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EASTERN ILLINOIS (12-13, 7-7 OVC) vs. UT Martin (20-7, 13-1 OVC)

Feb. 27, 2014  •  7 p.m.
Lantz Arena  •  Charleston, Ill.
Radio: Hit Mix 88.9 FM  •  TV: WEIU (Delayed)
(Rich Moser & Rob Calhoun)

GAME 26
Eastern Illinois returns home for senior night as the Panthers host UT Martin on Thursday night.  EIU has won two straight games on the road and moved into second in the OVC West Division standings.  The Panthers are tied for fifth overall in the race for the OVC Tournament which starts March 5 in Nashville.  EIU is 7-3 at home this year with three straight OVC home wins.  The Panthers last home game was Feb. 8 against Southeast Missouri.  UT Martin enters the game with a 20-7 overall record, 13-1 in the OVC.  The Skyhawks have clinched the OVC regular season championship and will be the number one seed in the OVC Tournament.  UTM's one loss this season in the OVC was a road loss at SIU Edwardsville on Feb. 8.

EIU SENIOR NIGHT
Eastern Illinois will honor its three seniors prior to the start of the Panthers home game against UT Martin.  Jordyne Crunk, Taryn Olson and Morgan Palombizio will all be recognized along with senior manager Jackie Herman. 

Crunk has been a four-year member of the Panthers squad ranking as one of the best free throw shooters in school history.  She currently leads the OVC at 83.7 percent and is an 81.6 percent shooter for her career. 

Olson has been a four-year member of the Panthers squad assuming a role as a defensive post player this season.  Olson had a season high ten points earlier this year in a home win over Murray State.

Palombizio has been a four-year member of the Panthers squad.  In the Panthers recent road win at Austin Peay she turned in her most complete game with 11 points and eight rebounds. 

UP NEXT
Saturday - March 1 at SIU Edwardsville - 1 p.m. (Edwardsville, Ill.)


LAST TIME OUT
Eastern Illinois overcame a halftime deficit for the third time this season as the Panthers rallied to pick up a 54-48 win over OVC East Division leader Belmont on Saturday.  The Panthers featured a balanced scoring attack led by Katlyn Payne's 16 points and Jordyne Crunk's 12 points.  Sabina Oroszova pulled down 13 rebounds while passing out a season high seven assists.  As a team EIU had 13 assists and a season low seven turnovers as they had a 19-3 points off turnover advantage in the game. 

SCOUTING UT MARTIN
UT Martin enters the game as the 2014 Ohio Valley Conference Champions after the Skyhawks wrapped up the regular season championship with wins last week.  They feature two of the top players in the OVC in senior guards Heather Butler and Jasmine Newsome.  The pair combine to average more than 42 points per game as UTM averages 83 points per game.  On the year, the Skyhawks have scored 100 or more points in seven games including a 103-84 win over EIU back in late January in Martin, Tenn.

SERIES INFORMATION
Eastern Illinois and UT Martin will be meeting for the 41st time on Thursday night with UTM leading the all-time series 23-17.  The Skyhawks have won three straight in the series including a win in the OVC Tournament semifinals last year and a 103-84 victory earlier this season.  The two schools have split the regular season series in each of the last four years.  EIU has won five straight in the series in Lantz Arena, the last loss coming Jan. 10, 2008.

IN THE PAINT
• Katlyn Payne made four 3-pointers in the road win at Belmont as the junior has now made at least one 3-pointer in all 25 game this season.  Payne is the EIU single season leader with 75 made 3-pointers.  She needs 11 more this season to crack the OVC single season top ten.

• EIU committed a season low seven turnovers in the road win at Belmont.  It marked the first time this season that EIU had single digit turnovers in a game.  The previous low was 11 against UAB and at Murray State.

• Eastern Illinois shot 56 percent in the second half at Belmont.  It marked the tenth time this season that EIU has shot 50 percent or better in the second half of a game.  Twice this season EIU has shot 70 percent from the field in the second half beating Tennessee State and falling on the road at UT Martin.

• For the second time in three games freshman Aaliyah Gaines came off the bench to provide a spark for EIU's offense.  After scoring a season high 11 points at Murray State on Feb. 15, Gaines had two important baskets late in the first half at Belmont.  The freshman has shot 50 percent from the floor in the last three games.

• Sabina Oroszova was limited to eight points at Belmont but the junior forward contributed in other ways during the win.  Oroszova passed out a season high seven assists while pulling down 13 rebounds.  She moved into fifth on the EIU single season rebounding list with 256.

• Jordyne Crunk scored in double figures for the fourth straight game finishing with 12 points at Belmont.  Crunk has made 11 of her last 18 free throws in that four game stretch playing all but four minutes in those contests.  Crunk leads the OVC in free throw percentage at 83.7 percent.

• Taryn Olson was 4-of-8 from the field in the win at Belmont finishing with eight points including a basket in the final minute that clinched the victory.  Olson has shot 50 percent from the field in the Panthers five February games averaging 5.6 points per game.  EIU is 4-1 in February.

EASTERN ILLINOIS HEAD COACH DEBBIE BLACK
Debbie Black enters his first season as head coach of the Eastern Illinois women's basketball team.  Black was hired May 16, 2013 to take over the program following a long career as an assistant coach, most recently at Ohio State.  While with the Buckeyes program Black helped coach the team to seven straight NCAA Tournament appearances including six Big Ten Conference Championships.  Black has been part of 34 consecutive winning basketball seasons both as a player and a coach.  She began her playing career at Saint Joseph's University helping the Hawks make four straight NCAA Tournament appearances.  After graduation in 1988, she played professionally overseas in Tasmania (1989-96).  She played in the WNBA from 1999-2005 earning WNBA Defensive Player of the Year honors.  Nicknamed "The Pest" Black is the only women's professional player to record a quadruple double with 10 points, 14 rebounds, 12 assists and 10 steals in a game.