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TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The Northeastern State women's basketball team will play host to Central Oklahoma in the regular-season finale.
 
The RiverHawks (18-7, 13-4 MIAA) are set to take on the Bronchos (9-15, 2-14 MIAA) at 5:30 p.m. Feb. 27 inside Jack Dobbins Field House (1,000). The contest will be the last regular-season game played inside JDF.
 
NSU and UCO have met 31 times in the Randy Gipson era (since 1999), and the RiverHawks own a 21-10 record in that time frame. The green and white took three of four meetings a year ago and owns an 8-3 mark in the last 11 matchups.
 
The Bronchos were selected in the preseason MIAA coaches poll to finish eighth in the conference, while NSU was picked fourth.
 

Northeastern State's Probable Starters
F	24	Sarah Green	5-9	Sr-3L	7.7 ppg, 5.9 rpg	Tulsa, Okla.
F	44	Carrington Fox	5-11	Jr-2L	4.6 ppg, 4.5 rpg	Tulsa, Okla.
G	4	Fontana Tate	5-5	So-1L	6.3 ppg, 3.8 rpg	Muldrow, Okla.
G	10	Taylor Lewis	5-7	Sr-3L	16.6 ppg, 2.7 rpg	Broken Arrow, Okla.
G	12	Tosha Tyler	5-7	Sr-3L	11.4 ppg, 3.8 rpg	Vinita, Okla.
Central Oklahoma's Probable Starters
F	33	Alyssa Fuxa	6-0	Sr.	11.6 ppg, 5.3 rpg	Garber, Okla.
G	1	Jill Bryan	5-10	Jr.	10.9 ppg, 4.9 rpg	Copan, Okla.
G	2	Rachel New	5-1	Jr.	3.8 ppg, 1.3 apg	Oklahoma City, Okla.
G	5	Britney Morgan	5-5	Jr.	8.6 ppg, 2.8 apg	Pawnee, Okla.
G	21	Savannah Hamilton	6-0	Sr.	6.7 ppg, 5.3 rpg	Preston, Okla.

SCOUTING THE BRONCHOS
Central Oklahoma is currently 9-15 overall and 2-14 in the MIAA. The team sits in 14th place in the league table. UCO began the season 8-2 but has since posted a 1-13 mark in its last 14 contests. The lone win in that stretch was an 88-79 home victory against Lincoln Feb. 9. Alyssa Fuxa leads the Bronchos in both scoring and rebounding (11.6 ppg, 5.3 rpg). Jill Bryan has averages of 10.9 ppg and 4.9 rpg.
 
SENIOR NIGHT
The Northeastern State women's basketball team will be celebrating Senior Night when the RiverHawks welcome Central Oklahoma to Jack Dobbins Field House Feb. 27. NSU will be honoring Sarah Green, Taylor Lewis and Tosha Tyler following their final game at home. The trio has combined for 96 career victories in their four years, and they own a 45-3 record at home.
 
MIAA CHAMPIONSHIP IN KC
The 2013 MIAA Women's Basketball Championship is set to take place inside Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo. The top 12 teams in the regular season all qualify for postseason play, with the top four earning byes to Kansas City. The first round will be contested at host sites March 5, with the fifth seed hosting No. 12, the sixth seed hosting No. 11, etc. Those four winners will join the top four seeds in KC March 8-10. Northeastern State has already clinched one of the top four seeds and will compete in the quarterfinals in Kansas City March 8.
 
MIAA CHAMPIONSHIP TICKETS ON SALE
Tickets for the MIAA Basketball Championships at Kansas City's Municipal Auditorium are now on sale at the NSU Ticket Office. Northeastern State has clinched a first-round bye in the tournament and will play in the quarterfinals in Kansas City. For the Kansas City portion of the tournament, all-session passes, which will allow access to all 14 games of the tournament, are just $50 if purchased through Northeastern State. Passes purchased at the Municipal Auditorium Box Office will be $65. Single-session passes are $20 and are good for any single session of the tournament. Both all-session and single-session passes can be purchased through Northeastern State. NSU students can purchase single-session passes for $5 (with valid NSU ID). Children six and under will be admitted free of charge. Visit Northeastern State's ticket office or call 918-444-3901 for more information. The Kansas City Downtown Marriott is the host hotel for the tournament. Special room rates are available by mentioning the MIAA fan rate or by booking online through www.themiaa.com.
 
REGIONAL RANKINGS ANNOUNCED
The first installment of the NCAA Regional Rankings were released Feb. 20, and Northeastern State landed at No. 9 in the Central Region. The top eight in each region qualify for the NCAA Championship. NSU owns a 3-1 record against the other nine teams that were also ranked in the top 10 in the region. The RiverHawks have defeated No. 1 Washburn (52-43), No. 5 Truman State (46-44) and No. 10 Fort Hays State (54-44), while falling at No. 2 Central Missouri (63-52).
 
LEWIS LIGHTS UP
Senior guard Taylor Lewis has scored in double figures in all but two games this season, but she has been especially hot over the last 19 games. Ever since a 21-point outburst against Emporia State on Dec. 5, Lewis has averaged 18.2 points per game (345 total) with shooting percentages of 47.5 from the field (115-for-242), 49.6 from downtown (65-for-131) and 89.3 from the free-throw line (50-for-56). For the season, Lewis is averaging 16.6 points per game to rank second in the MIAA. She is also the league's second-leading scorer during conference games at 18.3 ppg.
 
