Complete Game Notes
GAME PROGRAM INFO
Slippery Rock has moved away from printed game programs for all sports in 2022-23. This page will serve as the "Digital Game Program" for this week's game. To navigate to all gameday info for any SRU home events this year, simply visit
rockathletics.com/gameday or scan the QR code on the "Gameday Info" posters hanging in each facility.
SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. – The Slippery Rock University women's basketball team will look to keep its postseason chances alive with a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division victory over Clarion 5:30 p.m. Wednesday at Morrow Field House.
TICKET PRICES
Fans are encouraged to purchase advance tickets online
HERE.
Adult General Admission - $10.00
Visiting PSAC Student with ID - $5.00
Age 6 to High School - $5.00
Under 6 Years Old - FREE
*Alumni Discount with Current Alumni Membership Card $2.00 off General Admission Only
WATCH ON YOUR TV - "ROCK ATHLETICS DIGITAL NETWORK" APPS
• Fans can watch Wednesday's game live and on-demand for free on the Rock Athletics Digital Network, created and operated by the SRU athletic communication office.
• Search for Rock Athletics Digital Network in the app stores on Amazon Fire TV, Apple RV, Roku and Android TV devices. The streaming web player linked above will also integrate with Chrome Cast devices to allow viewers to cast the game to those devices.
GAME 27 DETAILS
Opponent: Clarion
Date: Wednesday – 5:30 p.m.
Location: Morrow Field House
Live Video: Link
Live Stats: Link
In-game Updates: Twitter (
@Rock_Athletics)
All-Time Series: SRU leads 56-43
Last Played: Jan. 28, 2023 (Rock won, 77-68)
ALL-TIME SERIES
SRU leads the all-time series against Clarion 56-43. The Rock are a solid 29-17 when welcoming the Golden Eagles to Morrow Field House and have not lost to them at home since the 2017-18 season.
LAST MEETING
Slippery Rock never trailed as it went on to defeat Clarion 77-68 Jan. 28, 2023 on the road.
Deleah Gibson paced The Rock with a 20-point, seven-rebound, six-assist and three-steal effort.
Isabellah Middleton chipped in 16 points and eight rebounds while making four steals and one block. The duo also combined to lead SRU from the foul line going 9-of-11.
Kenendy Middleton provided Slippery Rock with 12 points, eight rebounds, six assists, three steals and one block while
Alyssa Gillin came off the bench to have a career game as she tallied 11 points, four rebounds one assist and one block while going 3-of-4 from long range.
Rounding out The Rock's leaders was
Jordan Kauffman (9 points, 1 rebound) who was 3-4 from 3-point range,
Emily Venick (4 points, 1 assist),
Kaylin Venick (3 points, 2 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block) and
Kelley McKnight (2 points, 2 assists, 1 rebound).
SLIPPERY ROCK PRIMER
Overall Record: 15-11
PSAC West Record: 10-10
PSAC West Standings: Tied for sixth
Home Record: 7-4
Away Record: 7-6
Neutral Record: 1-1
Last Five Games: 3-2
Streak: W3
Acting Head Coach: Chenara Wilson | First year at SRU (15-11)
LAST TIME OUT
Slippery Rock picked up its second win of the season over Indiana (Pa.) for the first time since 2002 in a 70-57 triumph at IUP. Gibson paced SRU with 22 points and six rebounds while shooting 4-of-7 from long range.
PSAC TOURNAMENT RACE
With one week remaining in the regular season, there is still much to be decided when it comes to which of the six teams will qualify for the PSAC Tournament out of the Western Division.
Entering Wednesday's game only Clarion has officially been eliminated with Gannon and Indiana being the only two teams to clinch spots – leaving Edinboro (12-8), Pitt-Johnstown (12-8), The Rock (10-10), Mercyhurst (10-10) and Seton Hill (10-11) fighting for the final four bids.
Slippery Rock begins the week tied with Mercyhurst for sixth place in the league standings and a half game ahead of Seton Hill. Holding the tiebreaker over Mercyhurst courtesy of its season sweep of the Lakers puts SRU in a good, but hardly certain, position to clinch postseason berth.
While there is no way for The Rock to clinch a PSAC Tournament spot Wednesday, a win would drastically improve their odds while a loss could prove to be a fatal blow.
