Tag: Jersey Wolfenbarger

LSU women’s basketball beats in-state rival to remain undefeated

LSU women’s basketball remained undefeated with a win over Louisiana

LSU women’s basketball overcame a slow start and a turnover-ridden game to stay unblemished in 2024.

Behind a career day from [autotag]Jersey Wolfenbarger,[/autotag] the Tigers defeated in-state foe Louisiana 85-57 in Baton Rouge, pushing their record to 13-0.

In her first start donning the purple and gold, Wolfenbarger totaled two career highs with 18 points and 15 rebounds. She led a group of five Tigers in double figures and was prepared to see the floor early after head coach [autotag]Kim Mulkey[/autotag] told her she’d be starting during practice on Saturday.

“My approach to every game is the exact same,” Wolfenbarger said. “I think today, just understanding my role, looks a little different starting, I had to start quick, I had to start strong. I had to do the little things.”

[autotag]Aneesah Morrow[/autotag] posted her tenth double-double for the season with 15 points and 15 rebounds, her third straight game with at least 15 boards. Kailyn Gilbert finished with 14 points, while Mikaylah Williams and Flau’Jae Johnson scored 12 and 11, respectively.

After leading by five at the end of the first quarter, LSU blew the game open in the second as it outscored the Ragin’ Cajuns 20-8. The Tigers shot 61.5% from the field in the frame but allowed Louisiana to come out of the break hot as it shot 60% from the field and 66.7% from three in the third quarter.

According to associate head coach Bob Starkey, who filled in for an ill Mulkey at the postgame presser, the LSU staff was “disappointed” in the team’s showing. LSU finished with 20 turnovers, nine coming in the first quarter, and played “atrocious” on offense.

“We have been imploring them to start games quicker, we tend to start slow,” Starkey said.

With SEC play looming and seven conference teams ranked, Starkey knows his team’s toughest games are yet to come. Before the first conference game on January 2 against Arkansas, Starkey hopes his team will find a way to play consistently strong basketball on both ends.

“It’s hard to be proud for 15-20 minutes of execution,” Starkey said. “The standard here is different, the goals here are different. We’re looking for 40 minutes of quality basketball, and we haven’t found that yet, and it’s a little concerning.”

LSU women’s basketball rolls in exhibition opener against Xavier (New Orleans)

The Tigers’ new-look roster took the court together for the first time in an exhibition win on Thursday night at the PMAC.

The 2024-25 LSU women’s basketball team took the court for the first time on Thursday night in an exhibition matchup against Xavier (New Orleans) at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center, and it was an impressive debut.

The Tigers rolled against the NAIA opponent, beating the Gold Nuggets 114-53.

It was a huge game for junior star [autotag]Flau’Jae Johnson[/autotag], whose 30-point, 10-rebound double-double paced the team. [autotag]Aneesah Morrow[/autotag] also recorded a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds of her own.

LSU’s newcomers made a solid first impression as well, with three of them scoring in double figures. Transfers [autotag]Jersey Wolfenbarger[/autotag] and [autotag]Mjracle Sheppard[/autotag] each scored 12 points, while [autotag]Jada Richard[/autotag], the top player in Louisiana and most highly touted member of LSU’s 2024 signing class, scored 14 points in her first appearance with the purple and gold.

The Tigers shot 58.2% from the field in a prolific offensive performance, including a 6 of 13 mark from three-point range, where LSU struggled last season. The defense impressed against a lower-division opponent, holding Xavier to 34% shooting while forcing 33 turnovers that resulted in a whopping 47 points for LSU going the other way.

It was the kind of showing the Tigers wanted to see in the exhibition, and they’ll look for a similar result when they host LSU-Alexandria next Wednesday. Coach Kim Mulkey’s team opens the regular season against Eastern Kentucky on Nov. 4.

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BREAKING: LSU women’s basketball lands commitment from Arkansas transfer Jersey Wolfenbarger

Jersey Wolfenbarger is a former five-star recruit who appeared in 65 games at Arkansas.

The LSU women’s basketball is in the midst of an NCAA Tournament run as it looks to defend its national title, but coach [autotag]Kim Mulkey[/autotag] has already set her sights on building a competitive roster next season.

On Monday, the Tigers landed a commitment in the transfer portal from Arkansas swing guard [autotag]Jersey Wolfenbarger[/autotag]. The 6-foot-5 junior from Fort Smith, Arkansas, is a former McDonald’s All-American and five-star recruit who ranked No. 7 nationally coming out of high school.

Wolfenbarger appeared in 65 games with 26 starts, but she left the Razorbacks program before the 2023-24 season and formally entered the transfer portal last week.

In her two years playing at Arkansas, Wolfenbarger averaged 5.6 points and 3.8 rebounds. She was named to the SEC All-Freshman team in 2022.

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Neighbors describes Wolfenbarger exit to NWA club on Wednesday

Mike Neighbors acknowledged Jersey Wolfenbarger’s departure during a Sports Club meeting Wednesday in Springdale.

Mike Neighbors was scheduled to be at the Hawgs Illustrated Sports Club as the featured speaker on Wednesday.

He addressed the elephant in the room, which was the departure of Jersey Wolfenbarger from his program, that had made news the day prior.

Wolfenbarger, a former 5-star recruit and McDonald’s All-American out of Northside High School in Fort Smith, cannot actually enter the transfer portal until it reopens in March.

She actually removed her name from the portal once she found out she cannot have contact with a team or transfer anywhere until then.

Basically, she’s going to sit out a year while she awaits to see which school she will attend next.

The ladies’ regular season begins next Tuesday, Nov. 7 against Louisiana-Monroe in Bud Walton Arena.

