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YPSILANTI, MICH.– The Ohio women's basketball team (3-16, 1-7 MAC) will get on the road to face the Eastern Michigan Eagles (11-8, 3-5 MAC) on Wednesday night (2/1). The Bobcats are looking for their second conference win at the George Gervin GameAbove Center. Tipoff is set for 7 pm and will be available to stream on ESPN+.

ALL-TIME SERIES
The Ohio women's basketball team has faced off against the Eastern Michigan Eagles over 65 times in their respective schools' history. The all-time series currently stands at 38-27 with the Bobcats securing 11 more wins than the Eagles. 

LAST TIME OUT 
The last time these two MAC teams faced off against each other was over a year ago on February 14th of 2022. The result of the last time out was a 66-53 win for the Bobcats; they were led by now sophomore guard, Yaya Felder with 20 points, 4 steals,  3 assists, and 8 rebounds. The Bobcats went 22-of-59 from the field, 11-of-22 from the three, and 11-of-16 from the free throw line. Ohio also grabbed a total of 42 rebounds and 7 steals in their last matchup against Eastern Michigan. Last February, the Eagles were led by Redshirt Senior, Areanna Combs with 20 points, 9 rebounds, 3 block, and 3 steals. Combs has since graduated leaving a new offensive leader for the Eastern Michigan team. 

MAC PLAY
Both teams are well into MAC play for the 2022-23 season with 8 games under their belts. Ohio has fallen to: Akron, Kent State, Buffalo, Northern Illinois, Western Michigan, Central Michigan, and  Ball State, but have defeated their rival Miami in overtime to give the Bobcats a 1-7 record in the MAC. The Eagles currently hold a 5-3 conference record, defeating: Miami (68-67), NIU (66-61), and Western Michigan (63-51). The Eagles have fallen to: Bowling Green (63-79), Akron (43-60), Buffalo (59-78), Kent State (66-79), and Toledo (73-79).

SCOUTING THE EAGLES
Western Michigan's last matchup was against Toledo, where they took the Rockets to overtime. The Eagles fell short with a final score of 73-79 in the overtime period, but had three players reach double figures in scoring; Ce'Nara Skanes (23), Lachelle Austin 13), and Tayra Eke (15). Skanes went 10-of-16 from the field, 1-of-4 from the three, and 2-of-2 from the free throw line to secure her 23 points. Skanes also grabbed 9 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals. Following Skanes was Tayra Eke with 15 points, and grabbing 11 rebounds to giving the sophomore another double-double.

LEADING EASTERN MICHIGAN
Overall, the Eagles are being led by Ce'nara Skanes with 228 total points this season, averaging out to 12.7 a game. Skanes also leads in rebounds with 145; 41 offensive and 104 defensive. Skanes has also totaled 24 steals, 18 blocks, and 40 assists. Lachelle Austin is close behind in total season points with 225, averaging 12.5 points a game. However, Austin takes the lead in steals and assists with 34 and 52. Another leader on the Eastern Michigan roster is Tayra Eke who holds the most amount of blocks this season standing at 35. 

PROJECTED STARTERS FOR THE EAGLES
Over the 2022-23 season, Eastern Michigan has seen several strong starters, but their predicted lineup for Wednesday's matchup is: Olivia Smith (#1), ZaNiya Nelson (#10),cLachelle Austin (#11), Natalia Pineda (#14), Ce'Nara Skanes  (#21). 

OVERVIEW OF EAGLES NON-CONFERENCE
Nov. 7 Lindenwood (W, 71-56)
Nov. 13 at SIU-Edwardsville (W, 71-62)
Nov. 19 Florida A&M (W, 77-70)
Nov. 23 IUPUI (W, 71-49)
Dec. 1 North Dakota St. (W, 73-55)
Dec. 4 North Dakota (L, 73-79)
Dec. 10 Southern Indiana (L, 60-66)
Dec. 17 at Xavier (W, 51-44)
Dec. 20 vs. James Madison (L, 43-78)
Dec. 21 vs. Wright State (W, 66-54)
Dec. 28 Hillsdale (W, 76-61)

OHIO'S MOST RECENT STATS
The Bobcats ended their last game against Ball State going 19 for 59 (32.2%) on field goal attempts, 10-33 (30.3%) from the three point line and seeing the free throw line 11 times, sinking 10 (90.9.%). The Bobcats also recorded 36 rebounds, grabbed 7 steals, and had 11 assists. 

LAST TO LEAD
In the Bobcats last contest against the Ball State Cardinals they were led by Yaya Felder once more with 19 points, hitting double figures once more. Kate Dennis followed with 12 points and Caitlyn Kroll was next securing 8 for the Bobcats. Kroll also led on defense with 9 rebounds for Ohio, followed by Yaya Felder and Jasmine Hale with 6 apiece.  

NOW LEADING OHIO
Throughout the 2022-23 season, Ohio has been led on the offense by sophomore guard, Yaya Felder in scoring. Felder currently totals 385 points for the Bobcats, now averaging 20.3 a game, putting her in the top 30 of the nation. Caitlyn Kroll follows with 182 points, and behind her is Abby Garnett with 134 points. Caitlyn Kroll also leads Ohio in rebounds, totaling 114; 103 defensive rebounds and 111 offensive. In terms of steals Yaya holds 45 for the season and Kroll is behind with 37. Leading in blocks is Ella Pope with an impressive 14, followed by Garnett with 10.

MATCHUP NOTES
- Yaya Felder is coming out of  40 point game last week against Central Michigan
- Western Michigan's Tayra Eke secured a double double in their last matchup
- Ohio is currently ahead in the all-time series and took the win in the last time out 
- Ohio's bench is getting healthier each week allowing  more offensive options 

Up Next:
After Wednesday's contest (2/1), the Ohio Women's Basketball Team will stay on the road and travel to Toledo for a Saturday (2/4) matinee. The MAC contest is set to tipoff at 2 pm in Toledo, Ohio, and can be streamed on ESPN3. 
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