SAINT PETER, Minn. – The Gustavus women’s basketball team will look to bounce back after two straight losses when they play host to Carleton on Wednesday night for a 7 p.m. contest. The Gusties enter the contest 14-5 overall and 10-4 in the MIAC while the Knights are 7-12 overall and 4-10 in the league.
The Series: Tonight’s contest marks the 79th meeting between the two teams with Gustavus leading the series 56-22. The Gusties have won the past 19 contests, with Carleton’s most recent win coming on Jan. 21, 2009.
Scouting the Gusties: Gustavus has dropped two straight contests, most recently falling to St. Thomas 68-67 Saturday. Through 19 contests, the Gusties average 72.4 points while allowing 59.0, marks which rank third and fourth in the MIAC, respectively. The Gustavus defense has been stout at defending the three-point line this season, limiting opponents to a league low percentage of 27.1 percent from beyond the arc. However, in the team’s four losses in the past month, the opposition is shooting 31-of-87 from long range, for a 35.6 percent clip. Caitlin Rorman continues to pace the Gusties offensively, averaging a team-best 16.1 points and 6.5 rebounds per game, while shooting 60.9 percent. Juniors Ava Gonsorowski and Paige Richert have also been steady contributors, averaging 13.3 and 11.1 points per game, respectively.
Scouting the Knights: Carleton is most recently coming off a 97-90 overtime loss to Augsburg on Saturday. Through 19 games the Knights averages 58.4 points per contest while allowing 61.5, marks ranking 11th and eighth in the conference, respectively. Though shooting just 29.0 percent from beyond the arc on the season, Carleton is coming off one of its best performance from deep of the season, connecting on 12 attempts from long range in Saturday’s loss. Katie Chavez leads the Knights, averaging 17.6 points per game to go along with 4.9 rebounds and 2.9 assists while Samantha Cooke and Jill Yanai also average double figures with 12.6 and 10.7 points per game, respectively. Yanai also contributes a team-best 7.4 rebounds per contest, and matches Chavez’s mark with 2.9 assists.