Huskies and Cardinals await Wildcats on two-game road swing

Women's Basketball | 1/27/2015 7:43:00 PM

ACU Women's Basketball Game Notes (Jan. 29 and 31 at Houston Baptist and Lamar)

at Houston Baptist: Live Stats | Video | Audio

at Lamar: Live Stats | Video | Audio

ABILENE - Abilene Christian women's basketball experienced some highs and lows on its recent four-game homestand but will take a two-game winning streak on the road this weekend to Houston and Beaumont, Texas for a game against Houston Baptist and the start of a home-and-home series with the Lamar Cardinals.

The Wildcats and Huskies tip off Thursday at 7 p.m., while the ACU and Lamar game will start at 4 p.m. Saturday followed by the men's game. 'The Voice of the Wildcats' Grant Boone and Seth Wilson will be broadcasting both games locally on 98.1 FM-The Ticket.

ACU improved to 10-8 overall and 2-5 vs. the Southland in recent days, rebounding from crushing last-minute losses to Stephen F. Austin and Sam Houston State with a convincing 78-54 triumph over Incarnate Word and 70-55 defeat of Angelo State.

Sophomore Sydney Shelstead recorded yet another fantastic night off the bench vs. the Rambelles Monday, registering a career high 21 points on 8-of-10 shooting and pulling down 12 rebounds in 30 minutes of play. Shelstead already has surpassed her freshman year totals with 225 points, 26 assists and 173 rebounds through 18 appearances this season, and in her three trips off the bench over the past two weeks she is averaging 15.3 points and 12.3 rebounds per game.

Saturday against the Cardinals, the Wildcats received a game-high 17 points from guard Alexis Mason in addition to an impressive stat line from Suzzy Dimba, who recorded a career-high six assists and five steals to go along with three blocks and a 12-point/15-rebound double-double. Her rebound total was one shy of a career high.

Dimba is averaging 9.0 points (38th), 7.4 rebounds (14th), 3.1 assists (13th), 2.3 steals (6th) and 1.4 blocks per game (5th) through seven conference games and is one of only two Southland players (HBU's Shanice Steenholdt) ranked among the top 15 in rebounds, steals and blocks.

For the season, Steenholdt leads the Southland Conference with 10.3 rebounds per game and is second with 17.8 points per contest.

Houston Baptist (8-10 overall, 2-5 SLC) has won two of three games on its current homestand but are coming off a tough 80-64 loss Saturday to Lamar in which the Cardinals held the Huskies to 30 percent shooting in the second half.
 
The win over HBU was Lamar's first victory of the season when trailing at halftime. The Cardinals outscored the Huskies 48-29 in the second half as four players scored in double figures and Dominique Edwards became the 12th player in program history to score at least 1,000 career points.

As a team, the Cardinals are fourth in the nation in steals, averaging 12.1 per game. Lamar also is first in the conference in turnover margin with a plus-3.79 per game.

Guard JaMeisha Edwards leads Lamar in scoring at 13.7 points per game, including 16.3 points per contest in Southland action. Dominique Edwards averages 12.9 points and a team-best 7.5 rebounds per outing.

Lamar (9-10 overall, 6-2 Southland) enters the week in second place, 1.0 game behind league-leading Northwestern state, and will first play at Sam Houston State Wednesday before welcoming the Wildcats.

Additional and updated women's basketball game notes are listed below.
 

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THURSDAY'S / SATURDAY'S GAMES: Are the lone contests on a two-game roadtrip following the Wildcats' season-long four-game homestand (2-2) ... ACU leads its all-time series vs. Houston Baptist 1-0 after beating the Huskies at Moody Coliseum last season, 82-70 ... The Wildcats lost their first-ever meeting a year ago vs. Lamar, 85-83 ... ACU went 8-6 vs. the Southland in 2013-14 and is 28-28 all-time vs. Southland Conference opponents (0-2 vs. Central Arkansas, 1-0 vs. Houston Baptist,15-8 vs. Incarnate Word, 0-1 vs. Lamar, 1-1 vs. McNeese, 1-0 vs. New Orleans, 1-1 vs. Nicholls, 0-2 vs. Northwestern State, 1-0 vs. Oral Roberts, 1-1 vs. Southeastern Louisiana, 7-6 vs. Sam Houston State, 0-5 vs. Stephen F. Austin and 0-1 vs. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi) ... ACU is 8-3 vs. non-conference opponents this season ... 7-4 at home and 3-4 away from Moody Coliseum ... 5-5 on weekdays (4-1 on Monday, 1-3 on Wednesdays, and 0-1 on Thursdays) ... 4-4 on weekends (1-0 Friday, 3-2 Saturday, 0-2 Sunday) ... 6-5 in day games ... 4-3 in night games.


