CANTON, Ohio -- The Malone University women's basketball team will close out the regular season this afternoon with a Great Midwest Athletic Conference matchup against the Ohio Dominican University Panthers.
The Pioneers come into today's game off a 84-71 win in the 25th Annual Mayors' Cup game against cross-town rival Walsh University on Tuesday night.
The Matchup: Ohio Dominican University Panthers (14-6, 14-6 G-MAC) at Malone University Pioneers (9-10, 9-10 G-MAC)
Where: Osborne Hall
When: 1:00 p.m.
Live Stats: Great Midwest Digital Network
Live Video: Great Midwest Digital Network
MALONE-OHIO DOMINICAN HARDWOOD SERIES
The first match-up between these two teams in the 2020-2021 season was in mid-January in Columbus where the Panthers came out with a 82-68 victory.
Overall today's match up will be the 69th meeting all-time between these two teams, with Ohio Dominican having a slight edge leading the series 35-33.
The last win for Malone came back in December of 2019 when the Pioneers scored a 69-61 overtime victory in Columbus.
COVID-19 PROTOCOLS
Due to current local health regulations, a limited number of spectators will be permitted to attend each game played inside Osborne Hall. Right now, this access is limited to families of Malone University players and coaches. There is also a ticket allotment given to the visiting team. These tickets will continue to be pre-sale only, and must be redeemed ahead of time through our online ticketing partner Eventbrite.
There are still no walk-up transactions permitted at the gate.
Malone University will adhere to school, local and state guidelines as it pertains to the COVID-19 pandemic. If patrons are feeling ill, we ask that you remain home.
All patrons are asked to wear a mask and social distance inside the gym. We also ask that patrons exit the building immediately following the contest.
FIVE THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT THE PIONEERS
- Malone comes into today's game off of arguably their best win of the season. On Thursday night the Pioneers won the 25th Annual Mayors' Cup game against their cross-town rival Walsh. The 84-71 win snapped an eight game losing streak to the Cavaliers, and was the first Mayors' Cup victory for Malone since December of 2016.
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In Tuesday's win Malone went 33-58 from the field for a season-best 56.9 field goal percentage. Pioneers were 6-12 from beyond the three-point arc and 12-14 from the free throw line. The team currently sits 6th place in the G-MAC with a 44 percent season field goal percentage.
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Alexis Hutchison led the scoring effort for the Pioneers with a team-high 20 points. She has now scored double digits for six straight games, and has eclipsed 20 points in four of those contests. Holly Groff, Madison Hunter, Emma Kallas, and Robin Campbell all posted double-digit scoring totals against Walsh as well.
- The Pioneers' defensive effort on Tuesday night helped to boost Malone's assist/turnover margin to +3.74. The Pioneers are still third-best in the G-MAC in that category, and one of just five conference teams that have a positive assist/turnover margin. Their assist/turnover ratio of 1.23 is second overall in the conference.
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The February 26 update to the Great Midwest Point Rating System has Malone sitting in eighth place. The Pioneers hold a .05 point lead over Ursuline College, and are just .10 points behind the seventh place Trevecca Nazarene University Trojans. The PRS is used to qualify and seed teams for the 2021 Great Midwest Championship Tournament. The top eight seeds will advance to the conference tournament.
KNOW YOUR OPPONENT
The Panthers come into their final game of the season after a tough fourth quarter cost them a victory against the Walsh Cavaliers in a 74-66 loss on Thursday.
Individually, Ohio Dominican has two scorers in the top five of the conference, senior Angela Troyer (1st) and junior Kennedy Schlabach (4th).
Troyer, Stare, and senior Olivia Fox all boast more than a 50 percent field goal percentage ranking 4th, 6th, and 7th in GMAC standings. Schlabach is leading the conference in average three-point field goals per game with 3.1, just ahead of Malone Pioneer Holly Groff (2.9).
As a team, Ohio Dominican is averaging 81.5 points scored per game and is allowing 73.8 points scored by their opponents. This places them 4th in scoring margin. The Panthers rank within the top 5 in the conference in most areas.
WHAT'S NEXT
The Pioneers will await the release of the 2021 Great Midwest Women's Basketball Championship bracket to see who their first round opponent will be. The bracket will be released later this weekend. The tournament will get underway with the quarterfinal round on Tuesday. The highest four seeds will host the lower four seeds.
To keep up to date with everything surrounding the Malone University athletic programs this year follow the Pioneers on Twitter and Instagram, like Malone University Athletics on Facebook or visit malonepioneers.com.
