South OKC News

The Sooner Athletic Conference unveiled its 2022-23 All-SAC Women's Basketball Team on Thursday as the Evangels had five players earn league honors, headlined by redshirt sophomore guard Shy Christopher being selected as the Newcomer of the Year.

Christopher garnered All-SAC First Team honors while junior guard Jaci Littell was tabbed to the Second Team. Graduate student forward Whitney Outon and graduate student guard Sydney Wycoff were selected to the Honorable Mention list as Wycoff was also named to the SAC's All-Defensive Team. Rounding out the honorees, forward Ashley Hopper was placed on the All-Freshman Team.

A transfer from Southeast Missouri State, Christopher has been one of the most dynamic players in the SAC, averaging the fifth-most points in the conference at 18.1 ppg while shooting a team-high 48.6 percent from the field, the seventh-best clip in the SAC. Christopher also has an uncanny ability to get to the foul line, ranking fourth in the SAC in made free throws (116) as well as second in free throw attempts (162).

In her first season at MACU, Christopher has scored 20 or more points in 10 games, tallying a career-high 28 points on 8-of-18 shooting and 11-for-15 from the free throw line in an 82-74 loss at Texas Wesleyan on Jan. 2 before matching it on 11-for-21 from the field and 5-of-7 from the stripe in a crucial 77-56 road win at No. 19 Science & Arts on Feb. 2.

The Jacksonville, Ark. product was a two-time SAC Player of the Week recipient, garnering the Week 9 honor after scoring 26 points in leading MACU to an 83-77 win over No. 16 Sterling on New Year's Eve and also earned the Week 14 accolade after guiding the Evangels to a pair of NAIA Top 25 wins over No. 19 Science & Arts and No. 17 Texas Wesleyan with a pair of 28 and 25-point performances.

Another newcomer to the squad, Littell has been a pivotal part of MACU's offensive attack, averaging 16.6 ppg on a 40.1 percent shooting clip. However, Littell's biggest impact has come from the three-point arc and free throw line as the Stillwater, Okla. native is knocking down the SAC's best three-point percentage (42.1) as well as third-best free throw shooting percentage (84.4).

The Central Oklahoma transfer has been just as valuable for MACU on the defensive end as offensive, leading the team with 39 steals on a 1.6 per game average.

Just like Christopher, Littell is also a two-time SAC Player of the Week honoree, earning the Week 2 accolade after dropping 19 points to go with six rebounds and three steals in a high-quality 62-59 home win over LSU-Shreveport. Littell earned the Week 10 acclaim when she poured in 27 points at Texas Wesleyan on Jan. 2 before leading MACU to a bounce-back win over UNT-Dallas as she scored a career-high 34 points on Jan. 5.

In her lone season with the Evangels, Outon provided a major spark for MACU in the low-post, averaging 10.3 ppg on the SAC's 10th-best field goal percentage (46.2) and eighth-best rebounding average (6.9). The Cameron transfer has also been a stout defender in the low-post for MACU, registering 25 blocks for the sixth-most in the league and the fifth-most in MACU's NAIA Era.

The Oklahoma City product's presence was especially felt early in the season when she scored a career-high 22 points and pulled down 10 boards in an 80-65 win over Evangel (Mo.) in the MACU Classic on Nov. 11. Three weeks later at Oklahoma Panhandle State, Outon sparked the Evangels with another 22-point performance as MACU held on for the 69-68 road win.

A two-time All-SAC Honorable Mention and being selected to the All-Defensive Team, Wycoff is highly regarded as one of the toughest on-ball defenders in the league as well as spearheading the MACU offense from the point guard position. Ranking second on the team with 37 steals, Wycoff has forced several more turnovers as the Evangels defense as a whole ranks fourth in the conference in tallying 17.5 turnovers a game as well as the SAC's fifth best field goal percentage defense (37.8) and three-point defense (30.0).

Offensively, the Ankeny, Iowa native holds the Sooner's sixth-best assist per game average (3.5) as well as third-best assist/turnover ratio (2.1). Wycoff is one of just five players in the SAC to wrap-up regular season competition with 90 or more assists.

Rounding out the honorees, Hopper earned All-Freshman Team honors while providing a spark off the MACU bench. In her inaugural season with the program, the Little Rock, Ark. product has seen action in 24 games, averaging 2.9 ppg and pulling down 3.0 rpg. The biggest impact Hopper has made has come on the defensive end, as she has recorded 15 blocked shots, tied for the 15th-most in the conference.

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