University of Southern Indiana Women’s Basketball begins another two-game stretch as it visits the University of Illinois Springfield Thursday at 5:30 p.m. before hosting Bellarmine University Saturday at 5:30 p.m. for Senior Night at the Physical Activities Center.
USI (19-2, 11-1 GLVC), which move up one spot to No. 9 in the Division II Media Poll and No. 15 in the USA Today Sports/Division II Coaches’ Poll, will honor its three seniors—forward Morgan Dahlstrom (Grayslake, Illinois), guard/forward Kaydie Grooms (Marshall, Illinois) and guard Randa Harshbarger (Philo, Illinois)—following the conclusion of Saturday’s game.
Saturday’s contest is USI’s regular-season home finale and also is potentially the final women’s basketball game to be played at the PAC if the new arena opens as schedule next fall.
Both games will be carried on WSWI 95.7 FM as well as the GLVC Sports Network, while live stats, audio & GLVCSN links can be accessed at GoUSIEagles.com.
USI Women’s Basketball Notes
• Eagles grab wins over Maryville, Quincy.USI Women’s Basketball recorded GLVC home wins over Maryville and Quincy last week. Senior guard/forward Kaydie Grooms had a game-high 20 points in USI’s 75-50 win over Maryville, while senior forward Morgan Dahlstrom added a team-best 18 points in USI’s win over Quincy.
• Last week’s leaders. Dahlstrom averaged 17.0 points and 9.0 rebounds to lead the Eagles last week. She shot a blistering 73.9 percent (17-23) while recording a team-high four steals. Grooms chipped in 16.5 points per game, while junior forward Kacy Eschweiler averaged 13.5 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game.
• Second-half defense. Second-half defense has been huge for the Eagles in the last four contests. USI has held its opponents to a combined 25.6 percent (31-121) from the field and 21.7 percent (10-46) from behind the arc in the final 20 minutes.
• Eight-game win streak. During the Eagles’ seven-game win streak, Grooms is leading USI with 17.5 points and 2.4 steals per game, while Dahlstrom is averaging 15.5 points and 11.5 rebounds per contest. Junior guard Alex Davidson is contributing 9.4 points per outing, while senior guard Randa Harshbarger is chipping in 7.3 points and 5.3 assists per game. Eschweiler is adding 9.0 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game.
• Big runs. USI is using big runs during its eight-game winning streak. The Eagles have had double-digit surges in each of their eight wins and have strung together at least 14 straight points in five of those contests. Their largest runs were 17-0 outbursts against Missouri S&T and UW-Parkside.
• Season Leaders. Grooms and Dahlstrom continue to lead the Eagles in scoring with 17.8 and 15.9 points per game, respectively. Dahlstrom leads the GLVC with 10.1 rebounds per contest, while Harshbarger is averaging a team-high 4.0 assists per appearance.
• USI in the Top 25. USI moved one spot to No. 15 in the latest USA Today Sports/NCAA Division II Coaches’ Poll and one spot to No. 9 in the latest Division II Media Poll. USI also is No. 8 in the latest Herosports.com Division II rankings and No. 11 in the Massey Ratings.
• Where do they stand? The Eagles begin the week in sole possession of first place in the latest GLVC Tournament Point Rating System with a 4.25 points average; while Drury (4.17) and Lewis (4.12) are sitting in second and third, respectively. The top eight teams will qualify for the GLVC Tournament based on the point rating system, which is detailed on page 10 of this week’s notes.
• Eagles look to stay perfect at home. USI is 14-0 at the PAC this year and has won 20 straight games on its home court dating back to last year. The Eagles are looking for their first perfect record at the PAC since 2000-01 and their first 15-win season at the PAC since 1996-97.
• 20-win plateau. The Eagles are one win away from earning their second straight 20-win season and 11th in program history. The first nine times USI reached the 20-win mark, they advanced to the NCAA II Tournament.
• What’s ahead? USI visits Illinois Springfield Thursday before hosting Bellarmine, the last team to beat USI on its home court, Saturday for Senior Night at the PAC.
• A look at UIS. The Prairie Stars (10-10, 4-8 GLVC) have lost six straight games and nine of the last 11 after a promising start to the 2017-18 campaign. Senior guard Shelbi Patterson leads UIS with 12.6 points per game, while senior forward Destiny Ramsey is chipping in 12.4 points and 7.9 rebounds per contest.
• A look at Bellarmine. Senior guard Raven Merriweather averages 18.0 points and 6.2 rebounds per game to lead the Knights (13-9, 8-5), who have two straight and five of the last six.
• Stein vs. Dugan. Head Coach Rick Stein squares off against his former boss, Chancellor Dugan, for the 12th time when USI plays Bellarmine Saturday. Stein was an assistant coach under the USI Hall of Famer during her eight-year career with the Eagles. Dugan led the Eagles to the 1997 NCAA II Championship game. Stein holds a 6-5 lead in the all-time series between the two.
• What’s ahead? USI plays the last four games of the regular-season on the road, starting with William Jewell February 15 and Rockhurst February 17.
