OCU vs. Texas Wesleyan women's basketball preview

Stars aim to remain undefeated

Andi Pierce rates 11th in the NAIA in 3-point shooting (50 percent) this season.

Women's Basketball | 1/27/2021 3:34:00 PM

6 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 28
Abe Lemons Arena inside the Freede Center

THE MATCHUP
• Oklahoma City University plays its first home game of the season against Texas Wesleyan after opening the season with two away contests
• OCU has limited its home contests to essential gameday personnel and prohibited spectators from attending
• Fans can watch Stars home games via the OCU Sports Network

ABOUT THE STARS
• OCU came away with an 89-80 win over Oklahoma Wesleyan on Monday in Bartlesville, Okla. The Stars (2-0, 1-0 Sooner Athletic Conference) shot 61.1 percent from the floor to post a 60 percent field-goal percentage for the first time since Feb. 20, 2020 at Mid-America Christian (60 percent)
• Erika Ankney, a 5-foot-9 junior from Harrah, Okla., totaled 26 points, five rebounds and two steals. Ankney went 9-for-9 from the floor, 2-for-2 from 3-point range and 6-for-6 from the free-throw line. She notched career bests for points and field goals. Ankney produces 22.0 points, 3.5 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 2.50 steals per game while shooting 71.4 percent from the field in 2020-21
• Andi Pierce, a 5-10 senior from Garber, Okla., turned in 19 points and five rebounds. Pierce nailed all six of her free-throw attempts. Pierce tallies 20.0 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists a contest
• The Stars leads NAIA with a 54.9 percent team field-goal percentage. Ankney tops the nation with a 71.4 percent field-goal percentage and 66.7 percent 3-point shooting. To see how the Stars compares to the rest of the NAIA this season, click here
• Oklahoma City holds the No. 5 ranking for the second consecutive NAIA poll. Oklahoma City tops the NAIA with 264 consecutive appearances in the top 25 dating back to 1997-98
• OCU has captured nine national championships in 1988, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2012, 2014, 2015 and 2017 and finished as national runner-up four times (2003, 2004, 2005 and 2019)
• Since 1998-99, Oklahoma City owns a .884 winning percentage with a 679-89 mark. The Stars were projected to finish second in the preseason SAC poll. OCU captured the Sooner Athletic Conference regular-season title for the 20th time, fourth year in a row and 10th time in 11 years in 2019-20. OCU has a 240-23 record (.913 winning percentage) within SAC play since 2007-08
• The Stars have gone unbeaten against Texas Wesleyan in 18 all-time encounters. On Feb. 8, 2020, OCU scooped up a 73-50 win in Fort Worth, Texas. Mallory Lockhart collected 19 points while knocking in five 3-pointers

ABOUT THE RAMS
• Texas Wesleyan dropped a 70-66 decision to Mid-America Christian on Saturday in Fort Worth, Texas. The Rams (1-4, 1-3 SAC) led by as many as 11 points early in the third quarter, but shot 34.4 percent from the floor in the second half
• Makayla Coy, a 5-10 sophomore, had 21 points, eight rebounds, four assists and two steals while playing all 40 minutes. Coy averages 18.8 points and 10.6 rebounds per game
• Texas Wesleyan holds opponents to 26 percent shooting from 3-point range to rank 23rd in the NAIA this season
• The Rams were expected to finish fifth in the SAC according to the preseason league poll

MEET THE COACHES
Brett Tahah (first season with OCU)
• Tahah became the first former Oklahoma City player to take over the program as head coach. Tahah (nee' Bates) helped the Stars advance to two NAIA Division I Championship Tournament Fab Four appearances, two conference tournament championships, one SAC regular-season title and an .863 winning percentage (63-10) from 2008-10
• Accumulated a 117-50 head-coaching record (.701 winning percentage) with two state tournament semifinal berths in six years at Oklahoma high schools Frontier, Elgin, Hobart and Lookeba-Sickles
• Tahah coached eight all-staters and collected two regional coach of the year honors on the prep level
• During her college career, Tahah tallied 1,227 points and 178 3-pointers and became league player of the year

Steve Trachier (35-43, fourth season with Texas Wesleyan)
• Led Texas Wesleyan to a 17-11 mark last season for its first winning season since 2016-17
• Currently also serves as Texas Wesleyan's associate athletic director for athletics equity and compliance after serving as the athletic director from 2011-18
• While serving as the Rams' AD, Trachier oversaw the Rams' move into the Sooner Athletic Conference (2013-14), as well as the re-instatement of the Texas Wesleyan football program in 2017 after a 75-year hiatus

ON THE AIR
• Oklahoma City University athletics provides live and on-demand audio, stats and video of its contests on OCU's BlueFrame platform. Cost to watch OCU athletics live is $4.99 per game
• Andrew Himes calls the action. Himes enters his 10th season as the voice of the Stars and has been broadcasting OCU basketball for 13 years starting on color commentary as an OCU student
• OCU has partnered with BlueFrame Technology to create the OCU Sports Network. To watch live video, fans can find the Stars' BlueFrame platform over the web on the SAC Network along with streaming apps for mobile devices (iOS and Android) and televisions including Amazon Fire Tablet, Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, Apple TV and Roku. The app can be found and installed by searching for the SAC Network

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Players Mentioned

#21 Erika Ankney: G; 5' 9"; Junior

#5 Mallory Lockhart: G; 5' 8"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#21 Erika Ankney
: 5' 9"; Junior
: G

#5 Mallory Lockhart
: 5' 8"; Junior
: G

Players Mentioned

#21 Erika Ankney

#5 Mallory Lockhart

Players Mentioned

#21 Erika Ankney

#5 Mallory Lockhart