Game 27: #11 Northeastern State (10-16, 6-13 MIAA) at #6 Emporia State (16-10, 11-8 MIAA) at 7 p.m. | February 26, 2018
Emporia, Kan. | White Auditorium
The MIAA Tournament
Northeastern State is 2-1 in the opening round of the MIAA Tournament with two wins at Washburn (2014, 15) and a loss at Missouri Southern (2016). This is the RiverHawks' fifth appearance in the tournament where the program is 3-4 overall. The furthest NSU has reached in the tournament was in 2014 where they reached the semifinals.
The Matchup
Northeastern State snapped a five game skid to the Lady Hornets with a 75-67 win on Thursday inside the NSU Event Center. Emporia State does lead the overall series 12-6. In eight visits to ESU, the RiverHawks have won twice, with their last being a 58-56 overtime win in the 2014-15 season.
The Postseason vs. Emporia State
Northeastern State has faced Emporia State once outside of regular season play. The RiverHawks faced the Lady Hornets in the 2010 NCAA Regional Championship and fell 76-45 in Canyon, Texas; Emporia State would go on to win the National Championship that season.
The Coaches
Fala Bullock is in her first season as head coach and was named to lead her alma mater on April 1, 2017 to replace Randy Gipson who retired after 18 years. With six years of head coaching experience, Bullock is 107-89 overall and within conference play she is 66-64. She has spent the last four seasons (2013-17) as head coach at NCAA Division II Armstrong State University, where she recorded a career mark of 60-52. In her first season at Armstrong State, she led the Pirates to the NCAA Tournament for the third time in program history, and reached the Sweet 16.
Bullock played for Gipson for two seasons, and was a graduate assistant under Gipson from 2004 to 2006. As student-athlete, Bullock played in 57 games and NSU went 36-19, winning the 2003 Lone Star Conference Tournament, and made the program's first NCAA Tournament berth. As a member of Gipson's coaching staff, NSU reached the Sweet 16 in 2004, and qualified for the NCAA Tournament in 2005 and 2006.
Jory Collins (198-57) is in his eighth year as the head coach of the Lady Hornets. He has 35 career wins against Top 25 teams. This is his 17th season on the Lady Hornet coaching staff and Emporia State has advanced to the NCAA tournament in 14 of the first 16 seasons. He is the first Lady Hornet coach to have seven 20 win seasons in his first seven years as head coach.
Last Time Out for NSU
Northeastern State nearly erased a 27-point deficit, as their late comeback would come up short to Washburn, 72-62, on Saturday afternoon inside the NSU Event Center. The RiverHawks took the Ichabod lead down to four twice in the closing minutes behind a 15 point effort from
Bailee Eldred.
Lauryn Blevins came off the bench after missing the prior two games with 12 points,
Cenia Hayes had 11, and
Miranda Griffin added nine in her final home contest.
Alexis Hill, also in her final home start had seven points and four assists.
Last Time Out for Emporia State
The Lady Hornets outscored Central Oklahoma 54-35 in the second half but could not overcome a 20 point halftime deficit as they fell 87-86 to the Bronchos on Saturday. Tyra Jones led Emporia State with 20 points and seven rebounds while Emily Miller added 19 points and Jacee Kramer 18. This was just the third time in 290 games since 1997-98 that Emporia State has scored at least 80 points and lost and the first time it has happened in a regular season game.
MIAA Defense
Northeastern State is third in MIAA play in field goal defense 38.5 percent. When facing MIAA programs, NSU is averaging nearly five blocks a game which is fourth best with
Joi Bertrand third in league blocks at 1.7 per game.
Coming Up
Should Northeastern State win, they will face No. 3 seeded Fort Hays State at 12 p.m. on Thursday, March 1 in Kansas City, Mo.
