CULLOWHEE, N.C. – The Samford women's basketball team will play its final road game of the 2017-18 regular season when the Bulldogs play at Western Carolina Saturday at 3:30 p.m. (CT). Below are links to follow the game online.
 
Watch Live (ESPN3)  |  Live Stats  |  Samford Game Notes | WCU Game Notes  
 
SAMFORD WOMEN'S BASKETBALL PRE-GAME CAPSULE
Samford Bulldogs at Western Carolina Catamounts | Saturday, Feb. 17
 
TIP:  3:30 p.m. (CT), at Ramsey Center, Cullowhee, N.C.
 
WEBSTREAM:  ESPN3
 
SAMFORD
1). The Samford women's basketball team comes into Saturday's game with a record of 13-13 overall and 5-6 in Southern Conference play. The Bulldogs are coming off a 60-53 win at UNCG Thursday evening. The win marked Samford's first road win of the season.
 
2). As a team, Samford currently leads the Southern Conference in three-pointers made per game (5.9). The Bulldogs also rank second in the league in assists per game (14.3).
 
3). Individually, Charity Brown ranks second in the Southern Conference in both assists per game (5.8) and assist-turnover ratio (1.9). Olivia Crozier ranks second in the league in field goal percentage (.551), while Hannah Nichols ranks second in defensive rebounds (6.1) third in rebounds (6.9) and fifth in three-pointers made (1.8) and three-point percentage (.352).
 
4). Samford is led in scoring and rebounding by senior guard Hannah Nichols, averaging 13.3 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. Sophomore Olivia Crozier averages 9.2 points and 5.3 boards per contest.
 
5). Hannah Nichols recently set the school record for 3-pointers attempted with 642. She also ranks second in school history in 3-pointers made (237). She ranks fourth in SU history in scoring (1,397), field goals made (494), field goals attempted (1,156) and blocks (78), and she ranks sixth in rebounding (525).
 
WESTERN CAROLINA
1). Western Carolina has a record of 5-22 overall and 1-11 in Southern Conference play. The Catamounts are coming off a 53-46 loss to Mercer Thursday.
             
2). Sherae Bonner leads WCU in scoring and rebounding, averaging 9.2 points and 8.3 rebounds per game. Lauren LaPlant averages 8.6 points per game for the Catamounts.
 
3). Behind Bonner, Julia Brown averages 3.4 boards per contest for Western Carolina.
             
4). Judith Martin Ruiz is the team leader in assists, dishing out 2.4 assists per game. Nikki Johnson averages 1.9 assists per game for the Catamounts.
 
5). Samford and Western Carolina will be meeting for the 22nd time, with Samford holding a 17-4 advantage in the series. The teams met earlier this season. Samford earned a 62-54 win in that earlier meeting on Jan. 18 in the Pete Hanna Center. Samford is 9-1 against Western Carolina in Birmingham, 7-2 when playing in Cullowhee, N.C., and 1-1 at neutral sites.
 
STATISTICAL COMPARISON
Category                                       Samford            WCU
Points Per Game                           58.7                    56.2
Field Goal Pct.                               .394                    .391
3-pt. Field Goal Pct.                      .308                    .294
Free Throw Pct.                             .731                     .680
Rebounds Per Game                    32.2                     37.0
Assists Per Game                         14.3                     12.4
Steals Per Game                           5.8                       6.2
Turnovers Per Game                    15.8                     19.6
Blocks Per Game                          2.9                       3.1
Pts Allowed Per Game                62.5                     64.3