PUEBLO, Colo. – Colorado State University Pueblo women's basketball looks to continue its strong play heading into this weekend's first two Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference games of the 2023-24 season at Massari Arena.
 
The ThunderWolves will open RMAC play on Friday, Dec. 1 with a 5:30 p.m. game with Chadron State, before hosting Colorado Christian on Saturday, Dec. 2 at 4 p.m. This weekend's two game will cap a season long five game homestand for the Pack.
 
CSU Pueblo comes into the weekend having won three straight games to push its record to 4-3 overall on the season after posting back-to-back home wins last weekend to cap non-conference play against Eastern New Mexico (49-37) and Baptist Bible (88-55).
 
The current three game winning streak began with a 69-64 win on Nov. 18 against Langston (Okla.) University to complete play in the 39th-Annual Al Kaly Shrine Classic.
 
This weekend's two games will mark the fourth and fifth home games this season for the Pack as they are 3-0 at home this season and have posted a 27-6 at home since the beginning of the 2021-22 season, including an 18-4 record at home in RMAC play.
 
ABOUT THE PACK
The Pack come into this weekend's action with three players averaging in double figures on the season as redshirt junior forward Alisha Little (Aurora, Colo./Northern Colorado) leading the way as she is fourth in the RMAC in both scoring (17.4 ppg) and rebounding (10.4) and leads the league and Division II women's basketball with four double-doubles and is second in Division II in blocks at 3.3 blocks per game. Little, who repeated as this week's RMAC Defensive Player of the Week honor, is shooting 42 percnt from the field and 73 percent from the free throw line and has scored in double figures in all five games, including three games with 20 or more points.
 
In addition to Little, the other double-digit scorers are freshman forward Leilani Love (Albuquerque, N.M./Albuquerque) and junior guard Landri Hudson (Aurora, Colo./University of Wyoming). Love is averaging 11.4 points and 5.1 rebounds per game and is shooting 60 percent from the field and 83 percent at the free throw line and has had four double-digit scoring efforts, while Hudson is averaging 11.0 points per game and is shooting 40 percent from the field, 47 percent from the 3-point line and is a perfect 7-for-7 at the free throw line.
 
One other Pack player is averaging over nine points per game on the season as redshirt junior forward Autumn Watts (Centennial, Colo./McNeese State is averaging 9.1 points and 5.4 rebounds per game and is shooting 40 percent from the floor and 91 percent from the free throw line and has blocked nine shots and has recorded 12 steals.
 
As a team, the Pack are one of the top defensive teams in the league as they lead the RMAC and are 11th nationally in blocks per game as they average 5.9 and have blocked 41 shots in seven games, including five or more blocks in five games. Additionally, the Pack are second in the RMAC in rebounding as they average 39.0 boards per game and are also second in field goal percentage defense as their foes are shooting just 35.5 percent from the field.
 
The Pack are also third in the league in three-point field goal defense as they are shooting 26.4 percent from downtown and are also third in both steals (10.7) and turnovers forced per game (18.9).
 
Offensively, the Pack are averaging 64.0 points per game and are shooting 39 percent from the field, 29 percent from the 3-point line and 78 percent from the free throw line. The Pack are making 16.4 free throws per game, which is second-most in the RMAC.
 
CSU Pueblo is coached by Tommie Johnson, who is in his fifth season as the Pack's women's basketball coach. In his four-plus seasons directing the Pack women's program, Johnson, who spent 10 seasons as an assistant men's basketball coach from 2008-16, has compiled a 52-59 overall record and is 38-44 in RMAC games.
 
ABOUT CHADRON STATE
Chadron State comes into its first RMAC games of the season this weekend sporting a 2-3 overall record as the Eagles have dropped two straight games since opening the season with two wins in its first three games. The current losing skid began with a 78-32 loss at Division I Wyoming and then suffered a 74-65 win at Nebraska-Kearney last Saturday. The Eagles' other loss came at Texas A&M-International (91-64) in its second game of the season.
 
The Eagles lead the RMAC in both assists and field goal percentage as they are averaging 17.0 assists per game and are shooting 44.4 percent from the field as they have made 126 of their 284 field goal attempts. In addition, the Eagles are fifth in the league in steals as they average 9.0 per game.
 
Offensively, the Eagles are averaging 64.0 points per game and are allowing 73.2 points per game. Chadron State has scored over 70 points in two games, including a high of 88 points against St. Mary's (Neb.).
 
