THE SETTING
After an up and down January, Drake (11-8, 4-5) opens a new month and a new half to the Missouri Valley Conference schedule at Wichita State (12-8, 4-5). Tipoff is Friday at 7:05 at Charles Koch Arena.
DRAKE BULLDOGS (11-8, 4-5) vs. WICHITA STATE SHOCKERS (12-8, 4-5)
7:05 p.m., Friday, Feb. 7, 2010
Charles Koch Arena; Wichita, Kan.
Radio: AM 1350 KRNT
Talent: Scott Pierce (PxP), Laura Leonard (Color)
ABOUT DRAKE
Drake is mired in a three-game winless streak and is coming off a 74-61 defeat at Creighton. The Bulldogs have wrapped up their first-half Missouri Valley Conference slate with a 4-5 record and are in a three-way tie with UNI and Wichita State for fifth place in the MVC. Head coach Amy Stephens was pleased with her team's effort last week in Omaha and is looking to continue the team's “back nine” success (more below).
Senior Jordann Plummer scored a team-best 16 points against the Bluejays after failing to crack the double-digit barrier in the two previous games. Plummer is Drake's leading scorer, averaging 15.5 points per game, the fourth-best mark in the conference.
The Bulldogs lead the conference in the three-point field goal percentage with a 37.4 percent rate, and rank second in the MVC in overall shooting percentage with a 43.6 mark. In addition, Drake takes care of the ball better than anyone in the conference and leads the league with a +2.8 turnover margin.
ABOUT WICHITA STATE
The Shockers are 12-8 and 4-5 in the Valley, and have gone 2-4 since falling to Drake 68-54 on Jan. 9.
The Shockers are led by Haleigh Lankster, who is averaging 12.8 points per game, including 11.7 in conference contests. Lankster has started all 20 Shocker games and is tied with Marisah Henderson for the team lead with 39 steals.
Henderson ranks second in the MVC in assists with 5.8 per game. She's also second on the team in rebounding with a 4.7 per average.
Jazimen Gordon leads the team in rebounding with a 5.5 average, including 6.2 during conference matchups.
Wichita State is coached by second-year head coach Jody Adams.
DRAKE VS WICHITA STATE
Drake leads the all-time series 46-17 and has compiled a 15-13 record in Wichita. The Bulldogs are 11-2 against the Shockers under Amy Stephens and have won their last four contests in Wichita. Drake has won 11 straight against Wichita State dating back to the 2004-05 season, the longest active winning streak against any Bulldog opponent and the longest active streak between any two Valley opponents. The Bulldogs won the series' first five games between 1982-83 and 11 of the first 12 between 1982-89.
THE BACK NINE
With regard to the MVC schedule, Drake typically is a slow starter and a strong finisher. For instance, under Amy Stephens, Drake is 28-26 (.518) during the first half of the Valley slate and 34-20 (.629) in “back nine” games. In addition, The Bulldogs registered a 55-35 (.611) first half record and an incredible 64-26 (.711) back nine mark during the last decade (2000-09).
The Bulldogs have equaled or bettered their first half conference record during the back nine in nine straight campaigns, dating back to 2001.
CAREER THIEF
Senior Jordann Plummer, already one of 20 members of the Drake 1,000 Point Club, needs just seven steals to enter the program's top five in career steals. Plummer has amassed 214 career steals, including an MVC-best 53 this season. Plummer ranks 25th in the NCAA in steals with a 2.9 average.
ALL-TIME STEAL LEADERS
PLAYER YRS STEALS
1. Kay Riek 1980-84 274
2. Linda Sayavongchanh 2002-06 266
3. Jenni Fitzgerald 1986-90 250
4. Keisha Cox 1994-98 234
5. Stephanie Schmitz 1998-02 220
6. Jordann Plummer 2005-10 217
THREE FALLING
Drake is mired in a three-game MVC losing streak. The last time the Bulldogs lost three straight Valley contests was during the 2006-07 season when the team opened its MVC slate with losses against Indiana State (Dec. 29), Illinois State (Dec. 31) and UNI (Jan. 6).
A NEW MONTH
After an up-and down January, Drake enters a new month with history on its side. The Bulldogs are 193-78 (.712) all-time in February, including 23-17 (.575) under Amy Stephens. Drake has posted winning records in 29 of its 35 February slates, including six undefeated months (1978, 1984, 1986, 1997, 2001, 2002).
THE FULL MONTY
Sophomore forward Alex Montgomery scored a season-high seven points against Creighton while playing a personal-best 18 minutes. Montgomery had previously scored just a single point this season, against Chicago State, and had played a total of 10 minutes before her performance against the Bluejays.
Creighton 74, Drake 61 - Jan. 29, 2010
OMAHA, NEB. – Creighton parlayed a 12-1 run midway through the second half into a 74-61 Missouri Valley Conference victory past Drake, handing the Bulldogs their third straight loss.
Senior guard Jordann Plummer, held to nine points in each of her last two outings, led the Bulldogs with 16 points, making all five shots while collecting four rebounds, three assists and three steals. Sophomore Rachael Hackbarth scored 12 points in a career-high 33 minutes and tied Plummer for the team lead in rebounds with four. Sophomore Alex Montgomery tallied a season-high seven points in a career-high 18 minutes.
Drake used a 6-0 run to grab a 43-40 lead by the 17-minute mark of the second half. The game saw two ties and two lead changes during the next eight minutes of the second half, culminating in a 53-53 tie at the 8:51 mark. Creighton used a 12-1 run to build a 65-54 lead by the 5:42 mark and never let Drake within nine points for the remainder of the game.
The Bluejays opened a 19-11 lead at the 12-minute mark of the first half with help from an 11-2 run and an 8-for-11 shooting effort. The Jays missed their next three shots and turned it over twice to allow Drake to tie the game at 20 on the back of Montgomery's first-career three-pointer.
Creighton led by 12, 34-22, at the 3:08 mark in the first half, but the Bulldogs ended the last three minutes of the first half with a 10-2 run punctuated by a buzzer-beating 25-footer by Plummer, and entered the locker room trailing by just four, 36-32.
Previous Meeting - Drake 68, Wichita State 54 - Jan. 9, 2010
DES MOINES, IOWA – Drake topped Wichita State 68-54 to win its seventh-straight home game and move its Missouri Valley Conference record to 3-1. Senior Jordann Plummer scored a game-high 20 points and was a career-best 12-of-12 from the line.
The Bulldogs used a 16-2 second half run to break open the game just after halftime. Drake came out of the locker room with a six point lead and turned it into a 25 point lead (53-28) by the 10:20 mark, outscoring the Shockers 25-6 during that span. Wichita State committed seven turnovers during the Drake run and was outrebounded by an 8-3 margin.
The Bulldogs shot 47.8 percent from the floor in the second half and 38.9 percent for the game. Drake outrebounded the Shockers 36-28 behind freshman Stephanie Running's career-high 10 boards, including five off the offensive glass. Running also tied a career-high with four points during a personal best 16 minutes of playing time.
Drake shot 88.9 percent (24-27) from the charity stripe, led by Plummer's perfect effort. The senior finished with 20 points on four-of-10 shooting while adding three assists. In addition, Plummer has missed just one free throw (41-42) since Drake's matchup with Air Force on Dec. 5, 2009.
Senior Monique' Jones scored nine points and pulled down six boards on the night.
Drake previously won seven straight at home between Feb. 16, 2008 and Dec. 2, 2008.
