[81alum]

Preview:

We will play Missouri State in the sweet sixteen.  Interesting to note that two years ago we played Missouri State in the sweet 16 game, our last win of the season before we lost to Notre Dame.  Anna Wilson had a great game with 11 points, Alanna Smith led us with 13, and we won a surprisingly difficult matchup 55-46.  Two of their current starters started against us then, so there will be some familiarity.

This year Missouri State is 23-2.  Way back in November they beat Maryland.  They haven't played any ranked teams since then.  They got to the S16 by beating UC Davis and then Wright State, which did them the favor of knocking off Arkansas first.  Their two losses were also early on--to tournament teams Wake Forest and South Dakota State.  Missouri State is 24 in the Massey rankings--which are less accurate than normal due to insufficient inter-conference games.

Their scoring is somewhat balanced.  Senior guard Brice Calip (5'8")  leads with 13.5 ppg, followed by junior forward Jasmine Franklin(6'1") with 12, then three more players with 8-9 ppg.  They have 5 players who have taken a lot of treys, mostly hitting between 30-33%.  But senior guard Ellie Ruffridge (5'3") has made 45 treys at 37%, and I presume will draw Anna Wilson.  Franklin had a good game against us two years ago, Calif was 2/10, and Ruffridge barely played.  But these players are much better now and have matured much as Anna Wilson has matured.

In their game against Wright State, Ruffridge "went off" in the second half and scored 17, giving her a career high of 20.  Calip drew the assignment of guarding the other team's top perimeter player, so Williams can expect to be guarded by Calip.  She probably was two years ago too.

Missouri State does have a 6'4" player and a 6'3" player, but they don't get many minutes.  Abby Hipp at 6'2" and Franklin are pretty much all of the height they put on the floor.  I can't see any of them getting to the rim and past the blocks of our 3 posts unless they can play 5 out and force us to come out to guard them on the perimeter, so perimeter defense will be important, as may be speed and quickness.

[81alum]

Preview:

We will play Missouri State in the sweet sixteen.  Interesting to note that two years ago we played Missouri State in the sweet 16 game, our last win of the season before we lost to Notre Dame.  Anna Wilson had a great game with 11 points, Alanna Smith led us with 13, and we won a surprisingly difficult matchup 55-46.  Two of their current starters started against us then, so there will be some familiarity.

This year Missouri State is 23-2.  Way back in November they beat Maryland.  They haven't played any ranked teams since then.  They got to the S16 by beating UC Davis and then Wright State, which did them the favor of knocking off Arkansas first.  Their two losses were also early on--to tournament teams Wake Forest and South Dakota State.  Missouri State is 24 in the Massey rankings--which are less accurate than normal due to insufficient inter-conference games.

Their scoring is somewhat balanced.  Senior guard Brice Calip (5'8")  leads with 13.5 ppg, followed by junior forward Jasmine Franklin(6'1") with 12, then three more players with 8-9 ppg.  They have 5 players who have taken a lot of treys, mostly hitting between 30-33%.  But senior guard Ellie Ruffridge (5'3") has made 45 treys at 37%, and I presume will draw Anna Wilson.  Franklin had a good game against us two years ago, Calif was 2/10, and Ruffridge barely played.  But these players are much better now and have matured much as Anna Wilson has matured.

In their game against Wright State, Ruffridge "went off" in the second half and scored 17, giving her a career high of 20.  Calip drew the assignment of guarding the other team's top perimeter player, so Williams can expect to be guarded by Calip.  She probably was two years ago too.

Missouri State does have a 6'4" player and a 6'3" player, but they don't get many minutes.  Abby Hipp at 6'2" and Franklin are pretty much all of the height they put on the floor.  I can't see any of them getting to the rim and past the blocks of our 3 posts unless they can play 5 out and force us to come out to guard them on the perimeter, so perimeter defense will be important, as may be speed and quickness.

[CompSci87]

In case it's Missouri State again, here's an AP story on the 2019 game: https://apnews.com/article/748e013d3b4b4...b9b57b5fe7

[CompSci87]

In case it's Missouri State again, here's an AP story on the 2019 game: https://apnews.com/article/748e013d3b4b4...b9b57b5fe7

[PAsportsfan]

Playing now on ESPNU

[PAsportsfan]

Playing now on ESPNU

[PVTree]

Watching the game, they both look equally bad. I will be surprised if we don't beat either of them by 20+.

