WKU is set to close its three-game road trip on Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m. at Louisiana Tech inside the Thomas Assembly Center, rounding out its longest swing away from home in C-USA play this season as it seeks to remain perfect on the road trip.
In its last time out, WKU earned a 79-65 win over the top defense in C-USA at North Texas on Friday evening. Tashia Brown scored a team-high 28 points to move into ninth place on the school’s all-time scoring list, and the 79 points scored by the Lady Toppers were the most allowed by North Texas this season after the Mean Green previously allowed just 52.9 per game.
Tashia Brown leads all C-USA players with 23.0 points per game and fellow preseason All-C-USA pick Ivy Brown is just short of averaging a double-double at 16.4 points and 9.7 rebounds per game. The pair have combined to score just over 50 percent of WKU’s points this season with 788 total points between the duo.
Alexus Malone leads a trio of Lady Techsters in double figures at 13.6 points per game, followed by Kierra Anthony (12.5) and Taylor Stahly (11.4). Malone also leads the team in rebounding at 8.8 boards per game, and Amber Dixon has dished out a team-best 68 assists in 2017-18.
WKU will return to action next Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. as the Lady Toppers are finally back inside E.A. Diddle Arena to host Florida Atlantic.
GAME #21 / C-USA GAME #8 – WKU AT LOUISIANA TECH
WKU (15-5, 6-1 C-USA) at Louisiana Tech (13-7, 4-3 C-USA)
January 28, 2018 | 2:00 p.m. (CT)
Ruston, La. | Thomas Assembly Center (8,000)
QUICK SHOTS
– As of Jan. 27, WKU is ranked No. 51 in the latest NCAA RPI rankings and has faced four teams in the top 35 in Notre Dame, Missouri, Iowa and Ball State. WKU is one of only two C-USA representative in the top 100 of the rankings, with UAB second at No. 92.
– Since joining C-USA prior to the 2014-15 season, WKU has put together a strong record on the road against conference foes, going 24-6 in true road games in C-USA play. The Lady Toppers also own a perfect 4-0 mark against Louisiana Tech under Michelle Clark-Heard.
– With 28 points at North Texas on Jan. 26, Tashia Brown moved into ninth place on WKU’s all-time scoring list with 1,791 points, passing Tandreia Green in the process. Kami Thomas (1,796) and ShaRae Mansfield (1,804) are up next on the list as Brown looks to become the fourth 2,000-point scorer in program history, joining Crystal Kelly, Lillie Mason and Tiffany Porter-Talbert. Brown also ranks 12th in C-USA history and needs 59 points to move into the top 10 in conference history in scoring.
– When holding opponents under 70 points this season, WKU owns a perfect 14-0 record and is 119-13 (.902) in that category dating back to the 2012-13 season.
– With her 10th double-double of the season at Marshall on Jan. 21, Ivy Brown joined an elite group of just six Lady Toppers with multiple seasons of double-digit double-doubles. Brown notched 10 double-doubles as a sophomore in 2015-16 and has already matched that mark thus far as a senior.
– Tashia Brown leads C-USA and is eighth among all players in the nation with 23.0 points per game in 2017-18. Brown has not scored fewer than 13 points in any single game this season and has moved into the top 10 in school history in both field goals made (ninth, 679) and attempted (third, 1,597) for her career. Brown has also entered the top 10 in career free throws made (10th, 381) and is on the verge of entering in attempted free throws (523, needs 18 to rank in the top 10).
– WKU has had at least seven blocks in four of its last five games, including a season-best 10 swats against UTSA, a mark that was tied for the fifth-most blocks in a single game in school history. The Lady Toppers lead C-USA with 82 total blocks this season and have had three five-block games by an individual after going nearly two full seasons without one as Raneem Elgedawy (twice) and Ivy Brown have hit that mark.
– WKU has flashed its defensive prowess consistently this season, holding opponents to single-digit points in a quarter 12 times. For the season, opponents have failed to reach double digits in 15.0 percent of quarters played against the Lady Toppers.