CATEGORICAL VARIABLE: Suzzy Dimba is making her case for selection once again to the all-Southland Conference Defensive Team ...  Suzzy is averaging 9.0 points (38th), 7.4 rebounds (14th), 3.1 assists (13th), 2.3 steals (6th) and 1.4 blocks per game (5th) in league play and is one of only two Southland players (HBU's Shanice Steenholdt) ranked among the top 15 in rebounds, steals and blocks ... Suzzy recorded career single game highs with six assists and five steals vs. Incarnate Word on Jan. 24 and tied her season high with four blocks on Jan. 26 vs. Angelo State.


BENCHMARKS: Sydney Shelstead recorded yet another fantastic night off the bench Jan. 26 vs. the Rambelles, registering a career high 21 points on 8-of-10 shooting and pulling down 12 rebounds in 30 minutes of play ... Of her seven double-doubles this season, two have been as a reserve (Jan. 14 vs. McNeese) ... Her season total also is the fifth highest among Southland players, behind HBU's Shanice Steenholdt (10), Corpus Christi's Olivia Fouty (9), Lamar's Dominique Edwards (8) and SFA's Porsha Roberts (8) ... In her three games coming off the bench, Shelstead is averaging 15.3 points and 12.3 rebounds through 27.3 minutes per game ... Through 18 games, Shelstead already has surpassed her 30-game freshman season totals with 225 points, 26 assists and 173 rebounds ... She finished last year with 223 points, 139 rebounds and 25 assists.


NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH: The Wildcats continued their recent dominance over longtime rivals from Incarnate Word and Angelo State the weekend of Jan. 24-26 ... ACU extended its series winning streak over the Cardinals to a third game behind a 78-54 victory ... The Wildcats have won seven of the last nine in this series with their last defeat coming at the tail end of the 2012-13 campaign when both were part of the Lone Star Conference ... Head coach Julie Goodenough improved to 4-0 all-time vs. Angelo State as the Rambelles and Wildcats faced one another for the 40th consecutive season ... ACU leads its all-time series against ASU, 53-35, and haven't lost to the Rambelles since 2011-12.


MINUTE MAIDS: On Jan. 17 vs. Stephen F. Austin, Lizzy Dimba came off the bench to deliver a career high 41 minutes tying her with guard Alexis Mason ... ACU last finished with two individuals who had 40 or more minutes in the same game on Dec. 20, 2010 vs. Southeastern Oklahoma State, when Autumn Whitaker played 44 and Mack Lankford and Cecilee Perez each had 40.


HOT OFF THE BENCH: Some of the Wildcats' best performances have come off the bench since head coach Julie Goodenough started switching up her team's lineup with the McNeese game on Jan. 14 ... Against McNeese, Sydney Shelstead scorched the Cowgirls for 19 points on 9-of-13 shooting and pulled down 14 rebounds in 28 minutes for her sixth double-double of the season ... On Jan. 17 vs. Stephen F. Austin, Lizzy Dimba scored 17 points and post 10 rebounds ... On Jan. 22 vs. Sam Houston State, Suzzy Dimba recorded her fourth double-double of the season and 15th of her career by scoring 10 points and pulling down 10 rebounds ... It was her first double-double since Nov. 28 vs. George Mason ... Suzzy has since extended her double-double streak to three games with a 12 point/15 rebound performance vs. Incarnate Word on Jan. 24 and a 13/10 game vs. Angelo State on Jan. 26, complete with four blocks and three steals.


FIVE OVER TEN: All five of ACU's starters are averaging 10.0 or more points a game this season through 16 contests making the Wildcats the only team in the Southland Conference to have their entire starting rotation ranked among the top 30 ... Sydney Shelstead leads ACU with 12.5 ppg followed by Lizzy Dimba (11.6), Alexis Mason (11.4), Whitney West (11.4) and Suzzy Dimba (10.8) ... ACU also is the only Southland school with three players ranked among the top-15 in rebounding (Shelstead, 2nd - 9.6), S. Dimba (7th - 7.9) and L. Dimba (13th - 7.1).


EXCELLENCE FOR CHRIST: The mission of ACU Athletics is to honor Christ through excellence in academics and athletics, and its vision is to win at the highest level by providing the most Christ-centered student-athlete experience in collegiate athletics ... ACU Athletics adopted its slogan of Excellence For Christ in the Winter of 2015 (#ACUE4C).


HEAD OF THE CLASS: Sydney Shelstead was nominated the week of Jan. 19 for a spot on the Capital One Academic All-America Team ... The sophomore is an engineering major with a 3.94 grade-point average ... Shelstead posted a 4.0 GPA this past fall semester and was one of three Wildcats named to the Dean's Honor Roll with Whitney West and Madison Parker ... Five other Wildcats were named to the Athletics Academic Honor Roll for registering a 3.0 GPA last fall.


