Women's Nat'l Basketball Report: Kevi Luper, a double-double machine in the Southland, and a look around the nation
George Rodecker, National Women's Columnist
John Wooden once said, “To me, the best pure basketball I see today … is among the better women’s teams.”
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It’s starting to be quiet time at many schools as preparation for final exams dominates the thin schedule. However, this coming Tuesday, the WBB Jimmy V Classic will feature host Connecticut and Texas A&M in a battle between two top five teams: UConn at No. 2 and A&M at No. 4.
The Worthy 20
She labors in relative obscurity in Tulsa, Oklahoma, but this junior guard has a resume worthy of any player in WBB. Kevi Luper toils for Oral Roberts University and is flat out one of the best players in the nation. PERIOD!
Her accomplishments go on and on, and despite few knowing what’s she’s done, we are about to set that record straight. Here it goes:
In her freshman season, she immediately made her mark with a 25 point effort in her first college game and, in a loss to Kansas, Luper delivered 23 points. This led up to a 44 point-14 rebound coming out party against LaSalle. She eventually earned AP Honorable Mention All American status and was the Summit Conference Newcomer, Defensive and overall Player of the Year.
As a sophomore the success continued. Luper was the first ever D-I WBB player to lead the nation in scoring: 23.7 and steals: 3.7. Again an AP Honorable Mention All American, Conference Player and Defensive Player of the Year.
She owns more single season and career records for both Oral Roberts University as well as the Summit Conference than there is enough space to list them. This season she’s picking up right where she left off last year – averaging 25.3 points and 4.5 steals per game.
With that as a backdrop and last week’s press release adding her to the Naismith Watch list, we now add her name to the Worthy 20 and draw some comparisons to a player already on the Wooden Watch. Shenise Johnson of Miami is just that player. The senior for the ninth ranked Hurricanes is scoring at an 18.0 clip, plus adding 7.7 boards and five steals per contest.
Her comparisons to Luper from last season read like this -
Points
Johnson 19.6
Luper 23.7
Rebounds
Johnson 8.3
Luper 4.7
Assists
Johnson 3.8
Luper 0.9
Steals
Johnson 3.2
Luper 3.7
Both shoot free throws in the mid 80’s percentage-wise, and field goal numbers are equally similar. Johnson is very likely a first team All American, as well she should be. Luper will likely get the usual “honorable mention”.
Oral Roberts is off the beaten path and rarely a destination stop for the large media outlets. Too bad, they’re missing an incredibly excellent player playing incredibly excellent basketball!
Overtime
Sometimes the logic of the NCAA is so far beyond explanation that it’s simply mind-boggling and just plain stupid!
If you check out the chart below you'll see Megan
Herbert (Courtesy Josh Goff / Central Arkansas)
from Central Arkansas and her 50 career double doubles. But
wait a minute.
Herbert’s freshman campaign was the fourth and final season of Central Arkansas’ reclassification from Division II to Division I. That first season for the Sugar Bears, Herbert averaged 21.8 points per tilt and 13.8 rebounds. She compiled 27 double doubles that do not count in the NCAA record book because the NCAA does not count individual accomplishments achieved during reclassification, but does count team results. Even though they were already in the Southland Conference and played a conference schedule.
In her freshman season Herbert pounded Tulsa for 36 points and 18 boards. Why would that game not count in the record book when the other 30+ games played against Tulsa that season did count? As a footnote, she also rang up 23 consecutive double doubles during her initial season.
This, by the way, is the same Megan Herbert we profiled as part of the Wooden Worthy during the week four. She compared quite well versus Stanford’s Chiney Ogwumike.
The school’s Sports Information Department - Josh Goff in particular - counts those Division I games as Division I games (imagine that) and that puts Herbert at the number one spot. Here is the chart – counting Megan Herbert’s freshman season:
Current Active Double-Doubles (Career)
| Rank | Name | Class | School | #of Double-Doubles |
| 1 | Megan Herbert | Jr. | Central Arkansas | 50 |
| 2 | Callan Taylor | Sr. | Sacred Heart | 40 |
| 3 | Saadia Doyle | Jr. | Howard | 38 |
| 4 | Courtney Hurt | Sr. | VCU | 36 |
| 5 | Shante Evans | Jr. | Hofstra | 34 |
| 6 | Nnemkadi Ogwumike | Sr. | Stanford | 34 |
| 7 | Avery Warley | Sr. | Liberty | 33 |
| 8 | Tia Lewis | Sr. | ODU | 31 |
| 9 | Brittney Griner | Jr. | Baylor | 30 |
| 9 | Ashar Harris | Jr. | Morehead State | 30 |
| 9 | Jamie Smith | Sr. | UNLV | 30 |
Thanks to Josh Goff, Sports Information Department: University of Central Arkansas for not only the information but the inspiration for this nugget!
Skylar Diggins versus Brittney Griner: POY battle Report #2
In a quiet week, Diggins had one contest this week and
scored eight points, but had five assists and five
steals helping Notre Dame to a 69-38 win over Penn. Griner
(right, courtesy: Baylor Photography) in her one game this
week, tallied 23 points, 14 boards and two blocks in limited
minutes as she led the Bears to a 91-39 whoopin' of Texas
Southern.
---- Advantage Griner
Around the Conferences
Over in the Queen City, the Cincinnati Bearcats took a 26-4 lead against South Dakota State into the lockers at halftime, just one off the all time record for the fewest points scored in any half of a Division I game. Incidentally, the Bearcats are an unranked 6-0!
Meanwhile, out at Creighton, sophomore Sarah
Nelson (left, Creighton
Athletics) is playing like a very serious
candidate for Missouri Valley Conference’s Player of the
Year. In her last two games she netted two double-doubles and
set career marks. In an overtime loss to South Dakota she
ripped down 17 rebounds for a new career standard. She then
dropped a new career mark of 22 points in an overtime win over
North Carolina State. Certainly a star in the
making!
A sophomore guard for Northern Colorado D'shara Strange cashed in on the first triple-double of the season in a road contest against Bradley. Strange did the in an unorthodox way with 13 points, 12 rebounds and an amazing 11 steals.
Patricia Bright of Oregon State (73.5), Danielle Vaughn from Jacksonville State (71.2), and Washington’s Regina Rogers (70.4) are the top three shooters in the nation according to the very first release of the NCAA’s 2011-2012 stats.
No mention anywhere of Wisconsin’s Taylor Wurtz. Despite the Badgers 3-5 non-conference start, Wurtz leads the squad with 17.4 points, 9.3 boards, 1.9 steals, AND 3-point field goals made with 20. From the charity stripe she’s hitting at a blazing 82.2% clip. I’d call that a complete player!
DeQuesha McClennahan (right, Tim Cowie
Photogrpahy) is quietly getting it done at Winthrop. So
far she second in the Big South 19.2 points per contest and
number one in assists. In fact, McClennahan is
number four nationally with 7.17 helpers. Also
she’s the first player in the country to post a 20 point, 10
assist double-double.
Last thought on the way out
While researching career double-doubles and such I came across a quintuple-double and did a double-double take (pun intended) when I saw that the only ever recorded Q-D was by Tamika Catchings in 1997 as a senior at Duncansville High School in Duncansville, Texas. The ledger reads 25 points, 18 rebounds, 11 assists, 10 steals and 10 blocked shots. The 2001 graduate of Tenneessee, who left an indelible mark on WBB certainly appears to have done the same at the high school level before starring for the Lady Vols.
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