MONTEVALLO, Ala. – Montevallo women's basketball is set to host in-state foe West Alabama on Wednesday, Jan. 17 at 5:30 p.m. in a rematch of a 70-56 Falcon victory on Nov. 27. 
 
The Falcons enter the matchup coming off a set of back-to-back loss to then No. 23 Valdosta State and Auburn Montgomery, both of which came on the road. With a 7-5 record in league play and a 9-6 mark overall, Montevallo is the fifth-ranked team in the Gulf South. 
 
So Far This Season…
The 9-6 Falcons opened the season with a loss to Embry-Riddle in early November. With a win over Nova Southeastern on Nov. 11, Montevallo rattled off five straight wins heading into league play with wins over Alabama Huntsville, West Alabama and Shorter. Montevallo suffered its first GSC loss of the season against Lee on Dec. 3. The Falcons rebounded with a pair of road wins in Mississippi after defeating Mississippi College and Delta State. Montevallo fell in back-to-back contests for the first time this season with losses to West Georgia and No. 8 Union to close out 2023. At the start of the new year, Montevallo took down Christian Brothers, 59-43, at home before traveling to West Florida for a 70-67 win on the road. On Jan. 8, the Falcons fell to Valdosta State before falling to Auburn Montgomery in its most recent matchup on Jan. 13.
 
The Falcons take care of the ball with a league-low 12.8 turnovers per game that ranks ninth in the nation. Montevallo's 1.03 assist to turnover ratio ranks second in the conference behind Union (1.23). 
 
Montevallo remains the top free throw shooting team in the conference with a 76.4 percent mark from the stripe which also ranks No. 27 among national leaders. 
 
Scouting West Alabama: WATCH | LIVE STATS
The Tigers come into Wednesday's contests with a 4-12 overall record and a 3-9 record against conference opponents. In non-conference action, UWA posted a 1-3 record with a win over Albany State on Nov. 11. West Alabama opened conference play against the Falcons with Montevallo taking a 70-56 win on Nov. 27. The Tigers dropped two more league contests before defeating Shorter 63-60 in overtime. UWA fell to Lee and Mississippi College before adding another win over Delta State, 69-55. In January, West Alabama has posted a 1-4 record with the lone win coming against Christian Brothers on Jan. 8. Most recently, West Alabama fell to Valdosta State, 64-44, on Jan. 13. 
 
The Tigers rank fifth in the conference with an average of 36.28 rebounds per game with a third-best 25.5 defensive rebounds per game. 
 
West Alabama allows a fourth-best 64.3 points to opponents while scoring just 55.6 points per contest. The Tigers -8.8 scoring margin is one of the lowest in the league. 
 
West Alabama freshman Kendall Lacoste is the squad's top scorer with an average of 10.6 points per game on the league's fourth-highest three-point shooting mark of 36.5 percent. The freshman as ranks fifth in the conference with 2.19 threes per game. The Tiger's leader on the glass Shayla Gordon averages 5.9 boards per game while Maryanne Logsdon leads the team with 4.0 assists per game. 
 
Series History Against West Alabama:
Since the series began in 1979, the Falcons and the Tigers have faced off 57 times with UWA holding the series record at 22-35 against Montevallo. The Falcons struggled against West Alabama after returning to the GSC in 2017-18 with the Tigers taking four straight wins from 2017-19. Montevallo rattled off a pair of victories during the 2019-20 season before the two sides split each of the last four contests. Most recently, the Falcons defeated West Alabama in the first weekend of conference play with a 70-56 win on the road on Nov. 27.
 
Player Highlights:
Veteran Marisa Snodgrass remains as one of the top guards in the league ranking second in assist to turnover ratio (2.65), assists (69) and assists per game (4.6). Snodgrass is also the league's leader in steals per game at a 2.8 average while ranking second with a total of 42 steals. The Falcons boast three double-digit scorers with Isabel Grimes leading the way with 11.3 points per game followed closely by Cali Smallwood (10.9) and Marisa Snodgrass (10.5). Smallwood leads the team in rebounding with an average of 6.3 per contest.