EVANSVILLE - Following a clean sweep of its three-game season-opening homestand, the University of Evansville women's basketball team takes to the road for the first time with a trip to take on Eastern Illinois at 6 PM on Saturday night in Charleston, Ill.
 

Evansville vs. Eastern Illinois | Sat., Nov. 20 | 6 PM
Site | Location	Lantz Arena | Charleston, Ill.
Links	Live Stats | ESPN+
Follow the Aces	Women's Basketball Site | Twitter

Last Game: Evansville 67, EKU 57

• Continuing its impressive start to the season, the University of Evansville women's basketball team battled and showed intensity on the defensive end in a 67-57 win over Eastern Kentucky on Wednesday night inside the Ford Center in downtown Evansville.
• "I think they just knew that we didn't play our best game in the first half and they knew that we can play better than that and we came out and we just kind of kept building that lead and we gained confidence as it went," said Aces head women's basketball coach Robyn Scherr-Wells. "I'm so proud of our girls. They have worked so hard for this and they're starting to believe. You can see that on the court. We're getting better with each game, so I'm excited with where we're at. We've got a lot of things we've got to grow and get better at, but I'm just really proud of where we're at."
• For the third-straight time to open this season, junior Abby Feit led the way for Evansville offensively, scoring a game-high 18 points on an efficient 8-11 performance from the field, while battling foul trouble for much of the second half. Also finishing in double-figures were seniors A'Niah Griffin (14 points) and Anna Newman (13) both coming off the bench to aid the Aces effort. The Colonels were led by Jayla Johnson on the night, who tallied 14 points for EKU before fouling-out after 22 minutes on the floor.
• The early portions of the game were marked by turnovers as both teams combined for six turnovers inside the first 2:06 of the contest. After the early sloppiness, both teams settled in and Evansville grabbed an early five-point lead at 9-4. Feit dominated the stat sheet early, scoring 14 of Evansville's first 20 points, but its was the Colonels who held the lead on the scoreboard. EKU stretched its lead as large as eight on three separate occasions midway through the second quarter before Evansville began to battle back. On the offensive end, Feit knocked-down a three with 5:44 left in the opening half, which was followed-up by a triple from Griffin that trimmed EKU's advantage to just two. Down the stretch of the second quarter, Newman's offense was key, scoring six points in the final four minutes of the half, helping Evansville retake a two-point advantage at the break.
• To begin the second half, EKU quickly retook the lead on a three by Johnson just 12 seconds in, but the Aces answered 21 seconds later with a triple from Newman to regain UE the lead. Evansville would never look back after taking the lead on Newman's three, but the second half was not without its tense moments. The Colonels kept Evansville within five points or less through much of the third quarter until a stifling defensive effort paid dividends for the Aces late in the period. 
• The Aces limited the Colonels to just 22.9% shooting in the second half, allowing EKU to hit just eight second-half field goals, while Evansville's offense continued to be efficient, shooting 46.2% over the final 20 minutes. Evansville's lead reached its largest point at 16 with less than 90 seconds left in the game before EKU turned-up the pressure late and inched back within 10 in the Aces 67-57 win.
• The win earns Evansville its first 3-0 start since the 1997-98 campaign when UE captured five-straight wins to open the season. Evansville's start marks just the second time in program history that the Aces have won their first three games by double-digits, matching the 1972-73 team coached by Evansville women's sports pioneer Lois Patton that secured double-digit victories over Oakland City, Vincennes, and IU Nurses in program's third season of the modern era.

Previewing the Matchup: Eastern Illinois

• Evansville and Eastern Illinois are meeting for the 18th time in series history with the Panthers owning a 12-5 lead in the all-time series.
• The two sides last met inside Meeks Family Fieldhouse on Nov. 19, 2019 with the Panthers capturing a 90-44 win over UE.
• EIU enters Saturday night's contest with an unbeaten 2-0 record, most recently defeating MVC foe Indiana State, 64-55, on Wednesday night in Terre Haute.
• The Aces 67-57 win over EKU on Wednesday marked their third-straight win to open the season, Evansville's best start since the 1997-98 campaign.
• Evansville is one of just two remaining team in the MVC to still be undefeated, joining Bradley, who is currently 2-0, who made the NCAA Tournament a season ago.
• The Aces first three wins each came by 10-or-more points. An Evansville team has not accomplished this feat since the 1972-73 season when UE women's sports pioneer led the Aces to wins over Oakland City, Vincennes, and IU Nurses in just the third season of the program's modern era.

Myszka Protects the Rim

• It has taken little time for Australian freshman Kodie Myszka to adjust to the American collegiate game.
• Myszka has come off the bench in all three of the Aces games this season and has made an impact in limited minutes.
• Myszka leads the Aces with eight blocks on the season, placing the forward in 18th in the nation in the category and tied for the top spot in the MVC with Missouri State's Jasmine Franklin.

Road Openers

• Evansville looks to reverse its course in road openers in recent history
• The Aces eye their first win in its road opener since 2012-13, last capturing a win in the road opener in a 54-45 triumph over Ball State on Nov. 9, 2012.
• Only two coaches in UE history have won their road openers with Becky Weinenger achieving the feat in 1976 and Tricia Cullop winning her first road game in 2000.

 

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