Austin Peay (18-9 | 11-6 OVC) at Eastern Illinois (15-13 | 10-7 OVC)
Saturday, February 26th, 2022 | 1:00pm CT
Charleston, IL | Lantz Arena
Clarksville, TN – The regular season comes to an end when the Austin Peay State University (APSU) women’s basketball team plays its final Ohio Valley Conference game on Saturday against Eastern Illinois at Lantz Arena in Charleston, Illinois. The tip-off is set for 1:00pm.
Austin Peay State University enters the finale after falling to SIU Edwardsville, 61-71, on Thursday in Edwardsville, Illinois. The Governors have dropped three-straight road contests and are just 6-6 on the road this season, with a 3-5 mark on the road during conference games.
At 11-6 in the OVC, APSU sits in fourth place in the conference standings and will be the No. 3 or No. 4 seed in the OVC Tournament – guaranteeing a first-round bye. An Austin Peay State University Peay win and a Murray State loss to Southeast Missouri on the final day of the season would create a tie at 12-6 in the conference standings and the Governors own the tiebreaker over the Racers.
Eastern Illinois currently sits in fifth place in the OVC standings and can secure the No. 5 seed with a win or a UT Martin loss to Tennessee Tech. If the Panthers fall to the Governors and the Skyhawks beat Tennessee Tech, UT Martin would jump Eastern Illinois and take the No. 5 seed in the OVC Tournament.
Saturday’s game at Eastern Illinois will be streamed on ESPN+.
About the Eastern Illinois Panthers
Tabbed to finish seventh in the OVC Women’s Basketball Preseason Poll, Eastern Illinois currently sits fifth place in the conference with a 10-7 record in OVC play. Fifth-year head coach Matt Bollant’s team is 15-13 overall this season and is on a two-game winning streak.
2021 Second Team All-OVC selection Lariah Washington ranks third in the OVC and leads Eastern Illinois in scoring, averaging 15.4 points per game. Washington ranks fifth in the OVC in free-throw percentage (.828), 10th in three-point percentage (.368), and 13th in field-goal percentage (.477).
Abby Wahl, a 2021 First Team All-OVC pick, is averaging 11 points and 5.7 rebounds per game, which ranks 19th and 10th in the conference, respectively. The 6-1 forward is shooting 83.8 percent from the free-throw line, which ranks third in the OVC, and is averaging 3.1 offensive rebounds per game, which leads the OVC.
Kira Arthofer leads the OVC and ranks 28th in the NCAA with 139 assists this season, she also ranks 39th in the country and leads the OVC in assists per game (5.0). The senior guard also leads the OVC and ranks 9th in the nation with 77 steals this season, her 2.8 steals per game also ranks second in conference and 19th in the NCAA. Arthofer scores 9.6 points per game, which ranks 26th in the OVC.
Eastern Illinois has 300 total steals this season, which ranks 10th in the NCAA, and is averaging 10.7 steals per game, which ranks 23rd in the NCAA — both marks rank second in the OVC.
The Panthers have also dished out 436 assists this season, which ranks second in the OVC and 26th in the country, and their 15.6 assists per game, ranks third in the OVC and 38th in the NCAA.
Series History and Lasting Meeting
The 55th meeting in a series that dates back to 1995, Austin Peay State University leads the all-time series, 31-23, has won two of the last three contests in the series. Austin Peay is 15-11 all-time in Charleston, Illinois, and picked up a 77-68 win in its last trip to Lantz Arena on Jan 9, 2021.
Yamia Johnson scored a season-high 26 points to lead APSUy to a 75-72 victory over Eastern Illinois on January 15th, 2022, at the Winfield Dunn Center in Clarksville, Tennessee.
Johnson also recorded three three-pointers, four rebounds, and two assists against the Panthers. Karle Pace, who spent the first four years of her college career at EIU, scored 15 points, with D’Shara Booker adding 14 points while going 6-of-7 from the floor in the game.
Pace, Nina De Leon Negron, Liz Gibbs, and Ella Sawyer all dished out a team-high three assists, with Sawyer also grabbing a team-leading nine rebounds.
Lariah Washington led Eastern Illinois with a season-high 26 points, she also recorded three rebounds, three assists, and two steals.
Kira Arthofer added 16 points and a team-high four assists, with Abby Wahl chipping in seven points and a team-best seven rebounds.
The Govs’ bench scored a season-high 47 points while holding the Eastern Illinois bench to just nine points.
APSU Notably
With just a game left in the regular season, the OVC Tournament field is set with Austin Peay State University and Eastern Illinois already locked into spots in the postseason.
Austin Peay State University has guaranteed a first-round bye and will be either the No. 3 or No. 4 seed at the OVC Tournament in Evansville, Indiana.
APSU has secured its third-straight winning season and its fifth-straight without a losing record.
Austin Peay State University’s 18 wins match the 2019-20 team for the most wins in a season since the 2003-04 team won 23 contests during its OVC Championship season.
The Governors’ 11 OVC wins are their best single-season mark since the 2010-11 team won a dozen conference games.
APSU is 15-11 all-time against Eastern Illinois in Charleston and picked up a 77-68 win on January 9th, 2021, in its last visit to Lantz Arena.
Austin Peay State University is shooting 45.7 percent from the floor — which ranks 12th in the NCAA and second in the OVC. The Govs have not shot over 45 percent from the floor in a season since the 2002-03 team set the single-season program record by shooting 47.4 percent.
APSU ranks third in the OVC in scoring defense (59.3 ppg), field-goal percentage defense (.392), and three-point percentage defense (.292) — the Govs are the only team in the OVC that ranks in the top three in all three categories.
The Govs are shooting 37.0 percent from three-point range, which ranks 12th in the NCAA and leads the OVC, and are averaging 6.3 made three-pointers per game, which ranks second in the OVC.
Karle Pace and Yamia Johnson are averaging 15.2 and 14.5 points per game, respectively, and rank fourth and fifth in the OVC in scoring. They are the only teammates in the top five in the league in scoring.
Pace is shooting 42.3 percent from three-point range, which ranks 21st in the NCAA and second in the OVC.
Tickets
All-session tickets for the OVC Basketball Championships at the Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana, are on sale for $80.00 online or by calling the Austin Peay State University Athletics ticket office at 931.221.PEAY (7329). Single-session tickets are also available for $15.00, there are two sessions per day at the tournament.
APSU Govs Online
For up-to-date news and information on Austin Peay State University Athletics, check back at LetsGoPeay.com or follow along on Facebook. To keep up with the APSUs women’s basketball team, follow along on Twitter and Instagram (@GovsWBB). Live stats will be available during all home games and select road games at PeayStats.com.
In addition, all Austin Peay State University home games, OVC games, and select road games will be broadcast on ESPN+ this season, visit the women’s basketball schedule at LetsGoPeay.com for a complete broadcast schedule.
Next Up For APSU Women’s Basketball
After the Austin PeayState University women’s basketball team wraps up its regular season on Saturday at Eastern Illinois, the Governors will be back in action at the OVC Women’s Basketball Championship, March 2nd-5th, at the Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana.
With a first-round bye secured, the APSU postseason will begin in the quarterfinals, March 4th, at 1:00pm or 3:30pm against Eastern Illinois, UT Martin, SIU Edwardsville, or Tennessee State.
