ACU opens holiday week at K-State

GAME #4
Abilene Christian (3-0, 0-0 WAC) at Kansas State (4-1, 0-0 Big 12)
Tuesday, Nov. 23, 2021  |  6:30 p.m.  |  Bramlage Coliseum  |  Manhattan, Kan.

MANHATTAN, Kan. – The ACU women’s basketball team takes its show on the road for the first time this season when they take on the Kansas State Wildcats of the Big 12 Conference to open Thanksgiving week. ACU is 3-0 for the fifth-straight season, and now will face another team that calls themselves the Wildcats and wears purple. K-State (4-1) is coming off a loss at No. 4 NC State, but opened with wins over Central Arkansas, UT Martin, Western Kentucky, and North Carolina A&T. The game tips at 6:30 p.m., and will air on television on Big 12 Now on ESPN+, and can be heard on the radio on 102.7 The Bear.

SERIES HISTORY

• ALL-TIME | 3rd meeting (K-State leads, 2-0)
• LAST MEETING | Nov. 16, 2015 (K-State 76, ACU 45) – in Manhattan
• STREAK | K-State, w2
• IN ABILENE | n/a
• IN MANHATTAN | K-State leads, 2-0
• NOTES | Julie Goodenough coached three games vs. K-State as the head coach at Oklahoma State, and has coached against the Wildcats twice since taking over at ACU

ACU STORYLINES

• 3-0 START AGAIN
  • It is the fifth-straight 3-0 start for the women’s basketball program. The last team to not start 3-0 in a season was the 2016-17 squad, who started 2-1 after a 52-46 loss to the MissourI Tigers in the Preseason Women’s NIT in Columbia, Mo. The 2016-17 team finished 23-9 with a Southland Conference regular season championship and a win over Oklahoma State in the WNIT.
• THREE-POINT PARTY
  • ACU has hit 38 three-pointers so far this season, including games with 17 and 16 makes, respectively. The Wildcats rank 34th nationally with a 39.6 clip from behind the arc, which was moved back to match the men’s line in the off-season.
• NEW FACES
  • ACU has 15 players on the roster, the most in the Julie Goodenough era (2012). Included on that roster are eight new players, including three graduate transfers and five freshmen. The team brings in Emma Middleton, Jamie Bonnarens, and Tatum Barber as grad transfers, and freshmen include Bella Earle, Alexis Babineaux, Addison Martin (who will redshirt), Niyah Johnson, and Nykale Cramer.
• THE BARBER SHOP
  • Grad transfer Tatum Barber is the lone Wildcat to score in double digits in every game this season so far. The Georgia Southern transfer increases her total each game, scoring 11 in the opener, 13 against UTSA, and 16 against Angelo State. Barber is shooting 49% from the floor and leads the team with 33 shot attempts from the floor.
• UNLIKELY REBOUNDING LEADER?
  • Freshman guard Bella Earle has been a star on the glass so far in the young season, leading the team with 17 total boards and a clip of 5.7 per game. The Corinth, Texas native is coming off of back-to-back games with seven rebounds.
• FIRST ROAD TRIP
  • ACU opened with Southwest, UTSA, and Angelo State at home to start the season, all at the Teague Center. The Wildcats now go on the road for the first time, and it is all a part of a four-game road trip. ACU plays at K-State before heading to the ORU Thanksgiving Tournament in Tulsa, Okla. the Saturday and Sunday after the holiday. The Wildcats then open the month of December in Thibodaux, La. to battle former Southland Conference foe Nicholls. ACU does not return to Abilene until Sunday, Dec. 12 when it hosts Wright State.
• RETURNING TO MANHATTAN
  • ACU’s director of basketball operations Sydney Goodson will return to a familiar face Tuesday night. Goodson started her collegiate playing career at Arizona State before heading over to Texas Tech, and finished up at K-State.
• COACH GOODENOUGH’S MILESTONES
  • Head coach Julie Goodenough earned her 474th career win against Angelo State, and her 185th as the coach at ACU. Goodenough is in her 28th season overall and her 10th with the Wildcats.

SCOUTING K-STATE (4-1, 0-0 BIG 12)

• The Wildcats are coming off a loss to the No. 4 team in the country, NC State, 90-69, in Raleigh, N.C.
• This is the second matchup against a team formerly from the Southland Conference. K-State topped Central Arkansas in the season opener, 103-40; K-State will then play Northwestern State next, who currently resides in the Southland.
• Ayoka Lee has been incredible this season, scoring a ridiculous 27.2 points per game, and is shooting 68.2% from the floor. 85 of the 305 field goal attempts have come from Lee, good for 28% of the shots.
• Lee is also averaging 11.0 rebounds per game, and Serena Sundell is averaging 6.0 assists per game so far this season.

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