New Orleans, Louisiana- For the second straight game the University of New Orleans women's basketball team will face a team nicknamed the Cardinals. Hopefully the outcome will be different from the last time the Privateers faced the Cardinals.
UNO will close a three-game road trip through Texas with a visit to San Antonio to face the University of the Incarnate Word Cardinals, Saturday, Jan. 7, at the McDermott Convocation Center. Tipoff is 1 p. m.
New Orleans (6-7, 1-2) suffered a defeat at the hands of the Lamar Cardinals in Beaumont, Texas Thursday night, 73-42.
"As I heard it echoed in the locker room last night, the players don't feel like they played team ball," said head coach
Keeshawn Davenport. "They expressed the need to get back to what made us successful and that's playing together on both ends of the floor.
They are not dejected they are just trying to get back to the things that made us successful in the six games we won."
Randi Brown (Human Performance) was held below her average against Lamar with 15 points. The junior still leads the Southland Conference in scoring at 20.9 per game. She continues to rack up individual accolades, the latest being named Women's College Basketball Division 1 Hero of the Week by Hero Sports, a website that covers all levels of college sports.
Brown, a product of Central Catholic High School in Morgan City, Louisiana, was named Player of the Week by the Southland Conference, the Louisiana Sports Writers Association and College Sports Madness. She was also named National Mid-Major Player of the Week by College Sports Madness.
Sophomore
Shania Woods (Accounting) was one rebound away from her first double-double (double figures in points and rebounds) of the year with 11 points and 9 rebounds. Woods is ninth in the conference in rebounds (7.3) and eighth in field goal percentage (.511 on 48-of-94). The Cypress, Texas native ranks second in Southland Conference Games in blocked shots (2.7).
The Privateers bench scoring is led by senior
Jewel Angelo (Interdisciplinary Studies) having the best season of her career with 7.5 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.4 assists.
Ariele Davis (Marketing) ranks seventh in SLC competition in assists with 4 a game.
The Privateers average 69.0 points a game while holding the opposition to 64.4.
The University of the Incarnate Word (4-10, 2-1) suffered its first conference defeat of the season at the hands of Northwestern State, 76-74, Thursday night snapping a four-game win streak.
Senior Celia Paunero Garcia leads UIW in scoring with 17 a game---5
th in the conference, and leads the SLC in rebounding at 10 a contest. She also leads the Southland in double-double games with 8. Cheyenne Berry, a senior, averages 12.7 an outing and Haley Frias knocks down 10 points a game. Frias tied the national record for three-pointers made in a single game with 12 in a win over LSU-Alexandria on Dec. 20.
"They didn't have a great non-conference season but I think they are peaking at the right time," said Davenport. "They are another team with wide-spread scoring like we've seen the last two games. Lots of motion, 3-point shooting and we know they can rebound."
The game will pit the best 3-point shooting teams in the Southland. UIW sits atop the league in 3-point percentage at .359 (120-of-334) while UNO is second at .358 (73-of-204).
This will be the fourth meeting between UNO and UIW. The Cardinals lead the all-time series 2-1 with the Privateers winning the last meeting exactly one year ago, 1-7-16 at Lakefront Arena, 55-49.
New Orleans next game will be Thursday, Jan. 12, against Sam Houston State at 5:30 p. m. at Lakefront Arena in New Orleans. The game is part of a doubleheader as the New Orleans men will face Sam Houston State at 7:45 p. m.
For tickets to that game and other Privateer Athletics events, contact the UNO Athletics Ticket Office at (504) 280-GAME (4263) or via the Internet by clicking
HERE.
--www.UNOPrivateers.com--
