By Michael Freeman, Assistant Sports Editor
In a game full of playoff implications, the Wildcats will take on longtime rival Angelo State Sunday afternoon in Moody Coliseum.
With five games left in the season, the Wildcats have a 13-9 overall record with a 7-2 mark in the Lone Star Conference South Division. Angelo State is 19-5 overall and 6-3 in the LSC. At the end of the season, the teams with top-four conference records advance to the playoffs. ACU is tied for the second-best record in the LSC, while Angelo State is in fourth place.
“I think our girls are pretty fired up about Sunday,” said head coach Shawna Lavender. “We felt like we let one get away when we played them there.”
The Rambelles beat the Wildcats 74-72 on Jan. 19 in San Angelo. ACU had a 13-point lead halfway through the second half in that game. But Angelo State went on a 28-13 run and did not allow ACU to score a point in the final 2:09 to steal a win.
“We have to be ready to play for 40 minutes, especially against a team like Angelo,” Lavender said. “If you let up for two or three minutes in a game like that, then that’s when they take advantage.”
ACU and Angelo State have been playing each other every season since the 1975-76 season. The Wildcats hold a 46-29 all-time advantage, but the Rambelles have won four of their last five meetings.
“It’s a fun rivalry,” Lavender said. “And with the conference race as close as it is right now, this is the time of the year where it’s crunch time. Everybody turns their game up a notch.”
Angelo State is coming off a 71-60 win over Texas Woman’s on Wednesday. ACU owns the longest current winning streak in the conference, as the Wildcats have won their last five games. The Wildcats will try to keep the streak going as they play a team with the fourth-best defense in the conference, allowing an average of only 60.1 points per game. Angelo State also leads all other LSC teams in blocked shots with a season total of 97.
However, ACU plays much better at home than on the road. The Wildcats average 76.2 points at home, while managing 69 points away from Moody Coliseum.
“We like playing at home,” Lavender said. “I think we’re playing with a lot more confidence right now. And anytime you’ve lost to a team before when you felt like you let one get away, that motivates the girls a little bit more. Those things will definitely be an advantage for us.”
ACU is also hoping for the advantage of a boisterous home crowd.
All fans that wear pinkto Sunday’s game will be admitted for free as part of the “Think Pink” initiative. The “Think Pink” campaign, which is sponsored by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association, is a national campaign to raise both awareness and money for the fight against breast cancer. More than 120 schools across the country have joined together to promote the “Think Pink” program.
The game is scheduled for 2 p.m.
