Women’s Basketball ready for two home matchups

Thursday, February 2

Dayton, OH

6 PM

Wright State University

Northern Kentucky

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Photo by: Joseph Craven

2/1/2023 10:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball

DAYTON — The Wright State women's basketball program welcomes Northern Kentucky on Thursday, February 2, and IUPUI on Saturday, February 4, for Horizon League action inside the Nutter Center. Both games will broadcast live on ESPN+, while live stats will also be available.

THE SLATE
Feb. 2 vs. Northern Kentucky | 6 p.m. | Watch | Live Stats | Tickets | Game Notes
Feb. 4 vs. IUPUI | 1 p.m. | Watch | Live Stats | Tickets | Game Notes

LAST TIME OUT
The Raiders are coming off a landslide 83-49 win at Robert Morris last Saturday, their largest margin of victory over a Horizon League opponent since the 2019-20 season. WSU had five players score in double figures, led by Kacee Baumhower with team-best marks in points (13), rebounds (6), and assists (4). Isabelle Bolender and Channing Chappell finished with 11 points apiece, while Cara VanKempen and Bryce Nixon added 10 points.

Defensively, Wright State enjoyed its most all-around game against a Division I opponent, holding the Colonials to 31.1% (19-of-61) shooting and just three 3-point makes on 21 attempts (14.3%). The Raiders' stifling defense led to RMU s giving the ball away 18 times.

SCOUTING THE NORSE
Northern Kentucky has gone 13-8 overall and 7-5 in Horizon League play. The Norse are coming off a 1-1 weekend on the road, as they defeated Robert Morris 62-47 and lost to Youngstown State 52-51.

Graduate guard Lindsey Duvall has proven to be one of the top players in the HL, as she is averaging 17.0 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game. Kailee Davis ranks second on the team in scoring (13.9 ppg) in addition to 3.4 assists per game. NKU has scored 69.5 points per game, good for the third-highest mark in the HL.

HISTORY VS. NKU
The all-time series is tied at 15 games apiece. NKU held the edge at the start of the series, going 12-1 against the Raiders from 1982 to 1987. Following a 25-year hiatus, WSU won 14 in a row over the Norse. However, the winning streak ended last season, with Northern Kentucky earning a pair of victories over Wright State. The Raiders closed 2022 with a 73-50 loss at NKU.

SCOUTING THE JAGUARS
IUPUI is 12-9 overall and 8-4 against Horizon League competition under the direction of first-year head coach Kate Bruce. The Jaguars are one of only two teams with a victory over Youngstown State in conference play. The Jaguars had their four-game winning streak in HL play snapped last Monday at Green Bay.

Like Wright State, IUPUI relies on its long-range shooting, ranking second in the Horizon League in 3-pointers per game (8.5) and third in 3-point percentage (34.8%). The Jaguars also possess the second-ranked scoring offense, averaging 69.7 points per game. Jazmyn Turner (15.4 ppg), Destiny Perkins (13.5 ppg), and Rachel Kent (12.5 ppg) are scoring in double figures entering Saturday's matchup.

HISTORY VS. IUPUI
WSU leads the all-time series 13-7. The Raiders have lost three in a row to IUPUI, mostly recently in January 2023. Bryce Nixon (19 pts), Kacee Baumhower (17 pts), and Emily Chapman (11 pt) scored in double figures in the defeat. Two seasons ago, Wright State clinched an automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament by defeating the Jags 53-41 in the Horizon League Championship title game.

MILESTONE WATCH
Emily Chapman is nearing 1,500 career points (currently at 1,449 points) and 500 career rebounds (currently at 457 rebounds) in her collegiate career. The guard spent her first four seasons at nearby Cedarville University, where she was a two-time All-GMAC selection and NCCAA All-America Second Team selection in 2021. Fellow Cedarville transfer Isabelle Bolender is up 870 points over 80 collegiate games.

CATCHING FIRE
Cara Vankempen opened the season 0-of-12 on 3-pointers over eight games. However, the senior forward has upped her 3-point average to 40.5% (17-of-42) on the season by shooting 56.7% (17-of-30) from deep in her last 14 games.

SCORING THREAT
Bryce Nixon ranks second in the Horizon League in 3-pointers per game (2.45) and total 3-pointers (54) while ranking third in 3-point percentage (40%). The senior guard is averaging a team-high 12.0 points per game, highlighted by a career-best 24 points versus Southern Indiana (12/17), 20 points at Eastern Illinois (11/28), and an 18-point performance on six 3-pointers at Detroit Mercy (1/13). She has scored in double figures in a team-best 14 games.

SHOWING OFF RANGE
The Raiders rank fifth in the country and first in the HL with 9.6 3-pointers per game. Wright State has netted double-figure 3-pointers on 11 occasions, including six times in its last eight games. WSU has combined for 87 threes on 224 attempts (38.8%) in the span, highlighted by a school record 18 3-pointers versus CSU (1/20) and 15 3-pointers (matched previous school record) at Detroit Mercy (1/13).

TOUGH TESTS
Fourteen of the 19 Division I opponents Wright State has faced this season boast winning records, which include seven teams in the NET top 100. WSU squared off against a pair of teams that reached the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 last season (Ohio State and Tennessee) during the non-conference portion of its schedule in addition to the Mid-American Conference's top-two teams (Toledo and Bowling Green).

CHAP AT HER BEST
Emily Chapman has proven to be a threat in her first year with the Raiders, as she leads the team in 3-point shooting (47%), rebounding (3.2 rpg), and assists (2.4 apg), while ranking second in shooting percentage (49.3%) and steals (0.9 spg) and third in scoring (8.4 ppg). The Proctorville, Ohio native poured in a season-best 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting at Tennessee (12/11) and has scored in double figures in four of her last seven games. The 5-5 senior guard has been WSU's leading rebounder in five games and tallied four-plus assists in five or her last eight games.

FINDING A GROOVE
Kacee Baumhower has reached double-figure scoring in eight of her last 10 games, highlighted by a career-high 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting and a 5-of-6 clip on 3-pointers at UDM (1/13). The sophomore guard is averaging a team-high 11.4 points on 45.3% (48-of-106) shooting in conference-only play. Baumhower leads the team in free throw makes (32) and free throw attempts (51) while also ranking second in rebounding (3.1 rpg) and blocks (0.4 bpg).

FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK
Makiya Miller collected Horizon League Freshman of the Week honors (12/26) after averaging 7.5 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 1.0 steals over two games at the Hawk Classic in Philadelphia, Pa. Through 21 games, Miller leads WSU freshmen in scoring (6.2 ppg), assists per game (1.7), and minutes per game (22.7). She scored in double figures in her opening three games as a Raider, becoming the first freshman player in the last 17 seasons to do so.

TAKE NOTICE
Lauren Scott has shot 38.1% (16-of-42) on 3-pointers, good for third on the team. The freshman guard has gone an improved 12-of-22 (54.5%) from deep in home games, highlighted by a season-high 15 points on a 3-of-5 mark on threes against Cleveland State (1/20).

WRIGHT FIT
Bryce Nixon joined Wright State with 317 career points over four collegiate seasons (105 games). The transfer guard has totaled 252 points (12.0 ppg) in just 21 games with the Raiders.

UP NEXT
The Raiders will head to Wisconsin for road contests at Milwaukee on Friday, February 10, and Green Bay on Sunday, February 12.