Eagles Head to Akron for a Cross-Divisional Rematch

Women's Basketball at Akron
Date	Saturday, Jan. 30 \| 2 p.m.
Venue	Akron, Ohio \| James A. Rhodes Arena (5,500)
Game Notes	EMU Notes
Live Stats	Live Stats
Watch	Zips Digital Network
Listen	Eagle All-Access
Twitter	@EMUWBB \| @EMUAthletics

AKRON, Ohio (EMUEagles.com) -- The Eastern Michigan University women's basketball team remains on the road Saturday, Jan. 30, for a Mid-American Conference cross-divisional showdown against the University of Akron. Game time is scheduled for 2 p.m. inside James A. Rhodes Arena in Akron, Ohio.
   Eastern Michigan enters the game with a 13-5 (4-4 MAC) record, after a 67-63 setback at Bowling Green State University, Jan. 27. The Zips, who have dropped their last two contests, are 10-9 (4-4 MAC) following a 75-55 loss to Mid-American Conference leader Ohio University, Jan. 27.
   With the EMU men's basketball team also in action that day, the game will not be broadcast on WEMU (89.1 FM). Instead, fans can catch the game for free on Eagle All-Access (emueagles.com/watch) beginning at 1:50 p.m. with Greg Steiner on the call.

SO WE MEET AGAIN: Eastern Michigan and Akron will tangle on the hardwood for the second time in a 24-day span when they play Saturday, Jan. 30, in Akron, Ohio.
   The contest marks the first home-and-home meeting for the programs since the 1996-97 campaign when each side posted a win on its home court. In the five seasons in which the teams have played twice in the regular season, the Zips have posted sweeps on three occasions.
   The Zips took the initial meeting at the Convocation Center, Jan. 6, as Akron recorded a 68-65 victory in overtime. Eastern led by as many as 12 points in the game, but UA's Anita Brown connected on a three-pointer as the buzzer sounded to force overtime. In the extra frame, UA went to the free throw line 14 times compared to just two for EMU.
   EMU is 7-9 all-time inside the James A. Rhodes Arena.

CONTINUING TO CLIMB THE CHARTS: With a 15 point effort against Bowling Green, Jan. 27, junior Cha Sweeney moved into fourth-place in EMU's career scoring list. The Toledo, Ohio native has as scored 1,513 points moving past Nikki Knapp (2002-06 - 1,511) and Cassie Schrock (2007-11 - 1,506).
   Sweeney ranks 45th nationally in active career points and is second in the MAC behind only Ball State's Nathalie Fontaine (1,885). At her current pace of 17.2 points per game, Sweeney is on track for 2,219 career points which would rank second only to all-time great Tavelyn James (2,470 points).

DEANS TO THE RESCUE!: After totalling just seven points and 19 rebounds in her previous eight contests, junior Sheyna Deans turned arguably her best game as an Eagle at Bowling Green, Jan. 27. In 22 minutes off the bench, she nearly collected a double-double with 10 points on 5-of-9 shooting and nine rebounds. She also added three steals to add to the numbers which were all career-bests.

RALLY AT BGSU JUST A LITTLE TOO LATE: Bowling Green's Lauren Tibbs' layup with 5:25 to play in the fourth quarter gave the Falcons a 60-44 edge at the Stroh Center, Jan. 27, their largest advantage of the contest. With its backs up against the wall, Eastern Michigan responded with a 15-1 run over the next 4:01 to pull within two, 63-61, on a Cha Sweeney layup with 37 seconds to play. The Eagles were a perfect 6-for-6 from the field during the rally while holding BGSU to a free throw and three turnovers. EMU was within a bucket on two occasions in the late stages of the game, but the Falcons responded with points each time to keep the Eagles from having a chance to tie or take the lead.
   BGSU shot a blistering 61.9 percent from the field in the first half, going 13-for-21 from the field to build a 36-24 halftime lead. The Falcons made 7-of-10 shots in the second quarter, including a 5-for-7 effort (71.4%) from three-point range in that period alone. BG went 7-of-11 from long distance in the opening half. Meanwhile, the Falcons' defense allowed Eastern to make just nine total field goals and shoot only 25.7% (9-of-35) in the first 20 minutes.

STRANGE LOOK: For the first time in three years, Eastern Michigan's leading scorer in Mid-American Conference play is not Cha Sweeney. Janay Morton with her 14.3 points per game average has surpassed Sweeney's 13.8 ppg in the first eight league games of the 2015-16 campaign.
   Coincidentally, Morton led the Eagles in scoring in conference play through the first three contests of the 2013-14 season at 15.7 points a game. Sweeney finally overtook her in the next contest at Western Michigan and would not relinquish the top-spot for the next 40 games.

AGAINST AKRON ALL-TIME: Saturday's meeting between the Eagles and the Zips marks the 37th meeting between the squads all-time. Akron holds the upper hand in the series, 20-15, including coming out victorious in the last meeting in Ypsilanti, Jan. 6.
   A year ago, Akron registered a 65-48 home triumph past the Eagles on Jan. 10, 2015, before falling in the quarterfinals of the Mid-American Conference Tournament on March 12, 2015. The Zips own wins in four of the last five games between the teams and seven of the previous 11 encounters in the series.

LAST WIN IN AKRON: EMU has not tasted victory at Rhodes Arena since Jan. 22, 2011. Six consecutive free throws by Tavelyn James over the final 40 seconds sealed Eastern Michigan's 56-51 victory over Akron. James led the Eagles with 17 points on 4-of-11 shooting to go along with 12 points from Sydney Huntley. Cassie Schrock also chipped in 10 points on the afternoon, going 8-for-14 at the free throw stripe. Rachel Tecca paced Akron with 19 points to go along with 18 rebounds in a losing effort. No other Zip reached double figures in points, as they shot just 31 percent (15-of-51) for the contest and 1-of-16 from the long line.

STAYING ABOVE .500: Sitting at 4-4 in Mid-American Conference play the Eagles will need a victory to remain above the .500 mark in league play. Since the calendar has flipped to January Eastern Michigan has alternated wins and losses, but has yet to lose back-to-back games this year.

CMU ON THE HORIZON: After back-to-back road games, the Eagles return home to the Convocation Center Wednesday, Feb. 3, to host in-state rival Central Michigan University. Game time is scheduled for 7 p.m. and will be televised by ESPN3.
   The contest marks the 77th meeting between the Chippewas and Eagles, who first met during the 1976-77 season. CMU leads the overall series, 41-35, but EMU has won 22 of the last 31 meetings dating back to the 2000-01 campaign. EMU posted a decisive 85-64 win over Central Michigan last year at the Convocation Center, Feb. 14, 2015, and followed it up with a 93-86 victory in the regular season finale in Mount Pleasant, March 7, 2015.

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Players Mentioned

Sheyna Deans

Janay Morton

Cha Sweeney

Eastern Michigan Athletics