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KIRKSVILLE, MO -- Having lost its last three contests by a combined ten points, the Truman women’s basketball team is looking to pick up a big home win Wednesday night against Pittsburg State.

With back-to-back road games at the conference’s only ranked schools next week, the Bulldogs (4-14, 1-10 MIAA) will try to snap its current three-game skid against one of the MIAA’s surprise teams in 2009.

Pittsburg State (13-5, 8-3 MIAA) finished last in the MIAA in 2007-08 but have turned it around this season, as the Gorillas sit just two games out of first place with nine games to play.

Both teams will look to influence the game’s tempo, as the Gorillas and Bulldogs sit on opposite ends of the spectrum in overall turnover margin. Pittsburg State boasts the conference’s best margin at +4.1 per game, while Truman is averaging nearly six more turnovers (-5.6) per game than its foes.

SERIES INFO:

Pittsburg State leads the all-time series 22-9, with the Gorillas holding a 9-6 edge in Kirksville. Truman has won two of the last three meetings in Kirksville, including a 76-64 decision last January where then-junior Georgia Mueller scored 26 points and pulled down 13 rebounds.

Earlier this season, Truman shot 50% from the field but turned the ball over 29 times and gave up 21 offensive rebounds in a 77-56 Gorilla win. Junior Laura Joya had a team-high 14 points, six rebounds and five assists, while Mueller tacked on ten points and eight rebounds. Sophomore Malorie Kiecker added 13 points.

MEET THE COACHES:

Michael Smith is in his first season with the Bulldogs after spending time as an assistant coach at Arkansas-Little Rock and a head coach at Moberly Area Community College. He has a 106-48 (.688) career head coaching record and is 4-14 in his first season at Truman.

Smith is assisted by Taira Roth, who is also in her first season at Truman. Roth came to Truman after working in the same position at Lake Superior (Mich.) State.

Lane Lord is the head coach of the Gorillas, and he is 23-22 (.511) in two seasons at Pittsburg State. For his career, Lord is a fifth-year coach with an overall record of 100-43 (.699). He picked up win number 100 against Missouri Western on Saturday night.

MUELLER CONTINUES TO CLIMB THE CHARTS:

Senior Georgia Mueller passed the 800 rebound mark for her career on Saturday at Missouri Southern, making her just the second player to reach 1,700 points and 800 rebounds as a Bulldog. With just 15 more rebounds, the 5-foot-10 two-time MIAA first-teamer will jump into the conference’s top-ten by passing Emily Bloss (823, ESU; 1997-2001).

Also, with two more assists, Mueller will reach Truman’s top-10, as her 221 career dimes is closing in on Cathy Minor’s mark of 223, set between the 1977-1981 seasons.

SETTING UP A PERIMETER:

In the past five games, Truman’s opponents are connecting at just a 22% (18-of-82) rate from beyond the arc. That effort has helped the Bulldogs move into 5th in the MIAA rankings in three-point field goal defense, as the squad has allowed opponents to hit just 30% of its long-range attacks on the season.

HITTING THE GLASS:

For the first time since the 2003-04 season, the Bulldogs hold a positive rebounding margin through 18 games, as the squad is out-rebounding its foes by more than two per game. That ranks fourth in the MIAA behind Emporia State (+11.0),Washburn (+9.3) and Nebraska-Omaha (+4.7).

In MIAA games only, Truman has an even 0.0 rebounding mark, with both the Bulldogs and their opponents garnering 394 total boards.

“CHARITY” WORK IN MIAA PLAY:

The Bulldogs have been extremely efficient at the foul line in MIAA play, as the squad ranks first in conference-games only from the charity stripe - converting at a 79% clip. Sophomore Malorie Kiecker (93.8%; 30-of-32) is first when looking at MIAA games alone, while Mueller’s 88.9% (24-of-27) mark would rank second. Mueller isn’t eligible at this point, as she doesn’t meet the minimum 2.5 FT/game mark set by the conference office.

For the entire season, Mueller ranks fifth in the conference (80.4%; 45-of-56), whereas it’s Kiecker’s turn to fall just shy of eligibility - sitting one made free throw outside the MIAA minimum through this point of the season. Kiecker would rank third (83.0%; 44-of-53) for the full season top-ten.

UP NEXT:

The Bulldogs hit the road for a rare Sunday (Feb. 1) afternoon game - a 1:30 p.m. match at White Auditorium in Emporia, Kan., against the fifth-ranked Emporia State Lady Hornets. ESU is currently the top team in the MIAA, having posted a 16-2 overall (10-1 MIAA) mark so far in this season.

Courtesy Truman State University