Northeastern State at Neb.-Kearney	Thursday, Feb. 9 | 5:30 p.m. | Health & Sports Center
Northeastern State at Fort Hays State	Saturday, Feb. 11 | 2 p.m. | Gross Memorial Coliseum
Game Notes	Northeastern State •  Fort Hays State • Neb.-Kearney
Watch	The MIAA Network
Live Stats	NSU Live Stats
Social Media	@RiverHawksWBK  | @RiverHawksWBK  | Facebook

The Setup

• The RiverHawks make their longest trek in MIAA with a visit to Nebraska-Kearney in what is NSU's final regular-season Thursday road game. 
• Following the meeting with the Lopers, Northeastern State will have its second tilt inside of a week with Fort Hays State.  The Tigers will be looking to avenge a stunning loss to NSU on Monday in Tahlequah.

Last Time Out

at Northeastern State 67, (5/6) Fort Hays State 58 | February 7, 2022 | Tahlequah 

• Northeastern State pulled off a Monday matinee shocker downing No. 5/6 Fort Hays State 67-58 inside the NSU Event Center. 
• The win is the first over a ranked team since 2018 and the last time the RiverHawks beat a top-five team was on Jan. 22, 2014, against No. 2 Emporia State (59-44). 
• Fort Hays got off to a 9-2 start to the game, and it was all RiverHawks for the next 25 minutes of play.   After taking a seven-point lead at the half, NSU blasted the Tigers, outscoring them by 13 in the third stanza.  
• The 20 point advantage was enough for the RiverHawks to withstand a fourth-quarter rally by the Tigers, limiting NSU to just one made bucket.  Fort Hays State pressed NSU, but they made enough free throws to get their first win over the Tigers since Jan. 2014.
• Maleeah Langstaff paced NSU for the 13th time this season, with her ninth 20-point performance scoring a game-high 24 points and having seven rebounds.  Ashton Hackler scored 16 as the team's second-leading scorer.

Storylines

• Maleeah Langstaff is among the top-100 in the nation in 11 statistical categories this season and is second in the MIAA, shooting 52.4-percent from the field.  The senior is among the MIAA leaders with 6.7 defensive rebounds per game and third in the association with 9.4 rebounds per game.  This season, Langstaff has eight double-double games and is the only player in the MIAA with a triple-double.
• In the previous five games, Zaria Collins came off the bench averaging 6.6 rebounds per game and 6.4 points per game.  This season, Collins has missed five games due to injuries and is still second on the NSU roster in scoring with 12.3 points per game. 
• Morgan Lee leads the RiverHawks with 97 games played with 65 starts.  Against Bacone this season, Lee had a career-high seven steals which was tied for 12-most in NCAA Division II women's basketball.   Her twin-sister Maegan Lee is third on the NSU roster averaging 8.7 points per game this season.  The RiverHawks have a third Lee in true-freshman Courtney Lee, who is not related to the Lee Twins and has seen the floor in 21 games.
• Ashton Hackler has started the last 12 games and has scored at-least ten points in ten games during her true-freshman season.  She is 14th in the MIAA with 32 made three-pointers.  
• After missing the first six games due to injury, true-freshman Jaylee Kindred made her career debut at Northwest Missouri and her first start at Central Oklahoma.  Kailyn Lay started and made her NSU debut against Pittsburg State on Dec. 12; she is seventh in MIAA play with 3.1 assists per game. 
• Northeastern State's 62 team rebounds against Bacone is an MIAA high tied for 17th-most in NCAA Division II women's basketball this season.
• NSU has a 635 game streak of making at least one three-pointer.  Dec. 30, 1999, at Central Arkansas is the last time Northeastern State without making a trey.
• The RiverHawks are entering their tenth season as members of the MIAA and 25th season as an NCAA Division II program.

About Neb.-Kearney

• Heading into Thursday's game, the Lopers had lost three of their last five and have tumbled out of the WBCA and D2SIDA Top-25 poll.  The Lopers did receive some votes in the Feb. 8 edition of the WBCA Top-25 poll.
• Nationally, UNK is tops in NCAA Division II women's basketball in limiting their turnovers at 11.3 per game, and its scoring defense is tops in the MIAA, allowing just 55.0 per game which is also 16th in the country.
• Elisa Backs is the lone Loper averaging in double-figures with 11.8 points per game.
• The Lopers do share the scoring with six players scoring about eight points per outing.

Last Time They Met

at Northeastern State 46, Neb.-Kearney 58 | January 25, 2022 | Tahlequah, Okla.

• Northeastern State's third-quarter rally came up short with (14/17) Nebraska-Kearney limiting the RiverHawks to nine points in the final ten minutes of play en route to a 58-46 win 
• For the first time this season, NSU didn't have a player in double-figures but had eight contributing to their scoring effort.  Morgan Lee paced the team with eight points; her sister Maegan Lee scored seven along with Ashton Hackler.
• The RiverHawks shot 45.2-percent on the floor (19-42) and were limited to 19 rebounds.

Series Notes

Northeastern State trails series 2-15 | 2-8 at home | 0-8 in Kearney | 0-0 neutral

• The two programs have only met as members of the MIAA.
• Northeastern State has averaged 57.7 points in the 17 meetings with Lopers.
• Northeastern State has not beaten the Lopers on their home court in eight previous tries. 

About Fort Hays State

• The Tigers have defended Gross Memorial Coliseum well over the last decade and are 143-12 at home since the start of the 2012-13 season.  
• Katie Wagner leads the Tigers in scoring with 14.9 points and having 8.4 rebounds per game.  She is sixth in the MIAA with 6.0 defensive rebounds per game and is shooting 78.8-percent at the free-throw line.
• With this being the second game within a week with NSU, Fort Hays State has not lost to the same team twice in the same week since 2015 where they lost to Emporia State in MIAA Tournament and NCAA Tournament.
• For two weeks, the Tigers held the number-1 ranking in the National Coaches' Poll and have been ranked in the top-10 since Feb. 9, 2021.  They have qualified for the last four NCAA Tournaments in the postseason and claimed the MIAA Regular Season Championship this last spring.

Last Time They Met

at Northeastern State 67, (5/6) Fort Hays State 58 | February 7, 2022 | Tahlequah 

• The last meeting was against Northeastern State as of this release; the Tigers will meet Rogers State on Thursday evening. 

Series Notes

Northeastern State trails series 4-17 | 3-7 at home | 0-8 in Hays | 1-2 neutral

• Northeastern State has suffered double-digit defeats in all but one of their visits to Fort Hays State.
• The two teams have played at Hays in February four times.
• In 18 meetings, Northeastern State has averaged 52.7 points against the Tigers.
• The two teams have met in the MIAA Tournament twice.