Missouri State's Casey Garrison averaged 18.5 points on 61-percent shooting, using her non-dominant hand, including 6.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 3.0 steals in two Lady Bear victories over Evansville and Southern Illinois, while Wichita State's Alex Harden earned her first two career starts for the Shockers, averaging 14.5 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists in wins over the Salukis and Purple Aces. For their outstanding efforts, Garrison and Harden have been named the Missouri Valley Conference Player and Newcomer of the Week, respectively.

STATE FARM MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Casey Garrison, Sr., G, Missouri State
The normally right-handed shooting Garrison shot exclusively with her left hand this week thanks to a thumb sprain and averaged 18.5 points on 61 percent shooting in two wins. Garrison averaged 6.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 3.0 steals while adding 67 percent shooting from three-point land and 83 percent from the free throw line. Friday, she shot 8-for-10 from the field and 3-for-4 from three on the way to 20 points, eight rebounds and four assists against Evansville. Sunday, Garrison scored 17 points with four rebounds, four assists, five steals and two blocks versus Southern Illinois.

STATE FARM MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE NEWCOMER OF THE WEEK
Alex Harden, Fr., G/F, Wichita State
Harden made her first two career starts count by leading the Shockers in scoring in wins over Southern Illinois and Evansville.  The freshman sparked a 74-46 win over the Salukis on Friday with a career-high-matching 15 points while adding five rebounds, four steals, and three assists with only one turnover.  Harden hit 5-of-9 field goals and 5-of-6 free throws.  On Sunday she delivered 14 points on an even more efficient 6-for-7 effort while tallying three rebounds, two assists and two more steals, lifting WSU to a 69-43 win over the Purple Aces.  Harden had been the leading scorer off the bench for Wichita State before earning the starting nod on Friday.  She now averages 5.4 points, 3.3 rebounds, 1.1 assists, and 1.1 steals per game for the year while shooting .469 from the field and .717 from the free throw line. 

Noteworthy - In addition to the league's player and newcomer of the week selections, several conference players had notable performances, and they include:

Kelsey Budd (BU) - Budd scored a game-high 22 points and 10-of-15 shooting to help Bradley post a 75-61 win against Northern Iowa without active career scoring leader Katie Yohn, who missed the game due to a foot injury.  Budd also had six rebounds, four assists, two blocks and three steals in a career-best 38 minutes to help power the Braves to their fourth consecutive home victory.  She made 5-of-6 shots in the second half and paced four Bradley players in double figures. 

Sarah Nelson (CU) - Nelson logged a pair of double-doubles last weekend, helping the Bluejays to a pair of wins, including a 68-59 win over then first-place Illinois State. Against the Redbirds she had 15 points and a game-high 11 rebounds, while she also blocked a career-high four shots and dished two assists in the win. On Sunday against Indiana State she again had 15 points and led everyone with 12 rebounds, as she made 7-of-11 shots from the field and blocked two more shots.  For the week she averaged 15 points, 11.5 rebounds and 3.0 blocks per game, shooting 52.4 percent from the field and making both of her three-point attempts.  Her 10 double-doubles on the season are the most by a Bluejay since 1987-88.

Rachael Hackbarth (DU) - Hackbarth averaged 20.5 ppg, 13 rpg, 3 apg, 2.5 blocks per game in the two games this weekend to help the Bulldogs go 1-1.  She has now recorded 12 straight double-doubles and has 19 this season, which is tied for the lead in the nation. 

Samantha Heck (UE) - Heck was Evansville’s leading scorer in both games last week, averaging 19.5 points and 9.0 rebounds, with a .517 field goal percentage (15-29) and .429 percentage (6-14) from three. At Missouri State, Heck recorded 18 points seven boards, and matched a season-best three blocks and three steals. Playing all 40 minutes at Wichita State, Heck logged her fifth career double-double, matching a career-high 21 points while grabbing a season-high 11 rebounds.

