Leathernecks Conclude Regular Season With Two-Game Road Swing

Western Illinois plays at North Dakota State (Feb. 22) and Denver (Feb. 24)

GAME 28
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: WESTERN ILLINOIS LEATHERNECKS at NORTH DAKOTA STATE BISON
Feb. 22, 2018 • 7:00 p.m. • Fargo, N.D.

WATCH: MIDCOSN/ESPN3
LISTEN: DANNY FREY/LEATHERNECK SPORTS NETWORK
LIVE STATS: HERE
GAME 29
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: WESTERN ILLINOIS LEATHERNECKS at DENVER PIONEERS
Feb. 24, 2018 • 2:00 p.m. • Denver, Colo.

WATCH: HERE
LISTEN: DANNY FREY/LEATHERNECK SPORTS NETWORK
LIVE STATS: HERE

ROSTER | SCHEDULE | TICKETS | RECORD BOOK | @WIUWBB

MACOMB, Ill. — Western Illinois closes out the non-league regular season with a pair of games at North Dakota State (Feb. 22) and Denver (Feb. 24).

THE MACHINE FROM MUSCATINE: In her last outing against South Dakota State, Emily Clemens became the program's all-time leader in games played with 122 for her career. She passed Michelle Maher (2013-16), who played in 121 career games. Also, Michelle Farrow tied Maher at 121 games played, and will solely move into second all-time in her next contest.

12 NEEDS 15: Senior guard Morgan Blumer is only 15 made 3-pointers shy of tying her program record of 89 in a single season. Blumer also leads the league in 3-pointers made, and her 2.7 made per game are also a league-high.

THREE FOR 1,000: Morgan Blumer is also looking to become the third active Leatherneck by joining Emily Clemens and Taylor Higginbotham in the 1,000-point club. She is currently at 956 points in just under two season with the Leathernecks. If she surpasses the mark, she will become the 18^th member of the 1,000-point club in program history.

TARGETING TWENTY : The women's basketball team is looking for its 20^th win under head coach JD Gravina this season. A win would mark back-to-back 20-win seasons for the Leathernecks for the first time since the 2002-03 and 2003-04 seasons.

RECORDS:
2016-17: 26-7
2017-18: 19-8

2002-03: 21-9
2003-04: 20-9

LAST TIME OUT: Western Illinois dropped a 70-42 contest to the visiting South Dakota State Jackrabbits Saturday (Feb. 17) inside Western Hall. The contest marked the regular-season home finale, along with Senior Day for Emily Clemens, Morgan Blumer, Olivia Braun, Taylor Hanneman, Michelle Farrow and Krishna Merriman.

SCOUTING THE BISON: North Dakota State is 9-17 overall with a 2-10 record in league play thus far. The Bison recently fell 78-73 against Denver at home (Feb. 10), but followed that up with a 66-52 win over Fort Wayne on Feb. 15. The Bison have a balanced scoring attack, as Reilly Jacobson leads the team with 11.0 points per game, followed by Sarah Jacobson (10.7) and Rylee Nudell (10.2).

LAST MEETING WITH THE BISON: The Fighting Leatherneck women's basketball team of Western Illinois University (16-6, 6-2 Summit League) cruised to a 97-72 victory over North Dakota State (8-13, 1-6) behind the career-day of Michelle Farrow.

Just 24 hours following her birthday and on #ThinkPink day, the senior from Waukesha, Wis. dropped a career-high 25 points, and tied a program-record with seven threes in a single game in the win over North Dakota State. Her seven threes tie fellow teammate Morgan Blumer and four other former Leathernecks (Michelle Maher, Saule Kontautaite, Vicki Adelman and Lori Schrock) for the most in a contest. As a team, the Purple and Gold also drained 19 threes, which set a new program record. That record one-upped the previous of 18 set this week (Jan. 24) in the win over Denver.

SERIES HISTORY VERSUS NDSU: Western Illinois leads 13-9 and is on a seven-game win streak over the Bison.

SCOUTING DENVER: The Pioneers are 16-12 overall with a 7-6 mark in league play. Denver is coming off a three-game win streak with victories over North Dakota State, Oral Roberts and Omaha. The Pioneers have been off this entire week, with their next game coming against the Leathernecks. The team is led by Claire Gritt's 10.6 pointer per game, while Jordyn Alt's eight rebounds per game lead the league.

LAST MEETING WITH DENVER: Women's basketball action inside Western Hall sent fans into a craze Wednesday night as the Leathernecks (15-6, 5-2 Summit League) and Denver (12-10, 3-4) combined for 36 three-pointers.

The decision not only resulted in a Leatherneck victory, 118-93, but it also broke an NCAA single-game record for three-pointers. Sacramento State and Montana State previously set the mark at 34 on Feb. 6, 2016. The contest saw SSU hit 25 treys while Montana State recorded nine; Wednesday's conference tilt was more evenly matched between WIU and the Pioneers as both sides tabbed 18 each.

Denver went 18-for-42 from beyond the arc and WIU finished 18-for-30.

SERIES HISTORY: Western Illinois leads the series 9-1. After dropping the first game in the series history, the Leathernecks have rattled off nine straight victories.

NEXT UP: It's the Denny Sanford Premiere Center on the horizon for the Leathernecks following the conclusion of the regular season. The Summit League Championship is scheduled for March 3-6 in Sioux Falls, S.D.

For information see the link HERE.

Tweet #W1U

Print Friendly Version

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

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