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Women open at old home vs Pac West foes

Women's Basketball UAA Media Relations

Women open at old home vs Pac West foes

THIS WEEK IN SEAWOLF BASKETBALL...

GNAC/Pac West Challenge
Friday, Nov. 14 – 5 pm – Wells Fargo Sports Complex – Anchorage, AK
Holy Names (0-0) at Alaska Anchorage (0-0)
&
Saturday, Nov. 15 – 5 pm – Wells Fargo Sports Complex – Anchorage, AK
Chaminade (0-0 [11/14 @UAF]) at Alaska Anchorage

TV: None

RADIO: Live on FM-89.3 KATB and FM-88.9 KJLP, both nights

ONLINE: Live Stats only at GoSeawolves.com.

SOCIAL MEDIA: Get periodic game updates by following the @UAAWBB Twitter feed ... fans can also like UAA's main Facebook page (Alaska Anchorage Seawolves), the University of Alaska Anchorage Women's Basketball Facebook page, or the Alaska Anchorage Seawolves Instagram feed.

TICKETS: $10 regular / $8 for UAA staff/faculty/alumni or military, youth (3-18) and seniors (60+) ... single-game tickets can be purchased online at GoSeawolves.com or AlaskaAirlinesCenter.com.

SPECIAL PROMOTIONS: None.

WHAT LIES AHEAD: The Seawolves make their regular-season debut this week with key matchups against fellow NCAA Div. II West Region teams when they take on Holy Names and Chaminade ... the games are being played in conjunction with games in Fairbanks (UAF plays Chaminade on Friday and Holy Names on Saturday) to comprise the GNAC/Pac West Challenge ... this week's games have been moved to UAA's old home at the Wells Fargo Sports Complex due to a scheduling conflict with the ASAA State Volleyball Championships at the Alaska Airlines Center.

SCOUTING THE FOES: Holy Names loses four starters, including the top three scorers -- from last year's team that went 10-16 overall and 6-14 in the Pac West Conference ... the Hawks, from Oakland, Calif., feature So. G Garysha Youngblood (8.0 ppg, 4.3 rpg) as their  leading returning scorer ... Chaminade is coming off a 3-23 overall record and a 3-17 mark in the Pac West ... the Silverswords, from Honolulu, will be led by So. F Lilia Maio (12.3 ppg, 7.2 rpg).

THE SERIES...
VS. HOLY NAMES: First meeting
VS. CHAMINADE: UAA leads 9-0 (4-0 in Anchorage)
  LAST TIME: UAA 93, CU 57 (11/21/13 at CU)
  NOTES: UAA has won by an average of 54.6 points per game ... the Seawolves won the last meeting in Anchorage, 102-43, on Dec. 18, 2010 ... the 105-30 decision on Dec. 17, 2010 stands as UAA's largest victoy margin against a fellow NCAA Div. II opponent ... series started in 2007-08.

UAA PROBABLE STARTERS (2013-14 stats & notes)
G—Kiki Robertson, 5-5, So. (10.3 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 5.0 apg, 3.2 spg, .747 FT)
G—Jessica Madison, 5-8, Jr. (10.9 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 1.9 apg, .804 FT)
G—Alli Madison, 5-8, Sr. (12.4 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 2.5 apg, 1.6 spg, .736 FT)
F—Alysha Devine, 6-0, So. (3.9 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 1.1 spg, .719 FT)
F—KeKe Wright, 6-0, Sr. (7.4 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 1.5 spg, .510 FG)

