Herd Travels to WKU for Thursday Tilt

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – The Marshall women's basketball team (11-13 overall, 6-7 Conference USA) will trek to WKU (18-6, 10-3) on Thursday. Tip time at E.A. Diddle Arena is 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT.

Game Details
Live Stats
Live Video
Marshall Radio (w/ Jason Corriher)
Game Notes
Series History: 15th all-time meeting – WKU leads 13-1
Last Meeting: January 25, 2020 in Huntington, W.Va. – WKU won 74-65

Scouting the Lady Toppers
WKU comes into Thursday's game riding an eight-game winning streak. The Lady Toppers, who have won 12 in a row in E.A. Diddle Arena, have three players who average double figures (Raneem Elgedawy-17.2, Dee Givens-16.8 and Whitney Creech-14.0). Elgedawy's scoring total is third in C-USA, while her 10.4 rebounds stands second. Creech's 4.3 assists sits third in the league. Creech also shoots 41.9 percent from deep and Givens has connected on 54 triples this season, to go with her 2.4 steals (second in C-USA).

WKU was picked third in the league's preseason poll and that's where it currently resides with a 10-3 mark. Marshall was tabbed 11th before the season but is now tied for seventh at 6-7.

The Lady Toppers lead the league in steals (10.5), turnover margin (+4.6), offensive rebounds (15.0) and offensive rebounding percentage (39.6). However, the team is also last in C-USA in field goal percentage defense (43.3), 3-point percentage defense (33.9) and defensive rebounds (23.1). In league games, WKU is also at the bottom of the 3-point percentage category (26.6).

In the first meeting of the season between the two schools, Givens and Elgedawy both posted double-doubles as WKU scored 29 fourth-quarter points en route to a 74-65 win at the Cam Henderson Center on January 25.

Givens, who had 18 points in the game's first 14 and a half minutes, finished with 24 and 11 rebounds to go with three steals. Elgedawy netted 19 points and 13 boards to lead a Hilltopper rebounding effort that outpaced the home team by 15 (44-29). Creech added 15 points and seven assists, while Meral Abdelgawad tallied 12 points and three steals.

Marshall received 18 points and a team-high seven rebounds from Taylor Pearson and Kristen Mayo added 17 points. Princess Clemons had a good all-around game with a season-high 10 points, four rebounds, four assists and four steals.

Last Time Out: Feb. 15 vs. UTEP (W, 76-66)
Marshall's women's basketball team shot 55.1 percent from the field and made 11 3-pointers en route to a 76-66 home win over UTEP Saturday afternoon in the Cam Henderson Center. The game was the Thundering Herd's #Play4Kay contest, an initiative designed to raise awareness for the Kay Yow Cancer Fund.

Marshall, winners of four of its last five, improved to 11-13 overall and 6-7 in Conference USA. UTEP dropped its sixth consecutive game in Huntington to fall to 13-11 and 6-7 in the league.

The Thundering Herd put four players in double figures, led by Kristen Mayo with 17 points. Savannah Wheeler (16), Taylor Pearson (14) and Khadaijia Brooks (12) all reached that mark as well, with Wheeler collecting five assists. Princess Clemons posted a team-high seven rebounds and Kia Sivils had a season-high five steals in nine first-half minutes.

UTEP received 21 points and a game-high eight rebounds from Ariona Gill (9-for-11 at the free throw line), while Katia Gallegos had 12 points and five assists and Katarina Zec posted 12 points too. Zec got her output on 13 field goal attempts and was hounded on the perimeter for much of the day by Marshall's Mayo.

The Thundering Herd jumped out to a 15-9 lead after one quarter and held a 31-28 advantage at the half. The game's defining run came in the third quarter as Marshall pieced together an 18-7 run and grabbed a 13-point edge (52-39) on a Brooks triple with 52 seconds left in the quarter. The lead grew to as many as 16 three times in the final stanza, the last on a Pearson layup with 2:45 left to go up 73-57.

UTEP did manage to have its way on the glass, outrebounding the Thundering Herd 35-27, including an 18-6 edge on the offensive end. That led to an 18-4 margin on second chance points for the visitors.

"That's a good win," said Marshall head coach Tony Kemper. "I'm proud of the quick turnaround we had. UTEP's a team that is difficult to handle on both ends of the floor. I knew they would give us a bunch of different press looks. On the offensive end, they cut really hard and are long at all spots. We knew they were going to get it inside and I thought we weathered that storm. This is the right time to start playing better, but we still have room to improve, starting with a tremendous challenge on Thursday."

Wheeler Named C-USA Freshman of the Week
Freshman Savannah Wheeler was named Conference USA Freshman of the Week, the league office announced Feb. 17.

