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The University of Evansville women’s basketball team looks to get its second consecutive win Thursday night, taking on Bradley University at Roberts Stadium at 7:00 p.m. CST. In their first meeting of the season on Jan. 23, the Braves topped the Aces, 65-58, in Peoria. BU leads the all-time series between the schools, 19-15, but UE has won nine of 16 meetings in Evansville. Here’s a brief look at Thursday’s matchup:

 

EVANSVILLE (8-15, 3-9 MVC) – The Aces come off a 59-45 road win over Southern Illinois. Three Aces reached double figures in the victory, led by sophomore Meagan Collins’ and junior Briyana Blair’s 14 points. Sophomore Samantha Heck added 11. On the season, Blair and Heck lead the squad offensively, averaging 10.4 and 10.3 points, respectively.

BRADLEY (11-13, 4-9 MVC) – The Braves enter Thursday on a three-game losing streak. Bradley fell to Drake in a tight match, 67-65, last Thurs. and come off Saturday’s 72-50 loss to Creighton. Katie Yohn (13.5 ppg) and Taylor Raisa (12.0 ppg) lead the team offensively.

Make UE 9-15 overall ... Make UE 4-9 in the MVC ... Improve coach Misty Murphy’s record to 28-60 at UE and 136-125 overall … Make UE 442-542 all-time.

 

Make UE 8-16 … Make UE 3-10 in the MVC ... Drop coach Murphy’s record at UE to 27-61 and 135-126 overall … Make UE 441-543 all-time.

The Aces have been hot from three-point range lately. Against Southern Illinois, Evansville shot 57.1 percent from three, knocking down eight in the win. In the second half alone, UE shot 80 percent, hitting 4-of-5. Sophomore Meagan Collins went 2-for-2 from behind the arc and now leads the conference, shooting 46.2 percent against MVC opponents from long range. Senior Stephanie Bamberger ranks third in the MVC in conference games, shooting 41.9 percent from three.

Evansville’s ninth annual Hoops For The Cure Game will be this Saturday when they Aces face Northern Iowa at Roberts Stadium. The players will be don jerseys with a twist of pink, while fans are encouraged to wear pink, as well, to support the fight against breast cancer. All proceeds from auctioned prizes and half of the ticket sales will go to the Greater Evansville Affiliate of Susan G. Komen For The Cure. In 2008’s pink game, the Aces set an attendance record with 3,485 fans.

The Aces only have two more home stands this season, including this week, and that means the days of playing in Roberts Stadium are ticking down. This is Evansville’s final season at Roberts Stadium. Opened in 1956 and completely renovated in 1990, the 11,600-seat facility has been the site of more than 1,000 UE basketball games. The Aces will be playing in a new $127 million arena in downtown Evansville next season. The final women’s game there will be March 5 versus Wichita State.

Briyana Blair led Evansville’s offensive attack in the Aces’ 59-45 win over Southern Illinois. Blair co-led the team with 14 points on 4-of-8 shooting from the floor, including knocking down 2-of-3 from behind the arc. The junior also led the Aces’ effort on the glass with eight rebounds, while also tallying four steals and four assists in 27 minutes of play. Her performance earned her the honor of UE’s Vectren Student-Athlete of the Week. On the season, Blair leads the Aces averaging 10.4 points per game.

Sophomore Meagan Collins co-led Evansville’s offense with 14 points in the Aces’ win over Southern Illinois. Collins shot a perfect 2-for-2 from three-point range and 6-for-6 from the free throw line. The Boonville, Ind. native also grabbed five rebounds in 22 minutes of play. Saturday’s hot long-range shooting performance improved her season percentage to 42.0 percent from behind the arc and a conference-leading 46.2 percent against MVC foes.

SUPER SOPHOMORES

The sophomore class has been piloting the Aces in the past two games, scoring 28 of UE’s 59 points at Southern Illinois and accounted for 30 of UE’s 50 points at Creighton. The trio of Samantha Heck, Meagan Collins, and Taylor Ware each tallied 10 points in the Aces’ balanced scoring attack vs. the Blue Jays, while Collins (14pts) and Heck (11pts) also had stellar games vs. SIU. On the season, the sophomores have scored 37 percent (513 points) of UE’s offense, while the four-person junior class leads the team, accounting for 40 percent (547 points).

 

This season the Aces played four non-conference teams that made post-season appearances in 2010. Against those teams, Evansville won three-of-four with wins against Bowling Green (NCAA), Eastern Washington (WNIT), and Butler (WNIT). Their only loss came to Wisconsin-Green Bay (NCAA) who currently sits at 24-1 and is ranked 14th in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll and 17th in the AP Top 25.

 

Offense - Junior Briyana Blair was the story of the game, scoring a career-high 21 points and nine steals as Evansville fell to Bradley, 65-58. Meagan Collins and Stephanie Bamberger each added 11 points.
Defense - Evansville recorded a season-high 22 steals, forcing BU to commit 26 turnovers, compared to UE’s 21.

 

The Aces lead the Valley, averaging 9.8 steals in all games and 10.8 per game against conference foes, led by Briyana Blair’s 3.0 per game, good for first in the MVC. In their last outing vs. SIU, UE recorded 12 steals and scored 21 of its 59 points off turnovers.

 

The Aces average just 14.0 personal fouls per game, which ranks them 14th nationally. In 20-of-23 games, Evansville has been charged with the same amount or less personal fouls than its opponent. The national leader, Wyoming, averages 11.6 personal fouls per game.

 

The Aces have had four different starting lineups this season. Junior forward Chelsea Falkenstein and senior guard Stephanie Bamberger have started all 23 games this season.

 

Samantha Heck and Meagan Collins are the only current Lady Aces with a double-double on their resumes. Heck’s first double-double (16 points, 12 rebounds) against Saint Louis on Dec. 22 marked the first by a UE player since Shannon Novosel tallied 20 points and 10 rebounds at Southern Illinois on March 7, 2009. She also recorded one vs. Illinois State on Jan. 29, with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Collins scored one of her own versus Drake (1/9/10) with 19 points and 11 rebounds.