Leading the way offensively for Chadron State is junior forward Ashayla Powers, who is averaging 13.0 points and 5.2 rebounds per game and is shooting 54 percent from the field and 79 percent from the 3-point line.
 
In addition to Powers, junior guard Olivia Waufle is averaging 9.2 points and 4.8 rebounds per game and is shooting 50 percent from the field and 88 percent at the free throw line, while junior forward Awoti Akoi is averaging 9.0 points and 3.7 rebounds per game and is shooting 65 percent from the field and has blocked a team-best eight shots.
 
Redshirt sophomore guard Kyra Tanabe is third in the league in assists per game as she averages 5.0 assists per game and is 10th in steals as she averages 2.0 per game and has an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.92.
 
Chadron State, who was tabbed to finish 15th in the Preseason RMAC Coaches' Poll as the Eagles earned 33 points, is coached by first-year head coach Travis Brewster. Brewster came to Chadron State after spending the past two seasons as the head coach at Saint Xavier University, an NAIA school in Chicago, Ill. Brewster posted a 46-16 record with the Cougars. He was also the head coach at the University of North Dakota from 2012-20 and compiled a 128-120 record with the Fighting Hawks.
 
Friday's game will mark the first of two contests this season between the two schools as the Pack will play in Chadron, Neb., on Feb. 17. The Pack holds a 22-1 all-time edge in the series and have won three straight games in the series, including sweeping both games last season. The Pack are 10-0 at home in the series and 12-1 in Chadron.
 
ABOUT COLORADO CHRISTIAN
The Cougars, who open the weekend with a game on Friday at New Mexico Highlands, before traveling to Pueblo for Saturday's game. CCU, who is ranked 10th in this week's D2CSC South Central Regional poll, has reeled off two straight wins and is sporting a 4-2 record on the season. The win streak began with a 68-41 win over Seattle Pacific last Friday and then earned a 72-67 win over nationally-ranked Eckerd last Saturday.
 
The Cougars are one of the top three-point shooting teams in the league as they are third in three-point field goal percentage as they are shooting 32.9 percent from the long distance and are third in the league in 3-pointers made as they are making 7.8 treys per game. In addition, the Cougars are fourth in the RMAC in rebound margin at +2.0 and are fourth in fewest turnovers as they are turning the ball over just 14.5 times per game and have a 1.1 assist-to-turnover ratio.
 
CCU is scoring 68.3 points per game and are allowing 64.3 points per game and are shooting 40 percent from the field and 77 percent at the free throw line. On defense, CCU is allowing their foes to shoot 40.5 percent from the field and 28 percent from the 3-point line. CCU is also averaging 34.3 boards per game and is fifth in the league in offensive rebounding as they are averaging 11.5 offensive boards per game.
 
Leading the way offensively for the Cougars is sophomore forward Maggie Hutka, who is averaging 16.8 points and 6.3 rebounds per game and is shooting 48 percent from the field, 64 percent from the 3-point line and 84 percent from the free throw shooting. Hutka is sixth in the league in scoring and is fourth in the RMAC in field goal shooting.
 
In addition to Hutka, sophomore guard Nicole Bowlin is averaging 9.7 points and 4.0 assists per game and is shooting 55 percent from the field and leads in steals with 10, while sophomore guard Victoria Perez is averaging 8.5 points per game and is shooting 39 percent from the field, 35 percent from the 3-point line and 86 percent from the free throw line.
 
CCU, who was tabbed to finish 10th in the RMAC Preseason Coaches' Poll as they earned 73 points, is coached by Diane Thompson, who is in her third season with the Cougars and has compiled a 23-38 overall record. Thompson is no stranger to the RMAC as she came to CCU from Regis, where she coached for two seasons. In addition to Regis, Thompson was an associate head coach at CSU Pueblo from 2005-07 and was part of the Pack's 2005-06 team that advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
 
Saturday's game will mark the first of two meetings this season between the two schools as the Pack leads the all-time series, 16-10 and has won three of the last four games with the Cougars lone win came in Lakewood, Colo., last season as CCU won 76-71. CSU Pueblo is 9-3 at home in the series and 7-7 in the series at CCU.

UP NEXT FOR PACK
The Pack will hit the road next weekend (Dec. 8-9) for RMAC games at Adams State and Fort Lewis. The Pack will a 5:30 p.m. game on Friday, Dec. 8 in Alamosa, Colo., against Adams State, before traveling to Durango, Colo., for a 4 p.m. game on Saturday, Dec. 9 at Fort Lewis.