EMU Hits Road for MAC Crossover Clash Against Akron

Women's Basketball at Akron
Date	Wednesday, Jan. 16 \| 7 p.m.
Venue	Akron, Ohio \| James A. Rhodes Arena (5,000)
Preview Info	EMU Notes
Live Stats	Live Stats
Watch	ESPN+
Listen	WEMU 89.1 FM
Twitter	@EMU WBB \| @EMUAthletics

AKRON, Ohio (EMUEagles.com) - Returning to the road for another Mid-American Conference cross-divisional contest, the Eastern Michigan University women's basketball team travels to Akron, Ohio, to take on the University of Akron Wednesday night, Jan. 16. Tipoff inside James A. Rhodes Arena is scheduled for 7 p.m.
   Eastern (8-6, 1-2 MAC) is coming off its first conference win of the year following a thrilling 64-61 win at home over Western Michigan University, Jan. 12. Akron (11-3, 2-1 MAC) has won six of its last seven and is out to a 2-1 start to MAC play, most recently besting Bowling Green State University, 74-71, Jan. 12.
   The game will be broadcast on ESPN+, while Chad Bush and Katie Gonzales will also have the call on WEMU 89.1FM. Additional coverage can be found by following @EMUWBB on Twitter, and through live stats at EMUEagles.com.

PUTTING THE GAME ON ICE: Trailing 61-59, the Eagles picked up the first of two crucial stops against Western Michigan when freshman Jenna Annecchiarico drew a charge with 1:06 left in regulation. On EMU's next possession, Danielle Minott knocked down her fourth triple of the final frame to give the Eagles a 62-61 lead with 47 seconds on the clock. The Broncos' next possession ended on a shot clock violation with 15 seconds remaining, before Annecchiarico sank a pair of free throws in the waning seconds to seal a three-point win.

WHAT A WEEK: Danielle Minott put together a sensational week of games for the Eagles, Jan. 9-12. Minott averaged 34.0 points, 11.5 rebounds, three steals, one assist, and one block per game to pace the Eagles on both ends of the floor.
   For her career, Minott now holds the top two single game scoring marks, and is one of two Eagles to have multiple 40-point performances during their Eastern Michigan career. Additionally, she moved into 16th all-time in career double-doubles and is the active team leader.

FINDING HER GROOVE: Kiara Johnson has raised her game in the Eagles' past two contests, averaging a near double-double with 9.0 points and 8.0 rebounds per game. After grabbing a then-career-best seven rebounds against Buffalo, Jan. 9, Johnson followed it up with 15 points and nine rebounds against Western Michigan, Jan. 12. Not only were both career-highs, but Johnson's 15 points were more than she produced in her previous six games combined.

DOUBLE-DOUBLE DEE: Danielle Minott followed up her record-setting double-double against Buffalo, Jan. 9, with a 25-point, 11-rebound double-double versus Western Michigan, Jan. 12. She is now the active team leader with four career double-doubles, as well as the first Eagle with back-to-back double-doubles since Emoni Jackson did so against Western Michigan (13 pts.-15 reb.), Jan. 17, 2018 and at Northern Illinois (13 pts.-15-rebs.), Jan. 20, 2018.

FREE THROWS - THE GOOD AND THE BAD: The Eagles are one of the best in the conference at getting to the free throw line, ranking fourth in the league and 138th nationally with 280 free throw attempts. Unfortunately, EMU has not been able to cash in on its chances at the charity stripe, converting just 163 of its attempts. Eastern's free throw percentage sits at 58.2 percent on the season, the lowest mark in the MAC and the 245th-worst in the country.

EMU AND AKRON ALL-TIME: Wednesday's meeting between the Eagles and the Zips marks the 39th meeting between the squads all-time. Akron holds the upper hand in the series, 23-15, and has won four straight over EMU, as well as 10 of the last 13 meetings.
A year ago, the Zips held off the Eagles, 77-65, inside the Convocation Center, Feb. 11. Eastern Michigan led by three after one quarter, but a 29-point second frame by Akron was too much for the Eagles to overcome in the second half. Courtnie Lewis scored a team-best 19 points and six rebounds, while Sasha Dailey added 17 points and seven boards.

