WBB Game Day Central: Gardner-Webb
1/12/2017 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Game Day Central
Liberty's Game Notes
Game Time:
1 p.m.
Official Tipoff:
1:05 p.m.
TV Coverage:
American Sports Network (List of Clearances)
Play-By-Play Broadcaster: Evan Lepler
Color Commentator: Kelley Deyo
Radio Coverage:
Liberty Flames Sports Network – Radio
WQLU 90.9 FM The Light
Play-By-Play Broadcaster: Jamie Hall
Today's Game
Liberty (4-10, 3-0 Big South) will travel to Gardner-Webb (6-8, 1-2 Big South) on Sunday for a contest broadcasted on the American Sports Network (Click here to see the complete list of clearances). The 20th all-time meeting between the Lady Flames and Runnin' Bulldogs will tip off at 1 p.m. inside Paul Porter Arena.
The "Starting Five" - Liberty's Top Storylines
1) Liberty will look to continue its hot start to Big South play. The Lady Flames are 3-0 in conference games, putting them in a tie with Radford atop the Big South standings. Liberty has featured a potent offense, averaging 76.7 ppg in its first three Big South contests.
2) Liberty and Gardner-Webb will be meeting for the 20th time on Sunday. The two teams squared off in three consecutive Big South Championship title games (2009, 2010 and 2011) and have played 10 games decided by 10 points or fewer.
3) The Lady Flames and Runnin' Bulldogs were arguably hit harder by graduation than any other Big South teams following the 2015-16 season, but both have seen players fill the void in 2016-17. Keyen Green has stepped up for Liberty, earning three Big South Freshman of the Week honors already. Meanwhile, Gardner-Webb's Tierra Huntsman ranks second in the conference with 15.0 ppg.
4) Freshmen have scored 62.5 percent of Liberty's points this season, and a different rookie has led the Lady Flames in scoring in each conference game. Lela Sellers scored 21 points at Charleston Southern, Keyen Green went for 26 points versus High Point and Iva Ilic dropped in 17 points against Presbyterian.
5) Liberty, which is just 1-7 away from the Vines Center this season, will play four of its next six games on the road. The Lady Flames are 6-2 all-time at Paul Porter Arena.
Liberty vs. Gardner-Webb at a Glance
Series History
Series Record: Liberty leads, 15-4.
Current Streak: Liberty won the most recent meeting.
Series Record at Gardner-Webb: Liberty leads, 6-2
Current Streak at Gardner-Webb: Gardner-Webb won the most recent meeting.
Last Meeting Overall: Liberty 73, Gardner-Webb 51 (Jan. 26, 2016 at Liberty)
Last Meeting at Gardner-Webb: Gardner-Webb 61, Liberty 57 (Dec. 2, 2015)
GWU's Last Series Victory: Gardner-Webb 61, Liberty 57 (Dec. 2, 2015 at GWU)
Liberty's Last Series Victory at GWU: Liberty 61, Gardner-Webb 48 (Feb. 5, 2015)
Coaching Matchup
Liberty Head Coach: Carey Green
Overall Record (Seasons): 407-151 (18th Season)
Record at Liberty (Seasons): Same
Record vs. Gardner-Webb: 15-4
Gardner-Webb Head Coach: Rick Reeves
Overall Record (Seasons): 458-432 (31st Season)
Record at Gardner-Webb (Seasons): 191-194 (13th Season)
Record vs. Liberty: 4-15
Notes and Anecdotes
• Sunday's matchup will mark the 20th all-time meeting in the head-to-head series between Liberty and Gardner-Webb. The teams met in three consecutive Big South Championship title games (2009, 2010 and 2011), and 10 of the teams' 19 previous matchups have been decided by 10 points or fewer.
• Liberty is 6-2 all-time at Paul Porter Arena, but lost a 61-57 contest in both teams' 2015-16 Big South opener, Dec. 2, 2015. The game saw nine ties and 13 lead changes, but the Lady Flames were undone by 31 turnovers.
