EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Coming off a shining 30-point victory over Murray State, the University of Evansville women’s basketball team will take on its second Ohio Valley Conference opponent in as many games, traveling to face the University of Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks Friday at 7:00 p.m. CT. Including UE’s game with UT Martin, the Purple Aces have just two non-conference contests remaining this season. UE will travel to Columbia, Mo. Monday to face the Big 12’s University of Missouri, closing the non-league slate.
CATCH THE ACTION
EVANSVILLE (3-6) – The Aces come off a 78-48 win over Murray State, their largest victory since beating Southern Illinois on Jan. 15, 2011 by a 34-point margin.
Briyana Blair led the way for the Aces, scoring a season-best 20 points, along with nine rebounds, eight steals, and six assists. Juniors
Samantha Heck (15 points, 6 rebounds) and
Meagan Collins (11 points, 7 rebounds) also had solid games, as three Aces reached double figures. On the season, Heck and Blair lead the Aces’ offense with Heck averaging 11.6 points and 6.0 rebounds per game and Blair 10.4 points and 8.4 boards.
UT MARTIN (4-5) – The Skyhawks are in a pivotal point of the season, looking to snap a four-game skid. UTM comes off a tough 69-65 overtime loss at Central Arkansas. The Skyhawks’ last win was on Nov. 22 when they overcame Saint Louis, 70-55, on the road. On the year, sophomore duo Heather Butler and Jasmine Newsome run the offense, both averaging 20 points per game, while classmate Jaclissa Haislip (8.0 ppg) leads the team on the glass with 5.3 rebounds per game. Butler and Newsome are both on track to hit the 1,000 point mark in just their second season after totaling well over 500 points apiece in their freshman year. As a team, the Skyhawks rank fifth in the nation for three-point field goals made per game, averaging 8.6.
THE COACHES
OTIES EPPS, (Wisconsin-Stout, ’02) 1st season at UE, 3-6 record
Epps is in his first season as Evansville’s head coach. Epps spent the last three seasons at the University of Wisconsin where he helped lead the Badgers to a 56-31 record and three postseason appearances. Wisconsin played in the WNIT in 2009 and 2011, and earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament in 2010 for the first time since 2002.
Kevin McMillan, (Rhodes, ’87), 3rd season at UTM, 36-35 record
Last season, McMillan’s Skyhawks captured the first Ohio Valley Conference Tournament championship in program history, downing No. 1 seed Tennessee Tech 82-76 on March 5. With the victory, UT Martin advanced to make its first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance, traveling to Cameron Indoor Stadium to take on the Duke Blue Devils. The Skyhawks played within 10 points of the ACC powerhouse at the halftime break before falling 90-45.
A WIN OVER UT MARTIN WOULD…
Make UE 4-6 on the season … Make UE 8-3 vs. UTM all-time … Make UE 445-555 all-time.
A LOSS TO UT MARTIN WOULD…
Make UE 3-7 on the season … Make UE 7-4 vs. UTM all-time … Make UE 444-556 all-time.
SKYHAWKS HISTORY
Evansville owns a 7-3 lead in the all-time series against UT Martin. However, the Skyhawks own the most recent win, edging the Aces, 63-60, last season on Dec. 11. Prior to 2010, UE and UTM hadn’t met since the start of the century when Evansville won four straight meetings from 2001-04 under head coach Tricia Cullop.
RACERS REVENGE
The Purple Aces avenged their season-opening 15-point loss (76-61) to Murray State, by logging a 78-48 victory Saturday, marking UE’s largest win since beating Southern Illinois last season by a 34-point margin (79-45). As a team, UE recorded season highs in points, rebounds, field goals, field goal percentage, three-pointers made, assists, and steals in the rout.
FALKENSTEIN’S BACK
After suffering a concussion in the opening minute of UE’s game vs. Ball State on Nov. 29, senior
Chelsea Falkenstein made her way back into the lineup Saturday after missing two games, and helped UE to a 30-point victory. Falkenstein started and played 29 minutes, recording eight points, eight rebounds, and three steals. She also made two blocks, which tied her for sixth in UE’s career block list with 55 total. Falkenstein shares the spot with Basketball Hall of Famer Jerry Sloan’s daughter, Kathy Sloan (1985-87).
BLAIR IT OUT
Senior
Briyana Blair nearly recorded a triple-double in Evansville’s win (78-48) over Murray State, leading all scorers with a season-high 20 points, and a game-high nine rebounds, eight steals, and six assists. Avenging their season-opening 15-point loss (76-61) to the Racers, Blair shot a season-best 57.1 percent from the field and 50.0 percent from behind the arc, leading the Aces to their highest shooting percentage (.448) in over a year. On the season, Blair averages 10.4 points and a team-best 8.4 rebounds per game.
