Sunday, December 3
Birmingham, AL
1 P.M.
Jacksonville State University
at
Samford
Jacksonville State Finishes Busy Week at Samford
12/2/2023 7:36:00 PM | Women's Basketball
HOMEWOOD, Ala. – Jacksonville State women's basketball will look for its second consecutive road victory on Sunday afternoon as the team makes the short drive to Jefferson County for a non-conference affair at Samford. That Sunday matinee will tip-off at 1 p.m. at the Pete Hanna Center in Homewood.
"We had a good showing in Montgomery, but we have to move on to the next one and play a team who's 5-2," head coach Rick Pietri said. "We're going into their building, and they've assembled a nice team this year. We have to be able to respond to how they'll go about attacking and defending us."
The Gamecocks (3-4) were able to quickly bounce back from Monday's loss at UAB with a dominant showing in Thursday's contest at Alabama State. The Red-and-White set the tone with a 15-0 scoring run in the first period and never looked back, shooting 27-of-52 (51.9%) from the field and racing away from the Lady Hornets in a 74-53 win. That marked the squad's first triumph over a Division I foe this season, their first road win of the year, and Jax State's first ever road win against ASU.
Montgomery native Bre'Anna Rhodes had a stellar night in her hometown, scoring a career-high 20 points on 7-of-13 shooting with seven rebounds. Keiara Griffin's 12 points and an 11-point performance by Rachel Johnson guided the Gamecocks to an emphatic road result.
That big night from Rhodes continues an impressive stretch for the junior forward. She is averaging 11.3 points and 6.0 rebounds over the last four games and is now second on the team in scoring with 55 points (7.9 per game) on the season. Kristol Ayson is the team's leading scorer with a mark of 10.6 points per game, and 7.6 per contest by Griffin stands as third-best for Jacksonville State. Griffin (34 rebounds) and Rhodes (30) pace Jax State's rebounding efforts as well as they prepare for their eighth game of 2023-24 against a tough opponent in Samford (5-2).
The Bulldogs come into Sunday's showdown a perfect 4-0 at the Pete Hanna Center this season. They have posted wins against improved teams in Central Arkansas and Troy and dominated Auburn-Montgomery and Alabama State. Despite dropping a pair of lopsided contests at the Southern Miss Lady Eagle Thanksgiving Classic, they rebounded on Thursday with a 57-52 decision over USC Upstate in Homewood.
Samford has relied on a stingy defense thus far, ranking 64th in the nation by giving up just 56.4 points per game versus a respectable non-league slate. On the other side of the floor, sophomore standout Masyn Marchbanks and 6-foot-3 guard Carly Heidger lead the team with 11.9 and 10.0 points per game respectively. Marchbanks has hit 17 three-pointers and is shooting 48.6% from deep. 6-foot-5 center Emily Bowman has remained a force inside and averages a team-best 7.4 rebounds.
"Marchbanks is scoring at an incredibly efficient rate," Pietri said. "Bowman is doing a nice job inside and Heidger is another kid who's really stepped up her game from last year. They supplement those pieces with two graduate transfers from Santa Clara and American who are contributing extensively as well. They have a number of people who can hurt you one way or another, so we have to be prepared."
One key battle between the two sides will be Jacksonville State's shooting from beyond the perimeter. The Gamecocks make a Conference-USA-leading 8.0 treys per game and attempt 26.9 each night, a statistic which ranks 16th nationally. Samford's defense has shined in that regard, however, allowing just 22.8% of opponents' threes to go in.
Jax State trails the all-time series with Samford, 17-18. The trend has been in favor of the Red-and-White lately, though, as Pietri's group enters with three straight wins against their metro-Birmingham foes. They scored a 63-46 victory at Pete Mathews Coliseum in Dec. 2020, then held off Samford late in a 56-53 classic on the road in Nov. 2021. Last season, big nights for Imari Martin (24 points) and Shawnta Shaw (19 points) helped the Gamecocks to a 75-59 difference in front of a crowd of 1,102 in Calhoun County.
Sunday's game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and Logan Maddox will handle the Gamecock Sports Network broadcast. Links to listen, watch, or follow along with live stats will be provided at Jax StateSports.com. In addition, score updates will be posted on Jax State Women's Basketball's X account (@JaxStateWBB).
"As is always the case, we have to defend well enough to give us a chance if our offense isn't on," Pietri said. "The most important thing is that we find a way to hold them in check defensively. Hopefully we're able to create enough offense and get a result that we like."
