GAME NOTES (pdf): UWF | UNION
THURSDAY at UNION: LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO | TWITTER UPDATES
SATURDAY at CBU: LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO | TWITTER UPDATES
 
PENSACOLA, Fla. – The UWF women's basketball team will open the second half of Gulf South Conference play on the road against No. 15/9 Union in a game for first place on Thursday night. Tip-off at Fred DeLay Gymnasium in Jackson, Tennessee is at 5:30 p.m. On Saturday, the Argonauts will face Christian Brothers in Memphis, Tennessee at 1 p.m.
 
FOUR-GAME ROAD TRIP BEGINS WITH TOP 20 UNION THURSDAY
* UWF is 13-2 overall & 8-1 in Gulf South Conference play. The Argonauts are on a 3-game winning streak that came on the heels of a 10-game streak earlier in the season.
* Jaclyn Jarnot averages a double-double with 17.7 points per game and 13.9 rebounds per game (1st in GSC, 3rd in NCAA). Her 10.7 defensive boards per contest are 1st in the country. The North Dakota transfer has registered a double-double in 11 games to rank second nationally. 
*Zoe Piller averages 16.2 ppg and 9.3 rpg with seven double-doubles. She leads the GSC and is eighth in the NCAA with a 59.9 FG pct. She ranks 17th in the NCAA and 1st in the GSC with 4.3 offensive rpg. Her scoring average is seventh in the NCAA among freshmen (4th among true freshmen who didn't play a COVID year last season). She has been the GSC Freshman of the Week four times and Player of the Week once. 
* Maddie Griffon is third on the team in scoring at 9.5 ppg and second with 45 assists (3.8 apg). Her 18 steals are first among the Argos.
* Gabby Brown is fourth in scoring on the team with 9.2 ppg and third in rebounding at 4.3 rpg. Her 18 3-pointers are tied for third on the squad.
* Charlotte Ellmore leads the team with 36.5 minutes per game and leads the team with 57 assists. She is 26th nationally and 2nd in the GSC with a 2.11 assist-to-turnover ratio.
 
41ST SEASON OF UWF WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
* UWF enters the weekend with 601 all-time wins dating back 40-plus years to the inaugural season of 1981-82. The Argonauts are 601-520 all-time with six NCAA Tournament appearances, one Elite Eight, four GSC Regular-Season Championships and one GSC tourney title in 18 appearances.
* In 28 seasons of NCAA/GSC membership, the program is 426-328 for a .565 winning pct., ranking fifth among current members and third among those that have been in the league for at least 10 seasons.
 
JARNOT, PILLER SWEEP GSC WEEKLY AWARDS
* UWF women's basketball standouts Jaclyn Jarnot and Zoe Piller were named the GSC Player and Freshman of the Week, respectively, on Tuesday.
* Jarnot was the only player in the league to post two double-doubles last week as she averaged 23.0 points and 15.5 rebounds in wins over Mississippi College and Delta State. She had 25 points and 21 boards in the win over the Lady Statesmen for the first 20/20 game in the GSC this year, scoring 13 points in the fourth quarter to help the Argos win. She also had 21 and 10 in the win over the Lady Choctaws on Thursday, going 7-for-10 after halftime with 17 points in the second half.
* The senior from Brooklyn Park, Minnesota is third in the GSC with 17.7 points per game, and ranking third nationally in rebounds per game at 13.3. She is first in the country with 10.7 defensive boards per contest.
* Jarnot joins Emily Jones of Christian Brothers as the only 2-time winners of the Player of the Week honor in 2021-22.
* Piller averaged 12 points and seven rebounds as she continues to be the top rookie in the league. She had 13 points, seven caroms and two steals against MC, and 11 points and seven boards two days later in the come-from-behind win over Delta State.
* The first-year player from Nolensville, Tennessee is fifth in the league with 16.2 ppg and third with 9.3 rpg. She is seventh among freshmen in the country in scoring and her 59.9 percent field goal shooting placed her 12th in the country. She is second in the country with 11 double-doubles.
* This is her GSC-leading fifth Freshman of the Week award this season.
 
PILLER-JARNOT ARE THE HIGHEST SCORING FRONTCOURT TANDEM IN THE COUNTRY
* UWF's starting frontcourt duo of Zoe Piller and Jaclyn Jarnot have combined for 33.9 points and 23.2 rebounds per game. That makes them the highest scoring frontcourt in the country and the 19th highest scoring combo for any school.
* The duo has 18 combined double-doubles and the Argos are 6-0 when they have one in the same game.
 
GETTING TO THE LINE
* UWF has done a very good job of getting to the free throw line this season, ranking in the top 20 nationally in both makes (19th, 230) and attempts (24th, 324). In fact, the Argonauts have almost made more free throws than their opponents have attempts (230 vs. 239).
* The five regular starters have all taken at least 27 free throws, with one of the top reserves, Fanny Hulmi, at 26 attempts. 
* Freshman Zoe Piller is tied with Tazsa Garrett-Hammett and Emily Jones for the GSC lead with 95 attempts.
 
