ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – Henderson State begins the new year with a road matchup in the Sooner State against current league leaders Oklahoma Baptist on Thursday, Jan. 5. The Reddies and Bison will tip off at 5:30 p.m. in the Noble Complex.
REDDIES REPORT
Last time out, Henderson State suffered its first conference defeat of the season at the hands of Harding, 83-65. The Lady Bison shot 47.7 percent from the field and converted 15-19 from the free-throw line, while the Reddies shot 38.5 percent from the floor and went 6-14 from the foul line.
Ashley Farrar continues to be the focal point in the HSU offense after scoring a team-high 19 points against Harding. Abbie Jiles, facing her former school, posted 18 points and led the team with seven rebounds. The Searcy, Ark. native has already surpassed her season total of points from a year ago through the first ten contests with 147 points. Both Farrar and Jiles are averaging double-digit points a game and are tied as the team’s leading rebounders.
HSU ranks in the top half of the GAC in scoring, averaging 70.5 points per game, which is fifth-best in the conference. The Reddies are led by sharpshooter Farrar, who leads the team and league in points per game (22.0). HSU boasts one of the best three-point attacks in the GAC, having made 82 this season and averaging 8.2 a game. Henderson State is shooting 33.3 percent from beyond the arc through ten games.
Henderson and Oklahoma Baptist meet for the 13th time this Thursday in the Noble Complex. The Reddies lead the all-time series 9-3 but fell to the Bison last time out. OKBU defeated HSU 79-68 in Shawnee, Okla., snapping a Henderson seven-game win streak over the Bison dating back to 2017. Current Reddies, Farrar and Sonni Martin, were the team’s top scorers that afternoon, with 23 and 12 points, respectively.
SCOUTING OKLAHOMA BAPTIST
The Bison enter the game 8-2 off the back of a 74-71 road victory over East Central to improve to 4-0 in the GAC. After an early defeat to Northeastern State, Oklahoma Baptist has won seven straight contests.
OKBU does not give up many points, as they rank fourth in scoring defense in the GAC, giving up 61.5 points a game. The Bison have two strong defenders in, Jill Leslie and Erika Ankney. Leslie is second in the league in blocks averaging 1.7 per game with a total of 17 this season, while Ankney is averaging 2.3 steals a game for the Bison.
Ankney is Oklahoma Baptists most productive shooter, averaging 20.1 points a game, which is second best in the GAC behind HSU’s Farrar. As a team, the Bison are shooting 43.6 percent from the field and averaging 67.7 points per game.
WBB-D2: Henderson State Reddies (6-4) at Oklahoma Baptist Bison (8-2)