MILESTONE WATCH: Whitney West reached 700 career points Jan. 7 at Northwestern State and currently is 31 points away from 800 ... She played her 2000th minute Jan. 22 vs. Sam Houston State and was credited with her 100th steal and 200th assist vs. Angelo State on Jan. 26 ...  Alexis Mason's consecutive game starting streak is at 47 as she stands 19 points away from 600 ... Suzzy Dimba scored point No. 500 vs. the Bearkats and recorded her 100th assist vs. Incarnate Word on Jan. 24 ... Lizzy Dimba needs one points for 500 in her career and 14 rebounds to reach 300 ... Sydney Shelstead pulled down rebound No. 300 vs. the Cardinals.


KAT-LIKE REFLEXES: The Bearkats of Sam Houston State upset the Wildcats at home Jan. 22, 63-58 as they overcame a seven-point deficit with 1:39 remaining ... Bearkats' Shernise Robertson scored 10 of her game-high 28 points in the closing minutes, striking a pair of 3-pointers that narrowed SHSU's deficit to one point, and sinking four straight free throws to put the game one ice ... ACU's Whitney West led her side with 23 points (one shy of a career single-game high) on 9-15 shooting ... Her nine field goals and five 3-pointers tied single-game highs from earlier this season at UMKC on Nov. 29 ... Suzzy Dimba recorded a 10 point/10 rebound double-double.


LONG TIME, NO OT: ACU's Jan. 17 game vs. Stephen F. Austin marked the program's first trip to overtime since the 2010-11 season ...The Wildcats that year lost to Southeastern Oklahoma State at home in the extra session, 93-92, but later defeated Texas A&M-Kingsville, 84-82, at Moody Coliseum, on Jan. 22, 2011 ... ACU hasn't gone to overtime on the road since Feb. 14, 2009, when the Wildcats lost at Angelo State, 64-59.


WEBB SLINGER: Junior guard Paris Webb set several single-game season highs at McNeese in her first career start at ACU ... The Central Arizona transfer provided 33 minutes in which she buried 4-of-8 field goals and 2-of-3 3-pointers to finish with 10 points ... She also pulled down four rebounds and dished out four assists to tie a season high (UMKC) ... Webb recorded her third four-assist game vs. Angelo State on Jan. 26.


JACKS OVER 'CATS: The defending Southland Conference Champion Stephen F. Austin Ladyjacks edged the Wildcats in overtime, 71-69, on Jan. 17 ... All-Conference selection Porsha Roberts scored six of her opponent season-high 25 points in overtime and finished 10-11 from the field with an opponent season high three blocks ... Lizzy Dimba finished with a team-high 17 points off the bench, and her 10 rebounds marked her fourth double-double of the season ... Whitney West had 14 points for ACU, while Sydney Shelstead had 11 for the Wildcats.


COWGIRLS CORRALLED: The Wildcats pulled off their second, second-half comeback of the season Wednesday at McNeese as they rallied from 10-points down to stun the Cowgirls at Burton Coliseum, 75-59 ... McNeese, which trailed by 15 in the first half, grabbed its largest lead of the night three minutes into the second half, but then ACU finished the contest on an astonishing 36-10 run and held the Cowgirls to .364 shooting (.148 [4-27] from 3-point range) ... The comeback effort was ACU's biggest since Feb. 27, 2014, when it rallied from 12 down to beat Nicholls on the road, 78-62 ... The Wildcats went into the break down 37-34 in that game, but trounced the Colonels the rest of the way, 44-25.


SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK: The Wildcats suffered on of their toughest losses in 30 years on Jan. 11, falling 63-39 at home to Nicholls ... ACU's individual achievements during the game included game high five rebounds and 13 minutes played off the bench for freshman Sierra Allen ... Lizzy Dimba finishing a rebound shy (12) of her personal best of 13 in recording the 250th of her career ... Sydney Shelstead coming up two rebounds short of a third-consecutive double-double against conference opponents (11 points / 8 rebounds).


DOWN IN FLAMES: Northwestern State extended ACU's losing streak to three on Jan. 7 with a 61-56 comeback victory in which the Lady Demons rebounded from a 15-point first half with 46 points on .636 shooting in the second half ... NSU's 15 first-half points were the fewest surrendered by the Wildcats since giving up 12 to Southwestern Adventist in January of 2013 ... The Wildcats also recorded a season best with six blocks, four of which were recorded by Suzzy Dimba – one shy of her single-game career high ... NSU, which started the game shooting 18 percent from the floor and 28 percent from the free throw line, made 14-of-22 shots in the second half, including three triples and was 15-of-17 from the foul line ... Janelle Perez led her side with 15 points and six assists followed by Tia Youngblood with 12 points and Presley Owens with 11 points.


