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EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The University of Evansville women’s basketball will wrap up a three-game homestand Sunday at 1 p.m., when it hosts Missouri Valley Conference opponent Southern Illinois at the Ford Center. 
 
Evansville (3-10, 1-1 MVC) split its first two conference games last week, topping Drake, 68-62, prior to falling to MVC preseason favorite Creighton, 70-63.  Sophomore Mallory Ladd led UE with a pair of double-doubles, including career-high 25 points against the Bluejays, to earn MVC Player of the Week honors, making her the first Evansville player to earn the league’s top weekly honor since Amy Gallagher on Dec. 30, 2009.
 
Ladd opened the week by tallying 16 points and 10 rebounds in the Aces’ win over Drake, before her 25-point, 11-rebound performance in the loss to Creighton.  The Evansville native also connected on all 19 of her free throw attempts, running her streak to 32-straight made free throws, a mark that currently ranks ninth in the MVC record books.  Senior Samantha Heck added 23 points and 13 rebounds in the two-game stint, going 8-for-16 from the floor, including 4-for-7 from behind the arc.
 
As a team, the Aces rank third in the MVC in free throw percentage (74.0%) and are shooting at an 85.3 percent clip from the foul line in their last four games, going 58-for-68 at the charity stripe.  UE also ranks third in the league in three-point field goals with 91, an average of 7.0 per game.
 
Ladd has recorded double-doubles in all four of her games for Evansville and leads the Aces in scoring (15.5 ppg), rebounding (10.5 rpg) and free throw percentage (97.0%).  Heck is averaging 14.1 points and 7.8 rebounds per outing and has been UE’s top shooter, hitting 45.8 percent of her shots from the field.  Redshirt sophomore Khristian Hart is also averaging in double figures at 12.8 points per game and has tallied a team-high 16 steals.
 
Southern Illinois (4-9, 1-1 MVC) got off to a slow start to the season, going 1-8 in its first nine contests, but the Salukis have won three of their last four, including a 77-70 win over MVC foe Drake last Saturday in Carbondale, Ill.  SIU sank a school-record 15 three-pointers in its win over the Bulldogs and were led by Rishonda Napier, who finished the game with 19 points.  Jordyn Courier added 16 points off the bench, Cartaesha Macklin dropped in 13 and Azia Washington led all players with 14 rebounds.
 
SIU is allowing a league-worst 74.9 points per game and rank last in the league in turnover margin at -5.62, just behind the Aces, who rank ninth at -5.46.  In addition, Southern Illinois is shooting just 63.9 percent from the free throw line, a mark that ranks ninth in the Valley.  However, the Salukis are currently third in the league with 14.0 offensive rebounds per game and fourth in the MVC in three-pointers made per game at 5.7.
 
Macklin, the reigning MVC Freshman of the Year, is averaging 14.2 points per game to lead Southern Illinois and has dished out a team-high 52 assists, a mark that ranks her third in the conference.  Dyana Pierre ranks second in the MVC in rebounding with a team-best 9.0 boards per outing and is tied for the conference lead in blocks with 18.  Napier is averaging in double figures at 11.3 points per contest and leads the Salukis with a 37.9 percent three-point field goal percentage (25-for-66).
 
Southern Illinois returns six letterwinners and three starters from last year’s team that finished 8-22 overall and finished ninth in the Valley with a 4-14 mark in league play.  The Salukis were tabbed to finish eighth in this year’s MVC Preseason Poll and are under the direction of head coach Missy Tiber, who is 19-83 in her fourth season at SIU and owns a career record of 186-153 in her 12-year coaching career.
 
Evansville has met Southern Illinois more than any other opponent in program history and will face the Salukis for the 46th time Sunday at the Ford Center.  SIU owns a slim, 23-22 advantage in the all-time series and won both meetings with the Aces last season. 
 
Following its game with the Salukis, UE will hit the road for the first time in Valley play.  Evansville will head to Normal, Ill., for a 7:05 p.m. contest with Illinois State Thursday, Jan. 17, before traveling to Terre Haute, Ind., for a meeting with Indiana State Saturday, Jan. 19 at 1:05 p.m.