Wildcats to face No. 10 Rambelles
ACU needs hot start to second half of LSC play
SAN ANGELO -- ACU will conclude a treacherous five-game road swing Tuesday night when it takes on the nation's 10th-ranked team in Angelo State in a Lone Star Conference South Division contest.
Tipoff for the game is set for 7 p.m. at the Junell Center on the ASU campus. The game can be heard on KSLI 1280 AM.
The Wildcats fell to 11-11 overall and 2-5 and sixth place in the LSC South following last Saturday's 67-58 loss at Texas A&M-Kingsville. ACU is 1-3 in its last four games, all of which have been on the road.
The key road swing will end Tuesday against an Angelo State that enters the game at 19-1 overall, 7-0 in the LSC South and ranked No. 10 in the nation in the latest USA Today/ESPN/WBCA Division II Coaches' poll.
Tuesday night's game also marks the beginning of the second half of LSC South Division play for both teams. Angelo State is one-half game ahead of Midwestern State (7-1) for first place in the LSC South, but the Indians' one loss was a home loss to Angelo State two weeks ago.
ACU, meanwhile, is in sixth place at 2-5 in the LSC South, one-half game behind Texas A&M-Kingsville and Texas Woman's, which are both 3-5 and tied for fourth place. The Wildcats' second-half schedule appears favorable for a possible late charge at one of the four LSC post-season tournament berths from the South Division.
After playing at ASU Tuesday, the Wildcats will host Texas A&M-Kingsville and Texas A&M-Commerce this Thursday and Saturday, respectively. ACU then hits the road for games at Eastern New Mexico and West Texas A&M before returning home to host Texas Woman's and Midwestern State.
A 5-2 finish for the Wildcats would get them to 7-7 in the conference and possibly be good enough to clinch a spot in the tournament. Anything less would make it difficult to get into the tournament without help from other teams.
Melanie Carter continues to lead the Wildcats in both scoring (16.0 points per game) and rebounding (7.4 rpg), while also leading the LSC in field goal percentage at 65.5 percent (127 of 194 from the field). Carter has scored 353 points this season and is on pace to become just the second player in ACU women's basketball history to score 400 or more points in each of their first three seasons. On her way to the ACU all-time scoring record of 2,770 points, the great Claudia Schleyer scored 616 as a freshman, 653 as a sophomore and 731 as a junior.
Carter is now 10th on the school's all-time scoring list with 1,392 points, and her 665 career rebounds are 10th on the all-time list. Not counting potential post-season participation this season or next, Carter is on pace to finish with 2,050 points (third all-time behind Schleyer and Jennifer Clarkson) and 980 rebounds (fifth all-time).
Junior center Lynsie Blau is averaging 10.5 points and 7.4 rebounds, while freshman guard Ashley King is averaging 9.6 points and sophomore forward Stephanie Riles is averaging 7.6 points per game.
The Rambelles -- whose only blemish came in a 77-75 road loss at Cameron on Jan. 11 -- are led by the guard duo of senior Kami Williamson and junior Kelli Anne Goble. Williamson is averaging 13.7 points per game, while Goble is averaging 9.9 points per outing. Williamson is the only Rambelle averaging in double figures, but is one of six players averaging at least 7.5 points per game.
Angelo State leads the LSC in scoring offense (75.8 ppg), scoring margin (+16.2 ppg), field goal percentage (44.4 percent), rebounding (46.2 per game) and rebounding margin (+12.6 per game). The Rambelles are in the top five in the LSC in scoring defense (No. 2 at 59.5 ppg), free throw percentage (No. 4 at 71.3 percent), field goal percentage defense (No. 2 at 36.0 percent) and assists (No. 4 at 14.80 apg).
