NACADOCHES, TEXAS– The University of the Incarnate Word women's basketball team will play its penultimate road game of the 2018-19 season on Saturday, when the Cardinals do battle with the Stephen F. Austin Lady Jacks. Tipoff is set for 2:00 p.m. (CT) and will be televised on ESPN+.
 

FOLLOW ALONG
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SHE CAN HOLTER OWN

• Sophomore guard Liz Holter has taken advantage of her playing time, putting up new season-high point totals three times in her last four contests, culminating in a career-high 12 points against Abilene Christian (2/16).
• She is averaging 7.5 points per game over that stretch, in large part due to her spot on three-point shooting. She has splashed nine of 14 three-point attempts in her last four contests (64.3%) including a career high four made triples from six attempts against ACU.
• She is shooting 52.6 from the field (10-19) over her last four games, an improvement of over 31 percent compared to her first 15 games of the campaign.
• Holter leads the team in three-point shooting in SLC play, shooting 50 percent from beyond the arc (10-20).

 
YEEEEAAAAHHHHHH BOWIEEEEEE

• Throughout conference games, redshirt senior guard Gabbi Bowie has sprinkled plenty of flava into the UIW offense.
• Last week, she delivered a season-high 17 points and five assists to lead UIW to victory over Southeastern Louisiana.
• Over her last eight games, she is putting up 7.6 points and 2.7 assists to go along with 2.8 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game.
• Against New Orleans, she scored 10 points on a career high 10 made free throws. She also dished out a career best seven assists and a season high three steals in the win.
• Against SLU, Bowie scored a season-best 17 points on a career-high 71.4 percent shooting (5-7).
• As the lone senior on an inexperienced squad, Bowie has taken it upon herself to mold her game to the needs of the team, becoming more of a facilitator in recent weeks. Prior to her current stretch, Bowie averaged 0.7 assists per game throughout her career.
• She played a career high 39 minutes against New Orleans. Since the beginning of SLC play, she is averaging 26.7 minutes played per game.
• She set a new career high for assists in a single season this year, with 38. She still has five games to add to that total.

 
RAY OF LIGHT

• Freshman guard Macy Ray has established herself as the driving force of the team through 14 starts.
• After assuming the role of starting point guard against Rice (Dec. 29, 2018), Ray is averaging 25.8 minutes, often with the task of shutting down the top scoring opposing guard.
• On Jan. 19, she held the SFA point guard to 0-4 from the field, she was shooting .462 percent from the field in conference games heading into play.
• Her 21 points against New Orleans (1/26/19) stands as the most points scored by a UIW freshman since Feb. 22, 2017 (Robinson, 23 points, vs. Nicholls).
• Always a consistent presence on defense, Ray has made some impressive strides on the offensive side of the ball in conference play. She is coming off a nine-point display at Lamar in which she hit three of four shots from beyond the arc.
• After hitting threes in just four non-conference games, Ray has hit 13 threes in SLC action, averaging one 3PT per game, including four games with multiple made threes.

 
SPEERHEADING THE OFFENSE

• Sophomore guard Kara Speer has turned a corner in conference play.
• After averaging 2.8 points per game in non-conference, Speer has taken her game to a new level. She's third on the team in scoring (7.0 ppg) since the start of SLC play. Providing a much-needed supplemental threat for the offense.
• She leads the team in conference games with a .929 shooting percentage from the line (26-28). She has made 14 straight free throws.
• Her impact is being felt on the glass too, Speer hauled in a career-high 11 rebounds against Lamar (2/20). She is averaging 7 points and 7.7 rebounds in her last three games.
• She led the team in points for the first time this season with 13 points against SFA (Jan. 19).

 
SCOUTING SFA

• The Lady Jacks enter play in a tie for first place in the SLC with UIW's most recent opponent, Lamar.
• SFA is coming off its first conference loss of the season, a 46-44 road loss to Corpus Christi.
• An all-around team, SFA leads the conference with seven different players averaging six or more points a game while also owning the second-best defense in the conference (holding opponents to an average of 57.0 ppg).
• This is the second meeting this season between SFA and UIW. The Lady Jacks bested the Cardinals earlier this season, 66-56, in San Antonio.

 
FOLLOW ALONG
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