Oklahoma City University
vs. USAO

Thursday, Feb. 16
6 p.m. Abe Lemons Arena

THE MATCHUP: Oklahoma City University?s women continue Sooner Athletic Conference play by hosting USAO.
There will be a drawing for a $1,000 Meinders spirit scholarship for an OCU student.

ABOUT THE STARS: OCU is 23-2, 14-0 in the SAC after a 93-39 win over John Brown (Ark.) on Monday in Abe Lemons Arena. Mikelle Brown, a 5-foot-9 sophomore from Tulsa, Okla., led the Stars going 6 of 7 from the field, picking up 18 points and five rebounds. Mariam Sy had 14 points. Freshman guard Chelsea Ledbetter also scored 12.
Sy, a 6-4 senior from Mali, West Africa, leads OCU with 21.6 points and nine rebounds a game. Her scoring average is third in NAIA Division I. She also ranks 17th in rebounds and field-goal percentage (54.3). Also, 5-10 senior forward Paty Silva adds 9.5 points and 4.7 rebounds per game. The Stars rank third in the NAIA in 3-point field-goal percentage (38.6), defensive 3-point percentage (26.3) and field goal percentage (47.0). OCU is fifth in total rebound margin (8.9).
All-time, OCU is 28-2 vs. USAO and beat the Drovers 101-57 on Jan. 12. OCU currently sits at third in NAIA rankings. In the preseason coaches conference poll, the Stars were picked to finish second in the SAC.

ABOUT THE LADY DROVERS: USAO ended a five-game winning streak with a 67-51 loss Tuesday night against Northwestern. They now stand at 14-9, 7-7, sixth in the conference. Katie Sterling, a 5-3 senior, picked up 22 points and five rebounds, bringing her streak of games with 20-plus points to four. Christina Brown, a 5-7 senior, also contributed 11 points and six rebounds. Sterling leads the Drovers in scoring, averaging 17.1 points a game. USAO ranks second in NAIA in defensive rebounds per game (28.3) and fourth in blocks (4.77). In the preseason coach?s conference poll, USAO was picked to finish eighth in the SAC.

ABOUT THE COACHES: Rob Edmisson has 333 victories in 16 seasons as a head coach. Edmisson, a graduate of Bethany (Kan.), came to OCU after a stint as an assistant at Oklahoma State. He won 200 games at Hutchinson (Kan.) and 110 as a high-school coach in Kansas.
Jay Niehues is in his fourth year as head coad at USAO, where he holds a 69-52 record. He previously was an assistant at Southern Nazarene, where also attended college and played basketball.

QUOTABLE: ?We had a talk the other day about being a giver and not a taker on this team. Whether you get one minute or 40, or whether you score one point or 40, just be a giver. And if you?ll notice right now our kids are staying excited on the bench about kids that are playing. When kids come out they?re being positive with each other. They?re just doing a great job of being good teammates, and I think that?s where that energy level is coming from ? kids are just enjoying seeing their teammates have success.? ? Edmisson on OCU?s team mentality

GIVE THE HOTLINE A CALL: Follow the Stars using the OCU Athletic Hotline at (405) 208-5400 and the Sooner Athletic Conference Hotline at (405) 878-2110. Get the score and highlights after the game on these hotlines.

ON THE AIR: The Stars can be heard on the web on okcu.edu/athletics. Joel Roberts is the play-by-play man. The game will be joined in progress following the baseball doubleheader.