Amanda Ingram supplies the Stars with 4.0 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.56 steals a game.

Women's Basketball 2/5/2016 2:40:00 PM

OCU at Southwestern Assemblies of God women's basketball preview

Stars look to stay tied atop Sooner Athletic Conference

3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 6
Sheaffer Center in Waxahachie, Texas

THE MATCHUP: Oklahoma City University travels to face surprising Southwestern Assemblies of God (Texas).

ABOUT THE STARS: The Stars gutted out a 70-62 win over Mid-America Christian on Thursday at Abe Lemons Arena. OCU (13-5, 10-1 Sooner Athletic Conference) fell behind by five points in the third quarter and entered the last quarter tied before unleashing a 7-0 run to begin the fourth period.
Daniela Wallen, a 5-foot-11 junior from Caracas, Venezuela, propelled Oklahoma City with 22 points, eight rebounds, six assists and three steals. Wallen paces OCU with 21.7 points, 9.1 rebounds and 3.47 steals per game and a 52.9 percent field-goal percentage.
Markeisha Johnson, a 5-9 senior from Mansura, La., provided 17 points and four rebounds while shooting 8-for-10 from the field. Johnson adds 7.9 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.92 steals a contest. Catherine Kruschke, a 6-foot senior from Dublin, Calif., had 14 points, eight rebounds, two blocks and two steals. Kruschke averages 13.6 points and 8.1 rebounds a game.
The Stars rank 13th with a team field-goal percentage of 42.6 percent, while Wallen ranks second in scoring and defensive rebounds per game (7.2) in the NAIA. To see how OCU compares with the NAIA Division I statistical leaders this season, click here.
Oklahoma City maintained the 14th spot in the latest NAIA Division I rankings. OCU found itself in the national ratings for the 197th consecutive poll since 1999-2000. Oklahoma City owns national championships from 1988, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2012, 2014 and 2015. The Stars were expected to finish second in the preseason SAC poll. OCU has won or shared the regular-season league title 16 times, including the last six. OCU owns a 123-8 record in league play since 2009-10.
The Stars moved to 5-0 against Southwestern Assemblies of God all-time with a 57-54 win Jan. 16 at Abe Lemons Arena. Johnson connected on a pair of free throws with 21 seconds to go for the final margin.

ABOUT THE LADY LIONS: Southwestern Assemblies of God edged St. Gregory's 57-55 on Thursday in Shawnee, Okla. Courtney Leach had the winning free throws with a second left. SAGU (13-9, 6-5 SAC) has already surpassed last year's SAC win total of four.
Bethany Krock, a 5-6 senior, posted 15 points, four rebounds and two steals. Krock records 6.8 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.82 steals a game. Alexis McAfee, a 5-8 junior, had 12 points, five rebounds, three assists and three steals. McAfee averages 4.3 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.59 thefts a game.
Southwestern Assemblies ranks fifth in the NAIA in defensive field-goal percentage (34.1 percent) and steals per game (13.27) this season. SAGU had been picked to end up in eighth place in the SAC.

ABOUT THE COACHES: Bo Overton is in his debut season with OCU. Overton has a wide array of head-coaching experience on the professional level in China, Russia and the WNBA, as well as college head-coaching experience with Missouri-Kansas City. Overton has been an assistant on the international level for the Bahamas and China, including the 2012 Olympics with the Chinese team. Overton is well known among Oklahomans for his stint as an assistant to Sherri Coale at Oklahoma from 1998-2004 as well as playing college basketball at Oklahoma.
Tiffany Phillips took over as Southwestern Assemblies of God coach in April. Phillips took Hector (Ark.), Marshall (Ark.) and Morrilton Sacred Heart (Ark.) to state-tournament appearances as a high-school head coach. Phillips had coached collegiately as an assistant at Delta State (Miss.) and Central Arkansas.

FOLLOW THE STARS: Fans can keep up on the latest from OCU athletics through several ways.
Check out OCU athletics on several social media platforms by looking up the handle @ocustars. The Stars are on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, and new for 2015-16, Instagram.
Fans can sign up to receive the latest OCU athletic headlines via e-mail by going here.
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 featuring Kruschke or see our video channel in the upper right-hand corner of our home page.

ON THE AIR: Fans can follow the game via live video and live stats.

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Players Mentioned

#25 Markeisha Johnson: F; 5' 9"; Senior

#24 Catherine Kruschke: F; 6' 0"; Senior

#22 Daniela Wallen: F; 5' 11"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#25 Markeisha Johnson
: 5' 9"; Senior
: F

#24 Catherine Kruschke
: 6' 0"; Senior
: F

#22 Daniela Wallen
: 5' 11"; Junior
: F

Players Mentioned

#25 Markeisha Johnson

#24 Catherine Kruschke

#22 Daniela Wallen

Players Mentioned

#25 Markeisha Johnson

#24 Catherine Kruschke

#22 Daniela Wallen