ADRIAN, Mich. — The 18th-ranked Siena Heights women’s basketball team will host Rochester in the first round of the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) tournament on Thursday, February 27 at 7:30 p.m. The Saints finished with an overall record of 26-4 and a 17-3 conference mark to claim the second seed in the WHAC tournament. The Warriors come into the contest with a record of 11-19 overall and 9-11 in league play to claim the seventh seed in the tournament.
Peyton Banks (Wadsworth, Ohio) led Siena with 30 points and eight rebounds in an 83-69 win at Rochester the first time these teams played this season. The Saints defense held the Warriors to just five second-quarter points on the way to the big win. The second meeting took place in Adrian last week. This time around, Rochester battled back from a double-digit deficit to come within just three points of catching Siena. Timely free throws by the Saints sealed the sweep of the season series for SHU.
Banks leads the Saints in scoring with 16.3 PPG. She is also the team’s leading rebounder with an average of 8.5. Banks leads the nation in free throw percentage (92.3%), she is 16th in field-goal percentage (53.5%), and 22nd in total scoring (490 points).
Demi Russell (Toledo, Ohio) is another scoring threat for Siena. She averages 14.3 PPG, 7.0 RPG, and leads the team in blocks with 19. Ferris State University transfer, Kelsey Wyman (Blissfield, Mich.) leads the Saint bench with 12.2 PPG and 3.4 RPG. She has scored 20+ points off the bench four times this season, three of those times she led the team in scoring for the game.
The winner of this game will face the winner of the winner between #6 seed UM-Dearborn (10-10, 17-13) at #3 seed Lawrence Tech (13-7, 19-11).
*Photo by Mike Dickie*
*Story information courtesy of the Siena Heights University Sports Information Department*