YSU Heads to Green Bay to Play First-Place Phoenix

by YSU

Saturday, Feb 16, 2013 9:47 am

Three years ago, when Brandi Brown was a promising freshman, the Youngstown State women's basketball team came into Green Bay with an 0-27 record in an eventual winless season. Saturday afternoon, Brown and the 17-5 Penguins will try to climb within a game of the first-place Phoenix when the teams play at 3 p.m. Eastern at the Kress Events Center. The game will be broadcast live on 570 WKBN and iHeartRadio as well as the Horizon League Network.

YSU is coming off a 58-56 win at Milwaukee on Thursday in which it battled plenty to improve to 17-5 overall and 7-2 in Horizon League play. The Penguins beat the Panthers by 17 in the first meeting in Youngstown on Jan. 17, but they led for just 15 seconds in the first 28 minutes on Thursday. A 14-3 run helped turn the game in favor of the Penguins, and Heidi Schlegel made six free throws in the final 26 seconds to close out the win.

Brown is a Horizon League Player-of-the-Year candidate, ranking in the top 25 in the country in both scoring and rebounding. With her as the leader, YSU already has its most wins in 13 years and has its best record through 22 games since 1997-98. The Penguins also need just one more Horizon League victory to match its highest total since joining the league in 2001-02. Schlegel is the league's top scorer off the bench with 10.5 points per game, and Shar'Rae Davis leads the conference in assists. Liz Hornberger and Monica Touvelle rank fourth and fifth in the league in 3-pointers per game.

Green Bay is 10-0 in conference play and has won 15 straight overall to improve its record to 20-2. A win over the Penguins would give it a three-game lead in the conference standings with five games remaining. The Phoenix ranks among the country's leaders in scoring defense at 48.4 points per game.

Youngstown State will host Cleveland State on Thursday at 7 p.m.

#YSUWBB Summary

• YSU is in its 38th season in 2012-13 and its third under head coach Bob Boldon.
• The Penguins already have their most wins in a season since 1999-2000.
• The Penguins are averaging 8.4 3-pointers per game this season, which ranks seventh in the country. They averaged 9.2 3-pointers per game last season.
• YSU is plus-8.9 in scoring margin this season. That's an 11.8-point improvement from last season and a 34.7-point improvement from three years ago.
• YSU is averaging 65 points this season, up 0.4 points from last season. It's the best scoring average since 2001-02.
• Opponents are scoring 56.1 points per game against YSU, the lowest since 1978-79. They averaged 67.5 points last year.

A Win Would

• Give YSU 18 wins in its first 23 games for the first time since 1997-98.
• Give YSU its first seven-game winning streak since 1999.
• Improve YSU to 8-2 in Horizon League play for the first time ever and match YSU's highest total HL victories.
• Make YSU 10-4 on the road

Game Recap vs. Milwaukee

Heidi Schlegel made five free throws in the final 26 seconds to help YSU on for a 58-56 win at Milwaukee on Thursday at the Klotsche Center.

The Guins led for just 15 second in the first 28 minutes, but a 14-3 run in the second half turned the game in favor of YSU. They led 52-45 with just over four minutes left, but Milwaukee trimmed the lead to 53-52 with 39 seconds left.

Schlegel was fouled with 25.5 second left and proceeded to make five straight free-throw attempts to help close out the win.

• YSU won its first conference game decided by one possession since Feb. 12, 2011.
• The Penguins won at Milwaukee for the first time since 2005 and for just the second time since 1991.
• Brandi Brown notched her seventh consecutive double-double with 15 points and 15 rebounds. Only three other players in the conference have at least seven all year.
• Melissa Thompson set a new career high with 11 rebounds, including a big offensive board with 30 seconds left. Her previous high was seven at VCU earlier this year.
• Amanda Barger did not score and played just five minutes, but she made arguably the biggest defensive play of the game. She drew a charge of Rodriguez with 16 seconds left when the score was 55-52.
• The Penguins led the Panthers by as many as 27 in the first meeting. Their largest lead in this contest was seven.
• YSU held UWM's leading scorer Angela Rodriguez to seven points, half of her average coming in. In fact, only Emily Decorah was the only starter to reach her average.
• YSU won the rebounding battle for the fifth time in the last six games.
• The 22-8 deficit in points off turnovers was the largest for YSU this season.

