CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – With no midweek contest this week, the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi women's basketball team will be fully rejuvenated when it takes on Sam Houston State on Saturday afternoon in Huntsville at 4 p.m.
The Islanders (6-11, 2-4) are coming off a defensive battle last week against Central Arkansas that saw both clubs fail to reach the 50-point mark. Outshooting the Blue and Green 44-percent to 28-percent, the Sugar Bears escaped the Coastal Bend with a 49-41 victory.
Despite the loss, A&M-Corpus Christi is still very much in the playoff race, tied for eighth place of tournament-eligible teams.
Head coach
Royce Chadwick will be at the helm of a team for the 999th game in his career on Saturday.
Saturday's game will be streamed on
GoBearkats.com for free, while Doug Kesterson will have the call on the Islanders Digital Network.
DOMINANT DEFENSE
Defense has brought the Islanders success through the opening six games of league play. The Blue and Green made up for the 12th ranked offense (57 ppg) in the conference with a top-five defense (62.3 ppg). Opponents have found it difficult to control the glass with just 30.7 rebounds per game against A&M-Corpus Christi, which tops the conference standings.
MBAMALU FINDING HER GROOVE
>>
Brittany Mbamalu has scored in double figures in the last four games.
>> In each of those contests, the redshirt-junior knocked down at least a pair of 3-pointers. She now has 53 games with multiple makes from downtown in her career.
>> Mbamalu moved into second place on the Islanders all-time 3-point list with 182 makes behind the arc. She needs 28 to break the program record set by Nicole Duncan (2003-07).
FREEBIES
>> After struggling to make free throws at the start of the year, the Islanders have made at least 10 freebies in six of the last seven games.
>> During that stretch,
Erin Willis has made 90-percent of her attempts at the line.
>>
Emma Young is shooting 80-percent at the line this season to lead the team.
SERIES HISTORY
>> The Islanders hold a healthy 15-9 series lead over the Bearkats
>> A&M-Corpus Christi opened the series with wins in 12 of the first 13 contests. Sam Houston State battled back to take seven straight.
>> The Blue and Green has won three of the last four after splitting with the Bearkats in 2015-16.
SCOUTING SAM HOUSTON STATE
>> After appearing the Southland Conference Championship game last year, the tables have turned for Sam Houston State.
>> Winless through 16 games, the Bearkats have lost each contest by an average of 24.1 points per game.
>> Jasmine McCants has provided some light on the season, averaging 9.4 points per game, which ranks 28th in the league.
STAY SOCIAL
For all the latest information surrounding Islanders women's basketball, follow the team on Twitter (@IslandersWBB) and like the team on Facebook (Islanders Women's Basketball).
- Go Islanders -