If SRU were to lose to Clarion and Seton Hill were to defeat Mercyhurst The Rock would be eliminated from postseason contention as Seton Hill holds the tiebreaker over SRU and would finish with an 11-11 league record while Slippery Rock could finish with a conference mark of no better than 11-11.
In the event that Slippery Rock, Mercyhurst and Seton Hill close the regular season in a three-way tie Seton Hill would still earn a tournament bid over The Rock and Lakers as the Griffins are 3-1 in head-to-head competition against their counterparts while SRU is 2-2 and Mercyhurst is 1-3.
WINNING RECORD SECURED
With its win over the Crimson Hawks, Slippery Rock officially achieved a feat that no roster had done since the 2001-02 season by securing a winning regular season record. SRU cannot close out the year lower than 15-13.
Additionally, if The Rock were to hold a winning PSAC West record at the conclusion of the season, it would be the first of such since the 2001-02 season as well.
NO PLACE LIKE HOME
SRU enters Wednesday's contest with a 7-4 record this season at Morrow Field House. If Slippery Rock were to maintain its home court success through its final two games this year it would close the year with the second-best home winning percentage at The Rock in the last 20 years.
Slippery Rock can finish at best 9-4 (.692) and has not finished better since a 9-3 (.750) conclusion in 2001-02.
BIG WINS
Slippery Rock is on a three-game streak of beating its opponents by a double-digit margin. The Rock claimed winning margins of +15 over both the Lakers and Fighting Scots before a +13 margin against the Crimson Hawks. All told, SRU has outscored its opponents +43 through its last three contests.
MAKING THE MOST OF MISCUES
The Rock are continuing to show their strong defensive presence as of late as they have forced their competitors into an average of 17.0 turnovers per game over their last three contests. SRU has done an even better job at turning the defense into offense as it has tallied 54 points off turnovers during that time period.
GETTING DUBS
Three Rock players rank among the top 20 in career 20-point games at SRU since 2002-03 in
Isabellah Middleton, who is tied for sixth with 10, Gibson at ninth with eight and
Kennedy Middleton tied for 18th with three.
SINGLE-SEASON SUCCESS
The trio of Gibson,
Isabellah Middleton and
Kennedy Middleton continue to spearhead the Slippery Rock attack as each player ranks on a single-season record list for The Rock.
Isabellah Middleton is 11th in steals (56), 14th in offensive rebounds (63) and tied for 20th in points (443). Gibson is tied for 14th in steals (54) and
Kennedy Middleton is tied for 22nd in steals (47).
GREEN LIGHT FOR GIBSON
As a team, Slippery Rock has advanced to third in single-season made 3-pointers with 162. Aiding in such a strong shooting effort from long range is Gibson who has scored a team-best 49 3-pointers this season in addition to ranking 12th in career 3's with 88.
Also contributing to the 3-point range success this season is
Isabellah Middleton (36),
Bella Long (22),
Kennedy Middleton (17) and
Jordan Kauffman (16).
GREAT GUARDS
Throughout the PSAC West, Slippery Rock is just one of the four rosters to have three players average double-digit points in
Isabellah Middleton (17.0), Gibson (16.4) and
Kennedy Middleton (12.5).
Team: Player (ppg)
Slippery Rock: I. Middleton (17.0), Gibson (16.4), K. Middleton (12.5)
Indiana (Pa.): Kiera Baughman (14.5), Maria Cerro (14.5), Alana Cardona (12.6), Gina Adams (11.8), Teirra Preston (10.1)
California (Pa.): Rajah Fink (14.9), Ciaira Loyd (13.8), Halle Herrington (12.5), Allycia Harris (11.1)
Pitt-Johnstown: Peyton Alazaus (14.1), Ashley Norling (14.0), Olivia Fasick (11.8)
HALFTIME LEADS
Through 26 games, Slippery Rock has shown that a halftime lead is important to its success as for the season it is 11-5 when leading or tied at the halftime break but only 4-6 when trailing at the half.
ROCK ROSTER
•
Isabellah Middleton paces SRU with 17.0 ppg and has tallied three 20-point showings over the last four games. She rounds out her averages with 8.4 rpg, 2.2 spg and 1.3 apg.
• Gibson continues to exhibit her efficient shooting as she is 41.9 percent from the floor, 33.3 percent from long range and 82.4 percent from the foul line. She has per game averages of 16.4 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.5 steals.
