Women's Basketball Returns Home, Hosts Western Colorado on Saturday

Women's Basketball Returns Home, Hosts Western Colorado on Saturday | https://images.sidearmdev.com/

By Press release submission

Jan 13, 2023

The Colorado State University Pueblo women's basketball will return home to Massari Arena for the first time in the 2023 calendar year on Saturday, Jan. 14 as the ThunderWolves play host to Western Colorado in a 5:30 p.m. Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference match-up.

CSU Pueblo comes into Saturday's first home game since suffering a 64-56 loss to Westminster (Utah) on New Year's Eve and is sporting an 8-8 overall record and a 5-5 mark in the RMAC, while Western is sporting a 4-9 overall record and a 3-5 in league play.

Saturday's home game will mark the ninth home game this season for the Pack as CSU Pueblo is 6-2 at home this season, including a 3-1 mark in home game in RMAC play. CSU Pueblo has won four of its last home games with the lone setback being its loss on New Year's Eve to Westminster.

ABOUT CSU PUEBLO
The ThunderWolves are in the midst of its longest losing streak since dropping six straight games during the COVID-19 shortened season in 2019-20. The current four game losing skid is the longest this season as the Pack haven't won since picking up a 67-65 win at home on Dec. 30 against Colorado Mesa. The losing skid began with a 64-56 home loss to Westminster on New Year's Eve, before suffering those back-to-back setbacks this past weekend at Mines and MSU Denver and continued with a 54-51 setback on Tuesday at New Mexico Highlands.

CSU Pueblo has just one player averaging in double figures on the season as graduate student forward Charisse Fairley (Colorado Springs, Colo./Fresno State) leads the way in scoring and rebounding as she is averaging 12.8 points and 6.3 rebounds per game and is shooting 42 percent from the field, 36 percent from the 3-point line and 77 percent from the free throw line. Fairley has scored in double figures in 12 games and has posted two double-doubles on the year. She is coming off a 12 point and four rebound effort last time out at New Mexico Highlands.

Three other ThunderWolves' are averaging over 7.5 points per game on the season – sophomore guard Landri Hudson (Aurora, Colo./Wyoming), graduate student guard JaNaiya Davis (Hewitt, Texas/Midway) and sophomore guard Daeja Johnson (Queen Creek, Ariz./Casteele).

Hudson is averaging 9.8 points and 3.0 rebounds per game and is shooting 42 percent from the field, 39 percent from the 3-point line and 76 percent from the free throw line and she has tallied double figures in six games, including tallying a team-high 13 points last time against New Mexico Highlands, while Davis is averaging 8.0 points, 6.1 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.1 steals per game and is shooting 39 percent from the field and 75 percent from the field and is sixth in the RMAC in steals and Johnson is averaging 7.7 points and 3.7 rebounds per game and is shooting 38 percent from the field, 34 percent from the 3-point line and has scored double figures in four games, including two times in her last three games.

As a team, CSU Pueblo continues to be one of the three-point field goal defensive teams in the league as they are second in opponents three-point field goal percentage as they are shooting 28.7 percent from long distance and is second in the league in free throw percentage at 71.5 percent. In addition, CSU Pueblo is third in the league in 3-point field goal percentage at 33.7 percent and is third in turnover margin at +1.9 and is fourth in the league in assist/turnover ratio at 0.9 and leads the RMAC in made 3-point field goals per game (9.6).

On offense, the Pack is averaging 63.2 points per game, but has been held under 60 points in four consecutive games, including scoring a season-low 42 points last Saturday at MSU Denver. The Pack is also shooting 38 percent from the field, while defensively, the Pack is allowing 65.5 points per game and their foes are shooting 40 percent from the field and are getting outrebounded by nearly 10 boards per game. In RMAC play, CSU Pueblo is averaging 62.6 points per game and is allowing 66.4 points per game.

CSU Pueblo is coached by Tommie Johnson, who is in his fourth season as the Pack's women's basketball coach. In his three-plus season directing the Pack women's program, Johnson, who spent 10 seasons as an assistant men's basketball coach from 2008-16, has compiled a 42-49 overall record and is 32-38 in RMAC games.

ABOUT WESTERN COLORADO
Western, who plays on Friday at New Mexico Highlands before traveling to Pueblo to face the ThunderWolves, comes into the weekend having dropped two straight games after picking up a 57-53 home win over UCCS on New Year's Eve. The losing skid began with a 55-52 loss at home to Black Hills State last Friday, before falling 54-52 this past Saturday at South Dakota School of Mines.

Since opening the 2022-23 season with six losses in its first seven games, the Mountaineers have posted a 3-3 record. The Mountaineers are 1-5 away from home this season and have lost five straight road games since picking up a 62-56 win at Texas A&M-Kingsville on Nov. 19.

The Mountaineers are one of the defensive teams in the league as they are second in the RMAC in opponents field goal percentage (35.5 percent) and are third in the league in opponents 3-point field goal percentage (29.3 percent). Additionally, Western is fifth in the league in rebound margin (+4.6) and is sixth in blocked shots per game as they average 2.7 blocks per game.

On offense, Western is averaging 53.8 points per game and is shooting 37 percent from the field and 28 percent from the 3-point line. Defensively, Western is third in the league in scoring defense as they are allowing 58.5 points per game and have held five of its last six opponents under 60 points, including allowing a season-low 39 points in a 52-39 win at home against Colorado Christian on Dec. 10.

Leading the way offensively for the Mountaineers is fifth-year senior guard Emmery Wagstaff is eighth in the league in scoring as she is averaging 14.6 points per game and is also averaging 6.0 rebounds per game and is shooting 31 percent from the field and 85 percent from the free throw line. She has scored in double figures in 11 games and has tallied over 20 points in her last two games.

In addition to Wagstaff, sophomore forward Rachel Cockman is averaging 13.2 points and 6.2 rebounds per game and is shooting 50 percent from the field and 71 percent from the free throw line. She leads the team in blocked shots with 17. She has scored in double figures in nine games on the season.

Western is coached by first-year coach Adam Jacobson, who came to Gunnison from North Dakota State College of Science. In his coaching career, he has been a part of five postseason berths, two conference championships and has recruited or developed 17 All-Conference players. Jacobson is posting a 4-9 record and a 3-5 mark in the RMAC as Western's coach.

Saturday's game with Western Colorado will mark the 12th all-time meeting between the two schools with CSU Pueblo holding a 6-5 all-time mark in the series. The Pack won the most recent meeting, 63-49 last season at home. Prior to that win, the Pack had dropped five straight games in the series. CSU Pueblo leads 4-2 at home, but trails 3-2 in Gunnison.