COVERAGE LINKS I
GAME NOTES
ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – The Henderson State women's basketball program welcomes the Arkansas Tech Golden Suns to the Duke Wells Center on Saturday, Dec. 9 at 1 p.m.
Saturday's contest is also the annual Angel Tree Toy Drive for the Reddies. Fans are encouraged to bring a toy donation to receive entry to both the women's game at 1 p.m. and the men's game at 3 p.m.
REDDIES REPORT
Henderson State (5-3, 1-1) picked up its first conference win of the season, rolling past Arkansas-Monticello 97-69. The Reddies converted 49.4 percent from the field and were 9-of-25 from the three-point line while shooting 80.0 percent at the charity stripe. HSU outrebounded the Blossoms 46-to-37 and had 15 second-chance points.
All 13 players on the squad recorded a basket, and five players had double-figure points, led by
Tori Gittens, who reached double-figure points for the fifth time this season, scoring a team-high 17 points.
Ashley Farrar and
Brynlee Huggins notched 15 points each, while
Olivia Allen and
Natalie Cardenas combined for 22.
The Reddies are averaging 25 attempts from beyond the arc each game and are making a GAC-best 9.0 triples per contest. Leading the three-point efforts for HSU are Gittens and Farrar. Gittens is shooting a conference-high 52.9 percent from deep, which also ranks 11
th best across Division II, with 18 triples on the year, while Farrar is converting 40.0 percent a clip with 18 baskets.
Bobbi Bazzle leads the team in rebounding after seeing a season-high 12 in the win over UAM and 10 against Southern Arkansas in the last two games. The Woodlands, Texas native is averaging 5.6 rebounds per game and is tied with
Makenna Winans for a team-high 14 offensive rebounds. Bazzle and Winans both rank inside the top 20 in rebounding across the league, while the team is seventh in the GAC with 39.6 boards per game.
Henderson State swept Arkansas Tech in the season series last year to extend its win streak over the Golden Suns to five. The Reddies have won their last six home games against Arkansas Tech dating back to the 2017-18 season, and the last time HSU lost to ATU in the Duke Wells Center was in 2016-17. The Golden Suns do lead the all-time series 73-38 going into the 112
th meeting.
SCOUTING ARKANSAS TECH
Arkansas Tech has started GAC play 1-1 with a win over Arkansas-Monticello in its first conference game before falling at home to Ouachita Baptist 63-57. The Golden Suns recently bounced back, grabbing a midweek win over Maryville 69-64 to improve to 4-2 overall.
ATU's Pacious McDaniel leads all freshmen in scoring across the GAC, and paces the team with 18.3 points per game and is third in the league in scoring after recording a team-high 24 points in the win over Maryville. The Springdale, Ark. native ranks tenth in the GAC in field goal percentage, shooting 48.7 percent a clip, having converted 66.6 percent from the field last time out.
Alex Hill and Hayleigh Wyrick round out the scoring for the Golden Suns, averaging 14.2 and 10 points per game, respectively. The pair have combined for 19 of the team's 24 three-pointers this season and went 4-of-9 together at the three-point line against Maryville. Arkansas Tech has attempted the fewest triples this season with 81 attempts and is shooting 29.6 percent from deep as a unit.
ANGEL TREE TOY DRIVE
For Saturday's games, Henderson State will host its annual Angel Tree Toy Drive for the Junior Auxiliary (JA) of Arkadelphia during the women's and men's contests. Fans are encouraged to bring toys to donate in exchange for free entry to both games.
JA of Arkadelphia provides charitable services with an emphasis on serving the children of Clark County. The club hosts several fundraisers and service projects throughout the year, but none is bigger than the Angel Tree Project, which supports Clark County children this year by providing gifts for Christmas.