To stay up-to-date with the Gamecocks, follow their Facebook (Jacksonville State Women's Basketball), Instagram (@JaxStateWBB), and X (@JaxStateWBB) accounts.
"We had a good showing in Montgomery, but we have to move on to the next one and play a team who's 5-2," head coach Rick Pietri said. "We're going into their building, and they've assembled a nice team this year. We have to be able to respond to how they'll go about attacking and defending us."
The Gamecocks (3-4) were able to quickly bounce back from Monday's loss at UAB with a dominant showing in Thursday's contest at Alabama State. The Red-and-White set the tone with a 15-0 scoring run in the first period and never looked back, shooting 27-of-52 (51.9%) from the field and racing away from the Lady Hornets in a 74-53 win. That marked the squad's first triumph over a Division I foe this season, their first road win of the year, and Jax State's first ever road win against ASU.
Montgomery native Bre'Anna Rhodes had a stellar night in her hometown, scoring a career-high 20 points on 7-of-13 shooting with seven rebounds. Keiara Griffin's 12 points and an 11-point performance by Rachel Johnson guided the Gamecocks to an emphatic road result.
That big night from Rhodes continues an impressive stretch for the junior forward. She is averaging 11.3 points and 6.0 rebounds over the last four games and is now second on the team in scoring with 55 points (7.9 per game) on the season. Kristol Ayson is the team's leading scorer with a mark of 10.6 points per game, and 7.6 per contest by Griffin stands as third-best for Jacksonville State. Griffin (34 rebounds) and Rhodes (30) pace Jax State's rebounding efforts as well as they prepare for their eighth game of 2023-24 against a tough opponent in Samford (5-2).
The Bulldogs come into Sunday's showdown a perfect 4-0 at the Pete Hanna Center this season. They have posted wins against improved teams in Central Arkansas and Troy and dominated Auburn-Montgomery and Alabama State. Despite dropping a pair of lopsided contests at the Southern Miss Lady Eagle Thanksgiving Classic, they rebounded on Thursday with a 57-52 decision over USC Upstate in Homewood.
Samford has relied on a stingy defense thus far, ranking 64th in the nation by giving up just 56.4 points per game versus a respectable non-league slate. On the other side of the floor, sophomore standout Masyn Marchbanks and 6-foot-3 guard Carly Heidger lead the team with 11.9 and 10.0 points per game respectively. Marchbanks has hit 17 three-pointers and is shooting 48.6% from deep. 6-foot-5 center Emily Bowman has remained a force inside and averages a team-best 7.4 rebounds.
"Marchbanks is scoring at an incredibly efficient rate," Pietri said. "Bowman is doing a nice job inside and Heidger is another kid who's really stepped up her game from last year. They supplement those pieces with two graduate transfers from Santa Clara and American who are contributing extensively as well. They have a number of people who can hurt you one way or another, so we have to be prepared."
One key battle between the two sides will be Jacksonville State's shooting from beyond the perimeter. The Gamecocks make a Conference-USA-leading 8.0 treys per game and attempt 26.9 each night, a statistic which ranks 16th nationally. Samford's defense has shined in that regard, however, allowing just 22.8% of opponents' threes to go in.
Jax State trails the all-time series with Samford, 17-18. The trend has been in favor of the Red-and-White lately, though, as Pietri's group enters with three straight wins against their metro-Birmingham foes. They scored a 63-46 victory at Pete Mathews Coliseum in Dec. 2020, then held off Samford late in a 56-53 classic on the road in Nov. 2021. Last season, big nights for Imari Martin (24 points) and Shawnta Shaw (19 points) helped the Gamecocks to a 75-59 difference in front of a crowd of 1,102 in Calhoun County.
Sunday's game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and Logan Maddox will handle the Gamecock Sports Network broadcast. Links to listen, watch, or follow along with live stats will be provided at Jax StateSports.com. In addition, score updates will be posted on Jax State Women's Basketball's X account (@JaxStateWBB).
"As is always the case, we have to defend well enough to give us a chance if our offense isn't on," Pietri said. "The most important thing is that we find a way to hold them in check defensively. Hopefully we're able to create enough offense and get a result that we like."
To stay up-to-date with the Gamecocks, follow their Facebook (Jacksonville State Women's Basketball), Instagram (@JaxStateWBB), and X (@JaxStateWBB) accounts.
Players Mentioned
Guard
/ Women's Basketball
Forward
/ Women's Basketball
Guard
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
Forward
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballMonday, March 30
Saturday, March 07
Saturday, February 21
Saturday, February 07
