The Southeastern Oklahoma State women’s basketball team cracked the NCAA Division II top 25 this week, after upsetting then No. 7 in the country West Texas A&M, 78-71, on Saturday in Canyon, Texas.

The win kept the women perfect on the year at 7-0, and they entered the USA Today/ESPN poll at No. 25.

“It’s nice for the team to get some recognition,” said head coach Darin Grover, “but it doesn’t really mean anything as far as the postseason or anything like that. However, it does show that the girls have worked hard to this point and built our program into one that is considered among the best programs in the country.”

The women won for the first time during Coach Grover’s time at the helm at not only West Texas, but also at Eastern New Mexico earlier in the week.

“It’s a very long road trip for us. We leave on Wednesday, had the game on Thursday, then the game two days later on Saturday,” Grover said. “To win that second game on a road trip like that is not an easy thing to do.

“I think it helped that we came out against Eastern New Mexico and shot the ball really well. We got up early and were able to cruise the rest of the way ... and our starters didn’t play very many minutes, so I think that was a factor in us beating WT, because I think we were rested going into that game.”

Senior guard Kacey Russell played well enough over the two games to earn the Lone Star Conference North Offensive Player of the Week, averaging 18 points a game on the road trip.

“What’s gratifying about that is that Kacey works so hard, not only on the team but in the classroom as well, and she really hasn’t gotten any recognition in the past,” Grover said. “She’s been a very stable player for us and just had a tremendous weekend.

“We know that she can have those kind of weekends in the future.”

The Storm continued their hot shooting on the trip, making over 50 percent of their shots in both games, and still averaging just over that mark for the season. They are also shooting 42 percent from 3-point range, and 78 percent from the free throw line, all fantastic numbers.

“Obviously we want that to continue, but we know that the shooting comes and goes,” Grover said. “There’s going to come a point in the season that we won’t shoot the ball that well. It could come Saturday, it could come Monday.

“Who knows whenever it’s going to come, so we’ve got to play good defense to make sure that we don’t have to shoot the ball that well.”

The ladies have been doing just that, holding opponents to 35 percent shooting overall, and only 28 percent from three. Thus far the women are averaging 84 points-per-game, while holding their opponents to only 61 a game.

The Storm is at home for the next two contests, Saturday night against Midwestern State, and Monday night against the only other undefeated team in the Lone Star Conference, Tarleton State.

“Midwestern is a very post-oriented team, so stopping their inside game is going to be a challenge for us,” Grover said. “As far as Tarleton goes, currently they are the only other unbeaten team in the conference, so if they get by East Central on Saturday, and we can handle our game, then it could set us up for a battle of 8-0 teams on Monday.

“I’ve seen them on film, and they’re great. There’s no reason that we’re ranked and they’re not. I would love it if we both get to Monday 8-0, it would make for a great game.”