Racers Set to Host EIU and SIUE

Thursday, February 7

CFSB Center

5 p.m.

Murray State

Eastern Illinois

2/6/2019 9:58:00 AM | Women's Basketball

Notes

Dates (Time): Feb. 7 & Feb. 9 (5 p.m.)
Opponent: Eastern Illinois & SIU Edwardsville
Site (Venue): Murray, Ky. (CFSB Center)
Audio: WBZB 104.5 FM (PxP: Jeremy Rose)
TV/Web: ESPN+
Live Stats: GoRacers.com
Twitter In Game: @RacersWBB
MSU Record (Streak): 7-14, 3-7 OVC (Lost 1)
EIU Record (Streak): 9-12, 3-7 OVC (Lost 1)
All-Time Series vs. EIU (Streak): MSU leads 31-20 (Lost 1)
All-Time Series in Murray (Streak): MSU leads 18-6 (Won 3)
Last Five vs. EIU: 4-1 (LWWWW)
SIUE Record (Streak): 10-11, 5-5 OVC (Won 1)
All-Time Series vs. SIUE (Streak): SIUE leads 13-7 (Lost 4)
All-Time Series in Murray (Streak): SIUE leads 5-4 (Lost 5)
Last Five vs. SIUE: 1-4 (LLLLW)
MSU Next Game: Feb. 14 at Eastern Kentucky.
MSU Next Home Game: Feb. 21 vs. UT Martin.

This Weekend
The Murray State women's basketball team returns home this weekend to take on Eastern Illinois and SIU Edwardsville. The Racers will battle the Panthers, Thursday night, followed by a showdown with the Cougars, Saturday. Both games are scheduled to tip-off at 5 p.m.

Last Time Out
The Racers went 1-1 last week, snapping their 4-game skid with a win at Jacksonville State. A career-high 25 points from Janika Griffith-Wallace and a season-high 20 points from Brianna Crane helped push the Murray State women's basketball team past the Gamecocks, 64-59. Evelyn Adebayo also played a key role by pulling down a game-high 15 boards to go along with eight points. Lex Mayes finished the game with six points, while Macey Turley had five to round out the scoring for the Racers. Against Tennessee Tech, Saturday, the Racers led for nearly 25 minutes in Cookeville, but the Golden Eagles rallied late to top MSU, 72-64. Adebayo led all scorers with 25 points and 10 rebounds for her 13th double-double of the season. Griffith-Wallace dished out a game-high six assists to go along with 14 points, while Turley followed with 12.

The Eastern Illinois Series
Entering the season, the Racers had a six-game winning streak against the Panthers, but EIU ended that with a 75-67 win back on January 17. Murray State leads the all-time series with the Panthers, 31-20, including an 18-6 advantage at home.

Scouting The Panthers
After a win over Eastern Kentucky and a loss to Morehead State, Eastern Illinois currently sits at 9-12 overall and 3-7 in the OVC. The Panthers currently average 68.9 points per game, while giving up 65.9. Shooting is their strength as they currently sit atop the OVC in 3FG% at .354 and second in the conference with a .430 FG%. Karlee Pace leads EIU on the season with 15.3 points per game, while Taylor Steele follows at 11.9. Grace McRae currently leads her team in rebounding at 6.4 per game, while Jennifer Nehls is close behind at 5.9.

The SIU Edwardsville Series
In one of the youngest regular series that the Racers play, SIUE currently leads the way with 12 wins in 19 meetings. Saturday will be the 10th all-time meeting in Murray, with the Cougars holding a small 5-4 advantage. SIUE won the first match-up of the season on Jan. 19, 71-54.

Scouting The Cougars
After falling to Morehead State, the Cougars bounced back, Saturday, to defeat Eastern Kentucky, 74-55, snapping a three-game losing streak. While they struggle to score, SIUE stays in games because of their defense, where they allow just 62.3 points per game, third-best in the OVC. They are also prolific on the glass, especially on offense, averaging 14.9 offensive rebounds per game leading to a +4.71 rebounding margin, second-best in the conference. The Cougars have a balanced attack on offense as six player average between seven and nine points, led by Allie Troeckler with 9.0 ppg. Sydney Bauman paces the team with 8.3 rebounds per game.

A Win Thursday Would...
Put Murray State ahead of EIU in the standings. Depending on results of other games, it could put them in the all-important 8th position.

A Win Saturday Would...
Snap a five-game losing streak to SIUE at the CFSB Center. After winning the first four games of the series at home, the Racers have not won at home against the Panthers since 2013.

Eight is Great
For the eighth time this season and fourth consecutive week, Evelyn Adebayo was named as the OVC Newcomer of the Week. The redshirt-junior averaged a double-double for the fifth straight week with her 13th double-double of the season at Tennessee Tech. She also grabbed a 15 rebounds in a win over Jacksonville State.

20-point Club
The Racers only had two players all season reach 20 points in a game, but they doubled that against Jacksonville State. Janika Griffith-Wallace had 25 and Brianna Crane had 20 points in the win, joining Evelyn Adebayo and Macey Turley, who have scored 20+ points on multiple occasions.

OK, What's Next?
The Racers hit the road again, taking on Eastern Kentucky, Thursday evening, and Austin Peay, Saturday afternoon in the Heritage Bank Battle of the Border.