BRIEF SEASON PREVIEW: With five of the top six scorers returning from last year's NCAA Tournament team, UAA has the luxury of a veteran squad in 2014-15 ... among the four starters back from that team include Preseason All-GNAC selections Alli Madison and Kiki Robertson ... Madison – one of two active seniors on the roster – was UAA's leading scorer at 12.4 points per game, while Robertson averaged 10.3 ppg and was the only freshman in Div. II to rank in the nation's top 20 in both assists (5.0 apg) and steals (3.2 spg) ... the other double-digit scorer is Jr. G Jessica Madison, who put up 10.9 ppg with team-bests of 46 three-pointers made and .804 free-throw shooting ... fellow Jr. G Jenna Buchanan is another deadeye shooter, having ranked second in the GNAC with her .422 3FG% last year ... Sr. F KeKe Wright will play a bigger role from her first season, when she averaged 7.4 points and 5.8 rebounds in just 19.6 minutes per game off the bench, while So. F Alysha Devine averaged 3.9 points and 3.2 rebounds and will increase her leadership role in 2014-15 as team captain ... along with Wright, UAA now boasts three former JC All-Americans with the addition of newcomers Adriana Dent and Megan Mullings ... a point guard originally from Southern California, Dent redshirted last season after transferring from the College of Southern Idaho, where she was MVP of the 2013 NJCAA Region 18 Tournament ... Mullings makes her debut in green & gold after two seasons at South Mountain Community College in her native Arizona ... the 6-footer was No. 46 overall and No. 11 among power forwards in the national JC recruiting rankings, with numbers of 20.7 ppg, 9.0 rpg and .579 FG% as a sophomore ... Mullings also brings Div. I experience, redshirting her true freshman season at Sacramento State ... three freshmen, including former Alaska prep stars Sierra Afoa (Dimond) and Jerica Nelson (Kodiak), also hope to make an immediate impact ... the only 'Outside' freshman is reigning Idaho Gatorade Player of the Year Leah Bonner, who led Nampa's Skyview High School to a 26-2 record and its first-ever state title, averaging 18.2 ppg, 9.7 rpg and 3.0 apg ... three veterans are among the five players will redshirt in 2014-15, with Sr. C Emily Craft (7.2 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 1.0 bpg), Sr. G Christina Davis (4.4 ppg, 2.9 apg) and Jr. G Alyssa Hutchins (3.0 ppg, .425 3FG) all slated to sit out ... post player Hannah Wandersee (Kodiak) and guard Tara Thompson (Dimond) are two more Alaskans who will redshirt.

SEAWOLVES STUN UTES: Jr. G Jenna Buchanan poured in 20 points (5-6 FG, 4-4 3FG, 6-6 FT) to lead a huge UAA comeback as the Seawolves upset host and Div. I Utah, 67-61, in a an exhibition game Nov. 5 in Salt Lake City ... the Seawolves erased an early 17-1 deficit and pulled away with a 10-2 run to end the game, getting the go-ahead basket on Jr. G Jessica Madison's fast-break layup with 2:22 remaining ... Utah nailed 11 of 22 three-pointers but could not handle UAA's pressure defense as the Seawolves owned advantages of 27-13 in turnovers forced and 30-13 in points off turnovers ... Buchanan also had 5 assists, no turnovers and 2 steals ... So. F Alysha Devine finished with 9 points, Sr. F/C KeKe Wright had 8 points (4-5 FG), and Jr. F Megan Mullings did most of her damage in the second half, tallying 7 points and 6 rebounds ... Madison was solid as well, contributing 7 (3-4 FG), 4 rebounds, 2 assists, no turnovers and 2 steals ... the victory was UAA's second against a Div. I opponent in an exhibition road game;  the previous win also came against a member of the Pacific-12 Conference with a 70-64 overtime decision at Washington State in 2007.

TEAM NOTES: The 2013-14 Seawolves earned the program's eighth consecutive winning season and qualified for the program's fourth straight GNAC Tournament since that event was installed in 2011 … in head coach Ryan McCarthy's second season, UAA also surpassed its 2012-13 overall (17) and GNAC (11) win totals … UAA led NCAA Div. II with 14.3 steals per game, along with other top-40 national ranks in turnover margin (6th, +7.04), scoring offense (11th, 79.6), assists per game (16th, 16.9), scoring margin (22nd, +11.0), assist-turnover ratio (32nd, 1.06) and 3FGs per game (38th, 6.9) … UAA led the GNAC in scoring offense, scoring margin, rebounds per game (42.2), offensive rebounds per game (17.0), assists, steals and turnover margin … the Seawolves had six different players (Buchanan, Kylie Burns, Craft, A. Madison, Robertson & Wright) post a double-double last season — the most for a UAA squad since the 1980-81 team had seven players pull the trick.