SPOONFUL OF SUGAR BEARS: Central Arkansas snapped ACU's seven-game home winning steak on Jan. 4, defeating the Wildcats for the second time in as many meetings, 66-60 ... It was ACU's first loss at Moody since falling to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Feb. 8, 2014 ... Leading the Wildcats were Sydney Shelstead who recorded 15 points and 11 rebounds for the sixth double-double of her career and Lizzy Dimba who buried a career high three 3-point field goals ... Lizzy led all Wildcats with 19 points ... Alexis Mason played 35 minutes and has played more than 30 minutes in five of her previous six games, including a career high 36 at McNeese.


CATCHING CURTIS: ACU's Dec. 20 win vs. Air Force was the 46th for Julie Goodenough as the Wildcats' head coach, pushing her past Dr. Joyce Curtis (45-57, .441) for fifth on the program's all-time wins list ... A professor emerita of exercise science and health, Dr. Curtis was the first coach for women's volleyball, badminton, basketball and tennis and was inducted into the ACU Sports Hall of Fame in 2003 ... Goodenough's .645 winning percentage is second only to Suzanne Fox (117-33, .780) ... She needs 47 wins to tie Wayne Williams (96-70/.578) for fourth place on ACU's victory list.


FALCONS CLIPPED: The Wildcats improved to 4-0 all-time vs. Air Force following their 80-44 win over the Falcons ... The Air Force Academy set several opponent season lows during the Dec. 20 game, including fewest points (44), field goals made (15) and attempted (50) and percentage (15-50, .300) ... The Falcons missed all 13 of their 3-point attempts, becoming the first ACU foe to post a long distance 0-for since Central Arkansas went 0-for-7 on Jan. 18, 2014 ... Air Force's 44 points were the fewest scored by an opponent since Angelo State netted just 41 points on 44 FG attempts last season.


LOW TURNOVER: ACU's nine turnovers vs. Air Force were its fewest since coughing up the ball eight times vs. Sam Houston State to set a season low for 2013-14 … Prior to that occasion, ACU last turned over the ball fewer than 10 times on Nov. 22, 2008 vs. St. Edward's (9) … The Wildcats also had an eight turnover game vs. Angelo State on Jan 14. 2003 … The single-game record for fewest turnovers is believed to be five (at Central Oklahoma on Dec. 2, 1999).


KITTIES GOT CLAWS: ACU fell to 0-2 vs. the Big 12 this season after losing at Kansas State on Dec. 22 ... ACU turned the ball over 29 times two days removed from setting a season low of nine turnovers vs. Air Force ... Conversely, ACU forced 17 K-State turnovers led by a career high seven steals from Whitney West ... Her seven thefts were the most by a Wildcat since Renata Marquez was credited with eight steals in a runaway victory at New Orleans ... Kansas State was the first Wildcat opponent this season through 10 games to shoot .500 or better (28-56) ... The last ACU foe to eclipse the .500 mark in shooting was Incarnate Word on March 8, 2014; however, the Wildcats won their season finale 90-79.


FOUL TERRITORY: Within a span of three days, the Wildcats followed season highs of 24 free throws on 33 attempts vs. Air Force (12/20) with season lows of 5 and 8 at Kansas State (12/22) ... ACU's 24-for-33 afternoon vs. the Falcons were its most FTs and attempts since going 28-for-33 vs. Texas A&M-Commerce in March of 2013 during the first round of the Lone Star Conference Championship ... ACU last made as few as five free throws on Feb. 1, 2014 at Northwestern State and only went seven times to the charity stripe against Angelo State last season on Nov. 14, 2013.


BATTLE TESTED: ACU suffered a tough 61-44 road loss Dec. 3 at Texas Tech, which marked the season debut for one of the Lady Raiders' top players, Amber Battle ... In her first game back from a  lengthy suspension, Battle posted a double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds ... Lizzy Dimba was the lone Wildcat to reach double figures in scoring as she hit 8-of-11 free throws to finish with 10 points and seven rebounds ... Her sister, Suzzy, pulled down eight boards in a rematch of local rivals.


PURE WEST: Junior guard Whitney West earned Plaza Lights Classic MVP honors and was named to its all-tournament team Nov. 29 after leading the Wildcats to consecutive victories over George Mason of the Atlantic 10 Conference (88-86) and the host UMKC of the WAC (80-55) ... West netted a pair of go-ahead baskets during the final minute of the Wildcats' game vs. the Patriots, with the game-winner banked in with six seconds remaining ... She then was credited with a block on George Mason's final attempt coming with two seconds left on the clock ... West torched the Roos behind a career-high 24 points on 9-21 shooting (5-12 3-point range) ... West's efforts in Kansas City combined with her 11-point game vs. Eastern Washington earned her Southland Conference Player of the Week honors ... She is the Wildcat's first winner of this prize since Suzzy Dimba won her award last December following the win at Texas Tech.


