BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The UTSA women's basketball team opens a two-game road trip this Saturday, facing the UAB Blazers in Birmingham, Ala. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. (CT) on CUSA.tv at the Bartow Arena.
LEADING THE ROADRUNNERS
Junior Jordyn Jenkins leads the conference in scoring with 469 points, averaging 19.5 per game. Jenkins also leads the team with 188 rebounds and 33 steals. Redshirt sophomore Elyssa Coleman has done a phenomenal job on defense with a team-high 42 blocks, while also recording 153 rebounds and 240 points (second on the team in both categories). Coleman owns the top single-game blocks in the conference this season, recording a high of six blocks against FIU on Jan. 21.
Junior Kyra White leads the Roadrunners with 106 assists, averaging 4.6 per game. White is fourth in the conference with a 1.57 assist/turnover ratio. Freshman Sidney Love has the second-most assists on the team (42) and third-most points (190). UTSA is first in the conference with a 6.9 rebound margin, outperforming its opponents by 979 rebounds to 809 rebounds. The Roadrunners also have a conference-high 40.62 rebounds per game.
LAST TIME OUT
The Roadrunners (7-17, 5-10 in C-USA) are coming off a 66-53 win over Rice on Thursday at the Convocation Center. Jordyn Jenkins led the Roadrunners with 25 points and 11 rebounds, her eighth double-double of the season. This is also her 13th 20-point scoring game, along with her 21st double-digit scoring game. Jenkins also led the team with three steals. With 13 points scored, Sidney Love collected her ninth double-digit scoring game. Kyra White recorded a team-high five assists. Deborah Nwakamma and Maya Linton also contributed seven boards apiece.
The Roadrunners have been dominant in the paint all season, working the Owls by 38 points to 14 points. UTSA also had the advantage in points from turnovers (20 points to 15), second chance points (11 points to nine) and fast break points (nine points to five). The Roadrunners had 10 more field goals (27/61) than the Owls (17/49), going 44.3 percent from the field. Rebounding was another key component in the UTSA win as the Roadrunners grabbed 45 boards to the Owls' 23 rebounds.
RECORD WATCHING
Jordyn Jenkins put up a career-high 37 points against UTEP on Jan. 11, 2023. The school single-game record is 41 points in a game by Tesha Smith against Florida Atlantic on Feb. 25, 2017. Jenkins currently has 469 total points this season. The program record is 583 points by Tammy Rogers in the 1990-91 season. Jenkins has averaged 19.5 points per game this season. The school record is 20.7 per game by Starlite Williams in 1986-87.
With 299 career wins, head coach Karen Aston is just a single win away from 300 career wins.
JINKIES FOR JENKINS
Jordyn Jenkins has been named the Conference USA Player of the Week three times this season – Nov. 28, Dec. 19, and Dec. 26. Scoring a career-high 37 points against UTEP on Jan. 11, Jenkins owns the conference single-game best this season. She leads the conference in multiple categories –field goals (168), points (469), points per game (19.5), rebounds (188) and rebounds per game (7.8). Amongst all Division I schools in Texas, Jenkins is the highest scoring student-athlete.
Newcomer Jenkins was named to the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Preseason Watch List, the first Roadrunner to earn that honor. The Becky Hammon Award was first given out in 2020 and aims to celebrate those playing in the 26 mid-major conferences.
Jenkins is a transfer from the University of Southern California, where she played the last two seasons. At USC, she led the team offensively in almost every category while starting in 26 of 28 games in 2021-22. Jenkins led the Trojans in total points (384/14.8 per game), free throws made (110) and field goals made (134). The Kent, Wash., native was named the Pac-12 Most Improved Player, as well as earning All-Pac 12 Honors at the end of the season.
SCOUTING THE BLAZERS
UAB holds an 11-14 record (3-13 in C-USA action) after a 88-61 loss to UTEP on Friday. The Blazers are currently in last place in the conference standings. Although the Blazers went 9-1 in their nonconference schedule, UAB has struggled in conference action. UAB has won just one game in their last five.
UAB leads the conference in two categories – assists per game (14.1) and defensive rebounds per game (28.1). Freshman Denim DeShields leads the Blazers with 327 points, averaging 13.1 per game. She is second in the conference with 112 assists (4.7 per game) and fifth in the conference with a 1.56 assist/turnover ratio. Margaret Whitley leads the conference with a 89.0 free-throw percentage and 39.3 three-point percentage. Maria Roters has a team-high 131 rebounds and 26 steals.
SERIES HISTORY VS UAB
The Blazers holds a 8-4 advantage over the Roadrunners in the all-times series history. UTSA and UAB last played each other on Dec. 31, 2022, when the Roadrunners defeated the Blazers, 71-68, for their first conference win of the season. Sidney Love led the team as she scored a career-high 23 points. Kyra White led the way with 10 rebounds, eight of them being defensive boards.
UP NEXT: The Roadrunners continue their road trip, next playing North Texas in Denton, Texas, on Feb. 20 at 6:30 p.m.
-UTSA-