PLAYER NOTES: Although hobbled by a late-season ankle sprain, Sr. G/F Alli Madison finished as UAA's leading scorer last year, ranking 13th in the GNAC with 12.4 ppg … the Seattle (Kennedy HS) product scored double figures in 19 of her 27 games, including four 20-point performances … Madison held other GNAC ranks of 12th in steals (1.7 spg), assists (2.6 apg) and in assist-turnover ratio (1.1) … Madison enters her senior season 17th on UAA's career FT% list at .725 … Jr. G Jessica Madison notched double figures 19 times last year, including the last six regular-season games … the 2012-13 GNAC Freshman of the Year ranked 21st in the GNAC with 10.9 ppg, boosted by a career-high 19 points at MSU Billings … she also ranked 6th in the overall league stats with 1.6 3FGs per game, while her 2.1 A-T ratio in GNAC-only contests ranked 2nd … in just two years, Madison has moved up to 12th on UAA's career 3FGs list with 82 treys, along with 8th in 3FGs per game (1.5) and 34th in scoring (563) … the Washingtonian's team-best .804 FT% was 13th on UAA's single-season list … Jr. G Jenna Buchanan scored double figures in 10 of 25 appearances as a sophomore, including nine of 18 GNAC contests … over the second half of the league campaign, the former 3A Player of the Year from Galena averaged 11.8 ppg and 4.8 rpg, boosted by career highs of 20 points against NW Nazarene and 10 rebounds against Simon Fraser … Buchanan barely missed earning the GNAC 3FG% crown, ranking 2nd at .422, along with ranks of 13th in 3FGs per game (1.5) and 19th in FG% (.429) … on UAA's career lists, she is 8th in 3FG% (.383), 9th in 3FGs per game (1.3) and 17th in 3FGs made (67) … last season Sr. F/C KeKe Wright was 6th in the league in FG% (team-best .510), plus 17th in both rebounding (5.8) and  steals (1.5) ... So. F Alysha Devine got the starting call in the last eight games of 2013-14, averaging 5.8 ppg on 61 percent shooting during UAA's 5-game February win streak ... delivering one of the best rookie campaigns in UAA program history, So. PG Kiki Robertson was the only freshman or sophomore anointed first- or second-team all-league in 2013-14, making Second Team All-GNAC … the Honolulu (Mid-Pacific Inst.) product ranked 7th in NCAA Div. II with 3.2 steals per game and 17th with 5.0 assists per contest — tops nationally among freshman … in the GNAC stats, she was 2nd in steals, 3rd in assists, 3rd in A-T ratio (1.7) and 18th in FT% (.747) ... she crushed the UAA freshman record with 140 assists, along with other program rookie ranks of 2nd in steals (90), t-2nd in games started (28), 6th in points (287), 6th in scoring average (10.3 ppg), 6th in FTs made (71), 7th in FG made (102) and 9th in FT%.

McCARTHY IN CHARGE: Ryan McCarthy earned his first NCAA Tournament as a head coach in 2013-14, leading the Seawolves to an improvement in wins (17 to 19) and conference wins (11 to 12) from his inaugural season at the helm … playing an up-tempo style, McCarthy's most recent crew led the nation in steals and ranked 11th in NCAA Div. II in scoring, tying for third place in the GNAC standings for the second consecutive campaign … formerly an assistant at GNAC rival Northwest Nazarene, McCarthy now sports a 50-32 overall record (36-19 at UAA) as head coach in three total seasons, having served in an interim capacity at NNU in 2011-12 … McCarthy is assisted by 2nd-year associate head coach Alex Carlson and 3rd-year assistant coach Shaina Afoa.