MASON V MASON: Sophomore guard Alexis Mason was given a spot on the Plaza Lights Classic all-tournament team after averaging 22.0 points per game ... Mason began the two-day, four-team classic with a career high 28 points vs. George Mason in which she hit 10-20 shots from the floor (four 3-pointers) ... 20 of her points came in the first half as the Wildcats went into the break ahead by 10 points at 43-33 ... Mason's 28 points were the most by a Wildcat since Renata Marquez dropped 32 on Arlington Baptist on Feb. 18, 2014 ... She has six 20+ point games in her career and three this season (Howard Payne, George Mason and Southwestern Christian).


SYD THE KID: Sophomore center Sydney Shelstead played one of her best games as a Wildcat vs. Eastern Washington with 18 points and 18 rebounds ...  Her 18 rebounds were the most by a Wildcat since Kelsey Smith had 19 in a win over Incarnate Word on Feb. 15, 2012 ... Shelstead went on to record a 19 point/11 rebound double-double vs. George Mason on Nov. 28 and just missed a third consecutive double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds at UMKC on Nov. 29.


ON EAGLES' WINGS: ACU earned its first win over a Big Sky school in close to 20 years Nov. 24 when the Wildcats defeated Eastern Washington, 79-72, in comeback fashion ... The Purple and White gave up 45 points and 18 field goals in the first half before limiting the Eagles to 27 points and 40 percent shooting from the field in the second half ... EWU hit back-to-back buckets late in the second half to take a 70-68 lead with 5:29 to play but a layup by Jade Redmon would be the Eagles' final field goal of the game and their final points until Lexie Nelson hit two free throws with six seconds to play ... In between, Sydney Shelstead powered an ACU run with three points, four rebounds and one assist for a dagger 3-pointer from Whitney West that gave ACU a 78-70 lead 1:35 to play ... ACU's last win vs. the Big Sky came vs. Portland State during the 1995-96 season.


RIVER CITY RECAP: ACU lost its first game of the season Nov. 19 at UTSA, 70-57 ... The Wildcats set a season high for steals with 18 ... Sophomore Sydney Shelstead recorded a single-game career high of three blocks, while guards Whitney West and Alyssa Echols each had five steals ... Mason finished the game with 11 points on 3-of-11 shooting and  5-of-6 free throws ... Lizzy Dimba, meanwhile, went 7-of-10 from the charity stripe in finishing with a game high 13 points and pulled down eight rebounds to tie Shelstead for the team lead.


HOMECOMING: ACU completed its two-game, season-opening homestand at 2-0 following a Nov. 17 win over Howard Payne, 102-60 ... The Wildcats kicked off their 44th season of women's basketball on Nov. 15 with a 91-64 victory over Wayland Baptist ... ACU has won its last five season openers and is 27-17 all-time on Opening Night ... Moody Coliseum is in its 46th year of hosting basketball at ACU, with the first men's game played here on Feb. 27, 1968 ... The Wildcats' history as a program dates all the way the back to 1971-72 and has only called six individuals head coach ... The Wildcats' all-time home record is 364-120 (.752).


BRING THE PAYNE: ACU hit the century mark for the first time this season and 48th in program history Nov. 17 with its dominating 102-60 victory over Howard Payne ... The Wildcats outscored Howard Payne 20-6 in the opening five minutes of the contest and coasted from there as freshman Madison Parker (15) and sophomores Alexis Mason (24), Suzzy Dimba (17), Lizzy Dimba (15) and Sydney Shelstead (14) all scored in double figures ... The Wildcats shot 51.4 percent from the field (37 of 72), including 41.7 percent from 3-point range (10 of 24).


AN OSCAR FOR MADISON: In just her second collegiate game, freshman Madison Parker posted a double-double off the bench with 15 points on 5-9 shooting (2-3 3-point range) and 12 rebounds (6 offensive) ... Her 12 rebounds led the team as she became the first Wildcat to lead the team in rebounding other than Suzzy or Lizzy Dimba since December of last season – breaking the Dimbas' streak at 18 games.


SWEET CHARITY: The Wildcats began their win over Howard Payne with 18 consecutive successful free-throw attempts as they finished the game 18-19 (.947) with the lone miss coming from Suzzy Dimba with 3:35 remaining ... ACU's free throw streak was its best since knocking down 17 straight on March 4, 2010 vs. Central Oklahoma (31-33) ... The Wildcats also made 17 straight FTs to end the West Texas A&M game played on Feb. 7, 2008 ... More recently, the Wildcats had a 15-of-15 free throw game at St. Edward's in Dec. of 2012 and made 15 of 16-second half free throws to finish a Jan. 5, 2013 game at Cameron, 19 for 20.


