No. 4/4 WBB Hosts Grambling State
12/5/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
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| Baylor vs. Grambling State Dec. 6, 2015 | 2 p.m. CT Waco, Texas | Ferrell Center (10,284) TV: None |
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After returning home from a Thanksgiving trip to the Bahamas and hosting the Rice Owls and Northwestern State, the No. 4/4 Baylor Lady Bears will take on Grambling State in the third of a five-game homestand. The contest also marks the third of three games within a five-day span. After downing Rice on Wednesday, 89-38, and Northwestern State on Friday, 86-44, the Lady Bears will host Grambling State on Sunday, Dec. 6 (2 p.m.).
Sixteenth-year head coach Kim Mulkey's Lady Bear squad is led on the season by All-American junior forward Nina Davis, junior guard Alexis Jones and freshman post Kalani Brown with 16.3, 12.9 and 10.0 points per game, respectively. Senior point guard Niya Johnson averages 7.4 points, a nation's-leading 8.9 assists and 5.1 rebounds a contest. Senior post Kristina Higgins leads the Lady Bears on the boards, hauling down 5.5 per game while Brown follows with 5.4 and Davis manages 5.3 a contest.
As a team, Baylor is shooting a Big 12-leading .516 (246-477). However, BU's six forward/posts, Nina Davis, Kalani Brown, Khadijiah Cave, Kristina Higgins, Beatrice Mompremier and Dekeiya Cohen, are shooting a combined .628 (164-261) from the floor. Davis (.662), Cave (.652) and Brown (.596) rank among the Big 12's top 10 in field goal percentage. Davis ranks No. 3 while Cave checks in at No. 4 and Brown is No. 10.
The Lady Bears lead the Big 12 in seven categories: scoring offense (.80.2), scoring margin (+31.6), field goal percentage (.516), rebounding offense (29.5), assists (23.0), steals (1.5) and assist/turnover ratio (1.5).
Grambling State, under second-year head coach Nadine Domond, enters the contest at 1-4 on the season. The Tigers are led by senior forward Yosha Watson's 12.0 points while Chantiara Lewis, a junior guard, leads the team in rebounding with 5.6 a game.
Quick Hits...
- Through eight games, Baylor is maintaining a league-leading .516 (246-477) shooting percentage. which ranks No. 4 nationally.
- Baylor is averaging 5.9 blocks per game which ranks No. 3 in the Big 12. BU is led by freshman post Kalani Brown's 1.46 a contest and senior post Kristina Higgins' 1.1.
- BU ranks No. 5 nationally and leads the Big 12 in field goal percentage defense at .307 (142-462).
- The Lady Bears are averaging a league-leading 10.3 steals per game.
- BU seeks its fifth 9-0 start in the Mulkey era and first since 2011-12 (finished 40-0).
- Baylor is 304-70 in football and men's and women's basketball since 2011-12, the nation's best record in that span.
- Baylor, Michigan State and Oklahoma are the nation's only schools ranked by the AP in football and men's and women's basketball.
- Niya Johnson is averaging 8.9 assists a game which ranks No. 1 nationally.
- Nina Davis has moved to No. 12 on BU's all-time scoring list with 1,464 points and needs 11 points to move to No. 11 (see page 7 for list).
- Baylor has won 156 straight home games vs. non-ranked opponents, dating back to an April 4, 2003, homecourt loss to Auburn in the WNIT finals.
- BU is 140-4 (.972) vs. non-conference opponents under Kim Mulkey at home, including a 128-2 (.985) mark in regular-season non-league games.
- 156 of Baylor's 181 wins since 2010-11 have been by 10 or more points, and only 12 times in that span has its winning margin been five or fewer points (most recently three, 66-63, vs. USF).
Niya Johnson Shines...
- Baylor senior point guard Niya Johnson is the team's third-leading rebounder, averaging 5.4 a contest.
- Johnson is also averaging 7.4 points and a nation's-leading 8.9 assists an outing.
- Johnson was named to the Preseason WNIT All-Tournament team and a Junkanoo Jam All-Star.
- In Baylor's 84-76 victory over No. 20 Michigan State, Johnson scored a career-high-tying 19 points and took six charges.
- Johnson leads the team in free throw shooting, hitting 73.36 (22-30) percent of her shots.
Nina Davis Picking up Where She Left Off...
- Baylor junior forward Nina Davis leads the team in scoring on the season with 16.3 points a contest.
- Davis is shooting .662 (51-77) from the floor and is averaging 2.8 assists per game.
- Davis led BU to the Preseason WNIT championship, averaging 15.0 points and 7.3 rebounds a contest. She was named to the all-tournament team, earning MVP honors. She also earned Junkanoo Jam (Lucaya Division) MVP recognition.