REBOUNDING A STRENGTH FOR UWF ONCE AGAIN
* Historically, UWF has been a dominant rebounding team at both ends of the floor and 2021-22 is no different. UWF ranks first in the GSC at 42.0 rpg and is fourth in rebound defense, allowing just 33.3 rpg. The 8,7 rebound margin is second (19th in NCAA).
* Here is a chart showing where UWF has ranked in rebounding offense during the Stephanie Lawrence Yelton era:
 
Year                RPG        GSC Rank
2012-13            46.7              1st
2013-14            40.8             2nd
2014-15            45.8              1st
2015-16            40.5             2nd
2016-17            45.8              1st
2017-18            43.7              1st
2018-19            43.7              1st
2019-20            43.3             2nd
2020-21            42.7              1st
2021-22            42.0              1st   
 
UWF RECEIVING VOTES IN WBCA & D2SIDA TOP 25 POLLS, RANKED FOURTH IN THE D2SIDA SOUTH REGION POLL
* UWF received 23 points in this week's WBCA Top 25 Poll and 21 in the D2SIDA poll. That places the Argonauts second and third in the respective polls among the others receiving votes.
* UWF moved up to one spot to No. 4 in the latest D2 Sports Information Directors of America (D2SIDA) region rankings.
* Union is No. 1 with Tampa and Valdosta State at Nos. 2 and 3, respectively. 
 
ABOUT UNION
* Union is 13-2 and won its last 10 games. The Bulldogs are ranked 15th in the WBCA and ninth in the D2SIDA Top 25 polls. UU is in first place in the GSC with an 8-0 record, just ahead of both Valdosta State and UWF at 8-1.
* Union has four players averaging double figures in scoring, led by last year's GSC East Division Player of the Year, Jaelencia Williams at 15.7 ppg while also pacing the team with 8.6 rebounds per game.
* UU has the top offense in the GSC, leading the 13-team league with 76.7 points per game, 48.3 percent field goal shooting and 39.2 percent 3-point shooting. 
 
UWF-UNION SERIES HISTORY
* Union leads the series 13-4 and 7-2 in games played in Jackson. They have won the last four games and eight of the last nine. UWF's last win at Union was a 75-67 decision in January 2016. This is the third-consecutive game to be played in Jackson.
* The teams did not play during the regular-season a year ago but the Bulldogs claimed a 69-46 win in the GSC Tournament First Round. The Argonauts shot 30 percent and committed 21 turnovers. Gabby Brown led UWF with 11 points. Union used a size advantage to outscore UWF 34-14 in the paint. Jaelencia Williams had 23 points on 10-of-14 shooting and nine rebounds. The Lady Bulldogs made all seven of their 3-pointers in the first half as they built a 40-22 lead.
 
ABOUT CHRISTIAN BROTHERS
* CBU enters Thursday's game against Valdosta State at 5-11 overall and 4-6 in GSC pay. The Lady Bucs are just 2-3 at home.
* Sophomore guard Emily Jones leads the GSC in scoring at 20.0 ppg, has made 33 3-pointers and is an 84.5 pct. free throw shooter.
* The Lady Bucs average 69.8 ppg on 39 pct. shooting and 8.1 3-pointers per game. They allow nearly 80 ppg on 43 pct shooting.
 
UWF-CBU SERIES HISTORY
* UWF is 12-6 all-time against CBU, having won eight of the last 10. The Argos are 4-5 in Canale Arena and have lost their last two in Memphis.
 
YELTON IN TENTH SEASON AT UWF
* Stephanie Lawrence Yelton is in her tenth season at UWF and has a 162-108 record with the Argos … She is 219-192 in her 15th season as a head coach, which includes five seasons at Charleston Southern … The Morrow, Ga. native (suburb south of Atlanta) is a UNC grad from 1996 and was a 4-year letterwinner for the Tar Heels, where she won two ACC Championships and the 1994 NCAA National Championship – she threw the inbounds pass on Charlotte Smith's game-winning buzzer beater in the title game.
* Yelton was named the GSC Coach of the Year in 2013-14 and 2018-19.
* She is 4-13 against UU and 11-5 against Christian Brothers.
 
WIN STREAK REACHED 10, TIED FOR NO. 3 IN PROGRAM HISTORY
* UWF reeled off 10-consecutive wins after a season-opening loss, which made the streak tied for the third-longest in UWF women's basketball history. The 1997-98 team that started 17-1, reeled off 14-straight after a 3-1 start to hold the record. The 2018-19 squad won the final 13 regular-season games for No. 2 on the list, just ahead of the 10-straight by this year's team and the 2005-06 team.
  
UWF PICKED 8TH IN GSC COACHES POLL
* UWF was picked to finish eighth in the GSC Preseason Coaches Poll, while the Wolves were picked ninth … Defending champion Union earned 10 of 12 first place votes and was picked first for the third-consecutive year. Lee received one first place vote, followed by Valdosta State with the 13th top vote. Montevallo took fourth, while Delta State rounded out the top five with Alabama Huntsville, West Alabama and West Florida sixth through eighth. West Georgia was ninth, with Christian Brothers, Mississippi College, Auburn Montgomery and Shorter also in the list.