Women's Hoops Wraps Up Homestand Monday, Dec. 12, Against Monmouth

Women's Basketball vs. Monmouth
Date	Monday, Dec. 12 \| 7 p.m.
Venue	Ypsilanti, Mich. \| Convocation Center (8,784)
Preview Info	EMU Notes
Live Stats	Fan Stats \| Media Stats
Watch	ESPN3
Listen	WEMU 89.1 FM
Twitter	@EMUWBB \| @EMUAthletics
Tickets	Order Tickets Online or call 734.487.2282 \| Clear Bag Policy

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University women's basketball team wraps up a three-game homestand Monday night, Dec. 12, when it plays host to the Monmouth University Hawks. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m. inside the Convocation Center.
   The Eagles (4-5, 0-0 MAC) welcome the Hawks to Ypsilanti after defeating St. Bonaventure, 75-56, at home, Dec. 9. Meanwhile, Monmouth (4-5, 0-2 MAAC) makes the trek west after posting its second consecutive win, Dec. 10, as the Hawks took down Fairleigh Dickinson, 72-63, at home.
   The contest will be shown on ESPN3, where Ryan Wooley and Sean Hostetter will provide coverage. Additionally, WEMU (89.1 FM) will have the game covered with Chad Bush and Greg Steiner calling the action on the court.

HISTORIC CROWD ON HAND: A season-high 3,905 were on hand to witness EMU's 75-56 win over St. Bonaventure Friday afternoon, Dec. 9. The attendance mark ranks as the second-most in single game history for a women's game at the Convocation Center. It was also the highest figure in program history in a game that was not part of a doubleheader with the EMU men's basketball team.

HOME COURT ADVANTAGE: The Eagles have racked up a solid home-court advantage inside the friendly confines of the Convocation Center since the doors opened during the 1998-99 campaign. Eastern Michigan has won 74 of the last 99 home games dating back to the 2008-09 season. The Green and White have won 68.0 percent of the contests played in the building, piling up a 168-79 all-time mark.

YOU GET A THREE, AND YOU GET A THREE, EVERYBODY GETS A THREE: In Eastern Michigan's win over St. Bonaventure, a season-high five Eagles connected on shots from distance, as the Green and White converted 10-of-20 three-point attempts. Phillis Webb hit four, Micah Robinson and Sasha Dailey added two apiece, and Esabelle Levine and Sheyna Deans chipped in one each. The five marked the most players to knock down a triple since Jan. 26, 2014 when the Eagles went 10-of-27 from three-point range in a 101-79 loss to Akron.

MATCHING UP WITH MONMOUTH: Monday night's showdown on the hardwood between Eastern Michigan and Monmouth will mark just the third meeting between the two squads all-time. The Eagles hold the upperhand in the series, having won each of the previous two games against the Hawks. EMU won the first contest, 64-53, back during the 2013-14 campaign in its second game of the Stony Brook Tournament, Dec. 22, 2013. More recently however, the Green and White topped the Hawks, 78-68, Dec. 10, 2015, in West Long Branch, N.J. Eastern Michigan used a pair of 20+ point performances, including a 20 point-11 rebound effort from Phillis Webb to come away with the 10-point victory.

EMU AGAINST THE MAAC: EMU owns a 14-4 record against the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference all-time. Eastern Michigan has taken on seven of the Edison, N.J. based conference's 11 members.
   The Eagles trail in the all-time series against St. Peter's, 2-0, but hold advantages against six other opponents. The Green and White's most common MAAC opponent is Canisius as the two squads have battled on the hardwood a total of eight times with the Eagles owning a 6-2 edge all-time. Meanwhile, Eastern is undefeated against Marist (1-0), Monmouth (2-0), Niagara (3-0), and Siena (2-0).

ROBINSON'S FINDS HER STRIDE: Junior Micah Robinson broke the 20-point plateau for the first time in her career, Dec. 9, against St. Bonaventure, pouring in a career-high 21 points in the Eagles 75-56 victory. The Ann Arbor, Mich. product finished the game 4-of-9 from the field, including 2-of-5 from three, and went 11-for-13 at the charity stripe. Robinson rounded out her stat line with four assists, two rebounds, and a steal in 38 minutes of work. The win over the Bonnies marked the first time in Robinson's Eagle career that she led the team in scoring.

LIGHTS OUT: The Eagles turned in one of their best offensive performances of the season Friday afternoon, Dec. 9, against St. Bonavenure. The Green and White converted 25-of-59 shots, finishing the contest with the second-high field goal percentage of the season (42.4). EMU's hot shooting featured its best three-point performance of the year, as Eastern knocked down 50 percent of its shots from beyond the arc. The 10 made triples tied a season-high and were spread out amongst five players. The Eagles sharp shooting extended to the free throw line, where EMU went 15-of-19 for a season-best 78.9 percentage from the stripe.

