top-25 national marks in opponent 3-point percentage (2nd, 16.1%), scoring defense (10th, 49.2 ppg), turnover margin (10th, 10.00), turnovers forced per game (17th, 23.83), and opponent field goal percentage (21st, 33.4%).

Sophomore forward Phoenix Gedeon is averaging 13.5 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 1.7 steals per game over six starts. Sophomore center Danielle Vuletich ranks second on the team with 10.5 points per game.

HISTORY VS. RMU
The Raiders trail 6-3 to RMU in the all-time series. The Colonials won 63-54 over Wright State in last year's lone matchup. Two seasons ago, Channing Chappell recorded a career and season-high 22 points on the road against Robert Morris, as the Florida native finished the contest shooting a perfect 100%, shooting 7-of-7 from the field, 6-of-6 from 3-point range, and 2-of-2 from the line.

SCOUTING THE PENGUINS
Youngstown State is 2-3 on the season with wins over Wofford (81-72) and St. Francis Brooklyn (70-41) and losses to Penn State (63-77), Akron (44-61), and Western Michigan (54-62). YSU was picked atop the 2022 Horizon League Preseason Coaches Poll, collecting eight out of the 11 first-place votes.

Preseason All-Horizon League First-Team selection Lilly Ritz leads the team in points per game (18.0) and rebounding (12.6 rpg), while Malia Magestro (11.8 ppg) and Paige Shy (10.0 ppg) are also scoring in double figures.

HISTORY VS. YSU
Wright State leads the series 39-27. The Raiders have held the upper hand as of late, winning 11 of the last 14 meetings. The two programs met just once last season, with YSU finishing on top 77-53. Current Raider Makira Webster scored seven points and added two assists in the loss.

HEATING UP
Bryce Nixon has scored in double figures in three consecutive games, highlighted by a career-high 20 points against Eastern Illinois (11/28). The senior guard is averaging a team-high 11.0 points on 51.2% shooting through five games. She has also knocked down a team-leading 11 3-pointers on 26 attempts.

SHOWING OFF RANGE
The Raiders rank 11th in the country and second in the Horizon League with 9.4 3-pointers per game. Wright State made a season-high 12 treys on 29 attempts at EIU (11/28). Bryce Nixon has knocked down a team-best seven 11-pointers, while Isabelle Bolender and Emily Chapman are tied for second on the team with eight threes apiece.

SHE'S JUST A FRESHMAN
Makiya Miller scored in double figures in her first three games as a Raider, becoming the first freshman player in the last 17 seasons to do so. The Reynoldsburg, Ohio native scored a team-leading 14 points in just 19 minutes in her collegiate debut at Toledo (11/7), followed by 10 points against Bowling Green (11/14) and a 12-point showing versus Ohio Christian (11/17) at home. The Reynoldsburg, Ohio native is averaging 7.2 points and a team-best 3.0 assists per game on the season.

OFFENSE ROLLIN'
Wright State ranks 65th nationally and atop the Horizon League in field goal percentage (44.4%). Three Raiders who average 10-plus minutes per game are currently shooting above 50% on the season. Wright State also ranks second in the Horizon League in scoring (69.0 ppg), a 10-point improvement from last year's season average (59.9 ppg).

STAYING CONSISTENT
Kacee Baumhower is leading the Raiders in rebounding (4.8 rpg) and blocks (0.8 bpg), while ranking second in scoring (8.6 ppg) and assists (2.2 apg) through five starts. The sophomore guard has pulled down five or more rebounds on four occasions and has notched a pair of double-figure scoring performances.

NEW-LOOK RAIDERS
This year's women's basketball roster features 12 newcomers, including five upperclassmen transfers and seven freshmen.

VETERAN PRESENCE
Wright State's five upperclassmen transfers bring a wealth of experience to the Raiders with a combined 370 games of collegiate basketball, including 156 starts. Bryce Nixon played in 33 games as a freshman at Arizona, the third-most by a first-year player in program history.

Emily Chapman - 107 games (74 starts) over four seasons at Cedarville
Bryce Nixon - 55 games (6 starts) over two seasons at Santa Clara — 50 games over two seasons at Arizona
Cara Vankempen - 75 games (24 starts) over three seasons at Valparaiso
Isabelle Bolender - 60 games (52 starts) over three seasons at Cedarville
Rachel Loobie - 23 games over two seasons at Central Michigan

UP NEXT
After this weekend's two Horizon League games, the Raiders will go back on the road to face Marshall (Dec. 9), followed by a matchup against Tennessee (Dec. 11).