Scouting Green Bay

Green Bay has won 15 consecutive games and is 20-2 overall and 10-0 in Horizon League play. The Phoenix have a plus-22.5 scoring margin in Horizon League games. They beat Cleveland State 88-51 on Thursday after leading just 25-24 with eight minutes left in the first half. Adrian Ritchie leads Green Bay with 14.1 points per game, and three teammates average at least 9.7 points. The Phoenix ranks fourth nationally in scoring defense at 48.4 points per game.

Last Time vs. Green Bay

One of the top defenses in the country was on full display as Green Bay held YSU to 24 points in the final 30 minutes in a 59-41 victory over the Penguins on Jan. 19 at Beeghly Center.

YSU led 17-12 at the 10:33 mark of the first half, but Green Bay closed the period on a 12-2 run. The Phoenix then went on a 22-6 run in an eight-minute span in the second half once YSU cut the lead to one.

Brandi Brown had 11 rebounds but was held to 10 points, which was a team high. Karen Flagg and Liz Hornberger had eight points.

Series With Green Bay

Green Bay has won 16 straight meetings against YSU and 28 of 29 contests in the all-time series that dates back to 1993. The Penguins' lone win against the then-ranked 23rd Phoenix came on Feb. 19, 2005, in Green Bay. YSU lost 77-72 at home in overtime to Green Bay last year on senior day. It then lost 59-41 to the Phoenix this year at home on Jan. 19. Green Bay won 75-50 at the Kress Events Center last year.

Upcoming Milestones

• Brandi Brown needs 46 rebounds to break the YSU's career record.
• Brandi Brown is 159 points from 2,000.
• Brandi Brown is 1 start from setting the school's career record
• Heidi Schlegel is 3 points from 500.
• Shar'Rae Davis is 1 assist from 100.

17-5: Best Start in 15 Years

• Youngstown State has 17 wins in its first 22 games for the first time since the 1997-98 season, 15 years ago.
• With at least eight games remaining, YSU has already surpassed the win totals from each of its previous 12 seasons, including last year's 10-20 record.
• YSU's seven conference wins are already the most since 2007-08 and the third-most in 12 seasons in the Horizon League.
• The Penguins are 12 games above .500 for the first time since March 4, 2000.
• The 10 non-conference wins tied the 1997-98 team for the most in school history.
• The Penguins won their first six home games for the first time since the 1991-92 season. Their eight wins at Beeghly Center are the most since 1999-2000.
• YSU's nine road wins are the most in the last 13 years.

Reviewing Conference Play

• With Thursday's game at Milwaukee being the first game of the second half of Horizon League play, YSU has posted a nice list of accomplishments so far this conference season.
• The Penguins have led by at least 11 points in seven of their nine conference games.
• YSU has seven league wins, the most since 2007-08 when it went 8-10. It has won six straight Horizon League games for the first time in school history.
• YSU is plus-8.4 in scoring margin in conference games. Its previous best scoring margin since joining the Horizon League is minus-2.4 in 2007-08.

Brown's Place in Horizon League History

• With seven games left in her Horizon League career, Brandi Brown continues to cement herself as one of the top players in conference history.
• The senior forward ranks seventh in league history in career points with 1,829, which is 26 points behind sixth place. Three players in conference history have scored 2,000 points.
• Brown is even better in career rebounds, ranking third with 1,133. She is 60 behind second.
• Brown is the active career leader in both categories. She leads the closest active player in scoring by 118 points and the closest active rebounder by 93 caroms.
• Brown is one of two players in conference history with 1,800 points and 1,100 rebounds.

