Coming off a three-game sweep of its recent road trip, WKU will return to E.A. Diddle Arena for the first time in more than two weeks as the Lady Toppers welcome Florida Atlantic on Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. for a meeting between the former Sun Belt foes.
Most recently, WKU picked up a 74-64 win at Louisiana Tech last Sunday afternoon, fending off a late Lady Techster comeback attempt. C-USA Player of the Year candidate Tashia Brown finished with a game-high 26 points, including back-to-back baskets in the fourth quarter after Louisiana Tech closed within three points, and earned C-USA Player of the Week honors.
Tashia Brown leads all C-USA players with 23.1 points per game and fellow preseason All-C-USA pick Ivy Brown is just short of averaging a double-double at 16.3 points and 9.7 rebounds per game. The pair have combined to score just over 50 percent of WKU’s points this season with 828 total points between the duo.
Sasha Cedeño is the Owls’ leading scorer at 17.9 points per game, while Danneal Ford (12.8), Tyana Robinson (11.5) and Ra’Kyra Gabriel (10.5) also average double figures. Cedeño is also the team’s leading rebounder at 8.1 per game, and Ford has a team-best 86 total assists.
WKU will remain inside Diddle Arena for its next game as it takes on Old Dominion next Thursday evening at 5:30 p.m. in the eighth meeting between the sides since 2014-15.
GAME #22 / C-USA GAME #9 – RV/NR WKU VS. FLORIDA ATLANTIC
WKU (16-5, 7-1 C-USA) vs. Florida Atlantic (10-8, 3-3 C-USA)
February 3, 2018 | 2:00 p.m. (CT)
Bowling Green, Ky. | E.A. Diddle Arena (7,326)
QUICK SHOTS
– As of Feb. 2, WKU is ranked No. 46 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 representatives in the top 100 of the rankings, with UAB second at No. 84.
– WKU enters Saturday’s game with a 15-game winning streak against C-USA opponents inside Diddle Arena dating back to Feb. 25, 2016. That is the longest such streak for the Lady Toppers since winning 17 straight from the 2003-04 to 2006-07 campaign.
– WKU currently owns a seven-game winning streak against Florida Atlantic that dates back to Feb. 15, 2012, and the Lady Toppers hold a 16-2 edge in the all-time series against the Owls.
– Tashia Brown is the reigning C-USA Player of the Week after averaging 27 points in wins at North Texas and Louisiana Tech. Brown has captured the award three times this season, the most among C-USA players.
– With 26 points at Louisiana Tech on Jan. 28, Tashia Brown moved into seventh place on WKU’s all-time scoring list with 1,817 points, passing Kami Thomas and ShaRae Mansfield. Leslie Logdson’s mark of 1,854 points is up next for Brown, followed by Kendall Noble’s 1,888 points. Brown is on pace to be just the fourth Lady Topper to score 2,000 career points, joining Crystal Kelly, Lillie Mason and Tiffany Porter-Talbert. Brown also ranks 12th in C-USA history and needs 33 points to move into the top 10 in conference history in scoring.
– On Jan. 31, Tashia Brown was named one of the 10 finalists for the Cheryl Miller Award presented to the best small forward in the nation, becoming the first player in C-USA history to earn the honor. Of the 10 finalists, Brown owns the most points per game this season (23.1) and defeated fellow finalist Sophie Cunningham of Missouri in a head-to-head matchup while scoring 30 points in that outing. Brown has averaged 21.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists against Power 5 opponents this season.
– Through eight games of C-USA play, Dee Givens has been an offensive force off the bench for the Lady Toppers, averaging 12.3 points per game. Givens has hit double figures in all but the first game of conference play against Middle Tennessee.
– When holding opponents under 70 points this season, WKU owns a perfect 15-0 record and is 120-13 (.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 sixth among all players in the nation with 23.1 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 field goals made (eighth, 690) and free throws made (10th, 385). Brown also now holds the school record for field goals attempted for her career with 1,621. Brown is also on the verge of entering in attempted free throws (527, needs 14 to rank in the top 10).
– 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 21 games, Ivy Brown has broken into the top 10 in rebounding in school history, ranking 10th all-time with 867 boards. The Hodgenville, Ky., native is also fifth in school history with 136 blocks and her 80.6 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 21 games, WKU leads all C-USA teams and ranks ninth nationally for the fewest turnovers per game, giving up the ball only 11.9 times per contest. The Lady Toppers have had single-digit turnovers in eight games this season and lead the league in turnover margin at +6.9 per game.
– WKU is currently shooting 323-of-414 (.780) 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’ 323 made free throws lead all C-USA squads so far this season, and their 78.0 percent success rate tops the league and ranks ninth 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 16.7 offensive boards per game, and Ivy Brown leads all C-USA players with 4.1 offensive rebounds per game. WKU’s 16.7 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 38.6 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.
– 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 (21) 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; John Butler, analysis)
Watch: C-USA TV (Online Stream)
Live Audio: C-USA TV (Online Audio)
Live Stats: Courtesy of WKU 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
