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HomeSportsAPSU Women's Basketball plays Tennessee Tech at Dunn Center, Thursday

APSU Women’s Basketball plays Tennessee Tech at Dunn Center, Thursday

Austin Peay (7-4 | 5-2 OVC) vs. Tennessee Tech (5-4 | 3-3 OVC)

Thursday, January 21st, 2021 | 4:30pm CT
Clarksville, TN | Dunn Center

APSU Women's BasketballClarksville, TN – After 19 days on the road, Austin Peay State University women’s basketball will return to the Winfield Dunn Center for a season-long five-game home stand that will kick off when the Governors host Tennessee Tech Thursday, January 21st. Tip-off is at 4:30pm.

Austin Peay State University Women's Basketball begins five game homestand Thursday when it takes on Tennessee Tech at the Dunn Center. (APSU Sports Information)
Austin Peay State University Women’s Basketball begins five game homestand Thursday when it takes on Tennessee Tech at the Dunn Center. (APSU Sports Information)

Austin Peay State University is off to a 5-2 start in the Ohio Valley Conference and sits in fourth place in the league standings after going 3-2 on a season-long five-game conference road trip. The Governors have only played one OVC home game this season, when they beat Eastern Kentucky, 69-51, in the Dunn Center, January 2nd.  

On the Govs upcoming five-game homestand they will host Tennessee Tech, Jacksonville State, Murray State, Belmont, and Tennessee State before hitting the road to take on Eastern Kentucky, February 4th.

About the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles

After a sixth-place finish in the 2019-20 Ohio Valley Conference regular season, Tennessee Tech was tabbed to finish fourth in the 2020-21 OVC Coaches and SID Preseason Poll and the OVC Media Poll.

Fifth-year head coach Kim Rosamond returns nine letterwinners and three starters from a squad that posted a 17-13 record overall, a 10-8 mark in OVC play, and lost in the first round of the OVC Tournament to the eventual champion, Southeast Missouri.

A 2019-20 First-Team All-OVC selection, Kesha Brady is Tennessee Tech’s top returning scorer (14.4 ppg) and ranks eighth in the OVC this season, averaging 14.7 points per game. After being named to the 2020-21 Preseason All-OVC team, Brady ranks seventh in the league in field-goal percentage (39.8%), and at 5-7, she ranks 20th in the OVC in rebounding (5.1 rpg) and eighth in offensive rebounding (2.8 orpg).

Senior forward Mackenzie Coleman ranks 12th in the OVC in scoring and is Tennessee Tech’s second-leading scorer (11.9 ppg). Coleman was the Golden Eagle’s top-returning rebounder (5.1 rpg) and is averaging 5.3 rebounds per game this season.

Middle Tennessee transfer Anna Jones ranks 10th in the OVC and leads Tennessee Tech in rebounding (6.8 rpg) this season. Averaging 10.4 points per game this season, Jones is the third Golden Eagles scoring in double-figures this season and ranks 18th in the conference.

Tennessee Tech ranks second in the OVC in assists (15.8 apg) and leads the league in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.0). Sophomore Jada Guinn leads Tennessee Tech and ranks fifth in the OVC in assists (3.6 apg) and 2018-19 First-Team All-OVC selection Jordan Brock ranks 15th in the league in assists (2.8 apg).

 

Series History Between APSU and Tennessee Tech

APSU Women's Basketball - Tahanee Bennell. (Robert Smth, APSU Sports Information)This is the 85th meeting in a series that dates back to 1978; Austin Peay State University trails in the all-time series, 21-63.

In the last meeting between Austin Peay State University and Tennessee Tech, the Govs held the lead for three quarters at the Eblen Center in Cookeville; but an untimely stretch of cold shooting in the fourth quarter did the Governors in, as they fell to the Golden Eagles, 58-49, on January 9th, 2020.

Tahanee Bennell knocked down a pair of three-pointers and led the Govs with a dozen points in a game that was nationally televised on ESPNU.

APSU Women's Basketball - Arielle Gonzalez-Varner. (APSU)Arielle Gonzalez-Varner posted her fifth double-double of the season, scoring 10 points and pulling down 11 rebounds in the contest. Gonzalez-Varner grabbed six rebounds on the offensive end, and also picked up two steals, and dished out an assist. Ella Sawyer did a bit of everything for the Governors, recording seven points, three steals, two rebounds, and two steals. Finally, Nieja Crawford led the Govs with four assists in the contest.

Kesha Brady and Jordan Brock led the Golden Eagles on offense, scoring 11 points apiece. Brock hit three triples and dished out a team-high four assists, while Brady led the way with a pair of steals. Akia Harris and Mackenzie Coleman each scored 7 points for Tennessee Tech, with Harris also dishing out four assists and Coleman grabbing a team-high seven rebounds.

APSU Notably

Austin Peay State University will play on Dave Loos Court in the Winfield Dunn Center for the first time in 19 days when they square off with Tennessee Tech. The Govs just completed a season-long five-game road trip, and are now set to play a season-long five-game homestand.

At 5-2 in Ohio Valley Conference play, the APSU Govs matched the 2015-16 squad for the best seven-game start to conference play in David Midlick‘s tenure at Austin Peay State University.

The Governors are 7-4 through their first 11 games this season, which is the second-best 11-game start to a season in Midlick’s six seasons in Clarksville.

Nationally the APSU Governors rank 12th in three-pointers attempted (321), 19th in three-pointers per game (9.1), and 22nd in three-pointers made (100) — they lead the OVC in all three statistics as well.

Austin Peay State University is the only teams in the OVC that rank in the top five in scoring offense (68.6 ppg), scoring defense (64 ppg), and scoring margin (+4.6).

Brandi Ferby and Brianah Ferby are tied for the OVC lead in steals (25), the twin-sister duo is also tied for third in the conference in steals per game (2.3).

APSU Women's Basketball - Maggie Knowles. (Robert Smith, APSU Sports Information)Maggie Knowles is tied for the OVC lead in three-pointers made (27), she would also lead the OVC and be tied for 7th nationally in three-point field goals made per game (3.38) if she had played in 75 percent of Austin Peay State University’s games this season.

The APSU Governors have forced 20+ turnovers in five games this season and are averaging 20.1 turnovers forced per game, which ranks 43rd in the country and second in the OVC.

APSU Govs in the time of COVID-19

For the 2020-21 season, Austin Peay State University athletics will allow approximately 35 percent capacity in the Dunn Center for home basketball events. There will be no lower bowl seating for fans during the season. The lower level will be limited to players, coaches, and game-day support staff only.

Seats will be assigned to create a buffer between groups to ensure social distancing is maintained. Student seating will be located in sections AA-BB for both men’s and women’s games. Masks or facial coverings are required to enter the Dunn Center. They must remain in place at all times unless eating or drinking.

 

APSU Govs Online

Check back at LetsGoPeay.com and on Austin Peay State University’s Official Athletics Facebook page often for up-to-date news about all APSU Governor athletics, as well as the Governor women’s basketball Twitter page (@AustinPeayWBB). Live stats will be available during the game at PeayStats.com, and all home games and Ohio Valley Conference games can be viewed on the ESPN+ app.

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