Tech women back in action Saturday at Western Illinois
MACOMB, Ill. – As the Tennessee Tech women’s basketball team enters Saturday’s contest, the Golden Eagles are in a little bit of unfamiliar territory. After back-to-back losses to open the new year against Little Rock and Eastern Illinois – only the second time in the last two seasons, the Golden Eagles are determined to end the skid and get back on track. They’ll attempt to do that Saturday as they take on Western Illinois at 1 PM. Dylan Vazzano and Frank Harrell will have the call on 106.1 The Eagle, while the game will also be streamed on ESPN+ (subscription required).
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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14 | 13 | 18 | 15 | 60 |
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21 | 22 | 11 | 23 | 77 |
Team Stats
Western Illinois
| Game Statistics | Tennessee Tech | Western Illinois |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | (19-60) | (28-48) |
| Field Goal % | 31.7% | 58.3% |
| Rebounds | 28 | 23 |
| Assists | 11 | 15 |
| Turnovers | 16 | 11 |
| Pts off Turnovers | 14 | 19 |
| 2nd Chance Pts | 10 | 2 |
| Pts in the Paint | 16 | 48 |
| Fastbreak Pts | 6 | 7 |
| Bench Pts | 10 | 10 |
GAME NOTES | Game 15 -- at Western Illinois | PDF
By Thomas Corhern, TTU Athletics Media Relations
MACOMB, Ill. – As the Tennessee Tech women's basketball team enters Saturday's contest, the Golden Eagles are in a little bit of unfamiliar territory.
After back-to-back losses to open the new year against Little Rock and Eastern Illinois – only the second time in the last two seasons - the Golden Eagles are determined to end the skid and get back on track.
They'll attempt to do that Saturday as they take on Western Illinois at 1 PM. Dylan Vazzano and Frank Harrell will have the call on 106.1 The Eagle, while the game will also be streamed on ESPN+ (subscription required).
Tech (10-4, 3-2 Ohio Valley Conference) is still in a strong position in the early going of the conference race, as they stand just a game back from the current conference leaders and two of those three at the top are the Golden Eagles' next opponents. Western Illinois – Saturday's opponent – and Southern Indiana – Tech's opponent Thursday – are tied at the top with Little Rock, all claiming 4-1 records thus far in the OVC.
The biggest thing for the Golden Eagles right now is finding confidence on the road. Tech has a 1-4 record away from the Hooper Eblen Center with the lone win coming back in November at Jackson State. Since then, Tech has gone 0-4, though those games have included Kennesaw State, USC, Little Rock and Eastern Illinois. Tech is 9-0 at home – the most by any conference team so far, with a 27-game home winning streak.
Western Illinois, however, comes into Saturday's game as the top offensive team in the conference, averaging 79.9 points per game, while Tech is fourth at 68.6. The last two opponents, Little Rock (60.1 ppg) and Eastern Illinois (57.6 ppg) are ninth and 11th, respectively, in scoring offense.
The Leathernecks opened up OVC play with a 74-65 win at Lindenwood, then topped SIUE 75-51. Their lone loss came at UT Martin, falling 86-78, then WIU collected consecutive wins over Southeast Missouri 58-51 and Tennessee State 76-59.
WIU could still be out of the services of junior Raegan McCowan, who has been one of the team's best scorers the last couple of seasons. She has not played since the Dec. 18 game against Lindenwood. However, WIU has not faltered in league play as senior Mia Nicastro is averaging 23.2 points in league play as well as 9.6 rebounds – both team bests – as she is shooting .447 from the field and .882 at the free-throw line with an average of 6-for-7 at the stripe per league game.
McCowan was averaging 18.0 points per game before her injury.
On the season as a whole, Nicastro is averaging 23.1 points and 10.4 rebounds with 13 assists, nine blocks and 18 steals.
Addi Brownfield is also averaging double figures with a 12.3-point average with 5.8 rebounds per game, while she has the team lead in steals with 33 and blocks with 15. Kaylen Reed leads the team in assists with 57.
As a team, the Leathernecks are averaging 79.9 points and allowing 60.9. They're shooting .443 from the field. .320 from long-range and .776 from the free-throw line with an average of 5.1 3-pointers and 18.3 at the free-throw line.
The Golden Eagles, meanwhile, are averaging 68.6 points on offense and 61.2 points on defense. Tech is shooting .387 from the field, .336 from 3-point land and .685 from the stripe, averaging 6.6 3-pointers and 15.5 free throws.
Reghan Grimes leads the team in scoring with 14.9 ppg to lead Tech's quartet of double-digit scorers, while also pulling down 6.5 rebounds and posting a team-best 36 assists. Reagan Hurst is averaging 12.3 points, Chloe Larry is averaging 11.7 and Cam Mathews is averaging 10.6. LaReesha Cawthorn (8.1 ppg) leads the team in rebounds (9.1 rpg) with the team lead in blocks (16) and steals (24).
Tech returns home next Thursday as it hosts Southern Indiana.
Tickets for Tennessee Tech basketball are on sale now – call (931) 372-3940, visit the Hooper Eblen Center ticket office or order online at TTUsports.com.
Photo | Thomas Corhern, TTU Athletics Media Relations