Report: Former McDonald’s All-American Wolfenbarger leaves Hogs

Wolfenbarger, a Fort Smith native, was a regular part of the rotation the last two years, but never quite cracked to full-timers minutes.

Junior Jersey Wolfenbarger has left to the Arkansas women’s basketball team, according to reports.

Wolfenbarger’s name was not listed on the Razorbacks’ roster Tuesday morning, sparking curiosity. Courtney Mims at Pig Trail Nation was the first to report Wolfenbarger left the team and will enter the transfer portal when it opens again in the fall.

A Fort Smith Northside graduate, Wolfenbarger, a 6-foot-5 guard/forward, averaged 3.9 points and 3.3 rebounds for Arkansas last year. She spent a bulk of her two seasons with the Razorbacks in the playing rotation, but never found a solid position.

Wolfenbarger was part of a prized recruiting class coach Mike Neighbors landed in 2021. Bentonville High’s Maryam Dauda, another McDonald’s All-American, and Florida guard Samara Spencer also came with Wolfenbarger. Spencer has been one of Arkansas’ best guards since arrival and Dauda broke into the rotation at forward last year.

Arkansas opens its regular season November 7 against Louisiana-Monroe.

 

Arkansas women finish undefeated on European trip

Three games down, three victories. The Arkansas women enjoyed a fruitful trip to Europe and will return home to prepare for the 2023-24 season.

The Arkansas basketball ladies capped off a 3-0 mark in Europe on Sunday, defeating the University of Regina 100-61 in Athens, Greece.

Jenna Lawrence, the freshman from Farmington, led the team in scoring with 15 points while Maryam Dauda, Sasha Goforth and Makayla Daniels were all in double figures with 14, 13 and 12 points respectively.

Arkansas enjoyed a 50-23 advantage on the glass, with Jersey Wolfenbarger pulling down 7 of those rebounds, five of which came on the offensive end. The Razorbacks had 19 as a team.

Taliah Scott tallied five assists to lead the team. They made 14 of 39 3-pointers and went 10-of-12 at the charity stripe.

The team will take some time off when they return to Fayetteville before beginning practices in preparation for the season, which begins in November.

Ramirez named All-SEC, Spencer Freshman of the Year, Wolfenbarger All-Freshman

Samara Spencer, Amber Ramirez and Jersey Wolfenbarger all hauled in SEC honors for Arkansas.

A few hours after Arkansas guard Samara Spencer was named SEC Newcomer of the Year, she made it official by the league.

Arkansas’ first-year guard from Florida was named SEC Freshman of the Year on Tuesday. Joining her with SEC honors were senior Amber Ramirez and fellow freshman Jersey Wolfenbarger. Ramirez, a sixth-year senior, was second-team All-SEC, while Wolfenbarger was on the All-Freshman team.

Spencer was third on the Razorbacks in scoring, averaging 12.1 points per game this year. Ramirez led the Hogs with 15.3 a game. Wolfenbarger, from Fort Smith, averaged 8.1 points and 4.3 rebounds.

The Razorbacks’ season continues Thursday in the SEC Tournament. Arkansas is the No. 8 seed. It will play Missouri, the 9-seed, a team the Hogs swept in two games during the regular season.

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Arkansas women get exhibition win over UA-Fort Smith

Mike Neighbors’ team rolled over UAFS in an exhibition on Friday night at Bud Walton Arena, 114-55.

Oregon State transfer and former Fayetteville standout Sasha Goforth led all Razorbacks with 17 points as Arkansas rolled to an exhibition win over UA-Fort Smith on Friday night at Bud Walton Arena, 114-55

Freshman Samara Spencer added 16 in her debut, as the 114 points were the second-most ever scored by Arkansas in an exhibition.

2,639 attended the game, the most since 1999 for an exhibition game.

Amber Ramirez hit 4 3-pointers and had 14 points, while Marqueshia Davis and Makayla Daniels each tallied 11.

Jersey Wolfenbarger, a McDonald’s All-American signee, had 8 points and 9 rebounds in her first action.

Mike Neighbors’ team opens regular season play on Wednesday night against Tarleton State. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m. and will be streamed on SEC Network+.

No Chelsea Dungee? Arkansas replacing her with three McDonald’s All-Americans

Arkansas coach Mike Neighbors is breaking in a roster full of new faces.

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Much like their counterparts on the men’s side, the Arkansas women’s basketball team will have quite the new look when the season begins November 15 against Arkansas-Pine Bluff.

Senior guard Amber Ramirez is the only senior on the roster. She’s one of two starters back for coach Mike Neighbors. Junior guard Makayla Daniels is the other. They were two of the four double-digit scorers for Arkansas last year. Chelsea Dungee and Destiny Slocum, the other two, are now in the WNBA.

In their stead come Sasha Goforth, Jersey Wolfenbarger, Maryam Dauda and Samara Spencer. The last three are freshmen. The first three are all Arkansas natives. They’re all McDonald’s All-Americans, too.

“I don’t know what the end of this picture looks like with this team yet, but we have unique pieces,” Neighbors said. “We have unique pieces that I’ve never had all under the same roof or on the same team at the same time.”

Goforth is likely to take the biggest early jump as a newcomer. She transferred from Oregon State where she was an All-PAC 12 Freshman. The Fayetteville High grade gives Arkansas a third player who averaged in double figures last year.

Wolfenbarger and Stephens are guaranteed to play, too. Stephens will apprentice under Daniels, to whom Neighbors compared her. Wolfenbarger is a unicorn. She’s 6-foot-6, but listed as a guard.

In time, the scoring and leadership Dungee and Slocum brought will sort itself out, Neighbors said.

“New challenges for them as players to get it together and build it into a cohesive puzzle that we all know what it can and should look like,” he said. “We’re going to have some work to do on role development and shot distribution and playing time but that’s what is fun about this.”