Katie Broadway (ILS) - Broadway struggled in the Redbirds’ loss to Creighton, 68-59, Friday, recording four rebounds and just two points in 32 minutes of play. Broadway made adjustments and came out strong against Drake, leading ISU to a 15-point win, 66-51. The senior guard was 8-of-16 from the field, totaling 20 points, recording three steals in 37 minutes. Early in the game, Broadway scored 10-straight points for Illinois State, keeping it in the game against the Bulldogs. The 20-point effort was the eighth for Broadway this season and the ninth of her career, as the Bethalto, Ill., native leads the Redbirds with 16.6 points per game. In Valley play, Broadway is second in scoring, averaging 17.9 points per game through 14 games. On the season, she also leads ISU in points (415). In Valley play, Broadway leads the Redbirds in points per game (17.9) and three-point field goal percentage (.417).

Deja Mattox (INS) - Mattox led the Sycamores this past weekend, averaging 10.0 points and 8.5 rebounds against Drake and Creighton. Mattox shot 50% from the field (8-for-16) while also turning in four blocks and three steals for the weekend.

Katelin Oney (UNI) - Oney led the Panthers in scoring at Bradley on Feb. 17, tallying 14 points to score in double-digits for the 11th consecutive game. Oney added a career-high five assists and five rebounds. She also went a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line in her 100th career game as a Panther.
 
Cartaesha Macklin (SIU) - Macklin posted a pair of doubles, the second and third of her career, and took over as SIU’s leading scorer for the season with her performances last week. The freshman point guard averaged 23.5 points, 10.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game in Southern’s two games. Macklin posted her second-highest point total of the season with 25 points to go along with 11 rebounds and three assists Friday at Wichita State. The Mayo, Fla., native followed that effort with a 22-point, 10-rebound outing with four assists Sunday at Missouri State. Macklin now leads SIU and ranks third in the Valley with an average of 16.9 points per game as well as ranking fourth in the conference with an average of 3.8 assists per game.

Jessica Diamond (WSU) - Diamond turned in two more gems for WSU, scoring in double figures for the 22nd and 23rd times this year in wins against Southern Illinois and Evansville.  The junior put up 12 with four assists in Friday’s 74-46 win over the Salukis and followed up with 14 points on 7-of-11 shooting and three steals to lead a 69-43 victory against the Purple Aces.  Diamond remains among the country’s leaders in field goal percentage (.498) and is the leading scorer (13.2 ppg) on a team tied for first in the MVC.  In Valley play, Diamond is hitting 52.1% of her shots and sinking 90% (27-30) of her free throw attempts.

Shronda Butts (BU) - Making her first start in nine games due to an injury to Katie Yohn, Butts responded with 16 points and also matched season highs of five rebounds and five assists in 23 minutes to help lead Bradley to a 75-61 win against Northern Iowa.  The only BU player to make it the free throw line against the Panthers, Butts made her first 10 attempts and finished 10-for-11 from the charity stripe.  She highlighted an 11-3 second-half run with a three-point play and three assists to help the Braves take control of what was a four-point game.  Butts scored 12 points and also had five assists and two steals in the second half to help power Bradley to its fourth consecutive home win. 

Carly Grenfell (DU) - Grenfell averaged 7 ppg, 3 rpg, 1 apg and hit three three-pointers in the two games for the Bulldogs. 

Jamie Russell (ILS) - Russell continues to be spark in the Redbird lineup, as she averaged 19.5 points and 6.5 rebounds, while recording nine steals over the weekend in a split road series at Creighton and Drake. At Creighton, Russell led all scorers with 21 points and brought down seven rebounds in 32 minutes. Russell was 9-of-19 from the field in the loss. Russell was dominant in the Redbird defense against Drake, recording a career-high six steals. The Rock Falls, Ill., native was 8-of-11 from the field in the win, 66-51, tallying 18 points. Russell also grabbed six rebounds in the victory. Russell is currently in the top-five in the Valley in steals and assists. In assists, she ranks fifth with 3.6 per game and is fourth in steals with 2.5 per game. The five-time Newcomer of the Week honoree averages 14.4 points per game in Valley contests. On the season, Russell leads ISU in steals (62) and assists (90) and is the team’s second-leading scorer with 12.7 points per game.

Brooke Brown (UNI) - Brown matched career-highs in three different categories in the Panthers’ game at Bradley on Feb. 17. Brown scored 12 points, hit three three-pointers, and pulled down five rebounds to match her previous career-bests in each category. Brown also made her fourth career start.