WKU will round out its whirlwind first week of the regular season with a road trip to Bloomington, Ind., to face Indiana inside Assembly Hall on Friday evening at 6 p.m. (CT), the Lady Toppers’ fourth game over the last seven days.
In its last time out, WKU took No. 6/5 Notre Dame to the brink inside E.A. Diddle Arena on Tuesday evening, falling 78-65 against the Fighting Irish. Just a 3-point game midway through the third quarter, WKU nearly sprung the upset in front of 5,061 fans, the largest inside Diddle for a non-Education Day game in 12 years.
Tashia Brown (23.7 points per game) is one of four Lady Toppers averaging double figures through three games, joined by Dee Givens (13.3), Ivy Brown (13.0) and Whitney Creech (11.7).
Indiana enters Friday’s bout with a 2-0 record and wins over Arkansas State and Southern to open the season. Tyra Buss leads the Hoosiers at 25.5 points per game and has dished out a team-best 16 assists, and both Amanda Cahill (13 points, 11 rebounds) and Kym Royster (12 points, 10.5 rebounds) are averaging double-doubles for Indiana. As a team, the Hoosiers are averaging just over 50 rebounds per game through their first two outings.
WKU will remain on the road for the Georgia State Thanksgiving Classic, facing Mercer (Friday, Nov. 24) and Georgia State (Sunday, Nov. 26) in Atlanta next weekend.
GAME #4 – RV/NR WKU AT RV/RV INDIANA
RV/NR WKU (1-2, 0-0 C-USA) at RV/RV Indiana (2-0, 0-0 Big Ten)
November 17, 2017 | 6:00 p.m. (CT)
Bloomington, Ind. | Assembly Hall (17,472)
QUICK SHOTS
– Tashia Brown was named the C-USA Player of the Week on Nov. 13 after averaging 23 points per game in WKU’s two games at the Hawkeye Challenge. Brown almost single-handedly took over the game late against Missouri, scoring 11 of WKU’s final 14 points to key the upset of the then-No. 16 Tigers.
– For the third consecutive year, WKU earned a victory over a ranked opponent by taking down No. 16 Missouri, 79-76, on Nov. 10 in the Hawkeye Challenge. With the victory, WKU secured its first streak of three seasons with at least one ranked victory since 1990-91 through 1992-93, a span that saw the Lady Toppers reach three NCAA Tournaments and make a Final Four appearance.
– Under Michelle Clark-Heard, WKU owns a 3-7 record against ranked opponents with wins over Louisville (2015-16), Indiana (2016-17) and Missouri (2017-18).
– Last season, the Lady Toppers picked up an 85-74 win over then-No. 23 Indiana inside E.A. Diddle Arena behind 28 points from Tashia Brown. Brown scored 15 of her points in the fourth quarter to secure the upset for WKU
– WKU owns C-USA’s second-highest scoring offense through the first week of play, averaging 80.3 points per game through its first three outings. WKU’s 80.3 points per game ranks at the top in C-USA among teams that have only faced Division I opponents this season, and the Lady Toppers tallied 97 points against Iowa, the third-most in a single game under Michelle Clark-Heard.
– Ivy Brown enters Friday’s matchup needing only 11 points to become the 39th member of WKU’s 1,000-point club. Of the 38 current members, five (Kendall Noble, Chastity Gooch, Alexis Govan, Tashia Brown and Micah Jones) have joined under Michelle Clark-Heard.
– WKU has started a true freshman at least one time in each of the last four seasons. Tashia Brown earned five starts in 2014-15, Kayla Smith drew 31 starts in 2015-16, Sarah Price appeared in the starting lineup five times in 2016-17 and Raneem Elgedawy has started WKU’s first three games this season.
– WKU owns an impressive record under Clark-Heard when breaking the 80-point barrier. The Lady Toppers have posted a near-perfect 48-2 mark when scoring 80 or more since the 2012-13 season.
– In games immediately following a loss since Michelle Clark-Heard took over in 2012-13, the Lady Toppers are 32-7 and suffered their first consecutive losses in the same season in nearly three years against Iowa and Notre Dame.
– Michelle Clark-Heard’s 130 wins over her first five seasons with the program are the most in that category of any coach in school history, surpassing the legendary Paul Sanderford’s mark of 127 from 1982-83 through 1986-87.
– Already 17th in program history with 1,402 career points, Tashia Brown is looking to move even further up the charts during her senior season. To move into the top 10 in school history, Brown would need to score 361 more points during her final season on The Hill.
– The breakout star of the 2017 C-USA Tournament, junior Sidnee Bopp has continued her momentum into the 2017-18 season, knocking down seven three-pointers across WKU’s first three games of the season. Dating back to the final five games of 2016-17, Bopp has connected on 28 three-pointers over her last seven games, just shy of four makes from beyond the arc per contest.
BROADCAST
Listen: 102.7 FM and 1450AM in Bowling Green (Jevin Redman, pxp)
Watch: Big Ten Network Plus ($$)
Live Stats: Courtesy of Indiana Athletics
How to Follow the Lady Toppers: For complete information on WKU Lady Topper Basketball, visit WKUSports.com or follow the program via social media @LadyTopperHoops on Twitter, @LadyTopperHoops on Instagram and on Facebook at facebook.com/WKUWomensBasketball.
– @WKUSports –
Currie P. McFayden
WKU Associate Director of Athletic Communications
