Missouri State's Sydney Wilson averaged 12.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 3.0 steals per game, while shooting 58.8% from the field in a pair of wins over Drake and Northern Iowa. The award is the first MVC Player of the Week honor of her career.
Southern Illinois transfer Ashley Jones averaged 26.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game as the Salukis fell at home to Drake and Northern Iowa, earning her second Newcomer of the Week honor.
MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
Sydney Wilson, Sr., G, Missouri State
Fifth-year senior and Lady Bear veteran Sydney Wilson helped lead Missouri State to two crucial wins against UNI and Drake, including scoring the game-winner against the Panthers. Wilson averaged 12.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 3.0 steals on the week, while shooting .588 (10-17) from the field. She also anchored two incredible defensive performances as Missouri State held UNI scoreless for the final 3:20 of the game to mount a second-half comeback and then held Drake to 54 points and four made triples after the Bulldogs entered the game averaging 81.9 points and 8.0 threes per game. In Thursday night’s win against UNI, who came into the game tied for first in the MVC standings, Wilson logged 11 points (5-for-7 FG), six rebounds and dished out five assists while committing no turnovers against the Panthers. Her signature moment came in the closing seconds of the game, as she grabbed a vital offensive rebound and scored the ultimate game-winning goal on the putback with just 0:26 remaining. On Saturday against Drake, Wilson scored 14 points, pulled down eight rebounds, tallied six assists and collected six steals in 40 minutes on the floor.
MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE NEWCOMER OF THE WEEK:
Ashley Jones, Gr., G, Southern Illinois
Southern Illinois guard Ashley Jones, a transfer from Mississippi State, scored 52 points combined in games vs. Drake and Northern Iowa, averaging 26.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 5.5 assists. Her shooting totals for the week were 20-of-36 (.556) from the field, 5-of-11 (.455) from 3-point and 7-of-7 from the free throw line. Against the Bulldogs, she scored a career-high 30 points, and followed that up with a 22-point effort vs. UNI.
Noteworthy - In addition to the league's player and newcomer of the week selections, several conference players had notable performances, and they include:
Destinee Wells (BEL) - Junior guard Destinee Wells was sensational in two Belmont road victories over the weekend, averaging 16.5 points, 6.5 assists and 3.5 rebounds. Shooting 50 percent (11-of-22) from the field, Wells went 8-for-11 at the free-throw line and came up with a steal in Sunday’s win at Evansville. On Friday, Wells scored 15 on 5-for-10 shooting and distributed a game-high eight assists in the Bruins’ 65-51 triumph at Indiana State. She followed up that performance with a team-high tying 18 points on 6-for-12 shooting in Belmont’s convincing 76-58 win over the Purple Aces. Her stat line Sunday afternoon included six rebounds and five assists as she scored 13 of her 18 points in the second half, including seven in the all-important fourth quarter.
Maggie Bair (DU) - Maggie Bair did Maggie Bair things in a weekend split for the Bulldogs. The senior forward averaged 19.5 points on 60% field goal shooting, 5.5 rebounds, and 2.5 steals in road games at Southern Illinois (1/26) and Missouri State (1/28). Bair started the weekend with a team-high 19 points 8-of-13 shooting from the field in an 87-73 win at SIU. She also tied for a team-best six rebounds versus the Salukis. In the weekend finale, Bair single-handedly kept the Bulldogs within striking distance of Missouri State. She poured in 20 points, her third 20+ point performance of the season, while grabbing five rebounds, swatting three blocks, and tying a season-high with three steals. Bair now leads the MVC and ranks seventh nationally with a .623 field goal percentage.
Abby Feit (UE) - It was a classic weekend of performances from senior guard/forward Abby Feit. In a split of a pair of MVC matchups, Feit averaged 20 points per game, adding 6.5 boards, as the Aces earned their ninth win of the season, UE’s most since the 2016-17 campaign. Feit’s best performance of the week came in Evansville’s 75-67 win over Murray State on Friday night as Feit tallied a game-high 26 points, notching her third game this season with 25-or-more points.
Jaida McCloud (UIC) - McCloud finished out her week averaging 15 points and 5.5 rebounds as the Flames spilt their homestand, 1-1. She was pivotal in UIC’s win over Bradley on Friday, scoring 20 points and grabbing eight rebounds in a 52-38 victory.
DeAnna Wilson (ILS) - Wilson continued her strong play for the Redbirds in a pair of road wins, averaging 16.0 points and 6.5 rebounds against Valparaiso and UIC. The senior would shoot 57.1-percent (12-of-21) from the field and 80.0-percent (8-of-10) from the free-throw line while averaging 22.5 minutes of action. Wilson got her weekend started against the Beacons Friday, going for 17 points off 6-of-9 shooting (66.7-percent), 6 rebounds, and 5-6 from the free-throw line. Then, in a tough defensive battle against the Flames, the St. Louis native led ISU with 15 points off 6-of-12 shooting (50.0-percent), adding seven rebounds, an assist, and a steal to her stat line. Thanks to her weekend efforts, Wilson now sits in 23rd all-time for career rebounds in ISU women’s basketball history (542).
