ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – With the first part of the 2021-22 regular season over and done with, the race to the postseason begins as, for the first time in nearly two years, the East Central Tigers come to the Duke Wells Center Thursday, Jan. 20 in the season's first matchup between the two teams. Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m.
 
REDDIES REPORT
Through 15 games and with 13 remaining in the regular season, Henderson St., at 6-3 in league play, sits as the number two team in the Great American Conference standings, holding a half-game lead over the likes of Southeastern (3), Harding (4) and Northwestern (5). The Reddies hold a one-game lead over 5-4 East Central, who is in sixth place.
 
As it has been all season, Henderson continues to be led by a prolific offensive attack. As a team, HSU is second in the league in scoring offense (83.4 points per game) and is leading the league in field-goal percentage (44.7). That high-powered offense is fueled in part by two-time GAC Player of the Week Ashley Farrar, who is averaging 18.4 ppg.
 
Head coach Jill Thomas has developed a good array of scorers around Farrar to add some scoring depth. Gracie Raby (12.7), Lani Snowden (11.6) and Karrington Whaley (10.2) are each averaging over 10 points per outing. Jadah Pickens and Maci Mains have also been valuable off the bench, averaging 8.7 and 6.7 points per contest, respectively, with Mains having scored in double figures in each of the last three games.
 
As brilliant as the offense has been for the Reddies, the defense has been inconsistent this season. Henderson is giving up 72.6 ppg and allowing a 40.2 field-goal percentage to opponents, both of which are ninth in the GAC. The Reddies' defense is top-half, however, in guarding the perimeter as they are only allowing the opposition to shoot 30.4% from deep.
 
Henderson St. trails the all-time series against East Central, 13-8. Additionally, in a place where HSU is undefeated this season, the Reddies are only 4-5 all-time at home against the Tigers. The last time these two teams met in Arkadelphia, however, Henderson got the 76-66 win behind Mains' 13 points and six assists.
 
SCOUTING EAST CENTRAL
After starting GAC play 2-4, East Central has won three straight conference games, all of which came at home. Like the Reddies, the Tigers are undefeated on their home floor this season, but are 3-4 on the road, including 0-4 in league games away from the Kerr Activities Center.  
 
East Central will look to pit its stout defense against Henderson's electric offense as the Tigers boast the second best scoring defense in the GAC (62.8 points per game). In addition to terrific defense, ECU can also lean on its conference-best free-throw shooting percentage, especially for if the game gets tight. Of the four single-digit games East Central has played this season, ECU is 3-1.  
 
Where HSU is fifth in the GAC in opponent three-point field-goal percentage, East Central is 12th, allowing its opponents to shoot a league-high 34.0% from long range. A Henderson team which is shooting 35.8% from long range, led by Snowden's 46.3% average, can look to counteract the Tigers' top-tier defense in that aspect of the game.
 
What To Watch For…  
-Ashley Farrar has scored in double-digits in every game this season. With a current 15-game single-season streak, Farrar needs to score in double-digits over the next three games to tie Pink Jones for the most consecutive games in a single season to score 10 or more points in the Jill Thomas era. Henderson's next three games are Thursday, Saturday and Monday.
 
-After an uncharacteristic five-rebound game from Karrington Whaley on Saturday against Arkansas-Monticello, Whaley only needs four boards on Thursday to pass Kathy Comeaux (729) from the fourth most rebounds in program history. The Springdale, Arkansas, native also only needs 20 more points to log 1000 career points during her time at HSU.