FLYING QUEENS GROUNDED: During ACU's season-opening 91-64 win vs. Wayland Baptist the Wildcats held the Flying Queens to .323 shooting (.091 3-pointer) and scored 38 points off the opposition's 29 turnovers ... WBU's 52 rebounds were the most by an ACU opponent since Texas A&M-Kingsville pulled down 60 on Feb. 19, 2012 ... Tulsa recorded a opponent season high 50 last season as did several foes during the 2012-13 season ... LaTericka Anderson had 17 rebounds, which were the most by an ACU opponent since Tarleton State's Kiara Wright had games of 19 and 23 vs. the Wildcats on Dec. 8, 2012 and Feb. 9, 2013 ... The 29 turnovers forced by ACU were its most since reaching that same total last year at North Texas on Nov. 23, 2013.


THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT: Head coach Julie Goodenough introduced her 2015 recruiting class the week of Nov. 10 ... Coming to join the Wildcats' next season are Shelby Jones (Clovis, N.M./Clovis HS), McKenzie Martin (Allen, Texas / Allen HS), Breklyn Wentz (Lubbock, Texas / Trinity Christian ) and Sara Williamson (Rockwall, Texas / Rockwall HS) ... Martin and Williamson are both coming to ACU from the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex, while Wentz - a native of Lubbock - is the younger sister of junior Parker Wentz of the Wildcats' men's basketball team ... Jones grew up in the Eastern New Mexico hamlet of Clovis.  


IT'S LIKE, YOU KNOW, WHATEVER: Despite posting a winning 8-6 record during its first year as a NCAA DI member of the Southland Conference and returning five players with starting experience, the Southland Conference voters picked Abilene Christian to finish eighth in the preseason poll ... The Wildcats also failed to land any players on the all-preseason first or second teams even though sophomore Suzzy Dimba was the lone freshman last season named to an all-defensive team alongside five seniors ... Stephen F. Austin is expected to repeat as conference champion ... The Ladyjacks were followed by Northwestern State, Lamar, Central Arkansas and McNeese, Nicholls, Corpus Christi, Houston Baptist, Sam Houston State, Southeastern La., Incarnate Word and New Orleans.


ALL-CONFERENCE HONOREES: Suzzy Dimba and Renata Marquez were Southland Conference honorable mentions in 2013-14 ... Dimba also was one of just five student-athletes – and the only first-year player – tabbed to the conference's all-defensive team.


MAKING THE GRADE: Renata Marquez was the lone Wildcat named to the Southland Conference all-academic (second) team, but was one of nine tabbed to the league's Commissioner's Honor Roll ... Joining her on this list were current Wildcats Lizzy and Suzzy Dimba, Katelyn Goodman, Sydney Shelstead and Whitney West.


2013-14 RECORD BREAKDOWN: The Wildcats went 18-12 and 8-6 during their first season as NCAA DI members of the Southland Conference to lift their all-time program record to 746-464 (.617) in 1,210 games played ... ACU went 11-3 at Moody Coliseum and 7-9 on the road ... 3-7 on Saturdays and 4-8 on weekends ... 14-4 during midweek games, including 4-0 on Tuesdays and 6-2 on Thursdays ... 6-4 in day games and 12-8 in night games ... The Wildcats are 26-23 all-time vs. last season's Southland Conference opponents: 0-1 vs. Central Arkansas, 1-0 vs. Houston Baptist,14-8 vs. Incarnate Word, 0-1 vs. Lamar, 0-1 vs. McNeese, 1-0 vs. New Orleans, 1-0 vs. Nicholls, 0-1 vs. Northwestern State, 1-0 vs. Oral Roberts, 1-1 vs. Southeastern Louisiana, 7-5 vs. Sam Houston State, 0-4 vs. Stephen F. Austin and 0-1 vs. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.  


2013-14 POTPOURRI: ACU's sweep of Incarnate Word in 2013-14 was its first since 2006-07 ... ACU's 96 points at Southeastern Louisiana were their most against a Southland team last season and most against a conference opponent – in a regulation game – since scoring 93 vs. Texas A&M-Commerce in 2012 ... ACU's 111 points vs. Texas Lutheran were the most scored by a Southland Conference team in a single game ... The Wildcats also recorded conference team highs in field goals made (41) and attempted (89), 3-point field goals (18) and attempts (50) and assists (30).  


