Pink is the New Green Saturday at the Convo

Women's Basketball vs. Western Michigan
Date	Saturday, Feb. 6 \| 2 p.m.
Venue	Ypsilanti, Mich. \| Convocation Center (8,784)
Game Notes	EMU Notes
Live Stats	Fan Stats \| Media Stats
Watch	ESPN3
Listen	N/A
Twitter	@EMUWBB \| @EMUAthletics
Tickets	Order Tickets Online or call 734.487.2282

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) -- In association with the Kay Yow Cancer Fund's Play4Kay initiative and its continuing mission of raising awareness and funds for breast cancer research and treatment, the Eastern Michigan University women's basketball team will hold its annual pink game Saturday, Feb. 6, when the Eagles welcome Mid-American Conference West Division foe Western Michigan University to the Convocation Center. Tip off is scheduled for 2:04 p.m. and will be televised on ESPN3.
The Eagles enter the game with a mark of 13-8 (4-6 MAC), after a 66-65 heartbreaking setback to rival Central Michigan University, Feb. 3. Meanwhile, the Broncos are 13-9 (5-5 MAC) following an 80-68 defeat at the University of Toledo, Feb. 3.

PINK IS THE NEW GREEN!: Fans that wear pink will be granted admission for just $3, while all EMU Kids Club Members will receive free admission to Saturday's game. There will be a silent auction to benefit the Kay Yow Cancer Fund in which fans can bid on Adidas gear, EMU memorabilia, season tickets, and much more. Additionally, a Kids Fan Fair will take place from 1 to 2 p.m. in the atrium where children can participate in activities led by members of the EMU women's teams and get autographs from student-athletes.
   In her 34-year tenure at North Carolina State, the late Kay Yow became the first coach to win two Olympic gold medals, guided her teams to 20 NCAA Tournaments and was inducted into 11 Halls of Fame. However, Coach Yow's legacy in the community extends far beyond the basketball court. Yow founded the Kay Yow Cancer Fund in 2007 before passing away in 2009 after her 22-year battle with breast cancer.

SNAP THE SKID: For the first time since Jan. 3-14, 2015, the Eagles have fallen in back-to-back-to-back games with tight losses at Bowling Green, Jan. 27, and Akron, Jan. 30, and home versus Central Michigan, Feb. 3. Just over a year ago, the Green and White fell to Northern Illinois, (L, 54-83), Akron (L, 48-65), and Ohio (L, 59-82) to open Mid-American Conference play.
   The razor-thin line between triumph and tragedy is just a combined eight points during the three-game skid. In total, EMU has forced 47 turnovers but has missed 34 layups in the trio of contests that could have changed the course of the games to the total of 68 points.

FINDING SOME CONSISTENCY: #MACtion has not been kind to Eastern Michigan in the early stages of conference play, as EMU has dropped six of its nine conference games. In those tightly-contested battles, the Eagles have dropped four of them by a combined total of 11 points. EMU had a pair of 12 point leads against Akron, but on each occasion lost by three points. The Green and White also mounted a late rally from 16 points down at Bowling Green before suffering a four-point setback. Most recently, Eastern fell to Central Michigan, 66-65, despite a final frantic nail-biting two minutes that featured several missed shots, turnovers and blocks - the last of which was delivered as time expired.
   In the five MAC losses, EMU is averaging 63.8 points while shooting just 34.4 percent from the field. Meanwhile, the opposition has averaged 9.2 three-pointers while shooting 42.3 percent overall.

ALL-TIME WITH WMU: Saturday's matinee with in-state rival Western Michigan marks the 79th meeting between the Eagles and Broncos, who first played during the 1976-77 campaign. Eastern leads the all-time series by a count of 45-33, and has won 17 of the last 22 meetings. The two squads split last year's series, with the Eagles coming away with a win most recently. The Green and White secured a 74-65 win over the Broncos, March 4, 2015, inside the Convocation Center. Cha Sweeney led all scorers with 30 points while Brianna Puni and Jamaica Bucknor combined to add 19 points and 14 rebounds on senior day.