[PVTree]

Watching the game, they both look equally bad. I will be surprised if we don't beat either of them by 20+.

[BostonCard]

Watching the game, they both look equally bad. I will be surprised if we don't beat either of them by 20+.

Shhh, the woofing gods are watching.

Also, it's not like our game yesterday sent shudders through our future opponents.  We'd like to think we are capable of better, but I am sure so do Missouri state and Wright State.

BC

[BostonCard]

Watching the game, they both look equally bad. I will be surprised if we don't beat either of them by 20+.

Shhh, the woofing gods are watching.

Also, it's not like our game yesterday sent shudders through our future opponents.  We'd like to think we are capable of better, but I am sure so do Missouri state and Wright State.

BC

[oldalum]

Watching the game, they both look equally tough. I will be surprised if we score more than 20 per half against either of them.

There. FIFY. Nothing to see here, woofing gods. Move on.

[oldalum]

Watching the game, they both look equally tough. I will be surprised if we score more than 20 per half against either of them.

There. FIFY. Nothing to see here, woofing gods. Move on.

[81alum]

Just updated the preview now that we know who we are playing.

[81alum]

Just updated the preview now that we know who we are playing.

[BosCard]

Just updated the preview now that we know who we are playing.

I remember the Missouri St and the BYU game in the earlier round in 2019.  In both games, Shannon Coffee played 17 mins.  Every time she was on the court the opposing team would screen so that their guard would get matched with Coffee.  And said guard would then dribble around Coffee for a layup.  I don't think it is hyperbole to say that Cameron Brink is about 1000 times better at defending a smaller guard than Shannon Coffee was.

[BosCard]

Just updated the preview now that we know who we are playing.

I remember the Missouri St and the BYU game in the earlier round in 2019.  In both games, Shannon Coffee played 17 mins.  Every time she was on the court the opposing team would screen so that their guard would get matched with Coffee.  And said guard would then dribble around Coffee for a layup.  I don't think it is hyperbole to say that Cameron Brink is about 1000 times better at defending a smaller guard than Shannon Coffee was.

[82lsju]

game is at 12pm PT on ABC

https://www.espn.com/womens-college-bask.../group/100

[82lsju]

game is at 12pm PT on ABC

https://www.espn.com/womens-college-bask.../group/100

[81alum]

In another thread the name of Missouri State's 6'4" senior center Emily Gartner was mentioned.

Gartner plays 14 mpg and has started only 3 games this year.  She shoots 50% and scores about 6 ppg.  So for one reason or another Missouri State has not used her very much.  Those minutes have been pretty consistent all year and have not risen recently.  This pattern looks like Prechtel or Belibi to me.

They have two guards off the bench who routinely get 19-20 minutes, so Missouri State has a deep rotation of guards, all of whom can shoot the three, and they keep them fresh through rotation.  They may try to wear down Williams and Wilson.  Lacie and Jump may be really important in this game.

[81alum]

In another thread the name of Missouri State's 6'4" senior center Emily Gartner was mentioned.

Gartner plays 14 mpg and has started only 3 games this year.  She shoots 50% and scores about 6 ppg.  So for one reason or another Missouri State has not used her very much.  Those minutes have been pretty consistent all year and have not risen recently.  This pattern looks like Prechtel or Belibi to me.

They have two guards off the bench who routinely get 19-20 minutes, so Missouri State has a deep rotation of guards, all of whom can shoot the three, and they keep them fresh through rotation.  They may try to wear down Williams and Wilson.  Lacie and Jump may be really important in this game.

[bl82]

Anyone have any updates injury reports? Do we know if Ki practiced today?

For more on the Missouri State vs. Wright State game, her is an incredibly dense 6:32 version of the game with almost all of the scoring plays.
https://www.ncaa.com/video/basketball-wo...basketball

[bl82]

Anyone have any updates injury reports? Do we know if Ki practiced today?

For more on the Missouri State vs. Wright State game, her is an incredibly dense 6:32 version of the game with almost all of the scoring plays.
https://www.ncaa.com/video/basketball-wo...basketball

[CompSci87]

In another thread the name of Missouri State's 6'4" senior center Emily Gartner was mentioned.

Gartner plays 14 mpg and has started only 3 games this year.  She shoots 50% and scores about 6 ppg.  So for one reason or another Missouri State has not used her very much.  Those minutes have been pretty consistent all year and have not risen recently.  This pattern looks like Prechtel or Belibi to me.

