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APSU Women’s Basketball travel to Eastern Illinois, Saturday

Austin Peay (6-13/3-3) vs. Eastern Illinois (7-12/4-2)

Saturday, January 24th, 2015 | 1:00pm CT
Charleston, IL | Lantz Arena

Austin Peay State University Lady Govs - APSUCharleston, IL – Austin Peay women’s basketball team begins a two-game road trip against the Ohio Valley Conference’s Illinois members when it meets Eastern Illinois in a 1:00pm, Saturday contest at Lantz Arena in Charleston.

Austin Peay Women's Basketball take on Eastern Illinois, Saturday. (APSU Sports Information)

The Lady Govs return to the road looking to rediscover their mojo. After opening OVC play with a 3-1 mark, including back-to-back road wins to start the campaign, Austin Peay ended its three-game homestand with back-to-back losses – in overtime to Tennessee State, Saturday, followed by a Monday loss to Morehead State – to level its league record at 3-3.

Scoring hasn’t been a problem for APSU as it has scored more than 70 points in five of its six league outings.

APSU's Tiasha GrayHowever, the Lady Govs have battled the turnover bug in OVC action, averaging 19 giveaways a game – nearly 23 percent of its possessions ending with a turnover – and losing the turnover battle five times in six contests.

Junior guard Tiasha Gray has been Austin Peay’s leader on the court this season, leading the team in scoring (20.1 ppg), rebounding (6.1 rpg), assists (5.9 apg) and steals (3.3 spg).

She is the OVC leader and ranks 10th nationally in steals, while ranking second among OVC players in scoring (30th nationally) and assists (19th nationally).

Eastern Illinois Panthers

Eastern Illinois PanthersEastern Illinois returns home after posting a 1-2 record during a three-game road trip. The Panthers opened that road trip with an impressive 68-42 win at Eastern Kentucky, January 15th, but fell at Morehead State, 67-62, before suffering an 81-51 loss at league-leading UT Martin, Tuesday.

Senior forward Sabina Orosova is averaging a double-double this season, leading the OVC with 10.1 rebounds per game and ranking fourth among league scorers with 15.7 points per game. Sophomore forward Erica Brown is averaging 6.6 rebounds per game this season, 13th among league rebounders.

Last Season’s Meetings

Austin Peay and Eastern Illinois split their home-and-home series last season with the road team winning each contest. The Lady Govs won a 64-56 decision in Charleston, January 18th, with Eastern Illinois returning the favor one month later courtesy a 65-63 victory in Clarksville, TN February 17th.

Austin Peay’s win at Eastern Illinois was its first since 2007, ending a six-game losing streak at Lantz Arena. The Lady Govs led by 14 points with four minutes left, but had to hang on for the eight-point win when it couldn’t consistently convert from the free throw line in the closing minutes.

Tiasha Gray scored 15 points off the bench to lead APSU. Kristen Stainback and Beth Rates each added 12 points. Jennifer Nwokocha chipped in 11 points.

APSU's Kristen StainbackJordyne Crunk led Eastern Illinois with 15 points. Katlyn Payne added 12 points and Erica Brown chipped in 11 points.

One month later, Eastern Illinois would escape Clarksville with a victory. In the closing moment’s a Sabina Oroszova jumper gave the Panthers a three-point lead only to see Gray hit a layup to cut the deficit to one.

The following Panther possession, Oroszova missed a three that gave Austin Peay a chance to take the lead with under a minute left. With the clock moving toward ten seconds remaining, Gray got a good look on a jumper from the elbow that bounced off the rim to Oroszova.

APSU's Tearra BanksGray got another chance after Oroszova made one-of-two from the line; the Lady Govs got the ball back with less than six seconds left, but Gray’s desperation 25-footer bounced away, allowing the Panthers to escape the Dunn Center with a win.

Gray finished with 24 points and seven steals in the loss. Tearra Banks added an 11-point, nine-rebound performance.

Oroszova led the Panthers with 24 points, but was held below her OVC-leading rebounding total; finishing the night with eight rebounds. Jordyne Crunk (14 points) and Morgan Palombizio (11 points) were also in double figures for Eastern Illinois.

The More You Know

An Austin Peay Win Would: Give it back-to-back wins at Lantz Arena for the first time since the 2006 & 2007 meetings… End its two-game losing streak… Move it back above .500 in OVC play… Improve Carrie Daniels’ record to 95-170 overall… Move Daniels to 62-87 in OVC play… Make the Lady Govs 448-643 overall since 1976-77.

An Austin Peay Loss Would: Be its third straight loss… Be its seventh loss in the last eight trips to Lantz Arena… Move it below .500 in OVC play for the first time this season… Drop Daniels’ record to 94-171 overall… Drop Daniels to 61-88 in OVC play… Make the Lady Govs 447-644 overall since 1976-77.

Broadcast Information

Radio • Governors Sports Network
Play-by-Play: David Loos
Analyst: Cody Bush

Lady Govs on the Web

Live Video: www.OVCDigitalNetwork.com
Live Audio: www.LetsGoPeay.com/Watch
Live Statistics: www.EIUPanthers.com

Video – Coach Carrie Daniels

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVqUE958jf8[/youtube]

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