Feb. 3, 2015 ROCHESTER, Mich. - The Oakland women's basketball team will begin a four-game stint on the road on Wednesday when the Golden Grizzlies face off against first-place Green Bay starting at 8 p.m. ET at the Kress Events Center. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN3.
LAST TIME OUT
The Golden Grizzlies dropped its second-straight game inside the Athletics Center O'rena on Saturday in a 72-64 defeat to Cleveland State to fall under .500 for the first time this season in league play. Elena Popkey scored a season-high 21 points and Nola Anderson added 18 in the loss.
INSIDE THE SERIES
Oakland has never defeated the Phoenix in four chances with Green Bay winning both league matches last season, including a 67-52 defeat in Green Bay on March 6.
SCOUTING GB
Green Bay is riding an eight-game winning streak including being a perfect 7-0 in Horizon League play. The Phoenix currently rank 18th in the RPI and are one of only two mid-major schools in the top 20. GB is led by Mehryn Kraker averaging 12.0 points with 5.2 rebounds per game and Tesha Buck averaging 10.6 points.
1,000 POINT CLUB
Juniors Elena Popkey and Olivia Nash are closing in on passing the 1,000 point mark this season and becoming the 26th and 27th players in Oakland history to earn the distinction. Popkey is just 10 points away with 990 with a career average of 12.4 points per game, followed closely by Nash with 899 points with a career scoring average of 12.3 points per game. They would become the first pair of teammates since Jayme Wilson and Anne Hafeli during the 2004-05 season to reach 1,000 points in the same season.
TAKING CARE OF THE ROCK
The Golden Grizzlies pride themselves on taking care of the ball and it has shown on the court this season as they rank 77th in the NCAA in turnover margin, 64th in turnovers per game and 32nd in assist-to-turnover ratio. Oakland is also 34th in assists per game. Peyton Apsey is third in the Horizon League with a 2.2 assist-to-turnover ratio, good for 36th in the NCAA, while Elena Popkey is fourth in the Horizon League and 56th in the NCAA with a 2.0 assist-to-turnover ratio.
DOUBLE-DOUBLES
Olivia Nash is tied for third in the Horizon League with six double-doubles already this season. She was named Horizon League Player of the Week on Dec. 29 after recording back-to-back double-doubles against IPFW and Central Michigan, averaging 15.5 points and 12.5 rebounds over the two-game stretch. Elena Popkey also tallied a double-double with 17 points and 12 assists against IPFW. The 12 assists was the first double-digit assist performance by an Oakland player since 2010. Sinclair Russell collected her second-ever double-double against Milwaukee setting career-highs with 15 points and 15 boards. Nola Anderson tallied her first career double-double at Valpo with 17 points and career-best 12 rebounds.
DE-FENSE! CLAP! CLAP!
Oakland boasts one of the best defensive teams in the Horizon League. The Golden Grizzlies rank 45th in 3-point field-goal defense, 29th in defensive rebounds and 94th in steals in the NCAA, while Sinclair Russell is third in the Horizon League and 111th in the NCAA in blocks per game with 1.5.
ANNIVERSARY SEASON
Oakland is celebrating two milestone seasons in 2014-15. This marks the 40th year of women's basketball at Oakland as head coach Kathy Williams went 8-7 in the inaugural season back in 1974-75. This is also the 25th anniversary of the 1989-90 Division II Final Four team. That team won the GLIAC Championship with a 14-2 conference record. The then Pioneers won NCAA Tournament games over IPFW, St. Joseph's (Ind.) and snapped Central Missouri State's 55-game home winning streak before falling to Bentley in the national semifinal, 72-68.
COACH TUNGATE AT THE HELM
Jeff Tungate was named the head coach for the women's basketball team on July 16, 2013. He had spent the previous six seasons as the associate head coach for the men's basketball program and is going into his 10th season overall with the Golden Grizzlies. In 2014, Tungate received the inaugural Oakland Athletics Coach of the Year award. In his first season, Tungate led the Golden Grizzlies to its first non-losing season in league play since 2010-11. Oakland finished the season with a 8-8 record in its inaugural season in the Horizon League. He also implemented a new offense that averaged the most points per game since 2007-08 and the most total points in five seasons. He coached the first-ever All-Horizon League performers in Bethany Watterworth (2nd team) and Kim Bee (All-Defensive).
UP NEXT
The Golden Grizzlies will continue its road trip through the state of Wisconsin on Friday as they face the Milwaukee Panthers beginning at noon ET from the Klotsche Center.
#WEARtheBEAR