Flagg is Horizon League's Newcomer of the Week

• Youngstown State junior Karen Flagg is the reigning Horizon League Newcomer of the Week. It's the first time she's received the honor.
• Flagg scored a career-high 17 points while adding six assists and five rebounds in YSU's win over Detroit last week.

Brown at the National Level

• Brandi Brown ranks eighth in all of Division I with 17 double-doubles, and she is ninth with 11.8 rebounds per game and 25th in scoring with 19.3 points per game.
• Brown is one of three players in the country who rank in the top 25 in both scoring and rebounding. She joins Stanford's Chiney Ogwumike and Middle Tennessee's Ebony Rowe.
• Heading into this week, Brown ranked fifth among active Division I players in career rebounds. She is also 19th among active D-1 players in points.

Brown Named Academic All-District

• Brandi Brown's list of career accomplishments got a little longer when she was named Capital One Academic All-District in January.
• Brown is one of five players in Ohio, Michigan, Indiana and Illinois to earn Academic All-District honors. She is now an Academic All-America candidate.
• She is the first YSU women's basketball player to earn academic all-district honors since Lauren Branson earned second-team honors in 2007-08.
• Brown holds a 3.75 GPA in communications studies.

Flagg, Davis Among League's Best Newcomers

• YSU has two of the top newcomers in the Horizon League in Shar'Rae Davis and Karen Flagg.
• Davis leads the Horizon League in assists per game, and, among newcomers, she ranks fifth in scoring and ninth in rebounding.
• Flagg ranks second among newcomers in blocks, third in rebounds, sixth in assists and seventh in points.

Schlegel is One of League's Top Bench Players

• YSU sophomore Heidi Schlegel is perhaps the Horizon League's top bench player this season. She averages 10.5 points and 4.6 rebounds off the bench this season in 25.8 minutes per game.
• Among players eligible to be named the Horizon League's Sixth Player of the Year (must come off the bench 67 percent of the time), Schlegel leads the league in scoring, rebounding, steals and minutes.
• Compared to second place in each category, Schlegel averages 2.5 more points, 8.2 more minutes and one more steal per game. She is tied for the lead in reboudns.

Hornberger, Touvelle Form Outside Threat

• YSU has two of the top 3-point shooters in the Horizon League with juniors Liz Hornberger and Monica Touvelle.
• Hornberger ranks fourth in the conference with 2.24 3-pointers per game, and Touvelle is right behind her with 2.23 per contest. Touvelle ranks second in 3-point percentage at 39.8 percent, and Hornberger is sixth at 37 percent.
• Touvelle has made 127 career 3-pointers, and Hornberger has made 101.
• Touvelle has hit multiple 3-pointers in 13 of the last 14 games, and Hornberger has made multiple in five straight games.

Penguins Rank 70th in RPI

• At the beginning of the week, YSU ranked 70th in the official NCAA RPI. That is its best ranking since 1997 and 187 spots better than last year.
• Mercer is the only team in the country to improve its RPI more than YSU from last season.
• Green Bay is the only Horizon League team above YSU at 26. Detroit is next at 103.
• Dayton (18) and Toledo (39) are the only schools in Ohio above Youngstown State. The other schools in Northeast Ohio rank 130th (Akron), 226th (Cleveland State) and 337th (Kent State).

The Winning Formula

• With the regular season two-thirds of the way through, some trends have emerged as keys to YSU wins.
• YSU is 17-1 when shooting at least 35 percent from the field and 13-0 when opponents shoot less than 40 percent.
• The Penguins are 15-2 when allowing fewer than 60 points and 16-1 when they at least match their opponents in points in the paint.
• The Guins are 12-0 when at least tying in rebounding margin. Along the same lines, they are 13-1 when at least tying in second-chance points.
• YSU is 12-2 when at least three players score in double figures.

