Cougars Kill it on the Court

Krolicki_action2Both the Men and Women’s basketball team had two games this week. Did they continue to ascend up the rankings, or did they fall under the pressure?

Men:
Wed, Feb 10
The 16-10 rejuvenated SXU Cougars find themselves matched up against a struggling 8-19 Judson University. Will SXU get what should be an easy win, or will Judson University pull out the upset?

First
At the end of 1, SXU found themselves up by a whopping 22 points; 54-32. The deciding factor here is SXU’s hot streak from deep. The Cougars hit 6 of their 10 3-pointers for a 60% 3-point clip early. Not only this, but the Cougars were shooting 62.9% (22-35) from the field. Simply put, SXU wasn’t missing too many shots, which is always good for winning a basketball game.

Defense was also a factor early as the Cougars forced Judson University to shoot 31.3% (10-32) from the field while also forcing them to turn over the ball 5 times in the first half. The leading man at the half was forward Mitch Uratchko, who had 14 points, 6 rebounds, and an assist.

To come out with the win, the Cougars needed to continue to build off the lead they made for themselves early by consistently making their shots, while playing hard hitting defense.

Second
In the end, SXU won this game against Judson University, 108-65. Hot shooting was really the factor here, for in the second half SXU shot 66.7% (6-9) from the 3-point line, and shot 63.2% (12-19) from the 3-point line in the total game. The leader of the game for SXU was guard Kyle Huppe. Huppe had 19 points, 4 assist, and a rebound in 21 minutes of play.

Sat, Feb 13
It was their second game of the week, and the 17-10 SXU Cougars found themselves up against an 11-16 Roosevelt University. The last game against a team with a losing record, SXU found themselves with an easy win; can they repeat that story in this game?

First Half
At the end of the half, SXU found themselves up on Roosevelt University; 41-33. What helped SXU here was there strong rebounding. SXU had 24 total rebounds with 9 of which being offensive, which created second chance scoring opportunities. SXU also held Roosevelt University to 31.3% (10-32) shooting from the field while they shot 45.9% (14-31) from the field themselves.

The leading man at the half was guard Quinn Niego. Niego had 11 points, 4 rebounds, and an assist. Rebounding was crucial here for SXU. They need to continue to outrebound their opponent to create more scoring opportunities for themselves.

Second Half
The Cougars came away with another dominant win against a lacking opponent as they beat Roosevelt University, 85-59. It was looking like a 3-point shootout in the second half for SXU as they made 8 of their 11 3-point attempts (72.7%)

The High Point Man for SXU here was forward Dominique Jeter who had 20 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 blocks in 18 minutes of play. Let’s shift our attention to the women’s basketball team now who also had two games this week.

Women: Wed, Feb 10
The 26-1 SXU Cougars are matched up against the 14-14 Judson University.

First Half
At the end of the first half, SXU is simply dominating the game early; 52-21. Hot shooting was one reason for the early lead. The Cougars made 7 of 13 of their 3-point attempts (53.8%), and shot 22-42 from the field (52.4%). Not only was their offense on point, but the defense was also giving them a distinct advantage.

SXU had held Judson University to 8-34 shooting (23.4%) from the field, and 3-10 shooting (30%) from the 3-point line. The leading lady for the half was guard Kara Krolicki, who had 19 big points at the half, 3 rebounds, and 2 assists.

Seeing as they’re already up by 31 points, all the Cougars have to do is continue to shoot the ball with consistency, and continue to defend with effort then they should be able to walk out of this game with a win.

Second Half
It should be no surprise to anyone that the Cougars walked out of this game with over Judson University; 91-53. While SXU dropped down drastically on their shooting percentage, they were able to sustain a big lead with their pesky defense. Butterfingers must be the food of choice at Judson University, as they turn over the ball 20 total times.

SXU used these turn overs to create more scoring opportunities for themselves, and walk at with the easy W. Krolicki was the High-point woman as she had 22 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists in 23 minutes of play. However, right behind her was Caitlin McMahon, scoring a career high of 21 points.

Sat, Feb 13
It’s the second game of the week, and the now 27-1 SXU Cougars go up against the 15-14 Roosevelt University.

First Half
At the end of 1, SXU is up big; 47-15. Although SXU was honing it in from deep (33.3% from 3-point line), they were cleaning up the glass with 30 total rebounds with 8 of which being offensive rebounds. SXU was also playing the role of“Swiper” tonight, as they got seven steals in the first half. Maybe next time Roosevelt will remember to say “Swiper no swiping”.

Krolicki was the lead at the half as she had 16 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists. On a side note, Krolicki was just nominated for the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) All District Women’s Basketball team. Congratulations are in order for an amazing player who represents SXU well.

Second Half
In the end, SXU walked out with a win; 90-48. SXU was able to pick up their field goal percentage while continuing to dominate the glass, totaling 49 total rebounds for the game. Krolicki lead the way for SXU with 24 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists.

Other key players include Mikayla Leyden (15 points), Brittany Collins (11 points) and Sarah Vozel (10 points). With the SXU women’s team continuing to dominate, it leads me to question, “Can the SXU women’s team beat the 95-96 Chicago Bulls?” I think so.

Let’s continue to show both our men and women’s Basketball teams support, and keep it locked here at The Xavierite for more sports updates.

Kenneth Washington
Deputy Sports Editor