PUEBLO, Colo. – Colorado State University Pueblo women's basketball concludes its pre-Christmas schedule here Friday evening as the ThunderWolves host South Dakota Mines in a 5:30 p.m. Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference contest in Massari Arena.
 
Friday's game will mark the sixth home game of the season for the Pack as they are 4-1 on the season at home overall and 1-1 in the RMAC.

CSU Pueblo comes into Friday's home game with the Hardrockers having dropped three straight games, including getting swept in both of its games last weekend as they fell 69-62 at Adams State and 65-59 at Fort Lewis in their first true road contests of the 2023-24 season. The three-game losing skid, which began with a 78-67 loss at Colorado Christian, has dropped the Pack's record to 5-6 overall and are tied for 10th in the RMAC with a 1-3 mark.
 
The Pack's lone win in RMAC play came at home nearly two weeks ago as the Pack opened league play with a 62-52 win over Chadron State.  

The Pack is offering FREE ADMISSION to anyone that brings a new, unwrapped toy to the game. The toys will be donated to the Pueblo Bikers United Toy Drive.
 
ABOUT THE PACK
The Pack comes into Friday's final game of the first semester with two players averaging in double figures on the season as redshirt junior forward Alisha Little (Aurora, Colo./University of Northern Colorado) leads the way as she is fifth in the RMAC in scoring at 17.0 points per game and is second in the league in rebounding at 10.6 boards per game. In addition, Little leads NCAA Division II  women's basketball with seven double-doubles and also leads the leads the league and is third nationally in blocked shots as she averages 3.3 blocks per game. Little, who has earned three RMAC Defensive Player of the Week honors this season, is shooting 45 percent from the field and 72 percent from the free throw line and has scored in double figures in 10 of 11 games, including five games with 20 or more points. She also has posted double-doubles in three of her last four games and five times in her last seven games.
 
In addition to Little, the other double-digit scorer for the Pack is junior guard Landri Hudson (Aurora, Colo./University of Wyoming). Hudson is averaging 11.4 points per game and is shooting 41 percent from the field and is fourth in the RMAC in 3-point field goal percentage as she is shooting 43.3 percent from downtown and is 13-for-14 (93 percent) from the free throw line. Her 2.9 made treys per game are third-best in the RMAC and 17th in Division II.

Two other Pack players – freshman forward Leilani Love (Albuquerque, N.M./Albuquerque) and redshirt junior forward Autumn Watts (Centennial, Colo./McNeese State) – each are averaging over 8.5 points per game on the year. Love is averaging 9.9 points and 5.1 rebounds per game and is shooting 56 percent from the field and 78 percent from the free throw line and has had two double-doubles of the year and has blocked eight shots, while Watts is averaging 8.7 points and is second on the team in rebounding at 5.9 boards per game and is shooting 35 percent from the field and 80 percent from the free throw line and is second in blocked shots with 12.
 
As a team, the Pack are one of the defensive units in the league as they continue to lead the RMAC and are ninth in nationally in blocked shots as they are averaging 5.6 blocks per game as they have blocked 62 shots in 11 games. Additionally, the Pack are also sitting third in the league in both field goal percentage defense (36.9 percent) and 3-point field goal defense (27.2 percent). The Pack are 5-2 this season when their opponents shoot less than 40 percent from the field and are 3-1 when they make more 3-pointers than their opponent makes.
 
The Pack are fourth in the league in creating turnovers as they are forcing 18.7 turnovers per game and are third in the RMAC in steals as they are averaging 11.0 per game. The Pack have forced 20 or more turnovers in five games, including four times over its last six games and have collected double-digit steals in five of its last six games and in eight of its 11 games overall.
 
Offensively, the Pack are eighth in the RMAC in scoring as they are averaging 63.5 points per game and are shooting 38 percent from the field, 27 percent from the 3-point line and 76 percent at the free throw line. The Pack are making 15.5 free throws per game, which is second-best in the RMAC and are taking 20.3 free throws per game.
 
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 53-62 overall record and is 40-48 in RMAC games.

ABOUT SOUTH DAKOTA MINES
South Dakota Mines comes into Friday's action sporting a 1-8 overall and a 1-3 mark in the RMAC after collecting its first league win of the season last Saturday as the Hardrockers earned a 63-62 home win over MSU Denver. The win over MSU Denver snapped an eight-game losing streak to open the 2023-24 season. Prior to the win over MSU Denver, the Hardrockers had lost it first three league games as they fell 80-43 at UCCS, suffered an 79-50 setback at Regis and lost 81-67 to Mines in its home RMAC opener.
 
The Hardrockers are one of the three-point shooting teams in the league as they are shooting 32 percent from the 3-point line and is averaging 6.2 made treys per game. In addition, SDSM is sixth in league in turnovers per game as they are committing 15.3 turnovers per game and are fifth in the league in offensive rebounds as they have collected 103 offensive boards and is averaging11.4 offensive boards per game.
 
On the season, the Hardrockers are averaging 55.6 points per game and are shooting 37 percent from the field and 64 percent from the free throw line. Defensively, the Pack are allowing 73 points per game and their foes are shooting 46 percent from the field, 37 percent from the 3-point line and 73 percent from the free throw line.
 
Leading the way offensively for the Hardrockers is junior guard Piper Bauer, who is averaging 14.9 points per game and is shooting 36 percent from the field, 40 percent from the 3-point line and is second in the league in made treys per game as she averages 3.4 per game.
 
Two other Hardrockers – sophomore guard Savea Mansfield and senior forward Sydnee Durtsche – are each averaging over 9.0 points per game on the season. Mansfield is averaging 9.4 points and 3.4 rebounds per game and is shooting 49 percent from the field and 74 percent at the free throw line and is tied for the team lead in offensive rebounds with 13, while Durtsche is averaging 9.0 points and 6.5 rebounds per game and is shooting 45 percent from the field and 43 percent from the 3-point line.
 
South Dakota Mines, who was tabbed to finish 14th in the Preseason RMAC Coaches' Poll as the Hardrockers earned 39 points, is coached by Jeri Jacobson Owsley. Jacobson Owsley is in her fifth season as the Hardrockers' head coach and has compiled a 40-71 overall record. In her tenure with SDSM, Owsley has led the Hardrockers to two RMAC Tournament appearances.
 
Friday's game will mark the first of two contests this season between the two schools as the Pack will travel to Rapid City, S.D., for a second game this season with Hardrockers on Jan. 26. The Pack leads the all-time series, 9-4 and has won three straight games in the series, including sweeping the two games last season. The Pack won 92-73 in Pueblo on Jan. 20, 2023, and earned a 77-75 win in two overtimes at South Dakota Mines on Dec. 16, 2022. The Pack leads the series, 6-2 in Pueblo and is a 3-2 in Rapid City.
 
UP NEXT FOR PACK
Following Friday's game, the Pack will take 16 days off for the holidays, including the NCAA Division II's seven-day mandatory break from all activities from Dec. 20-27, before returning to the court on New Year's Eve Day (Dec. 31) with a 12 p.m. game against New Mexico Highlands. The game was originally scheduled to be played as part of the Al Kaly Shrine Classic on Nov. 17, but Highlands was forced to cancel the game due to COVID-19 issues.