UNK Men's Basketball // UNK Communcations
PITTSBURG, KANS. – The Nebraska Kearney basketball teams start a two-game road trip Thursday night at Pittsburg State.
The games tip at 5:30 and approximately 7:30 p.m. with the teams meeting again Feb. 24 in the Health & Sports Center. Both games will be on The MIAA Network.
Last year, the Loper women (12-2, 6-2) swept the No. 20 Gorillas (11-2, 5-2) during the regular season but Pitt got its revenge in the NCAA Tournament. Behind six made threes and 30 points from junior guard Grace Pyle, the Gorillas ended UNK’s season, 74-54, in Duluth. Pitt has a healthy 27-18 series lead but the Lopers have won their last two games in John Lance Arena.
Pyle (18.5 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.9 assists) has some of the top numbers in the MIAA this winter as she is shooting 72% from the line and 36% from behind the arc. Next, six-foot junior post Karenna Gerber (17.9 points, 7.2 rebounds and 5-11 freshman Macie Mays (10.8 points) are in double figures as well. The Gorillas lead the MIAA in scoring offense (78.5) and field goal pct. (47.3) while ranking second in both blocks (4.5) and rebounding margin (+10.0). UNK is first in that category (+13.1).
Like the Pitt women, the Gorilla men (7-5, 3-3) are coming off a home loss to rival Missouri Southern last Saturday. Second-year coach and former KU star Jeff Boschee recently saw his roster bolstered as Division I transfers Jeramy Shaw (Detroit Mercy) and Tanner Mans (Virginia Military Institute) have both played in the last four games. This is Shaw’s second year at Pitt.
A 6-6 senior, Shaw is averaging 21.8 points on 72% shooting from the field while also making 83% of his free throws. He had a 23-point effort vs. UNK last season. Next, Mans is at 9.5 points and 5.8 rebounds per game and has sunk 10 treys. They join sophomore guard Max Alexander (MIAA-best 20.2 points, 4.0 rebounds, 3.2 assists), 6-6, 220-pound senior wing Deshaun English III (12.3 points, 8.8 rebounds) and freshman guard Jordan Frison (13.7 points, 5.0 assists and 4.8 rebounds) to form a solid top five.
Pitt leads the conference in three-point percentage defense (29%) and averages 19 freebies a night. Last year, the Lopers and Pitt split the season series.
For the Blue & Gold, New Zealand junior forward Sean Murphy ranks fourth in the MIAA in rebounds per game (8.1) and is sixth in field goal percentage (58.9). Next, Colorado junior guard Sean Evans is sixth in threes made per game (2.2); he’s also up to 799 career points. Finally, Colorado freshman guard D’Aundre Samuels is seventh in assists at an even 4.0 nightly.
The Loper women, ranked 10th in one Central Region poll, are second in the conference in scoring defense (55.4), field goal pct. (45.5), opponent field goal pct. (34.5) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.1). Individually, graduate transfer Kia Wilson (54.5), junior wing Meg Burns (51.4) and redshirt freshman Bailee Sobczak (50.4) are all making half their field goals with sophomore point guard Jillian Aschoff (6.1) well on her way to setting a new single season assists per game record. UNK Hall of Famer Jennifer Warner set the standard back in 1995-96 (5.7).
On Saturday afternoon (1:30/3:30 p.m.), the Lopers head to Missouri Southern (men 5-8, 3-4; women 9-4, 5-2).
