Eastern Michigan Athletics

Eagles Travel to Bowling Green for Wednesday Women's Hoops Matchup
2/10/2020 11:24:00 AM | Women's Basketball
EMU looks to notch a program-record fifth-consecutive victory over the Falcons
Women's Basketball at Bowling Green | |
Date | Wednesday, Feb. 12 | 7 p.m. |
Venue | Bowling Green, Ohio | Stroh Center |
Preview Info | EMU Notes |
Live Stats | Fan Stats | Media Stats |
Watch | ESPN+ |
@EMUWBB | @EMUAthletics |
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (EMUEagles.com) -- The Eastern Michigan University women's basketball team looks to earn a critical Mid-American Conference road win as it treks to Bowling Green State University for a matchup with the Falcons Wednesday, Feb. 12. Tipoff from the Stroh Center is slated for 7 p.m.
Eastern (11-11; 6-5 MAC) looks to notch consecutive victories after a thrilling come-from-behind defeat of Western Michigan, Feb. 8. Meanwhile, Bowling Green (8-14; 1-9 MAC) looks to notch just its second conference win of the season.
The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+. WEMU 89.1 FM will also air the game with Chad Bush handling the play-by-play duties. Fans can also follow live stats at EMUEagles.com/livestats, or get live updates from the team's Twitter, @EMUWBB.
CAREER-DAY FOR JENNA: Sophomore guard Jenna Annecchiarico was outstanding at Western Michigan, Feb. 8. Annecchiarico dropped a career-best 31 points on 10-of-23 shooting to lead EMU in a thrilling, come-from-behind win. Electric from beyond-the-arc, she drained five three-point shots on 10 attempts. The Empire State-product was clutch from the charity stripe as well, going a perfect 6-of-6 to help close out the Broncos.
With her performance, Annecchiarico has now scored in double-digits nine times this season, including in each of EMU's last four games. Additionally, only 12 games featuring MAC teams this year have seen better single-game scoring performances than that of Annecchiarico's 31 points.
15-FOR-15: Redshirt junior guard Areanna Combs has been outstanding for the Eagles in the 15 games she has played this season. The Oklahoma City native has scored in double-figures in each contest. In all, Combs is averaging a team-best 18.3 points per game, an average that only three players in the MAC have outpaced this season.
Combs scored 21 points in EMU's win over Western, Feb. 8, good for second-best on the team behind Annecchiarico. The performance was her fifth game with 20+ points this season.
JUANITA KEEPS ROLLING: After putting up a career-best day against Akron, Feb. 1, which included personal bests in points (21), field goals (8), single-game triples (2), and minutes (44), redshirt sophomore Juanita Agosto was again great against Ohio, Feb. 5. The Seattle, Wash. native notched 10 points while registering three steals and two assists. The third-year Eagle followed that performance up with another double-digit outing at WMU. She put up 11 points, largley behind a career-best seven free throws, and led all Eagles with 11 boards. Agosto has now scored 10+ points in three consecutive games for the first time in her career, and has led EMU in single-game rebounding three times this season.
14 STRAIGHT WITH A STEAL: Sophomore Jenna Annecchiarico has been nearly automatic when it comes to swiping the ball. The Baldwin, N.Y. native has recorded at least one steal in each of the Eagles' last 15 contests, dating back to Dec. 7, at Wichita State. She tallied five steals against Ohio, Feb. 5, which tied a season-best and tied her single-game career-high (twice), before adding a pair at Western, Feb. 8. She is first on the team with 44 steals, and her 2.0 SPG average is tied-for seventh in the conference.
LEWIS KEEPS FIRING: Junior guard Courtnie Lewis has been good from beyond the arc in EMU's last five games (NIU, Jan. 25; Toledo, Jan. 29;. Akron, Feb. 1; Ohio, Feb. 5; WMU, Feb. 8). The Belton, Mo. native has hit two-or-more threes in each contest, which has tied for or been a team-best in four games, respectively. Lewis has now led EMU in single-game three-point makes nine times this season, and 34 times during her career.