EARLY INDICATORS OF SUCCESS: Through the first nine games of the season several things have become indicators of Eastern Michigan's success. The Eagles are 3-1 this season when holding a lead at halftime, compared to 1-4 when trailing or tied. EMU is also just 1-4 when shooting less than 70 percent from the free throw line. Conversely, the Green and White is 3-1 when shooting above 70 percent, and has converted 75.6 percent of its shots from the charity stripe in those three games, compared to 62.3 percent of its attempts in its other five contests. Additionally, Eastern Michigan is winless, 0-4, when allowing 60-or-more points.

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. 11. Let's take a look...
   Player   Category   Rank   Number
   Micah Robinson   Minutes played per game   1st   36.7 (22nd nationally)
   Phillis Webb   Defensive rebounds per game   1st   7.0 (24th nationally)
   Sasha Dailey   Points per game   2nd   20.2 (25th nationally)
   Sasha Dailey   Field goals attempted   2nd   150 (26th nationally)
   Sasha Dailey   Field goals made   1st   65 (33rd nationally)
   EMU   Rebounds per game   4th   43.3 (44th nationally)
   EMU   Three Pt FG Defense   1st   27.0 (44th nationally)
   Sasha Dailey   3-Point FG Percentage   4th   44.4 (52nd nationally)
   EMU    Turnovers per game   3rd   14.1 (57th nationally)
   EMU   Rebounds   3rd   390 (57th nationally)
   Micah Robinson   Free throws made   2nd   36 (69th nationally)
   Phillis Webb   Free throw percentage   5th   85.7 (73rd nationally)
   Sasha Dailey   Free throws made   5th   34 (111th nationally)

RUNNIN' THE FLOOR: Through nine games, the Eagles have showcased their ability to get out in transition and take advantage of numbers, as EMU has outscored opponents 77-32 in fastbreak points this season.

WEBB WORKS HER WAY UP THE LIST: With 10 points and 12 rebounds in EMU's loss to Detroit Mercy, senior Phillis Webb notched her second double-double of the season, and seventh of her career, moving her into sole possession of 10th all-time in EMU laurels. Sarah VanMetre and Olivia Fouty are tied atop the list, holding the program standard of 17 career double-doubles.

ROBINSON EMBRACING HER NEW ROLE: After spending her first two seasons serving as the Eagles back-up point guard and amassing just 376 minutes of playing time, Micah Robison has embraced her new role in her junior season. Taking on the responsibilities of the Green and White's primary ball handler, Robinson has thrived for Eastern this season. Averaging a team-high 36.7 minutes per game, Robinson has scored 102 points, 59 more than her career point total coming into the season. Additionally, the Ann Arbor product has posted career-highs in free throws made (36), field goals (31), and rebounds (53).

CLIMBING THE RANKS: Senior Phillis Webb came into her final season ranked 21st in Eastern Michigan history with 509 rebounds. This season, Webb has grabbed 70 boards, moving her into a tie for 17th-place with 579 caroms. Nikki Knapp holds the program record with 802 career rebounds, while Webb is three boards behind Sheryl Mullice for 16th-place on the all-time list.

LAST TIME OUT: The Eagles enter the Monday night match up against Monmouth after bouncing back with a 75-56 victory over St. Bonaventure Friday afternoon, Dec. 9. Junior Micah Robinson had a career-high 21 points to lead all scorers. In addition to the career-high, Robinson also notched four assists, and finished a career-best 11-of-13 from the line. Also in double figures for EMU were seniors Sheyna Deans and Phillis Webb who finished with 16 and 14 points, respectively. Deans was one rebound shy of the double-double, finishing with a team-high nine boards, while junior Sasha Dailey had a season-high five assists and nine points.

CASHING IN ON SECOND CHANCE OPPORTUNITIES: The Eagles have totaled 390 rebounds through eight games, including 125 boards that came on the offensive end of the floor. EMU has made the most of its second chance opportunities, cashing them in for 106 points.

WEBB WORKING TOWARDS 1,000 POINT MARK: Senior Phillis Webb stands 230 points short of the 1,000-point mark in her final season donning the Green and White. Webb amassed 677 points for her career through her first three seasons, and has scored 99 points so far this year. If Webb eclipses four-digits, she will become the 21st player in program history to score at least 1,000 points during their career.

ON THE HORIZON: Eastern Michigan hits the road for the first time this month after Monday night's tilt against Monmouth when it travels to West Lafayette, Ind., Dec. 17, for a clash with Big Ten Conference opponent, Purdue. The game is slated for 4 p.m.

Women's Hoops Wraps Up Homestand Monday, Dec. 12, Against Monmouth

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Players Mentioned

Sasha Dailey

Sheyna Deans

Esabelle Levine

Micah Robinson

Phillis Webb

Eastern Michigan Athletics