Louisiana Tech set to take on Charlotte
RUSTON, La. – Louisiana Tech will close out the home portion of its schedule this week when the Lady Techsters play two important Conference USA contests, starting with tonight's tilt against Charlotte.
Louisiana Tech (16-9, 7-5 C-USA) has won two in a row and is currently sitting in sixth place in the Conference USA standings, only percentage points behind Charlotte (10-13, 6-4) and Middle Tennessee (7-4) for the fourth place spot.
The top four teams in the Conference USA standings earn a first round bye in the upcoming league tournament.
Charlotte had a tough non-conference schedule that saw the 49ers drop five games by three points or less.
However, the 49ers have righted the ship and are playing much better basketball over the last six weeks of the season.
“When you look at who
they played in their non-conference schedule – Rutgers, Wisconsin, Iowa, Wake Forest, Arkansas – some really good team,” said Louisiana Tech head coach Brooke Stoehr.
“That’s one thing about Cara Consuegra. She is always going to play a tough schedule.
“She isn’t as worried about her team’s non-conference record. She is more worried about who they are going to be (come March).
“They are 6-4 in conference and have won three in a row. They are about to enter a tough stretch for them.
“It’s very important for us to protect our home court.”
Charlotte boasts four players averaging double figures led by Laia Raventos (14.7 ppg, 132 assists), Amaya Ransom (11.5 ppg, 38 three-pointers), Octavia Wilson (11.0 ppg) and Nyilah Jamison-Myers (10.3 ppg, 5.4 rpg).
“They have a point guard in Raventos that leads the league in assists,” said Stoehr.
“She is very crafty. She also leads them in scoring. She does a really good job of running their team.
“They have had a couple of players of late that have really played well for them in Dara Pearson and Mariah Linney.
“We have to do a great job defensively.
“They have a really good shot blocker inside in Jamison-Myers.
“We have to do a great job of defending them. They are going to play their zone and we have to do a great job of attacking that and taking what the defense gives us.”
The Lady Techsters continue to be led by the trio of Alexus Malone (13.7 ppg, 8.8 rpg), Kierra Anthony (13.6 ppg) and Taylor Stahly (11.2 ppg, 69 three-pointers), although Stoehr and Co. have seen an increase in recent contributions from other players on a nightly basis.
Louisiana Tech leads the all-time series 4-2, including a pair of wins last year.
After this afternoon's contest, the Lady Techsters will host Southern Miss on Saturday afternoon before playing at UAB and Rice to conclude the regular season.