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CHARLESTON, Ill. – Eastern Illinois women's basketball aims to extend the Ohio Valley Conference's longest home win streak this weekend, taking the floor at Lantz Arena for the first time in a month for games against Eastern Kentucky and Morehead State.

 

Thursday's game against EKU (6-8, 3-3 OVC) is slated for a 5:30 p.m. opening tip. Saturday's 3 p.m. matinee against Morehead (10-8, 4-2 OVC) is scheduled to be televised live locally on WEIU-TV.

 

The Panthers (10-6, 4-1 OVC) have won 13 consecutive home games dating back to Jan. 12, 2008, a streak that ranks eighth nationally this week. The streak began with an overtime victory vs. EKU. Thursday, EIU can establish a new program record, with a 14th straight victory at Lantz, by winning a fifth straight game against the Lady Colonels in Charleston.

 

Morehead State, meanwhile, has won 12 consecutive home games entering the week. The Eagles could take over the league's longest home-court win streak by beating the Panthers Saturday.

 

EIU head coach Brady Sallee will also welcome a pair of notable coaching colleagues to town this week. First-year EKU coach Chrissy Roberts and Sallee were both assistants at East Carolina during the 2002-03 and 2003-04 seasons. Morehead's second-year skipper Mike Bradbury is one of Sallee's closest friends in the profession.

 

Among the EIU players, Megan Edwards enters the weekend with 98 career 3-pointers. She has made 14 of her team-leading 26 3-pointers at home this season. Edwards is looking to become the seventh player in program history to reach the century mark for career 3s.

 

Eastern Kentucky is led by the OVC's top-scoring freshman, guard Kayla Drake (16.7 ppg). However, after a pair of senior forwards left the program in the fall, EKU has been leaning heavily on its starting lineup. All five of EKU's probable starters are averaging at least 28 minutes per game, and only seven players saw action in the team's home victory against Tennessee Tech Saturday.

 

The Panthers won a pair of overtime games against EKU last season. Edwards hit a game-tying 3-pointer at the end of regulation in Richmond and EIU went on to win, 91-86. Rachel Galligan led five Panthers in double-figures with 24 points.

 

The rematch in Charleston saw the now-graduated Niki Avery hit a similar game-tying 3-pointer at the end of regulation. But Galligan scored a career-high 31 points, recording her 1,000th career point in the process.

 

With EIU winning the game, 86-81, the two teams scored a combined 344 points in the two games. By comparison, EIU and Southeast Missouri only scored a combined 244 points in their three meetings last season.

 

Eastern Kentucky has improved defensively though, ranking fourth in the league in points per game allowed (64.5).

 

Morehead State once again relies heavily on the 3-point shot. The Eagles average a league-leading nine 3s per game while shooting 33 percent from behind the arc, second to only EIU (.372). However, while the Panthers lead the league in 3-point field goal percentage defense (.267), MSU ranks last in the OVC in that category (.351).

 

Along with Austin Peay, Morehead has taken one of the biggest leaps forward from that of the preseason poll predictions thanks to an infusion of new players. Junior college transfers Tiffany Hamilton (11.7 ppg, 45 3s) and Tiffanie Stephens (10.0 ppg, 30 3s) have both been shooting the ball well and freshmen Courtney Lumpkin (3.8 apg, 24 3s) and Ashley Martin (5.2 rpg, 11 3s) arae also contributing.

 

Morehead is still lead by its veteran inside-outside combination of Brittany Pittman and Chynna Bozeman. Pittman broke the OVC career blocked shots record (231 and counting) last week and is averaging nine points and nine rebounds per game. Bozeman leads the team in scoring (15.4 ppg) thanks to 50 3-pointers.

 

Last season, EIU won both meetings with the Eagles for just the second time as league rivals. Maggie Kloak (22) and Lindsey Kluempers (15) both posted career-high point totals in Morehead. Every Panther that played scored in the rematch in Charleston.

 

Morehead State made 19 3-pointers in the two meetings – 10 at Johnson Arena on the MSU campus and nine in Lantz.

With their season-long, five-game road stretch complete, this weekend's action marks the beginning of a stretch in which the Panthers will play six of their next eight games at Lantz Arena.

More Info: Contact Ben Turner, Asst. SID