Thursday, February 15
JACKSONVILLE
6:30 P.M.
Jacksonville State University
vs
Louisiana Tech
Women's Basketball Meets Louisiana Tech on Thursday Night
2/14/2024 8:55:00 AM | Women's Basketball
JACKSONVILLE – Jacksonville State's women's basketball squad returns home this week for a big Conference USA pairing with Louisiana Tech. Thursday's matchup at Pete Mathews Coliseum is set for a 6:30 p.m. showdown in Jacksonville.
The Gamecocks (9-13. 4-6) split last week's league showdowns on the road. They ran their season-best winning streak to three games with a 58-56 triumph at Sam Houston on Thursday in which the Red-and-White used a 25-point fourth quarter to cap a double-digit comeback in the Lone Star State. After that big come-from-behind victory, though, Jax State fell just a bit short two days later, ending up on the wrong side of a 54-45 decision at Western Kentucky.
"We've been very competitive, win or lose, these last two weeks," head coach Rick Pietri said. "Our team has shown some fight, and hopefully that's something that will continue to carry over into this week's game."
Bre'Anna Rhodes leads the team in scoring (8.0 points per game) and rebounding (4.7 rebounds per game), but Kristol Ayson (7.8 ppg) and Mya Barnes (6.2 ppg) narrowly trail her offensive efforts. In addition, Shelton State Community College transfer Asia Barclay (4.6 rpg) has continued to crash the boards well down the stretch and has put up solid numbers in that statistic.
Jacksonville State lost their first ever meeting with Louisiana Tech (8-16, 2-7) earlier this season in Ruston, La. The Lady Techsters held the Gamecocks to just 17-of-49 (34.7%) from the field and 5-of-15 (33.3%) from the arc at the historic Thomas Assembly Center. Rachel Johnson (12 points) and Barnes (10 points) were the only Jax State performers to reach double digits scoring in the 67-53 loss.
"We need to see something different than the first time," Pietri said. "They beat us solidly the first time we played them, so we need to compete differently on both ends. We'll see if we can do that on Thursday."
Louisiana Tech has fallen on hard times since their win over the Red-and-White on Jan. 20. They have lost five competitive games since then and enter Thursday's affair with just two CUSA victories on the season. They dropped road matches at UTEP (61-57) and New Mexico State (66-64, overtime) on Jan. 25 and 27, then opened February with a narrow 73-71 setback at FIU. Following a 64-56 heartbreaker at WKU last Wednesday, the Lady Techsters were topped by Liberty, 58-53, at home on Saturday.
A pair of La Tech standouts shined in the first meeting this year. Ruston native Anna Larr Roberson had 23 points on 9-of-15 shooting and Anja Bukvic added 17 points and three assists in the win. Roberson remains the program's leader in points (12.3) and rebounds (5.5) per game, and senior guard Salma Bates has also impressed, averaging 10.8 points per contest.
"Roberson is their leading scorer and she went off on us," Pietri said. "She's their primary post player and she did a great job of scoring the ball. She hurt us badly, so we have to find a way to slow her down while keeping everybody else in check, too.
"Tech has been extremely competitive in each game they've played since beating us," Pietri said. "We have to find a way to compete with them as well and hopefully find a way to win it."
Thursday's game will be broadcast on ESPN+ with Ray Hammett and Mickey Shadrix on the call, and Logan Maddox will handle the Gamecock Sports Network broadcast. Links to listen, watch, or follow along with live stats will be provided at JaxStateSports.com. In addition, score updates will be posted on Jax State Women's Basketball's X account (@JaxStateWBB).
To stay up-to-date with the Gamecocks, follow their Facebook (Jacksonville State Women's Basketball), Instagram (@JaxStateWBB), and X (@JaxStateWBB) accounts.
The Gamecocks (9-13. 4-6) split last week's league showdowns on the road. They ran their season-best winning streak to three games with a 58-56 triumph at Sam Houston on Thursday in which the Red-and-White used a 25-point fourth quarter to cap a double-digit comeback in the Lone Star State. After that big come-from-behind victory, though, Jax State fell just a bit short two days later, ending up on the wrong side of a 54-45 decision at Western Kentucky.
"We've been very competitive, win or lose, these last two weeks," head coach Rick Pietri said. "Our team has shown some fight, and hopefully that's something that will continue to carry over into this week's game."
Bre'Anna Rhodes leads the team in scoring (8.0 points per game) and rebounding (4.7 rebounds per game), but Kristol Ayson (7.8 ppg) and Mya Barnes (6.2 ppg) narrowly trail her offensive efforts. In addition, Shelton State Community College transfer Asia Barclay (4.6 rpg) has continued to crash the boards well down the stretch and has put up solid numbers in that statistic.
Jacksonville State lost their first ever meeting with Louisiana Tech (8-16, 2-7) earlier this season in Ruston, La. The Lady Techsters held the Gamecocks to just 17-of-49 (34.7%) from the field and 5-of-15 (33.3%) from the arc at the historic Thomas Assembly Center. Rachel Johnson (12 points) and Barnes (10 points) were the only Jax State performers to reach double digits scoring in the 67-53 loss.
"We need to see something different than the first time," Pietri said. "They beat us solidly the first time we played them, so we need to compete differently on both ends. We'll see if we can do that on Thursday."
Louisiana Tech has fallen on hard times since their win over the Red-and-White on Jan. 20. They have lost five competitive games since then and enter Thursday's affair with just two CUSA victories on the season. They dropped road matches at UTEP (61-57) and New Mexico State (66-64, overtime) on Jan. 25 and 27, then opened February with a narrow 73-71 setback at FIU. Following a 64-56 heartbreaker at WKU last Wednesday, the Lady Techsters were topped by Liberty, 58-53, at home on Saturday.
A pair of La Tech standouts shined in the first meeting this year. Ruston native Anna Larr Roberson had 23 points on 9-of-15 shooting and Anja Bukvic added 17 points and three assists in the win. Roberson remains the program's leader in points (12.3) and rebounds (5.5) per game, and senior guard Salma Bates has also impressed, averaging 10.8 points per contest.
"Roberson is their leading scorer and she went off on us," Pietri said. "She's their primary post player and she did a great job of scoring the ball. She hurt us badly, so we have to find a way to slow her down while keeping everybody else in check, too.
"Tech has been extremely competitive in each game they've played since beating us," Pietri said. "We have to find a way to compete with them as well and hopefully find a way to win it."
Thursday's game will be broadcast on ESPN+ with Ray Hammett and Mickey Shadrix on the call, and Logan Maddox will handle the Gamecock Sports Network broadcast. Links to listen, watch, or follow along with live stats will be provided at JaxStateSports.com. In addition, score updates will be posted on Jax State Women's Basketball's X account (@JaxStateWBB).
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
Forward
/ Women's Basketball
Guard
/ Women's Basketball
Forward
/ Women's BasketballMonday, March 30
Saturday, March 07
Saturday, February 21
Saturday, February 07