WHERE THEY STAND
Northeastern State currently owns a 13-4 record in its first season in the MIAA. The RiverHawks are in third place, sitting behind league leader Washburn (15-1) and second-place Central Missouri (13-3). Truman State (12-4) sits a half-game behind Northeastern State. NSU was selected to finish fourth in the conference this season by both the media and the league coaches.
 
NSU KNOCKS OFF 5 RANKED FOES
NSU has defeated five ranked opponents this season. The RiverHawks have knocked off No. 9 Washburn (52-43), No. 10 Fort Hays State (54-44), No. 18 Pittsburg State (65-50), No. 19 Truman State (46-44), and No. 21 Emporia State (63-51). In all five upset victories, the green and white has held its opponent to a season low in scoring and no worse than the second-worst shooting percentage of the season up to that point.
 
STRICKLEN, TATE SET CAREER HIGHS
Chelsey Stricklen and Fontana Tate both scored a career-high 13 points in NSU's 85-57 win over Nebraska Kearney on Jan. 5. The duo of sophomore guards combined to shoot 9-for-15 from the field and 6-for-11 from downtown. They combined for seven rebounds, and Stricklen also dished out a career-best five assists. Since then, Tate has gone on to best her career high with a 17-point effort against Lindenwood (Feb. 7), and she also grabbed a personal-best 12 rebounds at Emporia State Feb. 23.
 
LEWIS, GREEN, TYLER ALL SURPASS MILESTONES
Senior guard Taylor Lewis and senior forward Sarah Green both recorded their 100th career game in the green and white Nov. 24 against Tarleton State. Senior guard Tosha Tyler joined her teammates with 100 career games played Jan. 23 against Pittsburg State. She has also made 60 starts. Lewis has made 86 career starts and has scored in double figures 72 times, which includes a stretch sophomore year where she recorded 11 straight. She has scored at least 10 points in all but two games this season, which includes a 19-game stretch. Green owns 55 starts, has scored in double digits 20 times and has also recorded four double-digit rebounding efforts. Lewis also knocked down her 200th career three-point basket Nov. 20 against Northwestern Oklahoma State. She owns the school record for three's made in a game (8), season (87) and career (269). Lewis surpassed the 1,000-point plateau for her career against Drury. She now has 1,352 points in her four-year career.
 
SENIORS FEEL RIGHT AT HOME
NSU has three seniors on this year's squad in Sarah Green, Taylor Lewis and Tosha Tyler. The trio of stars has been part of four years of dominance inside Jack Dobbins Field House. The RiverHawks are 10-0 at home this season and 45-3 over the career of the three veterans.
 
ONE OF THE BEST IN BALL CONTROL
The first NCAA statistics were released Dec. 2, and Northeastern State ranked as the top team in the country in terms of fewest committed turnovers per game. The most recent national rankings were released Feb. 24, and the RiverHawks are currently ranked fourth in the nation at just 12.0 turnovers per game this season. NSU recorded a season-low five turnovers against Pittsburg State (Jan. 23, 2013).
 
SAME STARTING FIVE
The RiverHawks have used just three starting lineups all season. The first eight games featured a starting group of three seniors (guards Taylor Lewis and Tosha Tyler, forward Sarah Green) and two juniors (forward Carrington Fox and guard Katy Harsen). The last 16 games have seen a starting lineup of Lewis, Green, Tyler, Fox, and sophomore guard Fontana Tate. The only other starting lineup utilized this year came Dec. 14 at University of Arkansas - Fort Smith when Lewis, Green, Fox, and Tate were joined by sophomore guard Chelsey Stricklen.
 
NSU's GIPSON IN 14TH SEASON
NSU's Randy Gipson (Kentucky, '79) is in his 14th season as the RiverHawks head coach. He currently owns a 277-128 record at NSU. He has never recorded a losing season in his 13 prior campaigns at Northeastern State, and he has led the program to seven appearances in the NCAA Championship. His NSU women's basketball teams have earned two NCAA Sweet 16 appearances (2004, '10), while advancing to the NCAA Second Round each of the last two seasons (2011-12). Gipson came to Northeastern State in 1999-00, and he captured six Lone Star Conference North Division Championships in a 12-year span. He also led NSU to the 2003 LSC Tournament Championship, while finishing runner up in the conference tournament on three occasions (2004, '05, '10). Gipson's 2011-12 squad ranked in the top 25 nationally in eight statistical categories. NSU was second in all of NCAA Division II in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.26), fourth in turnovers per game (12.7), fifth in scoring defense (52.2), 12th in three-point field goals made per game (7.9), 13th in field-goal percentage defense (.347), 14th in won-lost percentage (.833), 23rd in assists per game (16.1), and 24th in scoring margin (11.1). He began his career at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M (NEO), where he spent 11 years leading the Lady Norse. He took NEO to a National Runner-up finish in 1991, and he was named Region II Coach of the Year three times.
 
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