Eagles Head to Harvard Tuesday

Women's Basketball at Harvard
Date	Tuesday, Dec. 8 \| 7 p.m.
Venue	Lavietes Pavillion \| Cambridge, Mass.
Game Notes	EMU Notes
Live Stats	GoCrimson.com
Watch	Ivy League Digital Network (online)
Listen	N/A
Twitter	@EMUWBB \| @EMUAthletics

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) -- With final exams on the horizon, the Eastern Michigan University women's basketball team returns to the court Tuesday, Dec. 8, for a non-conference road contest against Harvard University. Game time is set for 7 p.m. at Lavietes Pavilion.
   Harvard enters the game with a 4-4 record following a 74-65 defeat at at Florida Gulf Coast University Saturday, Dec. 5. Meanwhile, Eastern is 4-2 overall following a 1-1 weekend in Colorado with a win over Air Force (72-59) and loss to Abilene Christian (83-59).

THE COUNTDOWN TO 1,000 IS NEARLY COMPLETE: Junior Janay Morton has scored 980 points in her career and is 21st all-time for EMU. There are currently 19 players in the 1,000-point club for EMU women's basketball, including junior Cha Sweney, who joined the elite group last season.
   When Morton reaches 1,000 she and Sweeney will become just the fourth EMU combo of millennium scorers to play together. Laurie Byrd and Denise Allen first accomplished the feat during the 1981-82 campaign, Ryan Coleman and Nikki Knapp followed it up in 2005-06, and most recently Tavelyn James and Paige Reddit did so in 2011-12.

ALL-TIME AGAINST HARVARD: Tuesday's contest completes a home-and-home agreement between EMU and Harvard which began in the 2012-13 campaign when the Crimson visited Ypsilanti. Harvard holds the 1-0 edge in the all-time series after it posted a 67-63 victory at the Convocation Center, Nov. 24, 2012. In that game, Eastern had three four players in double-figures, led by Olivia Fouty with 20 points and eight rebounds.

AGAINST THE IVY LEAGUE: Eastern Michigan has clashed with an Ivy League institution six times in program history. Holding a 3-3 mark against the Princeton, N.J. based conference, Eastern Michigan has been most successful against Cornell (2-1) while also adding a win over Columbia. On the flip side, the Eagles hold 0-1 records against both Princeton and Harvard.

GETTING TO KNOW THE CRIMSON: The Crimson return home to Lavietes Pavillion for the first time since Nov. 24 and the last time until Jan. 23. Welcoming the Eagles to Cambridge, Mass. amid a stretch in which Harvard plays 8-of-9 games on the road, the Crimson look to get back on track after falling in their last two outings. A pair of seniors have led the Crimson so far this season in AnnMarie Healy and Shilpa Tummala. A 6-foot-1 forward, Healy leads Harvard in points per game (14.4) and ranks second on the team with 5.1 rebounds per contest. Tummala, a 5-foot-11 guard, leads the Crimson with 6.2 rebounds per game while adding a 13.0 points. In addition to being one of the team's best on-ball defenders, Tummala has also proven to be a threat from three-point range, knocking down 40.5 percent of her shots from downtown.

BALDWIN NAMD TO ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM: Graduate transfer Chanise Baldwin was named to the all-tournament team at the Air Force Tournament for her efforts in the Eagles' 1-1 weekend. The 6-foot-3 center averaged 8.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and. 2.0 steals on the weekend.

SCORING OFF THE BENCH: Head Coach Tory Verdi used everyone at his disposal this weekend as all 12 Eagles that made the trip west saw time on the hardwood. The second wave of Eagles made the most of their opportunities, combing for 41 points on the weekend. Led by the contributions of senior Chanise Baldwin, sophomore Sasha Dailey served as a scorer at guard off the bench. Dailey averaged 8.0 points over the weekend, highlighted by a 12-point showing against Air Force, Dec. 4.

THREE-POINT THREAT HEATING UP: Senior Sera Ozelci knocked down a season-best four three-pointers in Eastern's loss to Abilene Christian, Dec. 5. The Ankara, Turkey product has hit three-or-more triples in three of the Eagles' five games this season. One of the Eagles' biggest threats from beyond the arc, Ozelci has converted 14-of-33 or 42.4 percent of her shots from downtown this season.

