Women's Basketball 3/14/2013 4:31:00 PM

OCU vs. Shawnee State women's basketball preview

Stars put 7-1 record vs. ranked opponents this season on line

Jessica Lankston gives OCU 7.7 points, 2.7 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 2.11 steals a game.

NAIA Division I Tournament
9:45 a.m. CST Friday, March 15
Frankfort Convention Center in Frankfort, Ky.

THE MATCHUP: Oklahoma City University matches up with Shawnee State (Ohio) in the 33rd annual NAIA Division I Tournament in a rematch of a 2011 NAIA Tournament quarterfinal contest.
OCU owns national championships from 1988, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002 and 2012 and reached the finals in 2003, 2004 and 2005. OCU has made its 19th trip to the NAIA Tournament and 16th in a row.

ABOUT THE STARS: OCU crushed Central Methodist (Mo.) 74-39 on Wednesday in the NAIA Tournament's first round. The Stars (27-3) have held nine opponents to 39 points or less this season, ranking third in the NAIA with 50.0 points allowed per game. OCU has also held eight foes to 25 percent shooting from the field or less, ranking third nationally permitting a 32.7 percent shooting percentage from opposing teams.
Lauren Gober, a 6-foot-2 senior from Newcastle, Okla., served as OCU's ringleader with 17 points, eight rebounds and two steals. Gober, the co-Sooner Athletic Conference player of the year, posts 15.4 points, 6.3 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 2.33 steals a game while shooting 39.1 percent from 3-point range. A two-time all-American, Gober has piled up 1,662 points, 697 rebounds, 163 assists, 238 steals and 94 blocked shots while taking over as OCU's all-time leading 3-point shooter with 296 treys.
Katie Hall, a 6-foot senior from Hazelton, Idaho, supplied the Stars 15 points and four rebounds while hitting 7 of 9 shots from the floor. Hall, a first-team all-SAC choice, records 12.6 points, 9.3 rebounds and 1.57 steals a game. Hall has accumulated 1,321 points and 1,116 rebounds in her college career – 944 points and 837 rebounds while playing for OCU coach Latricia Trammell at Western State (Colo.). Desiree Jeffries, a 6-foot senior from Oklahoma City, totaled 11 points, five rebounds and three assists. She has produced 1,036 points, 534 rebounds, 317 assists and 165 steals during her three-year OCU career. Jeffries, a first-team all-SAC performer, averages 12.6 points, 5.4 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.77 steals a game.
OCU tops NAIA Division I in turnover margin (plus-13.33). The Stars rank in the top five nationally in eight team statistical categories, including second in points per game (82.2 points a game) and average margin of victory (32.23 points per game). Individually, Hall rates fourth in the NAIA with 4.9 offensive rebounds a game. To see how the Stars rank among national statistics, click here.
The Stars stayed at No. 2 for the fourth consecutive week in the latest NAIA Division I rankings. OCU has been listed in all 164 polls since 1999-2000. OCU captured its 14th SAC regular-season championship this season.
Shawnee State got the best of OCU in the NAIA Tournament quarterfinals 54-47 on March 19, 2011 in Jackson, Tenn. Jeffries chipped in eight points, eight rebounds and three assists as Shawnee State reached the semifinals in its first season as an NAIA Division I member.

ABOUT THE BEARS: Shawnee State toppled 13th-ranked Columbia (Mo.) 62-56 on Wednesday in their first-round matchup. Shawnee State (24-9) tallied the game's last six points on 6-for-8 shooting from the free-throw line in the final 2:19.
Schera Sampson, a 6-foot senior, stood front and center for Shawnee State with 14 points, 11 rebounds, two blocked shots and four steals. Sampson, a first-team all-Mid-South Conference honoree, averages 14.9 points, 10.4 rebounds, 1.85 steals and 1.97 blocked shots a game. She has tied the Shawnee State single-season rebounding record. Allison Nagle, a 5-7 senior, had 14 points and canned four 3-pointers. Nagle tallies 5.4 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game.
Shawnee State leads the NAIA in total offensive rebounds in 2012-13.

ABOUT THE COACHES: Latricia Trammell has a 92-79 college head-coaching record in her first season as head coach of the Stars. Trammell returns to OCU after serving as Western State (Colo.) head coach the past five seasons. At Western State, Trammell had 13 all-Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference selections, including the RMAC West Division freshman of the year and RMAC player of the year. Trammell was assistant coach at OCU from 2005-07. As an assistant at OCU, Trammell mentored the Stars' first WNBA draftee, Mariam Sy of the Washington Mystics, 10 all-conference choices, the SAC player of the year, SAC newcomer of the year and four all-Americans. Trammell also spent time as head coach at Midwest City High School and Bill Ryan High School (Texas).
Robin Hagen-Smith tops the NAIA's current coaches in victories with a 642-161 record. Hagen-Smith has led Shawnee State to a 718-213 ledger plus the 1999 NAIA Division II championship in her 30th season as coach. Hagen-Smith has been Shawnee State coach while the school fielded teams on the junior-college, NAIA Division II and NAIA Division I levels.

FOLLOW THE STARS: Fans can keep up on the latest on OCU athletics through several ways.
Become a fan of the Oklahoma City University Stars on Facebook by going to www.facebook.com/ocustars.
Become a follower of the OCU Stars on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ocustars.
Check out video of the Stars in action at www.youtube.com/ocustars.
Be sure to catch the OCU Athletics Update video program weekly on ocusports.com, the OCU YouTube Channel or on OCU Athletics' Facebook page. Click here to see the latest edition.
Know when the game is happening by calling the OCU athletics hotline at (405) 208-5400.

STAYING IN OKC? Come to the student lounge of the Tom and Brenda McDaniel University Center on the OCU campus to watch the game.

ON THE AIR: The first 30 games of the tournament will be video-streamed live on the NAIA web site, costing $9.95 per day or $29.95 for a tournament pass. Click here for details. Every national-tournament game can be followed through live stats.

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