• Gardner-Webb is 3-1 at home this season, while Liberty is just 1-7 away from the Vines Center in 2016-17.
• Like Liberty, Gardner-Webb was hit hard by graduation last season, losing its top two scorers in Candace Brown (14.7 ppg) and Olivia Parker (13.7 ppg).
• In their absence, redshirt junior Tierra Huntsman has stepped up as a leader for the Runnin' Bulldogs. She ranks second in the Big South with 15.0 ppg, while leading the conference in three-pointers made (30) and three-point field goal percentage (42.9).
• Gardner-Webb head coach Rick Reeves previously served as Liberty's head coach for nine seasons (1990-91 through 1998-99), leading the Lady Flames to their first three Big South Conference titles (1996-97, 1997-98 and 1998-99 seasons).
On This Date
Liberty is 8-4 all-time in games played on Jan. 15, including 5-1 in Big South play. The Lady Flames have won six consecutive Jan. 15 contests, but have not played on the date since 2008, when Liberty posted a 69-54 home win over George Mason.
What Can Green Do For You?
Keyen Green headlines the Lady Flames' successful freshman class. The Big South Freshman of the Week on Dec. 5, Jan. 2 and Jan. 9, Green leads the conference and ranks No. 2 among the nation's freshmen in rebounding at 8.7 rpg.
In her last nine games, Green has recorded five double-doubles (Dec. 4 at Navy, Dec. 10 vs. West Liberty, Dec. 29 vs. UMBC, Jan. 3 at Charleston Southern and Jan. 7 vs. High Point) and three 20-point outings (Dec. 10 vs. West Liberty, Dec. 20 at UTSA and Jan. 7 vs. High Point). She is averaging 15.1 ppg and 10.2 rpg over the span.
Green scored a career-high 26 points during a Jan. 7 win over High Point, the most by a Liberty freshman since Jan. 30, 2010 (Devon Brown - 29 at High Point).
She previously grabbed a career-high 17 rebounds at Navy on Dec. 4, the most by a Liberty freshman since March 15, 2009 (Avery Warley - 17 vs. Gardner-Webb).
Keys to the Streak
After opening the season with a 1-10 record, Liberty has strung together three straight wins to begin Big South Conference play. The following are a few keys to the Lady Flames' recent success.
Liberty is scoring 76.7 ppg in conference play, while shooting the ball much better than its overall season averages. The Lady Flames are shooting 44.1 percent from the field, 44.4 percent from three-point range and 67.5 percent from the foul line over the last three games, while averaging 9.3 three-pointers made per game.
The Lady Flames are outrebounding Big South opponents by an average of 13.7 boards per game and blocking 7.3 shots per contest.
Four Liberty players are scoring in double figures, including Keyen Green (16.3 ppg), Nene Johnson (12.7 ppg), Iva Ilic (11.3 ppg) and Lela Sellers (10.7 ppg).
A Look Back at the Lady Flames' 68-60 Win Over Presbyterian on Tuesday
• Iva Ilic scored a career-high 17 points and KK Barbour fashioned her first career double-double (career-high 10 points, career-high 13 rebounds), helping Liberty hold off Presbyterian, 68-60, Tuesday evening at the Vines Center.
• The Blue Hose twice trimmed an 11-point second-half deficit to two, including on Cortney Storey's layup with 5:32 remaining. But Liberty sealed its third straight Big South victory with an ensuing 8-0 run, capped off by back-to-back Ilic hoops.
• Ilic and Barbour were joined in double figures by Keyen Green (13 points, 7 rebounds) and Audrey Rettstatt (10 points), as Liberty scored its most points in its last nine meetings with PC. Meanwhile, Kierra Johnson-Graham collared a career-best 10 rebounds.
New Year's Resolution
After averaging 54.9 ppg on 32.5 percent from the field and 24.5 percent from three-point range in 11 2016 contests, the Lady Flames have exploded for 76.7 ppg on 44.1 percent from the floor and 44.4 percent from beyond the arc in 2017's first three outings.