Among D-I Leaders in 3's Per Game

• Through games completed on Feb. 14, Youngstown State ranked eighth in Division I with 8.4 3-pointers per game.
• The Guins ranked fifth nationally last year with 9.2 3-pointers per game and set school and Horizon League records for 3-pointers made in a season last year with 275.
• In fact, YSU has set and re-set the school record for 3-pointers made and attempted in Coach Bob Boldon's first two seasons.
• The Penguins have made at least seven 3-pointers 38 times in the last 52 games dating back to the start of last season.

Rebounding Getting Better

• YSU has held a rebounding edge in 11 of its first 22 games and is plus-0.5 in rebounding margin for the year. That's a tremendous improvement from recent years.
• YSU was minus-5.1 last year and minus-9.0 in Boldon's first season in 2010-11. In fact, plus-0.5 is YSU's best mark since being plus-0.5 in 2005-06.
• The Penguins have out-rebounded seven of their last 10 opponents and are 6-0 in conference play when holding an edge on the glass. YSU is plus-1.7 in rebounding margin in conference play, even with a minus-24 at Valparaiso in the league opener.
• YSU held a rebounding edge in six games last year and just three times in Coach Bob Boldon's first campaign.

Responding from Losses

• A key to YSU's success so far has been responding from losses with emphatic wins.
• Following losses, YSU has won its next game by an average of 19.8 points. The closest games were decided by nine points – against Cleveland State and Akron. YSU led Cleveland State from start to finish and led Akron for the final 31 minutes.

Slowing Down the Pace

• Coach Bob Boldon has emphasized a slower pace throughout the season.
• The Penguins are averaging 67.9 possessions per game this season, which is the lowest for YSU since joining the Horizon League in 2001-02. The Penguins averaged 71.9 possessions per game last year, which was their highest since 2002-03.
• YSU plays at the second-slowest pace in the league behind Green Bay (65.9 per game). Milwaukee plays at the fastest pace, averaging 72.1 possessions per game.

Benefit of Defined Roles

• YSU has employed the same starting line-up in 20 of its 21 games this season. The only game that the combination of Brandi Brown, Shar'Rae Davis, Karen Flagg, Liz Hornberger and Melissa Thompson was Wilmington, when Monica Touvelle stepped in for an injured Hornberger.
• Additionally, Heidi Schlegel has been the first player off the bench in each of the last 16 games she's played in.
• Last year, YSU employed 10 different starting combinations in 30 games. The Penguins used seven starting lineups in coach Bob Boldon's first season.

A Much-Improved Defense

• YSU has held opponents to an average of 56.1 points per game this season. That is an 11.4-point improvement from last season.
• Only six teams in the country have improved its scoring defense by more than YSU.
• The Penguins haven't allowed fewer than 64 points per game since 1990-91, and they haven't allowed fewer than 60 points on average since 1979-80.
• Although it's higher than desirable, opponents' .398 shooting percentage is the lowest since the 2004-05 season and 3.2 percent below last season's mark.
• Last season, the Guins ranked second-to-last in the Horizon League scoring defense (67.5 points per game) and last in field goal percentage defense. This season, they are second in the HL in scoring defense and third in field goal percentage defense.

Brown One Start From Third Record

• If she is in the starting lineup against Green Bay, Brandi Brown will break her third career record.
• Brown has made 112 starts in her career, tying Caroline McCombs (1994-98) for the record. Brown has already set career records this year for free throws made and attempted.
• Brown is also 46 rebounds and 249 minutes from other career records. She currently ranks second in YSU history in both points and rebounds.
• In 112 career games, Brown has 1,841 points, an average of 16.5 per game. Dorothy Bowers holds the school record with 2,324. Brown is 159 points from 2,000 with at least eight games remaining.
• Brown has 1,133 rebounds, 46 behind Wanda Grant's school record of 1,178.

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