| Rank | Team | LW | Change |
| 1 | Purdue Fort Wayne | 2 | +1 |
| 2 | Green Bay | 3 | +1 |
| 3 | Cleveland State | 1 | -2 |
| 4 | Detroit Mercy | 4 | – |
| 5 | Oakland | 5 | – |
| 6 | Northern Kentucky | 10 | +4 |
| 7 | Milwaukee | 7 | – |
| 8 | IU Indianapolis | 8 | – |
| 9 | Robert Morris | 6 | -3 |
| 10 | Youngstown State | 9 | -1 |
| 11 | Wright State | 11 | – |
It’s a bit hard to fathom the absolute decimation that Purdue Fort Wayne delivered to Oakland on Sunday, a 77-37 road ethering that, in tandem with the Mastodons’ win over Green Bay earlier this season, certainly makes Maria Marchesano’s squad look like the class of the conference right now (and, if nothing else, they’re now the only team left without an HL loss). PFW held Oakland – certainly no tomato can, as the Golden Grizzlies had just beaten Cleveland State two days earlier to improve to 4-0 in the conference – scoreless for a stretch of seven minutes during the second quarter, then blanked OU for nearly eight minutes during a separate run in the second half. Offensively, the Dons were led by Sydney Freeman, who fired home 21 points and collected her 500th career assist during the second quarter. Lauren Ross had a double-double of ten points and 11 rebounds, showing that she’s more than a three-point sniper, while Amellia Bromenschenkel had 17 points in a mid-week win over Youngstown State.
Despite a mild scare from Northern Kentucky on Thursday, Green Bay held serve with ultimately-comfortable wins over both the Norse and Wright State to improve to 4-1 in Horizon League play. The Phoenix have an uncanny ability to, when threatened, seemingly shut down opponents on command, and that’s what happened in the NKU game when GB put together a 44-17 second half after trailing by eight at the break. Heavily-underrated post player Jenna Guyer led the way with a career-high 22 points and six rebounds, while Natalie McNeal contributed 17 points and nine rebounds. Two days later, it was the backcourt driving the bus, including 27 combined points from Callie Genke and Cassie Schiltz, while Bailey Butler fired off 19 assists across the two contests. That’s another thing about Green Bay: anyone on the team can win a game.
Cleveland State finally ran into a team capable of punishing their occasionally-shaky perimeter defense in the form of Oakland on Friday night, as the Golden Grizzlies shot 50 percent from the floor in an upset victory. However, the Vikings bounced back two days later and took down a very good Detroit Mercy team by a 72-62 count. Chris Kielsmeier had been using Mickayla Perdue as CSU’s primary ballhandler since Colbi Maples’ season-ending injury back in November, but instead, he elected to play her off the ball more frequently on Sunday, while Filippa Goula played point guard. The recent graduate responded with arguably her best game in a month, including 26 points, four assists, and six steals. Just as importantly, Perdue, Goula, and Macey Fegan were able to pressure the ball effectively and get CSU’s intermittent turnover offense running at full steam. Will the Vikings be able to duplicate that effort next Sunday against Purdue Fort Wayne? Time will tell.
Despite that loss to CSU, Detroit Mercy acquitted themselves pretty well against the preseason Horizon League favorites. They withstood the Vikings’ monstrous second quarter rally, then pulled back to within one late in the third quarter, using a fair amount of Detroit grit and hustle; UDM often feels like a team that’s greater than the sum of its parts. On New Year’s Day, it was Kate Achter’s squad that had the big second quarter, outscoring IU Indianapolis 23-7, and then hanging on for a 67-59 victory. Myonna Hooper had a game-high 19 points in that tilt, though the Titans were well-balanced, with Aaliyah McQueen, Emaia O’Brien, and Makayla Jackson each scoring at least 13 times. If there’s a criticism to be made of the Titans at this stage, it’s that they don’t have a true signature win. However, with archrival Oakland visiting Calihan Hall on Saturday, another opportunity is coming soon.
Getting run out of the O’rena by Purdue Fort Wayne was certainly a bitter way to close the weekend from the Oakland side of things, though it might be one of those cases where it’s best to take a 50,000-foot view of the situation. After all, the Golden Grizzlies went 1-1 this week against two conference title contenders, including a Friday night upset of Cleveland State, OU’s first win over the Vikings since 2017. Reigning HL Player of the Week Maddy Skorupski and backcourt running mate Macy Smith were absolutely electric throughout the evening in combining for 47 points, as well as the decisive moment in the game, a Smith steal and feed ahead to Skorupski, who completed an and-one play that gave Oakland the lead for good. The Grizzlies have some tough contests on tap, including rejuvenated IU Indianapolis and Detroit Mercy this week, followed by the dreaded Wisconsin trip, but for the time being, they’ve certainly proved that they belong in any conversation about the top of the HL.
