BEAUMONT, Texas – The University of the Incarnate Word women's basketball team takes on Lamar on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. (CT) at Montagne Center.

UIW (7-8, 3-3 SLC) not only shares a mascot with Lamar (8-9, 4-4 SLC), but the teams are neck-in-neck in Southland Conference standings as well as a handful statistics. The Lamar Cardinals hold a 10-0 lead in head-to-heads with the San Antonio Cardinals.

GAME COVERAGE

Watch: ESPN+
Live stats: SIDEARM stats

CARDINALS IN THE SOUTHLAND

UIW boasts the fourth-best scoring defense in the conference, holding opponents to 60.0 points per game. The Cardinals are shooting 71.7 percent from the free-throw line, which moved up to third-best in the league. Senior guard Imani Robinson's 13.1 points per game leads the Cardinals and ranks seventh in the SLC. Junior guard Kara Speer's 7.3 rebounds currently rank fifth in the league, and her 5.1 offensive boards rank sixth best.

TRIPLE THREAT

Three Cardinals are among the best 3-point shooters in the league, Kara Speer, Macy Ray and Brittney Stafford. Speer's 36.3 percent accuracy ranks ninth in the SLC while her 1.0 three pointer per game is ranked 23rd best. Stafford, a freshman, is shooting 33.3 percent from beyond the arc, which ranks 14th best in the league. Ray's 29.7 percent from distance is at No. 21 in the SLC, but her 1.5 3-pointers per game is ranked No. 15.

JACKSON STEALS THE SHOW

In the win over McNeese, senior guard Victoria Jackson recorded three steals on three consecutive possessions and turned two of those turnovers into layups at the other end. Jackson leads the team in steals with 24 on the season, averaging 1.8 per game, which is 13th best in the league.

BUZZER-BEATING BIRDS

The Cardinals' two conference wins against Nicholls at home and Northwestern State on the road were both buzzer beaters. Imani Robinson's scoop layup with one second left and a 3-pointer that rimmed out gave UIW its first SLC win of the season against Nicholls, 53-51. The Cardinals earned their first road win in overtime at Northwestern State with a last-second shot under the basket by Lunden Henry for a 69-67 win.

SHARP AS A SPEER

Junior guard Kara Speer, who has started every game for the Cardinals this season, has three double-doubles on the season. Speer is the only Cardinal with a double-double this season and on all occasions, she has matched a career-high in points and then rebounds. Her first was against St. Thomas (Dec. 14) when she scored 16 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. She recorded her second against Paul Quinn (Dec. 28), putting up 11 points and setting a new career-high with 12 rebounds. The most recent double-double against Northwestern State (Jan. 8) tied career-highs with 16 points and 12 boards.

DOUBLE DIGITS

UIW has had three or more Cardinals score in double-figures on seven separate occasions this season. The team is 7-0 in those games.

RECORD BOOK ROBINSON

Senior Imani Robinson has 1,138 career points and is the first Cardinal to reach the 1,000-career point milestone since Ifunanya Mora (2010-14). She scored her 1,000th point this season against St. Thomas, where she led the team with 19 points. The 5-11 guard ranks eighth in career points (1,138) and field goals attempted (1,004), while holding a fourth-best in free throws made and attempted (335-443). She is also in the career record book at UIW with 80 starts (9th), 68 blocks (2nd) and 181 offensive boards (6th).

TAKING CARE OF THE ROCK

UIW's five turnovers against Colorado State (Nov. 26)—committing zero in the first half—was the fewest number of turnovers in a game since the program moved to Division I. The five turnovers rank third fewest in a single game in the nation. The last time the team turned the ball over fewer than 10 times was at Houston Baptist (Feb. 28, 2018), when it gave up eight. The previous lowest number of turnovers in a game was at home against Central Arkansas (Feb. 13, 2016), when the Cardinals recorded six. The Cardinals average 16.9 turnovers per game, which ranks third-best in the Southland.
 

SCOUTING THE OPPONENT

• Lamar is 8-9 on the season and 4-4 in Southland Conference play. With two more SLC matches played, Lamar is one spot ahead of UIW in the current standings.
• LU has two among the scoring top ten in the conference with Amber Vidal's averaging13.1 points per game and Angel Hastings at 12.8, ranking ninth and tenth respectively.
• Briana Laidler is a defensive role player for the Cardinals at the glass, averaging 7.8 boards per game, which is third best in the SLC. Her 5.1 defensive boards are fifth best in the conference while her 2.7 offensive boards and 1.1 blocks per game are sixth best in the conference.
• Lamar has a league-best 4.88 turnover margin that is fueled by Jadyn Pimentel's 3.5 steals per game, a conference best.
• Lamar is shooting 35.6 percent from the field, which is just above UIW's 35.3 percent, meanwhile UIW's 41.7 percent field goal defense is just above Lamar's 41.8 percent.
• LU's 3-point defense is the third-strongest in the Southland, holding opponents to 27.1 percent from beyond the arc.

STAY TUNED

For the most up-to-date information on UIW Athletics, visit uiwcardinals.com, follow the Cardinals on Twitter @UIWAthletics and like UIW Athletics on Facebook.

Follow the team on Twitter @UIWWBB and on Instagram @uiw_womenshoops.