EVANSVILLE - After spending 10 days without a contest for finals, the University of Evansville women's basketball team looks to continue its momentum when the Aces play host to Oakland City on Wednesday night at 6 PM  in Meeks Family Fieldhouse.
 

Evansville vs. Oakland City | 6 PM
Date | Time	Wed., Dec. 16 | 6 PM
Location	Evansville, Ind.
Site	Meeks Family Fieldhouse
Wed., Dec. 16	Evansville vs. Oakland City
Follow Along	Live Stats | ESPN3
Evansville	Women's Basketball Site | Twitter | Game Notes

Last Time Out: Evansville 70, Purdue Fort Wayne 60

• A pair of 20-point performances led the way for the Aces as sophomore Abby Feit and junior A'Niah Griffin each reached the 20-point plateau on the afternoon.
• Feit added 11 rebounds to her scoring output, marking her 24th double-double in 31 career games.
• Griffin's 20 points came almost exclusively in the second half as the junior recorded 14 points in the third quarter alone in the win.
• Evansville was forced into an early timeout just seconds into the game after Purdue Fort Wayne took a quick 5-0 lead, applying high pressure on the Aces.
• Soon after the timeout, the Aces settled in and began to break the press, bouncing back to tie the game with 1:37 left in the opening quarter.
• Sophomore Jossie Hudson split a pair of free throws and freshman Rylie Stephens knocked-down a jumper to close the quarter and cap-off an 8-0 Evansville run to give the Aces a 16-13 lead after one.
• After the Mastodon's Hannah Hess hit a three to begin the second quarter, Evansville continued its consistent offense, as Feit hit a pair of threes to build a six-point UE lead.
• A key stretch for the Aces occurred midway through the quarter as Evansville went on a 9-0 run that ended in a 31-18 lead for the Aces with 2:35 remaining in the half.
• Entering the final minute of the half, Purdue Fort Wayne hit a three, but senior Jada Poland answered with a layup on the other end to give Evansville a 33-20 lead at the break.
• The third quarter was dominated by the Aces as Evansville saw its lead stay in double digits for most of the period.
• On a pair of free-throws by junior Anna Newman at the 3:15 mark in the quarter, Evansville's lead grew to its largest of the day at 15.
• The spectacular third-quarter performance by Griffin helped the Aces down the stretch as Griffin's two buckets to end the period helped the Aces hold a 12-point lead with 10 minutes to play.
• Evansville built its lead back to 15 in the fourth as Griffin continued her outburst with a layup that gave the Aces a 60-45 lead.
• Purdue Fort Wayne wasn't without one last surge as the Mastodons worked themselves back within single digits and eventually as close as five with 1:38 left to play.
• Key to Evansville's victory was its ability to convert at the free-throw line inside the final minute as the Aces shot 7-of-8 from the charity stripe late to secure the 70-60 win.
• The Aces shot 55.8% from the field in the win, their fourth-best shooting performance from the field under head coach Matt Ruffing.
• Evansville's defense primarily forced the Mastodons to shoot from deep, as Purdue Fort Wayne attempted 47 of its 74 shots from beyond the arc, hitting just eight three-pointers.

Previewing the Matchup

• Evansville and Oakland City are meeting for the 26th time with the Aces owning a 20-5 advantage in the all-time series.
• The Aces captured the last meeting between the two sides during the regular season, 96-59, on Dec. 14, 2017 inside Meeks Family Fieldhouse.
• Evansville and Oakland City met last season in an exhibition contest that the Aces won, 102-41, as Abby Feit scored 32 points and recorded seven rebounds and seven steals.
• Oakland City will have not played a game in nearly a month when they take on the Aces on Dec. 16. The Mighty Oaks last played on Nov. 17, falling to Saint Francis (Ind.) 76-60.
• All but 53 of Oakland City's ,1584 points from last season return for the 2020-21 campaign, including leading scorer Kiare Young, who has scored just two points in two games for the Mighty Oaks so far this season.
• New Oakland City head coach Fakhara Malone is familiar with the Aces program as Malone was Evansville's DOBO during the 2013-14 season, coaching along side then Aces assistant Matt Ruffing.
• This season marks the first for Oakland City in its return to the NAIA and as a member of the River States Conference after 14 years as an independent member of NCAA Division II.

 

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