MACOMB, Ill. - The Western Illinois Fighting Leathernecks return home to host in-state rival Eastern Illinois in nonconference action. The battle is set to take place on Friday, December 12, with tip-off slated for 7 p.m. Western Illinois, winners its last timeout, enter the contest at 5-4 while the Panthers of Eastern Illinois come to Macomb with a 3-5 record this season.

BROADCAST INFORMATION: 
Live Radio: Leatherneck Sports Network (94.3 FM WRMS or wrmsfm.com)
Live Stats: Gametracker

EAST VS. WEST - As the Panthers of Eastern Illinois University come to Macomb - don't miss this Friday night in-state rivalry match up and another chance to cheer on our Leathernecks! Each of the first 100 WIU students in attendance will receive a FREE t-shirt! We need you, in Western Hall, Friday night, to help earn some friendly Illinois bragging rights!

SCOUTING EASTERN ILLINOIS: The Panthers dropped a 72-63 decision at Milwaukee their last time out to fall to 3-5 on the season. Eastern Illinois, members of the Ohio Valley Conference, have picked up wins over Omaha, Northern Illinois, and an overtime victory at North Texas this season. The offense is run through Sabrina Oroszova, as she averages a double-double for Eastern. For Oroszova, a 6-2 senior from Slovakia, her 15.6 points and 11.4 points per game are both team-bests this season. Eastern Illinois is led by second year head coach Debbie Black. 

SERIES HISTORY: Eastern Illinois leads the all-time series, 33-18. The series has been revived of late, with the two teams meeting in each of the past three seasons. Prior to the meeting in 2011, the two schools last met back in 2000. Last time out, Eastern secured a 68-64 victory on their home court. The last Leatherneck victory came two seasons ago when the Purple and Gold claimed a 70-68 victory in front of the home crowd. Four of the past five meetings have been decided by six points or less.

LAST TIME OUT: A 12-0 Leatherneck run midway through the second half proved to be the turning point Tuesday evening (Dec. 9), as the Leathernecks defeated Bradley by a final score of 75-63. Ashley Luke and Sophie Reichelt each recorded a double-double in the victory, moving Western to 5-4 on the season. The Braves, fresh off an upset victory over Missouri, fell to 1-7 on the year. After leading the entire game, Western's lead slowly dwindled down to four points with 14:40 left in the second half. The Braves used a 7-2 run over 1:38 to pull within four at 38-34, forcing a timeout by Western Illinois. What ensued out of the timeout would change the course of the game, as the Leathernecks exploded with a 12-0 to regain the comfortable advantage. The second-half run, which spanned 2:08, was started by a Tori Niemann layup coming out of the timeout. Ashley Luke followed by knocking down a pair of free throws, and would end the game an impressive 9-10 from the charity stripe, as Western would build the lead back to to 16. Bradley would get within seven points of the Leathernecks with just over seven minutes remaining, but a 9-2 run by Western would put the game out of reach for good. Luke (25 points/16 rebounds) and Sophie Reichelt (10 points/10 rebounds) each recorded double-doubles for the Purple and Gold.

LUKE JOINS 1,000 POINT CLUB: Junior Ashley Luke entered Leatherneck history during Western Illinois' contest against Florida Atlantic on Nov. 24, as she became just the 14th player in program history to record 1,000 career points. Luke becomes the first Leatherneck to join the club since Zane Teilane, who was a member of Western Illinois from 2003-2006.

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING: The Leathernecks are the top team in The Summit League in six different statistical categories, leading the league in assist to turnover ratio (1.10), assists per game (16.4),  fewest fouls per game (17.1),  steals per game (9.8), turnover margin (1.56), and three-point field goals per game (8.6). Individually, Ashley Luke leads the league in field goal percentage (53.1). Michelle Maher has the best assist to turnover ratio in The Summit League, averaging 1.95 assists for every turnover. 

ACTIVE CAREER LEADERS: In just over two seasons at Western Illinois Ashley Luke has proven herself to be one of the top players in today's game. Her 28 career double-doubles rank as the 12th most among active Division 1 players, while her career average of 8.8 rebounds per game ranks 11th on the active career leaders list.

ROSTER DEPTH: Head coach JD Gravina has showcased the deep roster that he has at his disposal this season. Six games have seen 13 players record minutes, while three game has had 12 Leathernecks check in. 10 different players are averaging over 10 minutes a game for the Purple and Gold on the year.

UMKC DRAWS RECORD CROWD: Western Illinois' first ever 'Elementary Day' was a success on and off the court, with over 1,000 students in attendance as the Leathernecks hosted UMKC on November 25. With the aid of the students, the game drew 1,443 fans inside Western Hall, a new women's basketball attendance record.

BY THE NUMBERS: In head coach JD Gravina's tenure, the Leathernecks are 34-15 when scoring at least 70 points. When scoring 69-or-fewer points, Western is 10-40 over the same timespan. The Leathernecks also know how to close out a late lead, as they are 36-5 under Gravina when leading with five minutes remaining.

NO REST FOR THE LEATHERNECKS: Western Illinois hit the ground running to start the season, as they opened the year playing five games in the first 11 days. The five-game stretch included road trips to Missouri, Chicago State, and Florida Atlantic.

