Austin Peay (4-3) at Western Illinois (2-5)
Sunday, December 2nd, 2018 | 4:30pm CT
Macomb, IL | Western Hall
Clarksville, TN – Austin Peay State University (APSU) women’s basketball team heads north for a two-game roadtrip, starting with taking on Western Illinois, 4:30pm, Sunday, December 2nd.
The Governors (4-3) are coming off their second straight win at home, defeating Lipscomb 70-58 on Thursday.
It was the second best shooting performance for the Govs this season and the second consecutive game they held their opponent to less than 60 points.
Both the Govs and the Leathernecks (2-5) rank in the top 15 in the country in total three-pointers made. Arielle Gonzalez-Varner, still the reigning Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Week, is averaging a double-double and led the Govs in points against Lipscomb with 17.
Nieja Crawford recorded her first career double-double against Lipscomb with 10 points and 10 rebounds and Keisha Gregory had another solid outing for the Govs, as she has now scored in double figures for four straight games. Gregory also is having another stellar year from the free-throw line, shooting over 90 percent and currently is the all-time leader in free-throw percentage.
About the Western Illinois Leathernecks
The Leathernecks had a very successful season last year, reaching the women’s National Invitational Tournament. They have had a rougher start to this season though, losing five of their first six games by an average of 24.8 points, including a 10 point loss against OVC opponent Southeast Missouri. The Leathernecks did win their most recent outing, defeating NAIA school William Woods.
Western Illinois is averaging 75 points a game, but that number is slightly skewed from a 136-39 win over MacMurray College. While the Leathernecks are potent from the three-point line, it is in terms of volume. The team has made a lot of threes, but only shoot it at 31 percent on the year.
The Govs will key in on Olivia Kaufmann, who leads Western Illinois with 12.9 points a game. While the Leathernecks have gotten outrebounded in games this season, Taylor Higginbotham averages six rebounds per game to go along with 11 points per game.
The two teams have only met once in history, with Western Illinois defeating the Govs in Clarksville last season.
Follow APSU Govs
Live stats will be provided by Western Illinois. Follow @AustinPeayWBB on Twitter for updates as well.
