Women’s Basketball Opens SWAC Play At Home Saturday Evening

• Texas Southern starts SWAC play Saturday night as they’ll open a three-game homestand starting with Southern University at 5:30 p.m.

• Second-year head coach Cynthia Cooper-Dyke returns to the TSU sidelines for the first time since 2011-12. She spent the 2011-12 season at TSU and led them to the SWAC Regular Season Championship for the first time in school history.

• Guard Ciani Cryor is off to a sizzling start as she’s averaging 16.6 points, 7.6 assists and 3.8 steals. She ranks 3rd nationally in assists per game and 5th in steals. 

• Head coach Cynthia Cooper-Dyke is 65-39 all-time in the month of January and 8-1 at TSU. 

• Cooper-Dyke is 7-7 all-time against Southern as she has not played them since 2013. She has yet to square off against SU head coach Carlos Funchess as he was an assisstant at SU at the time.
• Southern was picked to win the SWAC in the preseason poll after winning the past two SWAC Tournament and past three regular season titles.

• Senior forward Niya Mitchell completed the trifecta as she was named the SWAC’s Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year in addition to earning first team honors. A 5-10 senior from Bay City, Texas, Mitchell averaged a double-double last season, scoring 14.4 points and 10.7 rebounds per contest. She’s averaging a double-double (14/10.1) and ranks 12th nationally in steals per game.

• TSU was picked fifth in the Southwestern Athletic Conference preseason poll after finishing the 2018-19 season in fifth. TSU has a revamped roster with only five letterwiners retuning while they welcome nine newcomers and two redshirts. 

• TSU’s RPI as of Jan. 2 is 62 and is 145 points higher than the next closest team in the SWAC. TSU has the fourth-highest RPI in the state of Texas.

• Second-year head coach Cynthia Cooper-Dyke returns to the TSU sidelines for the first time since 2011-12. She spent the 2011-12 season at TSU and led them to the SWAC Regular Season Championship for the first time in school history.

• Guard Ciani Cryor is off to a sizzling start as she’s averaging 16.6 points, 7.6 assists and 3.8 steals. She ranks 3rd nationally in assists per game and 5th in steals. 

• Head coach Cynthia Cooper-Dyke is 65-39 all-time in the month of January and 8-1 at TSU. 

• Cooper-Dyke is 7-7 all-time against Southern as she has not played them since 2013. She has yet to square off against SU head coach Carlos Funchess as he was an assisstant at SU at the time.
• Southern was picked to win the SWAC in the preseason poll after winning the past two SWAC Tournament and past three regular season titles.

• Senior forward Niya Mitchell completed the trifecta as she was named the SWAC’s Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year in addition to earning first team honors. A 5-10 senior from Bay City, Texas, Mitchell averaged a double-double last season, scoring 14.4 points and 10.7 rebounds per contest. She’s averaging a double-double (14/10.1) and ranks 12th nationally in steals per game.

• TSU was picked fifth in the Southwestern Athletic Conference preseason poll after finishing the 2018-19 season in fifth. TSU has a revamped roster with only five letterwiners retuning while they welcome nine newcomers and two redshirts. 

• TSU’s RPI as of Jan. 2 is 62 and is 145 points higher than the next closest team in the SWAC. TSU has the fourth-highest RPI in the state of Texas.