FAB FRESHMEN: ACU had eight freshmen on last year's team who combined for 1,435 points through 30 games ... That total accounts for 62.8 percent of the Wildcats' 2,285 points ... Here's a listing of the top-five freshman classes in terms of scoring in addition to number of games played and freshman scoring per game:

1. North Carolina – 1,821 points (62.5%) | 37g (42.9 ppg)
2. Indiana – 1,466 points (61.9%) | 34g (43.1 ppg)
3. ACU – 1,435 points (62.8%) | 30g (47.8 ppg)
4. UNC Wilmington – 1,199 points (70.3%) | 32g (37.5 ppg)
5. Arkansas – 1048 points (52.4%) | 30g (34.9 ppg)


THREE'S COMPANY: The Wildcats made 291 3-pointers on 873 attempts through 30 games, in 2013-14 easily shattering the team records of 236 and 712 set in 2012-13 ... ACU's number of 3-pointers made and attempted rank third in the NCAA along with its average of 3-pointers made per game at 9.7 behind Sacramento State (12.4) and Florida Gulf Coast (10.2) ... ACU's 291 treys ranked behind five schools ... In the Feb. 18, 2014 game vs. Arlington Baptist, half of ACU's 108 points were scored from 3-point range as the team set two program records with 18 3-point buckets on 50 attempts (.360) … The old records of 17 and 46 were set vs. Texas Lutheran on Nov. 8, 2014 ... ACU's 16 3-point attempts vs. Florida Atlantic on Dec. 20 , 2013 and at UTSA on Jan. 4, 2014 were a season low.


UNBEATEN ON ESPN3: ACU was 2-0 last year when its games were broadcast via ESPN3 ... The Wildcats won their debut game on ESPN3 vs. Sam Houston State on Jan. 25, 73-67, at Moody Coliseum ... ACU's second-half comeback at Incarnate Word in a 73-67 win was broadcast by the Worldwide Leader in Sports a few weeks later on Feb. 13 ... ACU will not be on ESPN3 this season until Feb. 21 at Southeastern Louisiana.


SENSATIONAL SIX: ACU had six players hit double figures for the third time in 2013-14 during their March 3 win at Southeastern Louisiana ... Lizzy Dimba and Alexis Mason shared the team high of 16 points followed by Suzzy Dimba, Whitney West and Renata Marquez with 15 ... Sydney Shelstead contributed 14 points off the bench in 19 minutes on 6-of-8 shooting ... ACU previously had six players with 10 or more points on Feb 18 vs. Arlington Baptist -– Marquez (32), Lizzy Dimba (18), Mason (14), Suzzy Dimba (13), Jessica Elkins (11) and West (11) – and on Nov. 19, 2013 vs. Northwood ... Shelstead led the Wildcats that night with 20 points followed by Marquez (16), Mason (15), Elkins (12) and Suzzy Dimba (10) ... Prior to this season, the last six ACU players to accomplish this feat were Jamie Meyer (20), Jody Meyer (12), Autumn Whitaker (16), Kelsey Darby-Holson (10), Kat Kundmueller (11) and Cecilee Perez (11) at SE Oklahoma on Jan. 10, 2009.


DOUBLE TRIO: Suzzy Dimba, Alexis Mason and Renata Marquez pulled off a rare feat during their game vs. Lamar  on Jan. 23 as all scored over 20 points ... It's believed they're the first ACU trio to accomplish this since Jan. 3, 2009 when Jamie Meyer (22), Audrey Maxwell-Lively (28) and Jody Meyer (20) led the Wildcats to a 104-95 win against Texas A&M-Commerce at Moody Coliseum.


NO FOULING AROUND: ACU recorded its fewest fouls of the 2013-14 season vs. Oral Roberts with eight ... Two players had two, while four others had just one ... The Wildcats' foul total was among the lowest in the Southland Conference last season (Central Arkansas had six vs. Houston Baptist) ... ACU last committed fewer than 10 fouls in a game last season vs. Southwestern Adventist (6); however, prior to that game ACU was last kept under 10 fouls in a November 2002 game vs. Incarnate Word (8).


REINING IN THE MAVERICKS: ACU celebrated its first win over a NCAA D-I program in 20 years on Nov. 27 in Arlington as the Wildcats held on to defeat the UTA Mavericks, 79-72 ... Prior to this victory, ACU had not defeated a D-I school since 1993 when they edged Idaho State, 75-74 ... Renata Marquez made 10 field goals to lead the Wildcats with 26 points and 12 rebounds for her third double-double of the season ... Whitney West blocked three shots and finished with 19 points.