They have two guards off the bench who routinely get 19-20 minutes, so Missouri State has a deep rotation of guards, all of whom can shoot the three, and they keep them fresh through rotation.  They may try to wear down Williams and Wilson.  Lacie and Jump may be really important in this game.

Gartner is #50 in the video. She is large, but no one would mistake her for Courtney Paris. All our bigs would easily outrun her in transition as well as outjumping her.

From what I saw watching parts of their second round game, #32 seems to be MoSt's best big. Among their guards, #2 had a great game from the 3-point line.

https://youtu.be/f8VaZyD-h1Q

[CompSci87]

In another thread the name of Missouri State's 6'4" senior center Emily Gartner was mentioned.

Gartner plays 14 mpg and has started only 3 games this year.  She shoots 50% and scores about 6 ppg.  So for one reason or another Missouri State has not used her very much.  Those minutes have been pretty consistent all year and have not risen recently.  This pattern looks like Prechtel or Belibi to me.

They have two guards off the bench who routinely get 19-20 minutes, so Missouri State has a deep rotation of guards, all of whom can shoot the three, and they keep them fresh through rotation.  They may try to wear down Williams and Wilson.  Lacie and Jump may be really important in this game.

Gartner is #50 in the video. She is large, but no one would mistake her for Courtney Paris. All our bigs would easily outrun her in transition as well as outjumping her.

From what I saw watching parts of their second round game, #32 seems to be MoSt's best big. Among their guards, #2 had a great game from the 3-point line.

https://youtu.be/f8VaZyD-h1Q

[TheFarm07]

Missouri State's biggest win this season was against Maryland early on and so I wanted to look at what they did well to beat the Terrapins and hold them to 72 points, as Maryland's season average is 90 ppg.

It looks like the deciding factors to that game included 23 Maryland turnovers and 16 offensive rebounds by Missouri State. Maryland didn't shoot it that bad (44% which was better than how Missouri State did that game at 42%)

Looking at Missouri State's season stats, they force a lot of turnovers: opponents are averaging 16.4 turnovers a game and Missouri State averages 10 steals a game.

All of their starters have at least 20 steals this season and Calip and Franklin each have 50+.

Considering the sloppiness of our ball control against OK State, this is a key facet to the matchup. We need to take care of the ball and not make silly mistakes, especially live ball turnovers that can result in fast break layups. It doesn't matter if our players are taller or more talented if we continue to cough it up and give Missouri State cheap points.

I am confident in the outcome if we can make this a half court contest. I think we can assert our presence in the paint on both ends and our guards and wings have more than enough talent to hang with theirs. 

In that tight game two years ago, it was our shooting that let us down (25% from the field and an atrocious 10% from long range), but we had 20 offensive rebounds to bail us out. I think our height will not only help us out with rebounding if needed, but also with scoring, whether it's with Brink or Jones. I think if Cameron can stay out of foul trouble, she can have a big game.

They also lost to 9 points to Wake Forest after beating Maryland, who as we know, lost pretty easily to OK State, who we just beat. I don't want to use the transitive process too much, but that should be another reassuring sign.

[TheFarm07]

Missouri State's biggest win this season was against Maryland early on and so I wanted to look at what they did well to beat the Terrapins and hold them to 72 points, as Maryland's season average is 90 ppg.

It looks like the deciding factors to that game included 23 Maryland turnovers and 16 offensive rebounds by Missouri State. Maryland didn't shoot it that bad (44% which was better than how Missouri State did that game at 42%)

Looking at Missouri State's season stats, they force a lot of turnovers: opponents are averaging 16.4 turnovers a game and Missouri State averages 10 steals a game.

All of their starters have at least 20 steals this season and Calip and Franklin each have 50+.

Considering the sloppiness of our ball control against OK State, this is a key facet to the matchup. We need to take care of the ball and not make silly mistakes, especially live ball turnovers that can result in fast break layups. It doesn't matter if our players are taller or more talented if we continue to cough it up and give Missouri State cheap points.

I am confident in the outcome if we can make this a half court contest. I think we can assert our presence in the paint on both ends and our guards and wings have more than enough talent to hang with theirs. 

In that tight game two years ago, it was our shooting that let us down (25% from the field and an atrocious 10% from long range), but we had 20 offensive rebounds to bail us out. I think our height will not only help us out with rebounding if needed, but also with scoring, whether it's with Brink or Jones. I think if Cameron can stay out of foul trouble, she can have a big game.

