WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – The William & Mary women's basketball team will square off against a familiar, and recent, foe at Kaplan Arena on Friday evening — Elon. The teams played to OT two weeks ago, with the Tribe grabbing an 84-74 road victory. Tip-off for this matchup is slated for 7 p.m. and will be broadcast on FloHoops.
Additionally, W&M will celebrate Black History Month throughout the evening. The Tribe has been wearing specially-designed pre-game shooting shoots throughout February to honor the meaning behind the month and its importance.
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- William & Mary dropped its first game in February and saw its four-game win streak end last Friday, as the Tribe fell 66-59 at home to Towson. Still, there are plenty of positives to focus on. It's the second four-game streak for the squad this year, which, despite the loss, has won eight of its last 10 contests and nine of 13 since the calendar flipped to 2023. During the Green and Gold's most recent stretch of victories, W&M averaged just over 78 points per game and shot over 43% in each matchup. In fact, the 51.9% the Tribe shot from the floor at N.C. A&T (2/12/23) was the second-highest it's posted all season. W&M won the turnover battle in all four of those wins as well, forcing, on average, 17.5 per game. Meanwhile, the eight turnovers the squad recorded against Monmouth (2/5/23) were a season-low.
- Making her return to the starting lineup against Towson last week after missing the North Carolina trip, graduate guard Sydney Wagner didn't miss a single step. Or many shots, either. The Phoenixville, Pa. to posted her sixth 20-point game of the season and, for good measure, racked up three steals—her eighth multi-steal performance. Despite not playing during the Tribe's recent road trip, Wagner's offensive prowess can't be overstated. Her 33 points against Delaware (1/29/23) marked a career-high, while her 19 against Hampton (2/3/23) moved her into 13th on the Tribe's all-time scoring list. Of course, this is par for the metaphorical course. Since the start of 2023, Wagner has hit double-digits in every game she's suited up for.
- It's only been a few weeks since Wagner took the No. 13 spot on W&M's all-time scoring list, but she won't be there for long. The multi-year standout is 11 points from moving into 12th and just 46 from cracking the top-10. She's also only five points away from scoring her 1,300th career point. And she's not alone on the cusp of history, either. Riley Casey needs 17 points to record the 10th-best single-season scoring performance in Tribe history.
- OT? That's A-OK with the Tribe. The Green and Gold's 84-74 OT victory at Elon (2/10/23) marked the fourth time W&M has used extra time to decide a game this year. It's also the first time in the program's 100-plus-year history that the team has won four games in OT in a single season.
- Playing shorthanded in North Carolina, the Tribe still racked up the stats and personal bests. At Elon, Casey recorded her fifth game with 30-plus points while also dishing out a career-high seven assists. Junior Rebekah Frisby-Smith added her best with 18 points, freshman Kayla Rolph chipped in 13 points in her first collegiate start, and junior Caitlin Wingertzahn hauled in 11 rebounds. Then, at N.C. A&T, freshman Alexa Mikeska finished with a career-high eight assists, while junior Lanni Brown recorded her highest-ever scoring effort with 11 points.
- Up top, Tribe! As a team, William & Mary leads the CAA in free throw percentage (.781), while Wagner leads all players in the conference at the stripe (.893). The Green and Gold also sits tied for first in 3-point field goals per game (7.3) and is third in 3-point percentage (.324). Of course, Casey has been a serious spark for W&M from behind the arc. The Tennessee native is third in the conference from distance (.382) and third in 3-pointers per game (2.7). Keep an eye on Frisby-Smith from range, too. She drained a career-high five triples at N.C. A&T (2/12/23) and, since January, has hit at least two treys in 10 of 13 games.
- Speaking of Frisby-Smith, her breakout season continues. Her 18 points at Elon (2/10/23) not only marked a career-high but was the third time she's reset that particular mark this year. She followed up with 17 at N.C. A&T, her seventh double-digit scoring effort of the year. But it isn't just scoring that's helped Frisby-Smith become integral to the Tribe's lineup. In W&M's last eight wins, she's hauled in an average of 6.6 rebounds and dished out two or more assists six times.
- Wagner and Casey have taken advantage of every moment this season. Often quite literally. The preseason All-CAA First-Team tandem sits top-10 in the conference in minutes (Casey: 34.8, Wagner: 33.9) and is also top-5 in points per game (Casey: 17.7, Wagner: 16.0) and top-10 in 3-point field goals per game (Casey: 2.7, Wagner: 2.0). Nationally, Casey is 74th in 3-point percentage (.382), 30th in 3-pointers per game, and 39th in total 3-pointers (68).
- Casey has cemented her name in William & Mary women's basketball lore. Her 30 points at Elon (2/10/23) marked the first time in program history a player has scored 30-plus five times in a season, while her seven 3-pointers against Drexel (1/15/23) and Charleston (1/8/23) match a career-high and Kaplan Arena record. Additionally, she became the second W&M player to record back-to-back 30-plus scoring performances with 31 against George Mason and Army.
