Both Loper Teams Among National Leaders at the Line

UNK Has Been Super at the Line in 2010 
Men 3rd, Women Tied for 12th 

Kearney, Neb. – Based on early season numbers, you do not want to get into a free throw shooting with the Nebraska-Kearney basketball teams.

Through games of December 13th, the Loper men (5-3, 3-1 RMAC) rank third in Division II in team free throw percentage at 81.8 percent while the UNK women (3-5, 2-2 RMAC) convert 77.1 of its freebies to be tied for the 12th spot nationally. These numbers also help both squads lead the RMAC in the category.

The only other Division II school with both its men’s and women’s teams in the top 12 is Bemidji State of Minnesota (1st, men, 83.4 pct.; 6th, women, 78.9 pct.).

Of the 10 Loper men that average 10 minutes per game, nine shot 75.0 percent or better from the line with junior wing Max Froehlich (87.8 pct./36 of 41) and freshman guard Tim Billingsley (87.5 pct./14 of 16) being the leaders to date.

The Loper women have nine players getting 10 minutes a night and five shoot 83 percent or better with junior wings Lea Ann Jameson (90.0 pct./9 of 10) and Vanessa Leeper (88.6 pct./31 of 35) ranking first and second on the team.  

Both teams have used this strong free throw shooting to win close games this year. The women made 20 of 28 free throws in a 79-68 win over Mesa State on December 4th while the men sunk 19 of 20 shots in an eight-point win over Nebraska-Omaha on Nov 23rd and also made 27 of 32 shots at Regis last Saturday to secure a 63-59 victory.

UNK closes out the first semester this weekend with road games at Colorado Mines (Friday) and Colorado Christian (Saturday). The teams will then get a full week off before returning to practice Dec. 27th in preparation for games January 2nd (Adams State) and January 3rd (Fort Lewis).

Below are the Division II team leaders in free throw shooting; complete leaders are available at www.ncaasports.com.

Men
1. Bemidji State (MN) - 83.8 (151 of 181)
2. Augusta State (GA) - 82.4 (155 of 188)
3. UNK - 81.8 (135 of 165)

Women
1. Lake Erie (OH)   -  83.8 (90 of 108)
2. Southern Indiana  - 82.9 (126 of 152)
3. Lake Superior State (MI) - 81.1 (146 of 180)
6. Bemidji State  - 78.9 (142 of 180)
12. UNK  -   77.1 (118 of 153)
12. Concordia-St. Paul  -  77.1 (135 of 175)