Women's Basketball Travels To Northern Illinois For Road Test

The Leathernecks play their first road game of the season at NIU.

GAME FOUR
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: WESTERN ILLINOIS LEATHERNECKS AT NORTHERN ILLINOIS
Nov. 18, 2017 • 1:00 p.m. (CT) • DeKalb, Ill. • Convocation Center
LIVE STATS: HERE
ESPN3: HERE
LISTEN: HERE

ESPNW: MID-MAJOR TOP-10
ROSTER | SCHEDULE | TICKETS | RECORD BOOK | @WIUWBB | GAME NOTES

MACOMB, Ill.— Western Illinois hits the road to DeKalb, Ill. for a Nov. 18 contest at Northern Illinois. The upcoming game marks the first road contest of the season for the Leathernecks.

SCOUTING THE HUSKIES:
Northern Illinois currently sits at 1-1 overall with a 93-64 win over Eastern Illinois on the road (Nov. 10) and a 105-80 defeat at the hands of the Iowa Hawkeyes (Nov. 15).

The team is led by a trio of scorers who average in the double figures in Kelly Smith (17.5), Courtney Woods (16.5) and Janae Poisson (16.0).

In last season's meeting, the Leathernecks played the Huskies to an 83-79 win inside Western Hall on Nov. 19, 2016. In that game, point guard Emily Clemens recorded a career-high of 34 points off a 10-for-14 shooting performance. Morgan Blumer also added double-digit scoring with 11 points and six rebounds. Western Illinois trails the all-time series 20-17.

MID-MAJOR RECOGNITION:
On Nov. 15, Western Illinois women's basketball made a 'Top-10' Mid-Major program to watch, according to ESPNW, coming in at No. 10. The Leathernecks also sit at No. 21 in the CollegeInsider Mid-Major 'Top 25' Poll. Western Illinois came in at the same rank for the preseason mid-major poll.

SHARING THE ROCK:
With 32 assists total and 10.7 assists per game, senior point guard Emily Clemens leads the nation in both categories as of Nov. 16. The senior point guard is also tied for third in the nation with a pair of double-doubles this season.

As a team, the Purple and Gold rank second in the nation in assists with 76 and also rank second with a 2.24 assist/turnover ratio. The Leathernecks average 25.3 assists per game, which is good for sixth in the nation. Clemens' 479 assists rank second-all time in program history, while she set a Summit League record of 241 last season.

THOSE THIEVES!:
Western Illinois also leads the nation with 51 steals this season through three games, while their 17.0 steals per game is tied for third in the nation as of Nov. 16. Last game, senior guard Michelle Farrow set a new career-high of seven steals, while sophomore guard Olivia Kaufmann also had a career-high of three steals for the second time. Senior guards Emily Clemens and Michelle Farrow lead The Summit League with 3.7 steals per contest, while they also rank tied for seventh nationally in the same category.

THE CHARITY STRIPE:
As of Nov. 16, the Leathernecks lead the nation in free throws made (69) and free throw attempts (88). Thus far, the Leathernecks shoot 78.4 percent as a team, and senior guard Emily Clemens is on a 14-made free throw streak. Last season, she made 26 and 23 consecutive free throws, which ranked third and sixth all-time in program history. Clemens also leads The Summit League at 95.5 percent and she also ranks third in free throws made and eighth in free throw attempts with a 21-of-22 mark this season from the charity stripe. Fellow teammate Olivia Kaufmann is also tied for 27th in the nation with 14 made free throws thus far.

FROM THE PARKING LOT!:
Western Illinois ranks second in the nation with 35 3-pointers drained this season, while they average 11.7 made per game, which is good enough for eighth in the nation. With 102.7 points per game, the Leathernecks also rank second in the nation for its high-powered scoring offense

Last game, senior guard Michelle Farrow moved to fourth all-time in program history with 134 career 3-point field goals made, while Taylor Higginbotham's 121 are tied for seventh all-time in program history (see page 21 of "Game Notes" for more).

NEXT UP:
The Leathernecks have a pair of road games this upcoming Tuesday (Nov. 21) at Illinois, followed by Nov. 22 contest at Chicago State.

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Players Mentioned

#12 Morgan Blumer: G; 5' 11"; Senior; Milton / Florida Gulf Coast

#2 Emily Clemens: G; 5' 4"; Senior; Muscatine

#22 Michelle Farrow: G; 5' 10"; Senior; Waukesha West

#24 Taylor Higginbotham: G; 5' 10"; Junior; Germantown

#13 Olivia Kaufmann: G; 5' 8"; Sophomore; Jacksonville

Players Mentioned

#12 Morgan Blumer
: 5' 11"; Senior; Milton / Florida Gulf Coast
: G

#2 Emily Clemens
: 5' 4"; Senior; Muscatine
: G

#22 Michelle Farrow
: 5' 10"; Senior; Waukesha West
: G

#24 Taylor Higginbotham
: 5' 10"; Junior; Germantown
: G

#13 Olivia Kaufmann
: 5' 8"; Sophomore; Jacksonville
: G