ST. LOUIS, Mo. - The No. 18 Washington University in St. Louis women's basketball program is set to host the 23nd Annual McWilliams Classic, one of the nation's most prestigious regular season tournaments, Friday-Saturday, November 22-23. The four-game weekend will see two contests on Friday and Saturday.
The Bears will welcome Lyon College (Ark.), No. 17 Transylvania University, and RV Wisconsin Lutheran University to St. Louis. All contests will be featured on the WashU Sports Network, with Jay Murry on the call.
Game Schedule
Friday, November 22
- 5 p.m. | Transylvania vs. Wisconsin Lutheran
Saturday, November 23
- 3 p.m. | Consolation Game
- 5 p.m. | Championship Game
Live Coverage Links – Classic Information
The McWilliams Classic central page, which contains information regarding live stats and live video coverage, can be accessed here.
The tournament central page also contains information regarding each participating team.
WashU's Leaders
With a pair of games and an opening weekend tournament championship under their belt, the Bears own a record of 2-0. Entering the classic, sophomore Lexy Harris tops the team with 47 points, while averaging 23.5 points per game. Harris, who was named the D3hoops.com National Rookie of the Year, leads the Bears with 25 rebounds and five blocks.
Harris has earned point totals of 27 (vs. Edgewood) and 20 vs. Saint Mary's (Ind.). For her efforts she earned a spot on the Hyatt Place Tournament All-Tournament Team as well as being named the Tournament MVP.
Classmate Sidney Rogers currently sits second on the team with 30 points (15.0 points per game). Rogers leads the Bears in free throws made (5), three pointers made (5), assists (10), steals (7), and minutes played (56). She is also second on the team in field goals (11). Rogers joined Harris on the Hyatt Place Tournament All-Tournament Team.
Additionally, returning WBCA All-American graduate Jessica Brooks is picking up where she left off last season. After scoring 13 points in the season opener against Edgewood, she scored her 1,000th career point at the end of the first half against Saint Mary's in the Hyatt Place Tournament Championship. She is currently second on the team in field goals made (11), three pointers made (3), free throws made (3), rebounds (10), steals (2), and minutes played (50). Brooks also ranks third in points (27) and assists (5).
Scouting Lyon
The Lyon Scots have played four games entering the McWilliams Classic and own a 3-1 record. The opening round game with WashU will be the first meeting between the teams in program history.
Lyon is led in scoring by Samantha Taylor with 93 points while Natalya Kaza is second on the Scots with 83 points. Savanna Lopez (47 points), Dalye Hambelton (36 points), and Haven Cooper (20 points) round out the top-five leading scorers.
Taylor leads Lyon with 31 made field goals while Kaza (28) and Lopez (22) are second and third on the team, respectively.
The Scots defeated the University of Dallas 104-78 to open the season and followed up with wins over Hendrix (79-76) and Austin College (106-85). They fell in their game on Tuesday evening to the University of the Ozarks, 77-64.
Scouting Transylvania
The No. 17 Pioneers bring a 2-1 record to St. Louis. They open splitting a pair of games in California against Chapman (W, 69-62) and Redlands (L, 61-50). In their lone home game thus far this season, the Pioneers picked up a 59-40 win over DePauw.
Through their three games, Sadie Wurth is averaging 16.7 points a game to lead Transylvania in scoring. Sierra Kemelgor is also averaging double-figures with 12.0 points a game.
Riley Flinn and Emilie Teall are averaging more than five points a game with 9.0 and 7.7 points per game, respectively. Raegan Barrett rounds out the top-five scorers for the Pioneers with 4.0 points per game.
At the free throw line, they are led by Sadie Wurth's 21 made free throws on her 24 attempts, for a .875 free throw percentage.
On the defensive side of the ball Flinn leads the team with 28 rebounds overall, averaging 8.0 rebounds per game. Both Flinn and Barrett have five total blocks while Kemelgor's eight steals leads Transylvania.
Scouting Wisconsin Lutheran
The Warriors, who are receiving votes in the D3hoops.com top-25 preseason poll, are currently 1-2 on the season. Both losses have come against nationally ranked teams in No. 23 Trine (60-49) and No. 8 UW-Oshkosh (62-27).
Wis. Lutheran's lone win came in the opening round of the Paul F. Knueppel Classic against Ripon, 60-52.
Margie Stevens leads WLU in scoring thus far with 54 points, averaging 18.0 points per game. Also reaching double-digits is Abby Cole with 31 points, averaging 10.3 points per game. Both Jayden Hill (11 points, 2 games) and Mack Hogenson (15 points, 3 games) are averaging more 5.0 or more points per game with 5.5 ppg and 5.0 ppg, respectively.
Stevens also leads the Warriors in rebounds this season with 23 total, averaging 7.7 per game. Abby Cole has been able to swipe six steals through their three games, averaging, 2.0 steals per game.
About the McWilliams Classic
The McWilliams Classic is made possible by a gift from the late Art and Marge McWilliams, veteran boosters of Washington University's athletic program. The McWilliams family are members of the WashU Sports Hall of Fame and have been integral in the resurgence of the varsity sports program. They were active members of the W Club, the support organization for athletics; Art served on its executive committee and was the chair of the William Greenleaf Eliot Society committee. In 1995, the couple provided the funds to construct the McWilliams Fitness Center in the Athletic Complex. The couple also made a leadership gift toward the Sumers Recreation Center that furthered their support of women's athletics.