Wheeler provided a spark for the Thundering Herd as it blew past UTSA and UTEP at home. She averaged 14.5 points, three rebounds and three assists, and shined at the perimeter with a 6-for-11 clip. She racked up 13 points with three treys and four rebounds against the Roadrunners, followed by a 16-point effort when Marshall hosted UTEP. Wheeler went 5-of-10 from the floor versus the Miners, knocking down three more long-range shots with five assists and two rebounds. In both contests, Wheeler combined for 5-of-6 attempts from the charity stripe as she resides in 42nd nationally in free throw percentage (83.8) and 52nd in free throws made (98).

Hot Shooting
Marshall's 55.1 percent field goal shooting (27-for-49) in the 76-66 win over UTEP was the highest figure for the program since registering a 56.8 percent clip in an 82-78 loss to Southern Miss on February 2, 2017.

66+
The Thundering Herd is 9-1 this season when reaching the 66-point mark. The lone loss was an 82-69 setback to Bowling Green on December 7.

Princess Pours in the Points
Princess Clemons has averaged 8.7 points since entering the starting lineup for Marshall's last seven games, a clip that is up from 3.3 in her first 17 games this season.

Making Them Count
Marshall has had a higher free throw percentage than the opposition in its last 12 games. That's nothing new for the Thundering Herd. Last season, Marshall had a 13-game streak of free throw percentage equal to, or better, than its opponents (January 19 to March 13). In these last 12 games, the Herd has connected on 76.5 percent (173-for-226) compared to 60.3 percent (140-for-232) for its opponents. Against UTSA, the Herd made all 17 of its attempts, a number that is tied for fourth nationally among those schools who have posted a perfect single-game percentage. The last time the Thundering Herd made more in a game without a miss was February 6, 2016 when it went 18-for-18 in an 80-76 win ... at UTSA. For the season, Marshall ranks second in C-USA games at 75.8 percent (182-for-240).

Pearson's Resurgence
Marshall's Taylor Pearson has averaged 14.2 points over her last 10 games. That figure is up from her 4.7 per game clip over the previous six games. The Columbus, Ohio native has also made 15 of her last 16 at the charity stripe. On the season, she is second in the league in 3-point percentage (39.8 percent).

Season/Career-Highs
Taylor Pearson set a new career-high with two blocks in the 76-66 win over UTEP, while Kia Sivils tied a career-best with five steals. Khadaijia Brooks tied a season-high with four assists.

Wheeler Attacks
Since entering the starting lineup at North Texas on January 4, Savannah Wheeler has gotten to the free throw line 79 times in those last 12 games (6.6 per game), making 67 for 84.8 percent. In her previous 12 games, she got to the charity stripe just 38 times (3.2 per contest).

Leading and Leading Late
Marshall is 11-1 this season when leading at the half and 10-1 when leading with five minutes left in regulation. Since the beginning of last season, the Thundering Herd is 24-6 when leading at the break and 24-3 when leading at the five-minute mark.

Hitting the Glass, Controlling the Paint
The Thundering Herd is 14-5 since the start of last season when it outrebounds the opposition and 17-5 when it scores more in the paint.

Block Party
Senior Ashley Saintigene has returned to the Herd lineup with a vengeance this season on the defensive side. The senior has swatted 45 shots in 16 games to start the year. She has had two or more in 14 contests. Her season-high thus far is five in a win over Coppin State (11/19).

The Lauderdale Lakes, Fla., native is fourth all-time in program history in blocked shots with 126 and her 45 this season puts her sixth in Marshall's single-season records. She became the seventh player to hit the century mark with her third and final block at Evansville. Saintigene had an excellent start to her career with 42 blocks (1.45 per game) in her freshman season, seventh-most in Marshall history. She tallied just 22 her sophomore season as she only played in 12 games (1.83 per game) after suffering an injury. Saintigene came back to the Herd briefly in 2018-19 playing in just nine games before re-aggravating the injury, but still came away with 17 more swats (1.89 per game). The Herd record for most in a season is 117 by Sharon Deal in 1988-89. Deal averaged 4.2 per game which is still a Southern Conference record. Deal is also Marshall's all-time leader with 188 in a career that spanned just two seasons (1987-89).

