--Game Notes (PDF)
--Free Live Game Audio (Internet-Only Broadcast)
DES MOINES, Iowa—The University of Evansville women’s basketball team will make its national television debut on Saturday afternoon at 2:05 p.m., as the Purple Aces will do battle with the Drake University Bulldogs on ESPNU. The game will also be available on an internet-only basis audio-wise by clicking on the link above (broadcast to start at approximately 2:00 p.m.)
Saturday’s contest will be UE’s first on national television for the sport of women’s basketball, and will renew one of the Missouri Valley Conference’s most hotly contested rivalries. Each of the last 10 series meetings between UE and Drake have been decided in the final two minutes of play, and the two teams have met each of the last two years in the State Farm MVC Tournament Semifinals.
Overall, Drake leads the all-time series over Evansville, 22-10, however, the Purple Aces have won seven of the last nine regular-season meetings between the two teams. Drake did hold on for a 62-61 victory in Evansville on January 15, as the Bulldogs out-scored the Purple Aces 38-18 over the middle 20 minutes of the game, before fighting off a furious comeback attempt by UE.
Evansville will bring a 9-14 overall record and 2-10 Valley mark into Saturday’s contest. Senior guard Ashley Austin currently paces a pack of four Purple Aces in double-figures with an average of 12.0 points per game. Junior guard Amy Gallagher also adds 11.3 points per game for UE, while seniors Robyn Jennings and Shannon Novosel chip in 11.0 and 10.9 points per game respectively.
Drake, meanwhile, will enter Saturday’s game in third place in the MVC with a 15-8 overall record and 9-3 conference mark. The Bulldogs have won nine out of the last 10 games overall, after posting a 57-46 victory over Southern Illinois on Thursday night. Junior guard Jordann Plummer currently paces the Bulldog attack with an average of 13.0 points per game, and has been on fire of late, averaging 19.1 points per game over the last seven contests. Fellow junior Monique’ Jones has also added three-straight double-doubles for the Bulldogs.
