SIOUX FALLS – A week off from their last contest, University of Sioux Falls Women's Basketball opens their conference schedule hosting Southwest Minnesota State on Saturday, Nov. 25 at 4 p.m. in the Stewart Center. The cougars (2-1, 0-0 NSIC) are coming off a split weekend at the Tony Corbetta Classic in Golden, Colo. while the SMSU Mustangs (1-2, 0-0 NSIC) earned their first win of the season last Saturday. Both teams are opening their 22-game Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference schedule on Saturday. Sioux Falls was picked to finish 10th overall in the NSIC preseason coaches' poll while Southwest Minnesota State was tabbed 12th.
 
Don't miss any of the action
Keep up with USF Women's Basketball on all of their social media platforms by visiting the USF Social Media Directory. All of USF's home games and NSIC contests are streamed for free through Stretch Internet and can be viewed at usfcougars.com/watch. Live stats for all home games are available at usfcougars.com/livestats and links to away games are available on the 2017-18 USF Women's Basketball Schedule.
 
Series History: Sioux Falls looks to expand winning streak against SMSU
Following a home loss in 2012, USF has won eight straight to hold a 9-1 series lead over Southwest Minnesota State. The Cougars won the first meeting in 2012 – their first NSIC game since joining the league that year – by a 77-66 margin in Marshall, Minn. The Mustangs earned a 66-52 win in their return trip that season, but the rest of the series has been all USF. A 10-point win in 2013 prefaced a run of eight straight double-digit victories, including two by 15-plus in the 2016-17 season. The Cougars rolled to a 75-40 road win behind 16 points from Andi Mataloni, sparked by her five 3-pointers. At home, 10 different Cougars scored in a 63-47 victory, including nine points and six rebounds from Jacey Huinker. Sioux Falls is 4-1 at home against SMSU, with the four victories coming by an average of 18 points.
 
Rocky Mountain Recap
In a trip to Golden, Colo., the Cougars posted a 1-1 record at the Tony Corbetta Classic. After trailing by four points to Metro State at halftime, the Cougars played down a starter with Jacey Huinker out injured and their cold shooting couldn't overcome the deficit in a 73-54 loss. Kaely Hummel led USF with 12 points, converting three tough and-ones, but USFwent 3-for-26 on 3-pointers. The following night, Sioux Falls squared off with host Colorado School of Mines and USF emerged with a thrilling 54-52 victory. USF broke out of their shooting slump in the second half, connecting on six of their nine 3-pointers in the final 10 minutes. The Cougars held an eight-point led in the fourth quarter, but CSM erased the deficit with a series of jump shots, but the young Cougars were resilient in their first close game of the season. Lauren Sanders connected on a corner three to give the Cougars a two-point lead, which was answered by the Orediggers in the final minute. With the game tied, Jasmine Harris drove and hit tough layup as time expired and USF earned their two-point win.
 
Block party of the month? Block party of the year!
Making her first career start against Colorado School of Mines, senior forward Moira Duffy made her presence known on defense. The 6-foot Rapid City, S.D. native blocked seven shots, a career-high which helped USF hold CSM to 29.3 percent shooting. Through three games, Duffy has nine blocks, an average of 3.0 per game. In her career, Duffy has 34 blocks, including 15 last season, and she ranks fifth in USF's Division II history. Duffy's 3.0 blocked shots per game this season is tied for first in the NSIC with Southwest Minnesota State's Abuk Akoi.
 
Dime a dozen
Aided by their three-point shooting prowess, USF's assist totals in each game has often predicted their success. In two wins this season, USF has handed out 40 assists, including 29 in their season-opening win over Presentation. In their victories, USF is assisting on 75.5 percent of their field goals. In their one loss this season, USF was limited to seven assists on 15 made field goals, a 46.7 percent assist rate. Individually, sophomore Augusta Thramer leads the Cougars with 12 assists, 4.0 per game in just 55 minutes of action. Extrapolated out for her time on the court, Thramer is assisting on 38.5 percent of her teammate's field goals. Freshman guard Jasmine Harris has nine assists on the year, 3.0 per game. Her assist rate is 24.7, meaning she is assisting on nearly a quarter of USF's field goals in 80 minutes of playing time.
 
Cougars picked 10th in NSIC preseason poll, sixth in south division
USF was picked to finish 10th by the league coaches in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference preseason coaches' poll. The Cougars picked up 123 points in the poll, just three points from eighth. MSU Moorhead was tabbed the overall favorite while Northern State and Augustana each received first-place votes. In the eight-team south division poll, USF was picked sixth and Augustana earned the top spot. The past two seasons, USF has outperformed their preseason billing, placing second in 2015-16 and taking fifth in 2016-17 after they were picked ninth.
 
Hummel named player to watch, returns as leading scorer
A starter for the Cougars from day one, guard Kaely Hummel enters her sophomore season as the leading returning scorer for USF and she was cited as a player to watch in the NSIC preseason release. A 5-foot-7 Cherokee, Iowa native, Hummel averaged 8.0 points per game last season, appearing in all 30 games, including 29 starts. A 34.6 percent shooter from behind the arc, Hummel connected on a team-high 54 three-point field goals. Including the first three games of her career, Hummel scored in double figures 10 times and posted a career-high 22 points in USF's win at Augustana.