THANKS FOR ASSISTING: Sophomore guard Jenna Annecchiarico is one of the best in the MAC at dishing the rock. She tallied a team-leading five helpers against Ohio, Feb. 5, which marked the third time this season that she racked up five-plus assists in a game. Her 1.6 assist-to-turnover ratio is third-best in the league, while her 3.4 assists per game ranks 11th. The Baldwin, N.Y. native leads EMU in both categories.
GETTING IT DONE ON D: Eastern Michigan's high intensity defense has caused opponents fits this season. The Eagles have forced the opposition into 15+ turnovers 17 times, while picking their pockets 10+ times in seven of their 22 games. EMU's 18.5 forced turnovers per game are the third-most in the MAC.
CRASH THE BOARDS: EMU front man Fred Castro preaches the importance of rebounding, and for good reason. The Eagles have out-rebounded opponents nine times during the 2019-20 season. Their record in those games: 7-2. When the opponent out-rebounds EMU, it is just 4-9 on the season, and 10-50 since the start of the 2016-17 campaign.
LINE OR DIE: Free throws are a crucial ingredient for winning basketball games. When Eastern has more free throw attempts than its opponents, it is a perfect 9-0 on the season. When it has less attempts or even attempts, the Eagles are just 2-11.
OVERCAME THE TREND: Heading into its game against Western Michigan, Feb. 8, EMU was 0-9 (10-58 all-time under Castro) when trailing at the half this season. That all changed against the Broncos, however. Despite being down two, 31-29, at the break, and 10 in the third quarter, the Eagles rallied to claim an 83-70 victory.
SIX, AND A CHANCE FOR MORE: With its win at WMU, Eastern secured its sixth conference win of the season, which ties EMU's best league win total all-time under Fred Castro (four seasons). EMU has finished each of the last two seasons with six conference wins, and certainly looks poised to best that total this season.
LET'S MAKE IT FIVE: A win over BGSU Wedneday would give EMU five consecutive victories in the border-state battle. The current streak of four is currently Eastern's best over any MAC opponent. A five-game win streak would be the longest over BGSU in program history (twice previously four).
ALL-TIME AGAINST BOWLING GREEN: The Falcons have been the dominant team in this battle of the birds, holding a 50-19 lead in the all-time series between EMU and BGSU. The last half-decade has been good to the Green and White, however, as Eastern has claimed victory in five of the last six matchups, including the last four. Prior to the 2015 season, EMU had lost 12 consecutive games against the Falcons, dating back to 2005.
LAST TIME AGAINST BGSU: EMU opened its 2020 Mid-American Conference slate with a 78-61 victory over Bowling Green, Jan. 4, inside the Convocation Center. The Eagles were led by a stellar performance from redshirt junior Areanna Combs, who tallied a career-high 32 points on 14-of-20 shooting, while adding seven rebounds, four steals, two assists, and a pair of blocks. Her 14 successful field goal attempts also tied for the eighth-most in program history, equaling the mark set by former Eagle Tavelyn James versus Kent State, Feb. 11, 2012 and EMU great Danielle Minott against Buffalo, Jan. 27, 2018 and Jan. 9, 2019. Additionally, Combs became the first Eagle to reach the 30-point plateau since Minott tallied a program-record 43 points in an overtime loss to Buffalo, Jan. 9, 2019.
LAST TIME AT STROH: A tip-in with less than a second to go by former Eagle Emoni Jackson lifted EMU to a 54-52 win over Bowling Green, Jan. 3, 2018. The Eagles erased a 13-point deficit to walk away with their first win in Bowling Green since 2005. Graduated Eagle Danielle Minott turned in a career-high 19 points to go along with two rebounds, three steals, and an assist, while then-freshman Courtnie Lewis added eight points.
BACK IN #MACtion: The Green and White's 2019-20 campaign marks the 39th 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 268-360 record against conference opponents all-time.
RING CHASING: Eastern enters league play in search of its first conference championship since 2012. That year, the Eagles captured both the MAC West and MAC Tournament titles. Overall, EMU has claimed four division crowns (2004, 2006, 2008, 2012) and two tournament championships (2004, 2012).
ON THE HORIZON: Eastern returns home for a Mid-American Conference cross-divisional matchup with the University of Akron Saturday, Feb. 15. Tipoff is slated for 12 p.m. inside the Convocation Center. The EMU men will play host to Western Michigan at 2:30 p.m. as the teams host a Saturday doubleheader.
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