IN THE RPI: Western Illinois' official weekly NCAA RPI ratings are below (349 NCAA Division I programs):
• Dec. 1: 147
• Dec. 8: 146

LEATHERNECKS GARNER PRESEASON RECOGNITION: Junior forward Ashley Luke and junior guard Michelle Maher each collected preseason accolades in The Summit League annual preseason voting. Luke was named the league's 'Preseason Player of the Year' while also being named a Fourth Team All Mid-Major selection by collegesportsmadness.com. ESPNW also named Luke as one of the top-10 mid-major players to watch this upcoming season. Maher was tabbed Summit League Preseason Second Team. The Leathernecks were slated to finish fourth this season according to the poll. The fourth place projection is the highest mark for the Leatherneck program since the 2006-07 season when the Purple and Gold were picked to finish fourth as well.

VETERAN RETURNERS: The Leathernecks return a veteran lineup to the court in 2014-15. Western Illinois brings back 82.6% of its scoring from a year ago, and seven players return who played in all 30 games. Three of those seven players, Ashley Luke, Michelle Maher and Tori Niemann, started in all 30 games for the Purple and Gold. This season, Luke, Maher, and Niemann have each started every game for Western. 

RECORD BREAKERS: The Leathernecks broke seven program records a season ago, with junior Ashley Luke single-handedly breaking five program records. Luke set the top mark in points scored (623), scoring average (20.8), field goals made (223), free throws made (177) and free throws attempted (255). As a team, the Fighting Leathernecks set program records in points scored (2,392) and field goals made (846).

IMPROVEMENT UNDER GRAVINA: In his three years at the helm of the Leatherneck basketball program, head coach JD Gravina has recorded more wins (26) in his first two years at Western Illinois than any other coach in program history, while his 40 wins in his first three years ranks second all-time for most wins over the first three years (Leslie Crane, 41, 1998-00). Gravina has also produced three All-Summit League selections as well as two 'Newcomers of the Year'. 

LUKE LANDS LINCOLN LAUREATE: It was announced on Oct. 29 that junior forward Ashley Luke (Oak Creek, Wisconsin) had been named the Western Illinois University recipient of the Lincoln Academy of Illinois' Student Laureate Award for 2014. The award, presented annually to an outstanding senior of each of Illinois' four-year degree-granting institutions, honors a student's overall academic excellence and extracurricular activities. Luke, a senior political science and journalism double major, will also be named the College Scholar for the WIU College of Arts and Sciences this semester and plans to pursue a master's degree in economics from Western.

ROSTER ADDITIONS: The team welcomes five new members to the program this season. Jenna Mueller has been added to the program as a graduate school transfer and will be immediately eligible for Western Illinois after appearing in 85 career games for Saint Louis University. Junior Krystal Corhn will also be immediately eligible to play this season after transferring from Highland Community College. Sophomore Taylor McClintock joins the Western family after spending her freshman year at Mercer and will redshirt this upcoming season to meet NCAA transfer requirements. The program added two freshmen to the roster in Emily Clemens and Tayler Miller. Clemens, a native of Muscatine, Iowa, was a two-time All-State honoree, earning First Team honors her senior year. As a senior, Clemens was also named the 'Conference Player of the Year'. Miller hails from St. Louis, Missouri where she concluded her high school career as the program's all-time leading scorer and rebounder.  

SUCCESS IN THE CLASSROOM: Western Illinois excelled in the classroom this past season, posting the fifth-highest GPA among Division I women's basketball programs. The Leathernecks recorded a cumulative team GPA of 3.607, highest among all programs in The Summit League. Five current members of the team were named to The Summit League Academic Honor in 2013-14, posting a minimum 3.0 grade point average. Of the five, three earned the Distinguished Scholar award: Ashley Luke, Tori Niemann and Liz Skotowski. During the Spring 2014 semester Michelle Farrow, Luke, and Niemann earned a 4.0 GPA.

BASKETBALL INKS ONE FOR 2015: Head coach JD Gravina announced that Taylor Higginbotham (Germantown, Wis., Germantown) has signed a National Letter of Intent to join the Western Illinois women's basketball program in 2015. Higginbotham, a 5-10 guard, averaged 13.9 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 3.7 steals per game last season for the Warhawks. Higginbotham is also a member of the Wisconsin Lakers AAU team which produced current Leathernecks Ashley Luke, Faith Lois, and Michelle Farrow.

SCHEDULE BREAKDOWN: The Leathernecks will compete in a total of 29 regular season games as well as one exhibition game in 2014-15. Western will play 14 regular season games at home in Western Hall and will hit the road for 15 contests. The Leathernecks have a schedule that includes marquee match-ups against teams from the SEC (Missouri), Big East (Marquette), Conference USA (Florida Atlantic), and Horizon League (UIC).  

LEROY A. UFKES COURT: Western Hall, home of the men's and women's basketball programs, received a new court this offseason thanks to a donation from the family of a Western Illinois Athletics Hall of Fame member. LeRoy A. Ufkes Court is named after the 1996 Hall of Fame inductee, a supporter of the WIU Athletic Department for over 25 years. The new look is thanks to a donation from Joan Ufkes and the late LeRoy Ufkes. 

WHAT IS A LEATHERNECK?: Western Illinois holds the distinction of being the only non-military institution to officially have its nickname derived from a branch of the military service. The school began use of the Marine Corps' official nickname, "The Fighting Leathernecks", in 1927 when then-athletic director and head baseball, basketball and football coach Ray "Rock" Hanson was granted permission by the U.S. Navy, based on his status as a Marine hero, to use the Marine's official seal, bulldog mascot and nickname.