BEAUMONT, Texas - Securing the outright Southland Conference regular season title and the number one seed in the upcoming conference tournament, Lamar University's women's basketball team will get to play their final home game of the season at Neches Arena this Thursday night. The Cardinals close out their regular season against Houston Christian at 6:00 p.m. Afterwards, the Cardinals will have a postgame celebration to recognize their achievements to date.
WE SHARE THOUGHTS, NOT TITLES
By defeating Northwestern State 80-64, the Cardinals have clinched the Southland Conference title outright for the first time since the 2018-19 season. The Cardinals will be the number one seed in the upcoming conference, which they will begin in the semifinals on March 13th at 11:00 A.M.
MOVING ON UP A SPOT
Lamar University moved up a spot in the Women's Mid-Major Top 25 poll from 25th to 24th. Big Red received 83 points following their two wins and stretching their winning streak to 12 games.
WYL E. AKASHA
Akasha Davis, the resident from Wylie, posted her 16th double-double on the season with 24 points and 11 rebounds against the Demons. She averaged 23.0 ppg and 13.5 rpg last week while making 58.3% from the field and 90% from the free throw line. Her performance was enough to grab her fourth SLC Player of the Week honor for the season. With 765 career rebounds, Davis has shot up to seventh all-time in program history.
HOUSE PARTY
For the final time this season, the Cardinals will appear at the Neches Arena where this season, they have produced a record of 10-1, which is the best mark in Southland Conference play. They average 65.3 ppg at Neches Arena having scored 60 points or higher in 10 of the games.
A NEW STANDARD
A win over HCU on Thursday will guarantee a 17-1 record in the Southland Conference. This would be the third time since joining the SLC that LU will have that mark as they will match the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons. The Cardinals would also have won 13 straight games, which would be the longest winning streak since the 2017-18 season, when LU won 14.
LAST TIME VS THE HUSKIES
The Cardinals commanded their win 65-54 against HCU down in Houston. Davis set a new career-high of 29 points on 13-of-20 shooting and grabbed 15 rebounds. In 23 meetings, LU is 20-3 all-time against HCU, which includes a 10-1 home record. LU averages 74.5 ppg against HCU all-time.
SINCE WE LAST MET
The Huskies enter Beaumont on a six-game skid following a 78-63 loss to Texas A&M-Commerce. Three players in N'Denasija Collins (19 points), Toye Caesar (14 points), and Enya Maguire (13 points) combined for 46 points to lead HCU.
THE LEADER OF THE PACK
N'Denasija Collins posted a team-high 20 points in the last meeting between the two squads on just eight-of-12 shooting. She is seventh in the conference in scoring with 13.6 ppg.
DON'T GO, IT'S ROUGH OUT THERE
HCU has only one win on the road this season as that came against Wichita State on Dec. 4th by the final of 49-44. Since then, the Huskies have had two games where they came within two points of claiming their second victory: Northwestern State (51-53) and Nicholls (50-52).
UP NEXT FOR LU
LU will open their tournament in the semifinals on Wednesday, March 13th at 11:00 a.m. They will take on the winner of game between the No. 4 seed and the winner of the No. 5 and No. 8 seeded teams from Monday.
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