FRESHMEN FOCUS
Freshman
Kat Taylor provided Evansville a spark off the bench in their rout over Murray State, scoring a career-best six points on 2-for-2 shooting behind the arc. Averaging a point a minute, Taylor also grabbed two rebounds, and added two assists and a steal. Classmate
Juliann Miller also had a career game against the Racers, scoring six points, going 2-for-7 from the floor and 2-for-2 at the line. Miller also tacked on a career-high four assists.
“A” GAME
Against Murray State, the Aces shot a season-high 44.8 percent (30-67) from the floor, including 50.0 percent (19-38) at the half. UE also won the battle of the boards with a +13 margin and season-best 49 rebounds. UE's 17 steals and 21 assists marked team season-highs as well. In addition, Evansville held the Racers to 30.6 percent (19-62) shooting and limited Erica Burgess (15.8 ppg), Murray State’s leading scorer on the season to just four points.
DOUBLE TROUBLE
Against Eastern Kentucky
Briyana Blair recorded the second double-double (17 pts, 10 rebs) of her career and second this season. Her first versus Brown (11 pts, 14 rebs) on Nov. 25 marked the first for an Ace this season.
MVC LEADERS
As a team, UE ranks third in the Missouri Valley Conference with 4.0 blocks per game. Individually,
Briyana Blair and
Taylor Ware rank in the top 10 for a number of categories...
Blair – 3rd – defensive rebounds – 6.4/game
Blair – 3rd – blocks – 1.3/game
Blair – 3rd – steals – 2.3/game
Blair – 4th – rebounding – 8.4/game
Blair – 4th – assists – 3.9/game
Ware – 9th – offensive rebounds – 2.7/game
LOTS OF HELPING HANDS
In UE’s last two wins, against Murray State (21) and Eastern Kentucky (20), the Aces tallied 20 or more assists in both victories. Last season, the Aces reached the 20 helpers mark twice -- versus Bowling Green (11/12/10) and Central Michigan (12/4/10).
STRAIGHT UP “D”
UE ranks 22nd in the nation for personal fouls, committing an average of just 13.7 per game. Evansville has yet to have a player foul out this season.
WHAT’S AHEAD
After heading to UT Martin on Fri. Dec. 16 and Mizzou on Mon. Dec. 19, Evansville opens MVC play at Indiana State on Dec. 30. UE’s first home game of the 2012 year is Jan. 5 versus Northern Iowa.
OTIES EPPS SHOW
“The Oties Epps Show,” hosted by Mike Radomski airs live from the UE Bookstore in the Ridgway University Center on the UE campus from 12-12:30 p.m. on Tuesday afternoons. Fans are invited and encouraged to come out and be a part of the show and meet the coaches and players of the UE women’s basketball team. Fans can also listen in online at both wuev.org and GoPurpleAces.com.
A STREAK-FREE SHINE
In 7-of-9 games, Evansville has outrebounded its opposition and owns a +2.9 margin on the season. Blair leads the squad, averaging 8.4 boards per game
HOME SWEET HOME
The Purple Aces moved to a new home this season after closing the doors of Roberts Stadium, a building built in 1956. Evansville opened play at the brand new downtown Ford Center, a $127 million arena with a capacity of 10,316, on Oct. 29 in an exhibition game with Oakland City. Evansville won their first regular season game under the Ford’s roof on Dec. 2 with a 63-56 win over Eastern Kentucky.
ACES SIGN TWO FOR 2012-13
Oties Epps announced on Nov. 9 the signing of two high school standouts to National Letters of Intent. Guard Laura Friday (Marion, Ind./Marion) and forward Michaela Prough (Crown Point, Ind./Crown Point) will make up the Lady Aces’ freshman class for the 2012-13 season.
O CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN
Senior
Staci Gillum and junior
Samantha Heck have been named the 2011-12 team captains for the University of Evansville women’s basketball team. Gillum, a native of West Des Moines, Iowa, served as the Purple Aces’ captain and point guard last season, averaging 4.2 points and 2.6 rebounds per game, playing in all 30 contests. A transfer from Kirkwood Community College, Gillum was also a captain and led the Eagles to a 73-2 overall record and a pair of national titles in her two years, while also earning NJCAA All-America honors. Heck, an Auxvasse, Mo. native, led the team with 4.9 rebounds per game and finished second on the squad with 9.3 points per game in her sophomore season, while also recording two double-doubles. As a freshman, Heck recorded over 200 points and 100 rebounds in her rookie season, ranking second on the team in both categories at 7.1 points and 4.8 rebounds per game.
ACADEMIC ACES
With a collective 3.34 grade point average, the University of Evansville women’s basketball team ranked 24th in the nation on the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association’s Academic Top 25 Honor Roll for 2010-11 season. The honor marked the third time in the last five years in which the Purple Aces have ranked among the nation’s Top 25 academically.