Shooting Stars
Liberty shot an impressive 57.1 percent (12-of-21) from three-point range at Charleston Southern on Jan. 3, tying the 26-year-old program record for most three-pointers made in a single game.
The Lady Flames followed up that performance by making 10 more triples against High Point on Jan. 7. Liberty is shooting 44.4 percent (28-of-63) from beyond the arc during the first three games of Big South play.
Fantastic Freshmen
Liberty's seven freshmen have combined to score 62.5 percent of the team's points this season, led by Keyen Green's team-high 11.8 ppg. Five of the Lady Flames' top six scorers on the year are freshmen.
Winning the Battle of the Boards
Liberty has outrebounded 10 of its last 12 opponents, including seven games of 20+ offensive rebounds. The Lady Flames currently rank No. 5 nationally with 19.1 offensive boards per game this season.
Player Trends
#3 Nene Johnson
• Leads the team and ranks sixth in the Big South with 3.0 apg
• Came up with a career-high three steals against Presbyterian on Tuesday, giving her the team lead with 15 thefts for the season
• Averaging 12.7 ppg during the first three Big South games, as compared with 5.3 ppg in non-conference play
• After shooting 11.1 percent (1-of-9) from three-point range during the season's first 10 games, has made 62.5 percent (5-of-8) in the last four outings
#10 Kierra Johnson-Graham
• Has played well in the second half of games this season, scoring 47 of her 74 points after halftime while shooting 43.2 percent (16-of-37) from the field and 66.7 percent (4-of-6) from three-point range
#12 Audrey Rettstatt
• Tallied six of her 10 points during the fourth quarter of Tuesday's win over Presbyterian
• Averaging 9.7 ppg and 5.0 rpg in conference play, after posting 3.9 ppg and 2.6 rpg during Liberty's 11 non-conference tilts
• Has scored more points this season (72) than she did in her first three years combined (60)
#14 Lela Sellers
• Leads the team and ranks 10th in the Big South (first among freshmen) in minutes played (30.2 mpg). She is also tied for ninth in the conference with 2.4 apg.
• Averaging 9.2 ppg in her last five games, while shooting 42.9 percent (9-of-21) from three-point range and 76.5 percent (13-of-17) from the foul line
#21 Keyen Green
• Three-time Big South Freshman of the Week (Dec. 5, Jan. 2 & Jan. 9)
• Ranks No. 2 nationally among freshmen for rebounding (8.7 rpg) and No. 17 nationally overall for offensive rebounding (4.2 rpg)
• Tops the Big South in rebounding and offensive rebounding
• Leads the Lady Flames and ranks eighth in the Big South in scoring (11.8 ppg), after scoring in double figures in each of the last six contests
#24 Iva Ilic
• Leads the team and is tied for ninth (tied for first among freshmen) in the Big South with 19 three-pointers, including a career-high four triples against Presbyterian on Tuesday
• Scored a team-high and career-high 17 points during Tuesday's win over Presbyterian
• Averaging 11.3 ppg in conference play, aided by her 57.1 percent (8-of-14) three-point shooting
#30 KK Barbour
• Will celebrate her 20th birthday on Monday (Jan. 16)
• Tallied seven points, five rebounds in a home win over Gardner-Webb last season (Jan. 26, 2016)
• Recorded her first career double-double against Presbyterian on Tuesday, consisting of a career-high 10 points and a career-high 13 rebounds. She also matched her career high of three blocked shots.
• Averaging 6.5 ppg, 7.7 rpg and 1.2 bpg in six games since joining the starting lineup on Dec. 20
• Had not made a three-pointer during her first 33 career appearances, but is 4-of-10 from beyond the arc in her last five games, including 2-of-3 at Charleston Southern (Jan. 3)
#35 Ola Makurat
• Tied for second on the team with 13 three-pointers, but saw her streak of six straight games with a made triple snapped on Tuesday against Presbyterian
