Women's Hoops set for Superhero Day

Women's Basketball vs. Akron
Date	Saturday, Feb. 12 \| 1 p.m.
Venue	Ypsilanti, Mich. \| George Gervin GameAbove Center
Preview Info	EMU Notes (PDF)
Live Stats	Fan Stats \| Media Stats
Twitter	.@EMUWBB \| @EMUAthletics

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) -- The Eastern Michigan University women's basketball team will kick off a full day of college basketball in Ypsilanti when it welcomes the University of Akron to town Saturday, Feb. 12. The first leg of a women's-men's doubleheader inside the George Gervin GameAbove Center will get underway at 1 p.m.
   The Eagles (5-14, 2-10 MAC) are in search of a critical win. With less than one month left in 2021-22 regular season, the Green and White need a positive push to finish inside the league's top eight and qualify for the MAC Tournament. Meanwhile, Akron (10-8, 7-5 MAC) is coming off a 86-70 dismantling of Western Michigan in its most recent game, Feb. 9.
   The game will be televised on ESPN3. Ryan Wooley (play-by-play), Dannie Rogers (analyst) and Lexi Ayala (sideline) will have the call. The game will be aired on WEMU 89.1 F.M., with Tom Helmer providing the verbal entertainment. Additionally, the team's official Twitter account, @EMUWBB, will provide live updates throughout the contest.

SUPERHERO DAY: Saturday's basketball doubleheader is packed with experiences for the whole family. Take pictures and interact with live superheroes in attendance, including The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Wonder Woman, and Spider-Man. Your young hero in training can also put their skills to the test at "Swoop's Escape" inflatable obstacle course, or try out the 360-photobooth with superhero props.
Dress up as your favorite superhero, and be sure to pick up a FREE Block E cape on your way into the game. Tickets to both games are just $10. To purchase tickets call the EMU Athletics Ticket Office at 734.487.3669 or visit EMUEagles.com/tickets.

ROCK COLLECTORS: The Green and White recorded 10 steals versus Buffalo, Feb. 9, led by freshman Zaniya Nelson with three swipes. The Eagles have pick-pocketed their opponents 10-or-more times in seven outings this season. Eastern Michigan is the only team so far this season to record double-digits in steals twice against the Bulls.

DOUBLE-DOUBLE, PLEASE: Redshirt sophomore Ce'Nara Skanes recorded 12 points and 15 rebounds against Buffalo for the 19th double-double of her career, Feb. 9. Her performance against the Bulls marked the seventh of the sort this season. The redshirt sophomore has produced three double-doubles in her last five games. Additionally, her 15 boards is a season-best and the fourth time in her career reaching the 15-rebound plateau.

PINEDA ON THE RISE: Junior Natalia Pineda added seven points and knocked down a pair of three-pointers against the Bulls, Feb. 9. For Pineda, this was her third game this season with multiple makes from deep and second-in-a-row. Additionally, this marked the first time this season in which Pineda had back-to-back games with multiple threes.
   The Miami native also dished out three assists, the most dimes she's dropped against a Division I opponent so far this season. This was just the seventh time Pineda has recorded three-or-more assists in her career at EMU.

SHARING IS CARING: Areanna Combs currently sits 13th in the Mid-American Conference with 3.5 assists per contest. The guard has dished out 16 dimes in the past three games, including a pair of five-helper days against Kent State, Feb. 5, and Buffalo, Feb. 9. Combs has recorded six outings with at least five assists so far in the 2021-22 season.

WINNING THE TURNOVER BATTLE: EMU won the turnover battle against Buffalo, Feb. 9, forcing 19 giveaways while recording 18 of its own. The game marked the 12th time this season that EMU has led the turnover battle and the ninth time the Eagles have won that battle in MAC play. The Green and White have forced their opponents into committing 20+ turnovers six times this season.

ON THE BOARDS: EMU made its mark with 14 offensive boards against the Bulls, Feb. 9. Eastern hauled in 34.1% (14-of-41) of its total rebounds in the contest on the offensive end.
   The Eagles have gotten 30 percent-or-more of its rebounding production on the offensive end of the floor 13 times during the 2021-22 campaign. EMU has hauled in 20+ offensive rebounds twice this season, most recently verus Kent State, Feb. 5. The team ranks third in the MAC with a 13.2 ORPG average.

STRIPE LIFE: Redshirt sophomore Ce'Nara Skanes is best known for her blocks and skill near the rim, however, she is also a threat when sent to the charity stripe. The center has sunk 53-of-76 (69.7%) from the line this season, but in the last six games, she is a team-leading 20-of-24 (83.3%). Furthermore, she has been perfect from the line in three of those outings, highlighted by a 6-of-6 performance at Akron, Jan. 26

LIVING AT THE LINE: While Ce'Nara Skanes has been improving at the stripe as of late, redshirt senior guard Areanna Combs has been living at the line in her last six outings. The Oklahoma City native has taken 64 free throws in that span (10.7 per game). She has converted 68 percent of the freebie attempts (44-of-64). For comparison, she went to the line just 76 times in EMU's first 13 games of the season (5.8 per game).
   The 64 attempts is by far the most of any Eagle in the recent six-game stretch. Skanes is second in attemps during that span, with 24 (-40 compared to Combs).

THE FIRST 20 MATTERS: All five of Eastern's wins have seen the Eagles take a lead into the intermission, while 13 of the squad's 14 setbacks has included a halftime deficit.
   EMU trailed Buffalo, 42-34, Tuesday night, and was unable to complete its comeback effort.
   Eastern is 41-16 in games in which it held a halftime lead since the onset of the 2016-17 season, and 17-82 in games where it has trailed at the break in that same span.

