Women's Hoops Welcomes Toledo to Ypsilanti for Saturday Soiree

Women's Basketball vs Toledo
Date	Saturday, Feb. 29 \| 2:30 p.m.
Venue	Ypsilanti, Mich. \| Convocation Center
Preview Info	EMU Notes
Live Stats	Fan Stats \| Media Stats
Watch	ESPN 3
Twitter	@EMUW BB \| @EMUAthletics

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) -- The Eastern Michigan University women's basketball team is back at home where it will welcome Mid-American Conference West Division foe, the University of Toledo, for a game Saturday, Feb. 29. Tipoff between the Eagles and Rockets is slated for approximately 2:30 p.m. inside the Convocation Center. The game follows a 12 p.m. men's tip, which could affect the game's specific start time.
   Eastern (13-13; 8-7 MAC) looks to recover after falling to NIU on the road, Feb. 26, and dropping to fifth in the overall MAC standings. Meanwhile, UT (11-15; 6-9 MAC) is hoping to remain in the top-eight of the league standings to earn a first-round home game in the MAC Tournament. They currently sit at seventh.
   The game will be broadcast live on ESPN3 with Tom Helmer calling the play-by-play and Alex Jewell offering analysis. WEMU 89.1 FM will also broadcast the contest with Chad Bush controlling the airwaves. Fans can also follow live stats at EMUEagles.com/livestats, or get live updates from the team's Twitter, @EMUWBB.

19-FOR-19: Redshirt junior guard Areanna Combs has been outstanding for the Eagles in the 19 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 19.0 points per game, an average that only two players in the MAC have outpaced this season.
   Combs scored a team-best 29 points in EMU's game against NIU, Feb. 26. The performance was her 12th of the season in which she led all Eagles in scoring, and eighth with 20+ points.
   The 19-game streak is currently the second-best in the MAC behind CMU's Micaela Kelly (26 games ).
1,000 WATCH: Junior Courtnie Lewis is just 11 points shy of reaching 1,000 for her career. The Belton, Mo. native is averaging 7.9 ppg this season. She is poised to become just the 23rd player in program history to reach the milestone.

WHERE WE STAND: Coupled with a Kent State win over Akron, Eastern's loss at NIU, Feb. 26, meant that it relinquished its No. 4 spot in the current MAC standings. As of now, the team would no longer be privy to a first-round bye in the upcoming MAC Tournament. With three games left to play, however, there is still plenty of seeding possibilities. The No. 5-8 seeds are guaranteed a first-round home game, however, and while not a bye, that is certainly good consolation.

TOP-TIER SCORE-STOPPERS: EMU's defense has established itself as one of the very best in the league. The unit allows just 66.1 points per game, which ranks second in the MAC. EMU held Ball State to just 58 points on Feb. 22, its lowest point total in 10 games, before keeping NIU to 65, Feb. 26.

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 19 times, while picking their pockets 10+ times in eight of their 25 games. EMU's 18.3 forced turnovers per game are the second-most in the MAC.

MOVE OVER PITT, YPSI IS THE STEAL CITY: EMU's defense has been fantastic all season, and that is evidenced by its ability to steal the rock. The Eagles rank third in the Mid-American Conference with 8.81 steals per game, and have racked up 229 total steals this season.

SHORT BUT MIGHTY: After hauling in a career-best 12 rebounds against Ball State, Feb. 22, redshirt sophomore guard Juanita Agosto matched that performance versus the Huskies, Feb. 26. Although she stands at just 5-foot-6, the Seattle, Wash.-product has paced the Eagles in single-game rebounding in five games this season.

TRIPLE SWIPE KIND OF NIGHT: EMU picked NIU's pockets eight times, Feb. 26, en route to the Green and White's 19th game with 15+ forced turnovers. Leading the way was a trio of Eagles that each tallied two steals in the contest: redshirt juniors Areanna Combs and Corrione Cardwell, as well as junior Courtnie Lewis.

BIG TIME BOARDS: EMU has provided itself with an abundance of second-chance opportunities this season. The Eagles are currently second in the conference with 13.8 offensive rebounds per game, and rank third in the league in rebounding offense (41.0 ppg). EMU also holds the second-best rebounding margin in the MAC, at +1.8 per game.

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 9-1 on the season. When it has less attempts or even attempts, the Eagles are just 4-12.

FREE THROW WOES: Free throws are an integral stat for postseason success, and it is an aspect of the game EMU needs to improve on if it hopes to win the MAC title. The Eagles are 12th in the league in free throw percentage (60.5%). The good news? EMU is second in the league in total attempts (531), which means there are points ready to be captured by the Green and White.

16 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 her last 16 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 BGSU, Feb. 12. She is first on the team with 46 steals, and her 2.0 SPG average is tied for fifth-best in the conference.

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 in the league, while her 3.4 assists per game ranks ninth. The Baldwin, N.Y. native leads EMU in both categories.

SETTING NEW STANDARDS: With its win over Ball State, Eastern secured its eighth conference win of the season, which is 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.

ALL-TIME AGAINST TOLEDO: Saturday's contest marks the 85th meeting between Toledo and Eastern Michigan, who first met during the 1977-78 season. The Rockets lead the overall series,
51-33, however the two teams have split the last 10 meetings.

LAST TIME AGAINST THE ROCKETS: EMU dominated Toledo en route to a 77-62 victory, Jan. 29. The win was the team's first over the Rockets on UT's home court since February of 2016, and was the best margin of victory by an EMU team at Savage Arena since 2000.
   Eastern was led by redshirt junior Areanna Combs, who put up 27 points on 11-of-17 shooting, including 2-of-3 from beyond the arc. Sophomore floor-general Jenna Annecchiarico added 13 points, to go along with a team-best four steals and four assists.

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 stays in Ypsilanti to play its final regular season home game of the year against Western Michigan, Wednesday, March. 4. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m.

Women's Hoops Welcomes Toledo to Ypsilanti for Saturday Soiree

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Players Mentioned

Juanita Agosto

Jenna Annecchiarico

Corrione Cardwell

Areanna Combs

Courtnie Lewis

Eastern Michigan Athletics