They also lost to 9 points to Wake Forest after beating Maryland, who as we know, lost pretty easily to OK State, who we just beat. I don't want to use the transitive process too much, but that should be another reassuring sign.

[martyup]

I'm pretty confident that we can take away their inside game.  If we just put Wilson on that little 3 point sharp shooting Oompa Loompa Ruffridge, we can shut down their outside scoring as well.

[martyup]

I'm pretty confident that we can take away their inside game.  If we just put Wilson on that little 3 point sharp shooting Oompa Loompa Ruffridge, we can shut down their outside scoring as well.

[WBB fan]

I'm cautiously confident, but a lot is going to depend on Kiana's ankle.

[WBB fan]

I'm cautiously confident, but a lot is going to depend on Kiana's ankle.

[TheFarm07]

I think we can still eek out a win in this game even with Kiana less than 100% or even absent, but no way do we win the whole tournament without a healthy Kiana.

My hope is that Kiana, like Anna, fully recovers from the injury they suffered in their respective games and that we are able to get out to a large lead so that Tara can protect the starters. An injury any time is bad, but stings particularly so late in a game where we could have expanded the lead and not have to use our key players for so long.

[TheFarm07]

I think we can still eek out a win in this game even with Kiana less than 100% or even absent, but no way do we win the whole tournament without a healthy Kiana.

My hope is that Kiana, like Anna, fully recovers from the injury they suffered in their respective games and that we are able to get out to a large lead so that Tara can protect the starters. An injury any time is bad, but stings particularly so late in a game where we could have expanded the lead and not have to use our key players for so long.

[chimera]

From their stats they are not a great outside shooting team, nor do they have a lot of size inside.  They do rebound well and do play a disciplined game that forces turnovers well.  If we take care of the ball and rebound well, which we should be able to do against them, that limits how they can hurt us.  They only score 70 or so a game, so not a big scoring team either.  Our defense is much better by the stats against a much tougher schedule, as is our offense.  If we play well, we should be in good shape.  Nothing is guaranteed, as always, but this is one of those games where play well should equal a win.  I know we played them a couple of years ago and it was not easy.  Still, this team has some defensive beasts on the perimeter and the ability to outrun them in a fast paced game, which was not so much the case a couple of years ago.

[chimera]

From their stats they are not a great outside shooting team, nor do they have a lot of size inside.  They do rebound well and do play a disciplined game that forces turnovers well.  If we take care of the ball and rebound well, which we should be able to do against them, that limits how they can hurt us.  They only score 70 or so a game, so not a big scoring team either.  Our defense is much better by the stats against a much tougher schedule, as is our offense.  If we play well, we should be in good shape.  Nothing is guaranteed, as always, but this is one of those games where play well should equal a win.  I know we played them a couple of years ago and it was not easy.  Still, this team has some defensive beasts on the perimeter and the ability to outrun them in a fast paced game, which was not so much the case a couple of years ago.

[bl82]

Anyone have any updates injury reports? Do we know if Ki practiced today?

For more on the Missouri State vs. Wright State game, her is an incredibly dense 6:32 version of the game with almost all of the scoring plays.
https://www.ncaa.com/video/basketball-wo...basketball

[bl82]

Anyone have any updates injury reports? Do we know if Ki practiced today?

For more on the Missouri State vs. Wright State game, her is an incredibly dense 6:32 version of the game with almost all of the scoring plays.
https://www.ncaa.com/video/basketball-wo...basketball

[CompSci87]

Thanks to Jacob Rayburn of https://stanford.rivals.com/ Cardinal Sports Report for posting the video of Stanford's pre-Sweet-16 press conference.

https://youtu.be/vVRIJVP0ehs

One tidbit: Ki practiced Thursday, though they didn't go hard that day. Tara said she hoped for Ki to go full speed today. The press conference was early, prior to practice.

[CompSci87]

Thanks to Jacob Rayburn of https://stanford.rivals.com/ Cardinal Sports Report for posting the video of Stanford's pre-Sweet-16 press conference.

https://youtu.be/vVRIJVP0ehs

One tidbit: Ki practiced Thursday, though they didn't go hard that day. Tara said she hoped for Ki to go full speed today. The press conference was early, prior to practice.

[CompSci87]

Great video! Yes, the women do use the weight room while in the tournament bubble!

https://youtu.be/3_Ky2uyr-_A

[CompSci87]

Great video! Yes, the women do use the weight room while in the tournament bubble!

https://youtu.be/3_Ky2uyr-_A