LAST WIN OVER THE ZIPS: Eastern Michigan is in search of its first win over Akron since the 2014-15 season. That year, the Green and White bounced the No. 3-seeded Zips in the MAC Tournament Quarterfinals, 95-66, behind five double-digit performances.
Cha Sweeney scored 24 point and dished out five assists to lead the way. Sera Ozelci and Jamaica Bucknor added 17 points apiece and each knocked down five triples for the Green and White. The final two Eagles to nab double-digit points were Janay Morton and Brianna Puni who added 11 and 10 points, respectively. Morton capped off the contest with a career-best 10 assists.

LAST WIN IN AKRON: EMU has not tasted victory at James A. 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.

SO MUCH FOR CHARITY: Free throws have been anything but free for the Eagles this season. The Green and White connect on just 58.7 percent of its shots from the charity stripe and boast the worst FT percentage in the league. In five of its six losses, missed free throws have been the difference, as EMU's margin of defeat could have been made up at the charity stripe (L at Illinois, 66-72 - 11-of-20 - (-9); L, vs. UNCG, 44-49 - 12-of-18 (-6); L, vs. Butler, 63-73 - 16-of-29 (-13); L, at Kent State, 64-71 - 8-of-19 - (-11); LOT, vs. Buffalo, 84-91 - 17-of-27 (-10)).

YONNIE OR LAUREL? WE SAY YONNIE!: Corrione Cardwell's work this offseason is paying dividends for the Eagles this season as the redshirt sophomore finds herself amid a career-year.
   For the season, Cardwell is averaging a career-best 13.8 points per game, more than a 10-point improvement over last season's mark of 3.7. Cardwell has seen her field goal percentage improve from 36.7 percent to 45.5, while she has already made seven triples after going 0-for-8 from the long line in 2017-18. Her rebounding average is up from 1.7 per game to 4.0. Moreover, Cardwell scored 108 points all of last season, a mark she surpassed nine games into the campaign.

HELPING HAND: Freshman Jenna Annecchiarico has embraced the role of floor general to the tune of 4.1 assists per game, the ninth-best mark in the MAC. Moreover, the Baldwin, N.Y. native leads the conference, while ranking 19th nationally, with a 2.71 assist to turnover ratio, and is one of three freshmen to rank in the NCAA's top-50 (32. Chloe Jackson, Baylor; 50. Mikayla Markham, Columbia).

GETTING AFTER IT ON DEFENSE: Eastern Michigan's high intensity defense has caused opponents fits this season as the Eagles have forced the opposition into 20+ turnovers seven times, while picking their pockets 10+ times in seven of their 14 games. EMU's 9.1 steals per game are the third-most in the MAC, as well as the 104th-best nationally. Meanwhile, Eastern is turning opponents over 19.14 times per game, the fourth-highest mark in the conference and the 65th-best in the country.

ANOTHER YEAR OF #MACtion: The Green and White's 2018-19 campaign marks the 38th season Eastern Michigan will compete as a member of the Mid-American Conference. Having been a member of the Cleveland, Ohio-based league since the 1981-82 campaign, EMU has compiled a 274-350 record against conference opponents all-time.

RESPECT THE GAME: The MAC proved how strong of a league it was a year ago as both Central Michigan and Buffalo advanced to the Sweet Sixteen of the 2018 NCAA Tournament. This year has not been any different as CMU, UB, and Ohio have each received votes in the top-25, while four teams are currently ranked in the Mid-Major Top-25 - No. 3 Ohio, No. 5 Central Michigan, No. 9 Buffalo, and No. 21 Toledo.

ON THE HORIZON: Eastern wraps up a two-game roadtrip Saturday, Jan. 18, as the Green and White treks to Athens, Ohio for a MAC cross-divisional tilt against Ohio University. Tipoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.

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Players Mentioned

Jenna Annecchiarico

Corrione Cardwell

Sasha Dailey

Emoni Jackson

Kiara Johnson

Courtnie Lewis

Danielle Minott

Eastern Michigan Athletics