•
Kennedy Middleton, one of The Rock's most consistent contributors, enters the week with a stat line of 12.5 ppg, 8.2 rpg, 3.3 apg and 1.8 spg. She has tallied 10 double-doubles this season which ranks eighth in the Atlantic Region.
• Kauffman, a late season starter for The Rock, has continued to provide quality minutes as she averages 3.2 points and 2.5 rebounds per game while making six 3-pointers over the last three games.
•
Kaylin Venick has stepped up as of late to contribute sizably in SRU's defensive efforts. After making just one steal in her first three games, Venick has now tallied six total takeaways over the last three contests. Additionally, she averages 3.0 ppg, 1.8 rpg and 1.0 spg.
• Long has made two or more 3-pointers in six of her 21 games played this year. Overall, she scores 4.6 ppg with 66 of her 97 points scored this year coming from 3-point range.
• McKnight, a starter of 13 games this season, has served as a key reserve the back half of the season as she comes of the bench to average 3.2 points and 3.3 rebounds per game.
• Rounding out SRU's rotation is point guard duo
Jada Ward and
Emily Venick. Ward is coming off back-to-back double-digit games including a career-high 17 points at Edinboro while averaging 5.1 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 1.6 apg and 1.1 spg. in 24 appearances, Venick tallies 1.0 ppg and 1.0 apg.
PSAC INDIVIDUAL RANKINGS
•
Steals Per Game: Deleah Gibson – t-2nd (2.5)
•
Defensive Rebounds Per Game: Kennedy Middleton – 3rd (6.4)
•
Points Per Game: Isabellah Middleton – 4th (17.0)
•
Points Per Game: Deleah Gibson – 5th (16.4)
•
Defensive Rebounds Per Game: Isabellah Middleton – 5th (6.0)
•
Rebounds Per Game: Isabellah Middleton – 6th (8.4)
•
Steals Per Game: Isabellah Middleton – 6th (2.2)
•
3-Pointers Per Game: Deleah Gibson – 6th (2.2)
•
3-Point Field Goal Percentage: Deleah Gibson – 6th (.333)
•
Free Throw Percentage: Deleah Gibson – 7th (.824)
• Reboun
ds Per Game: Kennedy Middleton – 8th (8.2)
•
Assists Per Game: Kennedy Middleton – 9th (3.3)
PSAC TEAM RANKINGS
• Opponent 3-Point Percentage: 2nd (.276)
• Steals Per Game: 3rd (9.8)
• Offensive Rebounds Per Game: t-4th (13.2)
• Rebounds Per Game: 4th (39.9)
• Defensive Rebounds Per Game: t-5th (26.7)
• Opponent Turnovers: 5th (18.4)
• 3-Pointers Per Game: 7th (6.2)
• Turnover Margin: 8th (+1.4)
• 3-Point Percentage: 10th (.306)
• Scoring: 11th (64.9)
• Free Throw Percentage: 11th (.711)
• Opponent Field Goal Percentage: 11th (.397)
• Turnovers Per Game: 11th (17.0)
CLARION PRIMER
Overall Record: 4-21
PSAC West Record: 4-16
PSAC West Standings: Ninth
Home Record: 3-10
Away Record: 1-10
Neutral Record: 0-1
Last Five Games: 1-4
Streak: W1
Interim Head Coach: Jermaine Cooper | First year at Clarion (4-21)
SCOUTING THE GOLDEN EAGLES
Last time out: Clarion snapped an 11-game losing streak when it picked up a 74-69 win over Mercyhurst University Feb. 18 on the road.
The Golden Eagles are led by Sierra Bermudez with 13.3 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.1 steals per game. On the defensive end of the court, Jada Smith paces Clarion with 8.0 rpg to go along with 8.6 ppg, 2.1 spg and 1.7 apg.
In The Rock and Golden Eagles' contest earlier this season, Bermudez scored a team-best 18 points while tacking on three assists and two rebounds. Smith ended the contest with eight rebounds, two points, one assist, one steal and one block.
UP NEXT
SRU closes out the regular season versus Pitt-Johnstown 1 p.m. Saturday at Morrow Field House where it will recognize its senior class of Gibson and
Kennedy Middleton for their contributions to the program over their careers.
To stay up to date with all that happens at The Rock, follow our official athletic communication accounts on Twitter (@Rock_Athletics), Facebook (RockAthletics) and Instagram (RockAthletics).