A TRIPLE DOUBLE-DOUBLE: The Wildcats pulled off a rare feat in their win over Northwood as three players registered a double-double: Sydney Shelstead (20/10), Renata Marquez (16/10) and Suzzy Dimba (10/11) ... ACU had 17 double-doubles on the season with Suzzy Dimba at 11, Marquez with five and Sydney Shelstead with two ... The last time two Wildcats recorded a double-double was during its triple-overtime, 111-105, loss to Central Oklahoma (Jody and Jamie Meyer) on March 4, 2010 ... In a regulation game, however, you have to go all the way back to January of 2009 to find the last time two Wildcats had a double-double – and that was Jody Meyer (20/13) and Audrey Maxwell-Livey (28/11) in the Commerce game that immediately preceded ACU's 4 overtime clash vs. Texas Woman's ... In that lengthy contest, double-doubles were posted by Maxwell-Lively (18/12) and both Meyer sisters ... Jody had 17/13 and Jamie had 49/14.


SHOOT TO THRILL: The Wildcats shot an impressive .557 percent from the field in their 87-41 win vs. Angelo State on Nov. 14, 2014 connecting on 34-of-61 shots, including 13 3-pointers ... Their shooting percentage was a team-best under second-year head coach Julie Goodenough and highest since a Dec. 2010 game vs. East Central, in which the Wildcats recorded the same exact number of baskets and attempts ... The last time ACU shot better than 60 percent was in Jan. of 2010 at CSU-Pueblo.


OLD GUARD: ACU has the luxury of returning five letterwinners - all of whom were starters - from last season's 18 win team: junior Whitney West and sophomores Lizzy and Suzzy Dimba, Alexis Mason and Sydney Shelstead ... This quintet was responsible for producing 1570 points, 718 rebounds, 293 assists, 190 steals and 86 blocks in 3869 minutes played.


NEW PIECES: The Wildcats' recruiting class consists of three high school players and junior college transfers Ellyn Avery and Paris Webb ... She and freshman Alyssa Echols of Pflugerville HS will handle the point guard position, while Avery gives the Wildcats another hot 3-point hand along with Whitney West and Alexis Mason ... Sierra Allen (6-1) and Madison Parker (5-10) will play down in the post.


WILDCATS ARE GOODENOUGH: Julie Goodenough is at the start of her 21st season as a collegiate head coach and third at the helm of the ACU basketball team ...Her first team shared the Lone Star Conference regular-season title with Midwestern State at 16-4 and finished with an overall mark of 21-7 – the program's first 20-win season since 2004-05 ... Her efforts also resulted in her earning co-Coach of the Year honors from the LSC as the Wildcats made their first NCAA postseason since 2008-09 ... Goodenough won her 300th game on Jan. 15, 2013 vs. Incarnate Word, after the Wildcats prevailed over the Cardinals, 76-65 ... The Feb. 1, 2014 game at Northwestern State was Julie Goodenough's 50th as ACU's head coach.


THE FAMER: Second-year assistant coach Kendra Hassell has been inducted into three local Halls of Fame since joining the Wildcats in the spring of 2013 ... In recognition of her high school (Colorado City, Texas) and collegiate accomplishments, Hassell was inducted in the Big Country Athletic Hall of Fame in May of 2014 and the Hardin-Simmons Athletics Hall of Fame in July of 2013 ... She was inducted into the American Southwest Conference in early December of 2014 ... Hassell played for Julie Goodenough at HSU and later coached with her at Oklahoma State and Charleston Southern.


NEW COACHES: Julie Goodenough hired two new assistant coaches this summer: Kyle Felan and Matt Stine ... Felan comes to Abilene after spending four seasons working in several roles for the women's basketball coaching staff at Texas A&M University ... Stine worked with the women's basketball programs at Dayton and TCU.


SOUTHLAND BOUND: As second-year members of the Southland Conference, Incarnate Word and ACU were not eligible to win a conference championship during their D-I transition period ... Pending NCAA approval, the Wildcats would be fully eligible beginning with the 2017-18 basketball season.


ARE YOU SOUTHLAND STRONG?: The conference motto encompasses a positive mindset and confident outlook for everything that happens in the Southland ... It is about competitiveness and success in the conference, in the NCAA, in professional sports and many other great achievements by member institutions and student-athletes ... It is also about being successful in the classroom and workforce and about great works by the league's athletic departments reaching out and giving back to the local communities and student-athletes providing leadership through their endless efforts with local charity and youth groups.


LEAVING THE LONE STAR: The Wildcats won 16 combined Lone Star Conference championships from 1983 to 2013, which includes divisional, regular season and tournament titles ... ACU also left the LSC holding nine individual career records, plus three season records and single-game records ... Claudia Schleyer, who played at ACU from 1982-86, remains the LSC's all-time leading scorer with 2,770 points, and the 1995-96 team still holds three LSC's single-season records for most points (2,950), scoring average (89.4 ppg) and assists (635).


THE ACU PROMISE: ACU is a vibrant, innovative, Christ-centered community that engages students in authentic spiritual and intellectual growth, equipping them to make a real difference in the world ... Its mission is to educate students for Christian service and leadership throughout the world.