CLEANING UP ON THE GLASS: The Eagles owned the glass in the Rocky Mountain state, outrebounding their opponents 94-83 in two games as part of the Air Force Tournament. Eastern corralled a season-high 50 boards against Abilene Christian, Dec. 5, including 25 offensive rebounds. While senior Chanise Baldwin has been a force on the glass all season, seniors Rachel Kehoe and Sera Ozelci posted season-highs over the weekend. Kehoe registered nine caroms in the Eagles game against Abilene Christian while Ozelci led the Eagles with 11 boards in a 72-59 win over Air Force.

A LOOK AT THE CONFERENCE LEADERS: Eastern Michigan has positioned itself near the top of multiple statistical categories in the Mid-American Conference as of Dec. 5. Let's take a look...
   Player   Category   Rank   Number
   EMU   Fewest Turnovers   1st   77 (14th nationally)
   EMU   Offensive Rebounds Per Game   1st   17 (22nd nationally)
   EMU   Turnovers Per Game   1st   12.8 (22nd nationally)
   EMU   Turnovers Margin   1st   +4.5 (44th nationally)
   EMU   Rebounds Per Game   2nd   44.5 (35th nationally)
   EMU   Fewest Fouls   2nd   97 (46th nationally)
   EMU   Assist Turnover Ratio   2nd   1.03 (65th nationally)
   EMU   Steals Per Game   3rd   9.7 (83rd nationally)
   EMU   Scoring Offense   4th   74.5 (65th nationally)
   Janay Morton   Steals   1st   20 (46th nationally)
   Janay Morton   Steals Per Game   1st   3.3 (17th nationally)
   Janay Morton   Assist Turnover Ratio   2nd   +2.2 (69th nationally)
   Chanise Baldwin   Rebounds Per Game   2nd   8.2 (142nd nationally)
   Cha Sweeney   Field Goal Attempts   3rd   116 (44th nationally)
   Sera Ozelci   Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage   3rd   42.4 (74th nationally)

ROAD TRIPPIN': Following Tuesday's contest the Eagles will continue their five-game road trip with a visit to West Long Branch, N.J. to play Monmouth University, Dec. 10. The 263-mile trip will mark the teams final stop on an eight day journey that started with a pair of games at the Air Force Classic in Colorado. In total, EMU will have logged more than 4,251 miles before it returns home to Ypsilanti.

CATCHING THE EAGLES OUT EAST: Neither WEMU nor Eagle All-Access will be making the trip east to broadcast the games at Harvard, Dec. 8 or Monmouth, Dec. 10. Fans wanting to follow the Eagles can find live stats and links to the video broadcasts from each respective school.

SWIPER KEEPS SWIPING: Through Eastern Michigan's first six contests, junior Janay Morton ranks 17th in the nation in steals per game, tallying 3.3 swipes per contest. The Brooklyn Park, Minn. product recorded a career-high seven steals against Texas Rio Grande Valley (Nov. 21) while adding three against Hillsdale (Nov. 17), No. 11/12 Kentucky (Nov. 25) and Air Froce (Dec. 4).    Morton trails the nation's leader, Ashley Deary (Northwestern), who is posting 4.86 thefts per contest.

IN THE ZONE: The 2-3 zone has became an Eastern Michigan staple under the direction of Head Coach Tory Verdi and for good reason. Through six games this season the Eagles' stout defensive effort has caused opponents fits, forcing them into 17.3 turnovers per game. Additionally, the Green and White swipe 9.7 steals per contest while holding a +4.5 turnover margin.

ON THE HORIZON: After an early week bout with Harvard, the Eagles will travel down the east coast to West Branch, N.J. for a Thursday night clash with Monmouth. The game will be the first time EMU Assistant Coach Carly Thibault faces off against her alma mater since graduating in 2013.     The native of East Lyme, Conn., enjoyed a strong collegiate career at the Northeast Conference school from 2009-13. Thibault was a prominent player from beyond the arc, finishing third in program history with 166 field goals made for her career. Thibault shot nearly 37 percent for her career from three-point range, including 40 percent as a junior and a career-best 44 (.439) percent to highlight her senior year. Highlighting her career was an All-NEC Third Team selection in 2013 and the 2012 Team Coaches' Award.

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Players Mentioned

Chanise Baldwin

Sasha Dailey

Rachel Kehoe

Janay Morton

Sera Ozelci

Cha Sweeney

Eastern Michigan Athletics