Marshall's Single-Season Blocks Leaders
1. 117 - Sharon Deal - 1988-89
2. 71 - Sharon Deal - 1987-88
3. 54 - Chelsey Romero - 2013-14
    54 - Talequia Hamilton - 2016-17
5. 49 - Tynikki Crook - 2008-09
6. 45 - Ashley Saintigene - 2019-20
7. 43 - Talequia Hamilton - 2017-18
8. 42 - Ashley Saintigene - 2016-17
9. 40 - Modupe Ishola - 2006-07
    40 - Tynikki Crook - 2009-10
    40 - Leandra King - 2012-13
    40 - Chukwuka Ezeigbo - 2013-14

Marshall's Career Blocks Leaders
1. 188 - Sharon Deal (1987-89)
2. 153 - Tynikki Crook (2007-11)
3. 135 - Talequia Hamilton (2015-18)
4. 126 - Ashley Saintigene (2016-Present)
5. 119 - Modupe Ishola (2003-07)
    119 - Chelsey Romero (2013-16)
7. 115 - Chukwuka Ezeigbo (2011-15)
8. 91 - Chris McClurkin (1984-88)
9. 87 - Lisa Pruner (1980-84)
10. 72 - Khadaijia Brooks (2015-Present)

Marshall's Career Field Goal Percentage Leaders (min. 200 attempts)
1. Modupe Ishola (57.4, 448-781), 2003-07
2. Chukwuka Eziegbo (55.4, 357-644), 2011-15
3. Kim Shepherd (52.2, 190-364), 1983-1985
4. Talequia Hamilton (50.9, 416-818), 2015-18
5. Chris McClurkin (50.8, 291-573), 1984-88
6. Tammy Simms (50.7, 292-576), 1986-88
7. Karen Pelphrey (50.5, 1175-2328), 1982-86
8. Ashley Saintigene (50.2, 160-319), 2016-Present
9. Kristina Behnfeldt (49.5, 664-1341), 1995-99
10. Jenette Reed (49.2, 126-256), 1989-93

Marshall's Career Free Throw Percentage Leaders (min. 100 attempts)
1. Savannah Wheeler (83.8, 98-117), 2019-Present
2. Taylor Porter (83.7, 144-172), 2015-19
3. Kristina Behnfeldt (82.0, 728-888), 1995-99
4. Shayna Gore (81.2, 336-411), 2015-19
5. Jenny Leavitt (80.7, 205-254), 1985-89
6. Lee Ann Parsley (79.5, 263-331), 1986-90
7. Reshundra Smiley (79.4, 85-107), 2004-06
8. Kristen Mayo (78.9, 112-142), 2017-Present
9. Karen Pelphrey (78.4, 396-505), 1982-86
10. Kim Lewis (77.8, 161-207), 1984-88

Ranked in the NCAA
Marshall is ranked in the top 100 in the NCAA in several categories.

34th in field goal percentage defense - 36.3%
40th in 3-point field goals per game - 7.8
42nd in blocks per game - 4.5
49th in fewest turnovers - 340
53rd in total blocks - 107
59th in 3-point field goals made - 186
69th in fewest turnovers per game - 14.2
95th in rebounds per game - 39.5
Savannah Wheeler is 42nd in free throw percentage (83.8)
Ashley Saintigene is 48th in total blocks (45)
Savannah Wheeler is 52nd in free throws made (98)
Savannah Wheeler is 100th in free throw attempts (117)

Notable Active Herd Streaks: (last game without stat in parentheses)
Taylor Pearson 57-straight games with a rebound (2/17/18 at WKU)
Khadaijia Brooks 48-straight games with a point (12/4/18 at Wisconsin)
Taylor Pearson 46-straight games with a point (12/4/18 at Wisconsin)
Kristen Mayo 45-straight games with a point (12/18/18 at Clemson)
Khadaijia Brooks 39-straight starts (1/17/19 at FAU)

Stingy
Marshall allowed just one steal to Louisiana Tech in Saturday's loss in Ruston. That's the fewest for a Marshall opponent since Charlotte also had just one in a 71-66 victory over the Thundering Herd in the first round of the 2017 Conference USA Tournament.

20+
When Wheeler and Mayo both got to the 20-point plateau against Florida Atlantic, it marked the first time since last season's regular-season-finale romp over FIU (3/7/19) that Marshall had two players secure that achievement. In that game, Taylor Porter connected on a school-record 10 3-pointers for 30 points and Shayna Gore added 29.

Getting Offensive
Marshall's 18 offensive rebounds against FIU were the most for the program in a league game since grabbing 19 in a 72-54 loss to Louisiana Tech on February 4, 2017.

Defensive Struggle
The 98 combined points between Charlotte and Marshall on January 16 were the fewest in a Thundering Herd game since February 7, 2015 when North Texas edged Marshall 45-42 in Denton.

Up Next
Marshall returns to Huntington to face first-place Old Dominion on Saturday at 3 p.m.

For all of the latest information on the Marshall women's basketball team, follow the Herd on Twitter @HerdWBB, Facebook at Marshall University Basketball and on www.herdzone.com.

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Players Mentioned

Khadaijia Brooks

Princess Clemons

Shayna Gore

Kristen Mayo

Taylor Pearson

Taylor Porter

Ashley Saintigene

Kia Sivils

Savannah Wheeler

Marshall University Athletics