– Through 20 games, Ivy Brown has broken into the top 10 in rebounding in school history, ranking 10th all-time with 858 boards. The Hodgenville, Ky., native is also fifth in school history with 134 blocks and her 80.5 percent mark from the free throw line for her career is fifth among all Lady Toppers who have made at least 200 free throws.
– Through 20 games, WKU leads all C-USA teams and ranks seventh nationally for the fewest turnovers per game, giving up the ball only 11.8 times per contest. The Lady Toppers have had single-digit turnovers in eight games this season and lead the league in turnover margin at +6.7 per game.
– WKU is currently shooting 315-of-402 (.784) from the free throw line this season, with only four players shooting below 80 percent among those who have attempted at least five free throws. The Lady Toppers’ 315 made free throws lead all C-USA squads so far this season, and their 78.4 percent success rate tops the league and ranks fifth in the nation.
– WKU has been very strong at collecting its own misses this season and has tallied nearly as many offensive rebounds as those on the defensive end. The Lady Toppers have pulled down a league-leading 16.8 offensive boards per game, and Ivy Brown leads all C-USA players with 4.2 offensive rebounds per game. WKU’s 16.8 offensive boards also ranks 10th in the nation among Division I teams.
– Raneem Elgedawy’s dominant 23-rebound performance against FIU set several records. Her 23 rebounds were tied for the most ever by an individual in a C-USA game, tied for third-most in school history and by any individual C-USA player in a single game and are the most in a single game by any underclassman in the nation this season.
– Against FIU on Jan. 11, WKU pulled down a season-best 61 rebounds, including 27 on the offensive glass. Those 61 total rebounds were tied for the eighth-most ever in a C-USA contest, as were WKU’s 27 offensive boards. As a team this season, WKU is averaging 39.4 rebounds per game, currently its best mark in a single season since totaling 41.4 per game in 2011-12.
– In WKU’s 101-47 victory over FIU, the Lady Toppers set a new C-USA record for the largest margin of victory ever in a C-USA contest. The 54-point win topped the previous record of 53 that occurred on three separate occasions, most recently in an 84-31 win for Rice over UTEP on Feb. 1, 2007. WKU’s 54-point win was its largest against a conference foe since downing South Alabama by 58 points, 100-42, as a member of the Sun Belt on Feb. 26, 1998.
– Ivy Brown (22 points, 14 rebounds), Dee Givens (16 points, 10 rebounds) and Raneem Elgedawy (13 points, 23 rebounds) each had a double-double against FIU on Jan. 11, marking the first time under Michelle Clark-Heard that three different players have recorded a double-double in the same game. The double-double was the first of Givens’ career on The Hill, while Brown (10) and Elgedawy (4) have each tallied multiple double-doubles this season.
– WKU owns an impressive record under Clark-Heard when breaking the 80-point barrier. The Lady Toppers have posted a near-perfect 54-3 mark when scoring 80 or more since the 2012-13 season.
– Ivy Brown is currently tied for 17th in the country with 10 double-doubles, already surpassing her total from the entire 2016-17 season. Brown has 28 career points-rebounds double-doubles, tied for the sixth-most in program history by an individual.
– Just one week after Ivy Brown tied the program record with 16 points in the third quarter at Southern Illinois, Tashia Brown matched that mark in the third quarter against Toledo on Dec. 17. Brown scored 16 of the team’s 18 points in the frame, including 14 straight points, and outscored the entire Toledo team, 16-13, over the 10-minute span.
– WKU has started a true freshman at least five times 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 (20) and Sherry Porter (8) have been consistent starters for the Lady Toppers this season.
BROADCAST
Listen: 102.7 FM and 1450AM in Bowling Green (Jevin Redman, pxp)
Watch: C-USA TV (Online Stream)
Live Audio: C-USA TV (Online Audio)
Live Stats: Courtesy of Louisiana Tech 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
Women’s Basketball | Women’s Soccer