SEAWOLVES TABBED 2ND: The Seawolves were picked to finish second in the 2014 Great Northwest Athletic Conference preseason coaches' poll, released Oct. 14. Here is a look at the poll:

2014-15 Great Northwest Athletic Conference
Preseason Women's Basketball Coaches' Poll
Rk Team (1st-place votes) 2013-14 Records    Pts
1. Western Washington (9) 19-10, 13-5, 2nd   81
2. Alaska Anchorage (1)   19-9, 12-6, t-3rd  70
3. Simon Fraser           20-10, 12-6, t-3rd 63
4. Seattle Pacific        18-9, 11-7, t-5th  56
5. Montana State Billings 25-8, 15-3, 1st    53
6. Saint Martin's         18-11, 11-7, t-5th 45
7. Northwest Nazarene     15-11, 8-10, 7th   27
8. Alaska Fairbanks       9-17, 3-15, t-8th  23
9. Western Oregon         6-20, 3-15, t-8th  21
10. Central Washington    7-19, 2-16, 10th   15
(Note: Each coach ranked other nine teams. First-place votes in parentheses. Points awarded on 9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis.).

2013-14 SEAWOLF INDIVIDUAL HONORS
(returning players only)
Jenna Buchanan
GNAC All-Academic Team, Feb. 27
Christina Davis
Most Improved Player (team award), Apr. 12
Alyssa Hutchins
GNAC All-Academic Team, Feb. 27
Most Inspirational Player (team award), Apr. 12
Alli Madison
Carrs/Safeway Player of the Game vs UC Riverside, Nov. 26
Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout All-Tourney Team, Nov. 27
Jessica Madison
GNAC All-Academic Team, Feb. 27
Kiki Robertson
Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout All-Tourney Team, Nov. 27
GNAC Red Lion Player of the Week, Nov. 25-Dec. 1
Second Team All-GNAC, Mar. 3
Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

Kylie Burns

#43 Kylie Burns

G
5' 8"
Freshman
Alli Madison

#10 Alli Madison

G
5' 8"
Freshman
Jessica Madison

#RS Jessica Madison

G
5' 8"
Freshman
Jenna Buchanan

#12 Jenna Buchanan

G
5' 8"
Freshman
Alyssa Hutchins

#10 Alyssa Hutchins

G
5' 7"
Freshman
Sierra Afoa

#RS Sierra Afoa

F
5' 9"
Freshman
Emily Craft

#41 Emily Craft

C
6' 2"
Junior
Christina Davis

#5 Christina Davis

G
5' 6"
Junior
Adriana Dent

#RS Adriana Dent

G
5' 9"
Junior
Alysha Devine

#15 Alysha Devine

F
6' 0"
Freshman
Kiki Robertson

#23 Kiki Robertson

G
5' 7"
Freshman
KeKe Wright

#13 KeKe Wright

F
6' 0"
Junior

Players Mentioned

Kylie Burns

#43 Kylie Burns

5' 8"
Freshman
G
Alli Madison

#10 Alli Madison

5' 8"
Freshman
G
Jessica Madison

#RS Jessica Madison

5' 8"
Freshman
G
Jenna Buchanan

#12 Jenna Buchanan

5' 8"
Freshman
G
Alyssa Hutchins

#10 Alyssa Hutchins

5' 7"
Freshman
G
Sierra Afoa

#RS Sierra Afoa

5' 9"
Freshman
F
Emily Craft

#41 Emily Craft

6' 2"
Junior
C
Christina Davis

#5 Christina Davis

5' 6"
Junior
G
Adriana Dent

#RS Adriana Dent

5' 9"
Junior
G
Alysha Devine

#15 Alysha Devine

6' 0"
Freshman
F
Kiki Robertson

#23 Kiki Robertson

5' 7"
Freshman
G
KeKe Wright

#13 KeKe Wright

6' 0"
Junior
F