Del’Janae Williams (INS) - Williams averaged 18.5 points, two assists, 1.5 rebounds and one steal per game across a pair of contests for Indiana State last week. She opened her week with a 13-point, two-assist performance against Belmont, leading the Sycamores in scoring against the Bruins. Williams played a vital role in Indiana State’s win over Murray State, scoring a team-high 24 points to go along with two assists and two steals. She scored the first nine points of an 11-0 run to give Indiana State the lead in the second quarter, after which the Sycamores never trailed, and hit a clutch 3-pointer from the corner inside the final minute to ice the game.
Emerson Green (UNI) - Emerson Green set a career-high in points over the weekend in the Panthers 94-81 victory over Southern Illinois. Green made 26 points on 62.1% shooting for her first career game above 20 points. Along with leading UNI against the Salukis, Green also shined in the Panthers close loss to Missouri State. Against the Lady Bears Green shot 75%., making all but two of her field goal attempts, for the best shooting percentage among UNI players. Green was also an unlikely source of defense for UNI on Thursday, making the Panthers only block of the night in the third quarter. Over both games, Green averaged 19 points, 2.5 rebounds, 1 steal, and 1.5 assists for one of the best weeks of her collegiate career.
Leah Earnest (VU) - Earnest averaged 12.0 PPG and 9.7 RPG last week over Valpo’s three games, including a pair of double-doubles. In her return to her home state for nonconference action against Wisconsin on Wednesday, Earnest poured in 16 points to lead Valpo and paced all players with 13 rebounds - one off her career high. She was then instrumental in Valpo’s win on Sunday over Bradley, finishing one off her career best in the scoring column with 19 points and tying for game-high honors with 11 boards. Earnest also set a career best against the Braves with four assists and matched her career high with three steals.
Kendal Cheesman (BEL) - Sophomore forward Kendal Cheesman helped the Bruins to a pair of road wins in the Hoosier State averaging 7.5 points and 4.5 rebounds in 14.6 minutes off the bench. Shooting 50 percent (6-of-12) from the floor, Cheesman went 3-for-7 (.429) from beyond the arc and added a block in Belmont’s victory at Indiana State Friday evening. After claiming six rebounds and scoring five against the Sycamores, Cheesman registered 10 points on 4-for-6 shooting and collected three boards in only 12:13 on the court Sunday in the Bruins’ convincing win at Evansville. Cheesman’s double-figure scoring game against the Purple Aces was her second in the last four outings and third this season.
Paige Robinson (ILS) - As part of a two-win road trip for the Redbirds, Robinson would average 17.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 5,0 assists against the Beacons and Flames. The Bethany native shot 59.1-percent (13-of-22) from the field and 100.0-percent (6-of-6) from the free-throw line while averaging 30.5 minutes of action in the pair of ILS wins. In the meeting with Valparaiso, Robinson held the hot hand when shooting, finishing the first half with 21 points while adding 4 rebounds and 3 assists in the first 20 minutes before adding three more points in the second half. Then, in Sunday’s defensive slugfest against the Flames, Robinson got rolling in the second half to help the Redbirds win, finishing her night with 12 points, collecting 2 rebounds and dishing out a team-high five assists as well against the Flames.
Jade Masogayo (MOST) - Freshman Jade Masogayo helped lead Missouri State to two wins last week over UNI and Drake, both of which came into the week ahead of MSU in the conference standings. Coming off the bench, Masogayo averaged 13.0 points and 3.0 rebounds on the week, while shooting 86 percent (12-for-14) from the field in just 39 total minutes on the floor. She also added five assists, two steals and two blocks in the victories. On Thursday night in a second-half comeback victory against UNI, who came into the game tied for first in the MVC standings, Masogayo tied for the team lead with 14 points on a perfect 6-for-6 shooting from the field to become the first Lady Bear to shoot 100 percent from the field (min. 6 FGA) since Abby Hipp went 7-for-7 at Boise State on Nov. 10, 2019. She also added four rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block in 23 minutes on the court versus UNI. In Saturday’s win against Drake, Masogayo connected on her first five field goals to push her streak to 11 straight made field goals, which began in the UNI game, as she went 5-for-5 with 10 points in the first half alone. She finished the game with 12 points on 6-for-8 shooting, while grabbing two rebounds, a block and an assist in 16 minutes against the Bulldogs. Across MSU’s last six games, Masogayo is shooting 75 percent from the field (30-for-40) and she ranks third in the MVC and inside the top 50 nationally in blocks and blocks per game.
Taryn Wharton (UNI) - Wharton continues to grow her game with UNI after helping the Panthers in a bounce back win against Southern Illinois and a close road loss to Missouri State. Wharton set a career high in rebounds against the Salukis on Saturday, picking up six boards to average three on the week. Over two games, Wharton averaged 7 points, 3 rebounds, and 0.5 assists in UNIs toughest road swing yet.
Ali Saunders (VU) - Saunders averaged 10.3 PPG on 50% shooting from the field and 3.0 APG over Valpo’s three games last week. She came off the bench with 13 points against MVC-leading Illinois State on Friday, knocking down three 3-pointers for the first time in her career, while handing out a team-best four assists as well. In the win over Bradley on Sunday, Saunders delivered 15 points and dished out a game-high five assists.