All things considered, Northern Kentucky had an outstanding trip to Wisconsin – which is always much easier said than done. The Norse gave Green Bay a solid scare on Thursday, leading by eight at halftime before the Phoenix tightened the screws over the final 20 minutes and dismantled the upset bid. Two days later, NKU held Milwaukee to just two points over the final 4:14 of the game, while three straight Halle Idowu buckets turned a three-point deficit into a three-point lead in a 68-65 win. Mya Meredith led all scorers with 20 points in the contest and has emerged as the all-around threat that was anticipated when she transferred in from Western Kentucky, before missing all of last season. The Norse are healthy at this point and might be the most dangerous 4-12 team in the country.
Calling NKU the most dangerous 4-12 team in the country just might mean that Milwaukee is the most dangerous 4-13 team. If nothing else, the Panthers would undoubtedly like a do-over on the clinching moments against the Norse, which saw five straight empty possessions that turned a very winnable game into a loss. Two days earlier, UWM was at its best in a 75-50 rout of Wright State that didn’t feel that close, given that the Panthers led 39-17 after scoring the first bucket of the third quarter, and things played out relatively evenly from there. Kacee Baumhower fired home 18 points against her old team, while Jorey Buwalda had 12 points, eight rebounds, and two blocked shots in just 17 minutes. This feels like a team that’s consistently on the verge of turning a corner, though doing so will require transforming a few close losses (including their overtime defeat at Cleveland State on December 29th) into victories.
On Saturday, Katie Davidson finally returned from a wrist injury that had sidelined her since November 8th and, right on schedule, IU Indianapolis collected a big win against a Robert Morris team that has been playing some solid basketball. Davidson took out the frustration of her unplanned time off by scoring ten of the Jaguars’ 17 first-quarter points, eventually finishing with 13 (tied with Nevaeh Foster for the team lead), along with eight rebounds and four steals. The Jags have a brutal upcoming schedule, but with two solid victories and a close mid-week loss to Detroit Mercy in their last three games, this team seems much further removed from their 11-game losing streak than they actually are. IU Indy’s rash of injuries were sort of a stress test for the rest of the roster, and it will only benefit players like Foster, Faith Stinson, and Alexa Hocevar moving forward.
Robert Morris was the unfortunate victim of Davidson’s return to action, and the Colonials ended up eating a loss that looks much worse on paper than it does in reality. Chandler McCabe’s squad has now lost three of its last four games, though it’s worth pointing out that two of those losses were close games against Oakland and Detroit Mercy, teams off to fantastic HL starts. A respectable loss at Purdue Fort Wayne and a one-point home victory over Milwaukee are also a part of RMU’s resume, all of which adds up to something that has ~*vibes*~ in excess of the actual results so far. Against the Jaguars, Naomi Barnwell had what was easily her best game of the season, with 14 points (on 5-for-12 shooting) and five rebounds in 29 minutes. For an offense that feels Sisyphean at times, consistent production from the athletic wing would be a massive win.
Until coming unglued in the third quarter, Youngstown State did a pretty nice job hanging in the contest at Purdue Fort Wayne on Wednesday. Though moral victories don’t count for much, the Penguins are consistently showing that they have a young team that can compete pretty well right now, and will probably be able to compete a lot better in the future. With Sarah Baker out, both Erica King (14 points against the Mastodons) and Sophia Gregory (six points, 15 rebounds) have continued to hold it down for YSU’s massive group of true freshmen. Jewel Watkins, decidedly not a freshman, had one of her best games against a Division I opponent this season, including 18 points and four three-pointers. The Guins have yet to score 70 points against a DI opponent this season and have only broken 60 four times, so Watkins’ assertiveness and shot-making ability are musts for the team to be successful.
It probably wasn’t realistic to expect Wright State to pick up a win last week in road games at Milwaukee and Green Bay, although, if nothing else, they at least gave the Phoenix a decent test on Saturday before falling to 2-14 overall and 0-6 in the Horizon League. Led by Claire Henson’s 19 points, the Raiders kept the game’s margin around ten points (which typically takes some doing in the Kress Center), until a GB mini-run late in the third quarter offered additional separation in an eventual 69-51 final. WSU’s game against the Panthers on Thursday wasn’t quite that encouraging, given the way that UWM fired out of the gate and more or less ended the contest prior to halftime. Is there a positive here? The Raiders host Youngstown State on Sunday, which is one of the better chances they’ll have to cut off their losing streak, which presently sits at ten games.
Player of the Week
Sydney Freeman (Purdue Fort Wayne)
When in doubt, go with the ringleader behind the most eye-popping score of the week – a result that gave her team sole possession of first place.
Also considered: Jenna Guyer (Green Bay), Nevaeh Foster (IU Indianapolis), Mya Meredith (Northern Kentucky), Maddy Skorupski (Oakland), Mickayla Perdue (Cleveland State)
Past winners:
December 29: Maddy Skorupski (Oakland)
December 22: Aaliyah McQueen (Detroit Mercy)
December 15: Jordana Reisma (Cleveland State)
December 8: Lauren Ross (Purdue Fort Wayne)
December 1: Halle Idowu (Northern Kentucky)
November 24: Lauren Ross (Purdue Fort Wayne)