THREE-POINT WOES: The Eagles have been cold from deep in the past three games. Through the first 13 games of the season, EMU shot 20%-or-lower from deep just twice (vs. Binghamton, Dec.10, 2-of-16; vs. Western Michigan, Jan. 19, 5-of-25). In their last six outings, the Eagles have shot 20 percent-or-less from deep four times.
EMU shot 6-for-26 (23.1%) against the Bulls, hitting just two three-pointers in the second half, Feb. 9.

PLAYING DISCIPLINED: EMU has been tremendous at taking care of the basketball, ranking third in the league and 37th nationally in fewest turnovers (274).

LIKE BONNIE AND CLYDE: The Green and White are sixth in the league, averaging 9.1 steals per contest. That number is the second-best mark under Fred Castro (2016-Pres.). The 2017-18 EMU squad racked up 9.7 steals per contest.

COURTNIE AND COMBS CLIMBING: Senior Courtnie Lewis, a veteran for the Eagles and 1,000-point club member, is moving up the all-time point list at EMU. Lewis boasts 1,152 career points which rank 20th on the scoring list.
Meanwhile, redshirt senior Areanna Combs, who recently joined the 1,000-point club, sits at 18th in the record book, with 1,175 points in her three seasons donning the Green and White. The guard is averaging 18.7 ppg this season, which puts her on track to crack the top-15 in EMU's scoring laurels by the end of the 2021-22 regular season.
   EMU great Tavelyn James (2008-12) owns the top spot in program history, having accumulated 2,470 career points.

HIGH PERCENTAGE SHOTS: The Eagles have hit 40.5 percent (479-of-1184) of their shots from the field this season. EMU's current best mark under Head Coach Fred Castro came in the 2017-18 campaign when the Green and White shot 40.1 percent from the floor for the season.

DEATH, TAXES, DOUBLE DIGITS: If one thing is as certain as can be, it's that Areanna Combs will score 10+ points. Including her 18 performances of the nature this season, Combs has now recorded double-digit scoring efforts in 60 of her 63 career games with the Green and White (95.2%). That number is the highest percentage in the Mid-American Conference.

COOKIES: Redshirt senior Areanna Combs ranks third in the MAC in total steals (50) and fourth in the league in steals per game (2.6). Combs set a career-high with 10 steals against Grace Christian, Nov. 18, to help her achieve her first ever triple-double (12 points, 11 assists, 10 steals). Additionally, the guard has recorded at least three steals in four of her last six contests, highlighted by six swipes versus Buffalo, Feb. 2.

CAN'T LET THEM SCORE 70: Although many factors contribute to the end result of a game, one thing is for certain; 70 is kryptonite for Eastern Michigan. Last season, the team went 0-4 when allowing 70 points in a game. The team is 0-9 in 2021-22. Moreover, EMU is 8-65 when allowing 70+ points since the start of the 2016-17 season.

BLOCK PART(E): EMU is fourth in the Mid-American Conference in blocks per game (3.33). Redshirt sophomore Ce'Nara Skanes leads the team with 21 rejections and is sixth in the MAC with 1.1 blocks per contest while freshman Treasure Thompson is 11th in the league at 0.9 bpg (15 total).
   The Eagles have recorded at least five blocks in five contests this season. In the 2020-21 campaign, Eastern only recorded five-or-more blocks in a game three times.

WELCOME TO THE 1K CLUB: Redshirt senior Areanna Combs made history Saturday, Jan. 15, when she notched 13 points to become Eastern Michigan's 24th 1,000-point scorer. Combs, who has been on court with the Eagles since the 2019-20 season, needed just 55 games to hit the total, an average of more than 18 ppg.
   Combs joins teammate Courtnie Lewis as the only active players to have hit the milestone.

TWO GRAND TEAMMATES: Upperclassmen Courtnie Lewis (1,152) and Areanna Combs (1,175) are the first Eagle teammates to share the court as 1,000-point scorers since the 2016 season, when Cha Sweeney (2013-16) and Janay Morton (2013-16) had both hit the milestone.

BACK IN #MACTION: The Green and White's 2021-22 campaign marks the 41st season EMU will compete as a member of the MAC. Playing a league schedule since the 1981-82 campaign, EMU has compiled a 297-383 record against conference opponents all-time.

RING CHASING: Eastern is in search of its first conference championship since 2012. That year, the Eagles captured both the MAC West and MAC Tournament titles.
   As a program, EMU has claimed four division crowns (2004, 2006, 2008, 2012) and two tournament championships (2004, 2012).

ALL-TIME VERSUS AKRON: Eastern Michigan trails in the all-time series against Akron, 26-19. The Zips have come out on top in three of the last four meetings, however, the Eagles won three-straight games prior to the stretch.

LAST TIME AGAINST THE ZIPS: The Eagles outscored the Zips 30-25 in the second half, but could not complete the comeback, falling on the road, 68-64, Jan. 26.
   Areanna Combs tied her career-high with 32 points, the second time in her career hitting the 30-point plateau. Combs, Ce'Nara Skanes, and Juanita Agosto combined to account for 84 percent of the Eagles' points.

SCOUTING AKRON: Akron's defensive has been solid throughout the season as they rank second in the Mid-American Conference in blocks (3.72 bpg), third in defensive field goal percentage (39.8), fourth in points allowed per game (65.2 ppg).

ON THE HORIZON: Eastern hits the road for a Valentine's Day love affair with Ohio Univeristy. The game will tipoff Monday, Feb. 14 at 7 p.m. from Athens, Ohio.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Juanita Agosto

Areanna Combs

Courtnie Lewis

Natalia Pineda

Ce'Nara Skanes

Treasure Thompson

Eastern Michigan Athletics