OLD FACES IN NEW PLACES: Western Michigan Head Coach Shane Clipfell spent nine seasons as an assistant coach at Eastern Michigan, and was the acting head coach for most of the 2006-07 season when then-Head Coach Suzy Merchant was on maternity leave.
    While serving as the acting head coach at EMU for a majority of the 2006-07 season, he guided the Eagles to a 16-13 overall record and a 10-6 finish in the MAC, good for second place in the West Division. Individually, Sarah VanMetre became the first women's basketball player in program history to be named Academic All-American, Patrice McKinney was named MAC Defensive Player of the Year and Alyssa Pittman was named the MAC Freshman of the Year.

DEANS TO THE RESCUE!: After totalling just seven points and 19 rebounds in her previous eight contests, junior Sheyna Deans has turned in her three best games as an Eagle at Bowling Green, Jan. 27, and Akron, Jan. 30, as well as at home versus Central Michigan, Feb. 3. In 22 minutes off the bench at BGSU, she nearly collected a double-double with 10 points on 5-of-9 shooting with nine rebounds and three steals. Against the Chippewas she registered a career-best 16 points to go along with a team-high seven rebounds and two steals.

EAGLES DROP HEARTBREAKER VERSUS CMU: Eastern carried a three-point advantage into the second half against Central Michigan, Feb. 3, but a 30-point quarter by the visitors proved to be too much to overcome. Approaching the the three-minute mark of the third period, the Eagles had stretched their lead to double-digits, tying the largest of the game. Unfortunately for the Green and White, CMU went on to convert six straight shots to close out the quarter and take a 52-49 lead into the final 10 minutes of play. The Eagles regained the lead on free throws by junior Sheyna Deans before Central leveled the score at 63. A layup by graduate transfer Chanise Baldwin put Eastern in front, 65-63, with 2:46 left on the clock. EMU's lead lasted just 30 seconds as CMU's Presley Hudson knocked down a three-ball to regain the lead. The Chippewas never relinquished the advantage, despite a series of chances by the Eagles in the closing minute.

COUGHING UP THE BALL: Despite coming out on the wrong end of a 66-65 ledger against Central Michigan, Feb. 3, the Eagles forced the Chippewas into 25 turnovers, the most by the Chips this season. Additionally, the 25 forced miscues ranks as the most EMU has forced a Division I opponent into this season. Eastern forced NAIA opponent, Madonna, into 32 when the teams met back in December, before forcing 23 Toledo turnovers a few weeks ago.

THIRD QUARTER THORN: The third quarter has been a shaky one for the Eagles this season, in fact it is the only frame in which the Green and White have been outscored. Opponents hold a 388-360 edge over EMU in the third period this season. Specifically in MAC losses, the Green and White has been outscored 115-97.

AGAINST IN-STATE SCHOOLS: Eastern Michigan has had great success against other collegiate programs in the state of Michigan over the past 12 seasons. Since the beginning of the 2002-03 season, the Eagles are 61-27 (69.3 winning percentage) against in-state rivals.

MAC TOURNAMENT OUTLOOK: With the 2016 MAC Basketball Tournament quickly approaching, it is time to gaze into the crystal ball to see where the Eagles could possibly end up to begin conference tournament play. If the regular season ended today, Eastern would be the No. 8 seed for the tournament, hosting No. 9-seeded Miami for a first round contest set to take place March 7. For a complete MAC Tournament outlook, please check page 11 of these notes.

ON THE HORIZON: After a mid-week break, the Eagles return to the court, Saturday, Feb. 13, when they travel to the Buckeye State for a Mid-American Conference cross-divisional clash with Miami. Tipoff is slated for 2 p.m. inside Millett Hall in Oxford, Ohio. Eastern then remains on the road when it treks to Buffalo for a rematch with the Bulls, Feb. 17.

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Players Mentioned

Chanise Baldwin

Jamaica Bucknor

Sheyna Deans

Brianna Puni

Cha Sweeney

Eastern Michigan Athletics